#9: Better Left Unsaid

The SEINFELD episode the “The Contest” was definitely one of the most original episodes of the entire series and one that shocked the television world. “The Contest” was the first of its kind to deal with such an uncomfortable topic as masturbation on national T.V. and many factors contributed to the shows success.
The first factor was the language this episode used and also the language this episode chose not to use. The shows main plot was centered on masturbation; however, the cast never once mentioned this exact word. Instead, Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer, chose words such as, “King of the Castle” and “Master of your domain” to refer to masturbation as an alternative. The fact that masturbation is never mentioned contributes to the humor of the episode because it creates an inside joke that allows us as the audience to feel included in the humor.
The other factor that contributed to its success was the use of blocking for individual scenes. In order to differentiate between who was still in the contest and who gave in, scenes would be shot showing the cast in bed. The ones who slept peacefully had given up and the ones not able to sleep were still in the contest. This use of blocking gave the audience an idea of what the characters were dealing with in the contest and how it was affecting their daily lives.
The reason the “The Contest” stuck out when it first released was because such a topic and never been discussed before on television. The reason it remains so popular today is the tactics the characters inadvertently use referring to a topic that in today’s world is so frequently used.