TV Recap: ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm: Palestinian Chicken’

It’s an unspoken law of Curb that Larry’s powers can never be used for good, and any attempt to break that law carries an alarmingy high penalty. I have a soft spot for episodes like this, because more often than not I sympathize with Larry, so I like any episode that suggests it’s Larry who’s sane and there’s cosmological forces conspiring against him.

It’s not any surprise that things such as asking a friend’s wife to stop saying “Lol” instead of laughing or telling Susie to cut out that annoying “Ahhh” after taking a sip backfires. More surprising is that each women immediately suspects that it was her husband who put Larry up to pointing out their flaws. Accurate as their suspicions may be, it’s still not out of character for Larry to say anything (nor out character for anyone wanting to take advantage of his “social assassin” skills), but do women have an ability to distinguish between what’s authentically Larry and what’s not?

But supernaturality aside, “Palestinian Chicken” is a first-rate episode (after two somewhat lackluster installments). Not only do we get to see sex with an anti-semitic beauty (the owner of the Al Abba chicken restaurant who blurts out a stream of insults during coitus, my favorite being, “I want to f*ck the Jew right out of you”) from Larry’s perspective, but we also get it from a now-deeply religious Marty Funkhauser’s perspective as he awkwardly sits downstairs. Added to that is Larry’s habit of singing the theme song to the 1955 Adventures of Robin Hood TV show post sex. Genius.

As is Larry relishing the aforementioned title of Social Assassin, conferred upon him by Jeff; using his also aforementioned powers for their aforementioned purposes; discovering an affair between two parties that could seriously jeopardize his team’s shot at winning the coveted championship of their golf club; and seeing everything go to Hell at the end. And still having time for a back and forth with Jeff over one of the Green’s ultra-fluffy pillows, “You look like Blofeld with that thing.” “I look like Blofeld! I’ve got a kitty!”

And, of course, the chicken restaurant, which, aside from serving a dynamite bird (is it on par with Kenny Rogers Roasters?) is rabidly anti-Zionist, a characteristic Larry cheerfully overlooks once he spots the curvaceous owner (or maybe her identical-twin sister, who apparently has no qualms with joining her sibling in a three-way with a 60+ Jew). It’s also the place where Larry discovers the affair, faces a dramatic showdown with Funkhauser, and is forced to choose sides when it wants to open up a second location across from the sacred Goldblatt’s Deli.

The ending ending is slightly anticlimactic, but this is an episode that’s hilarious all throughout. I thought the opener was weak, and I wanted more from last week’s installment, but, thankfully, Curb’s right back on track. Though three episode’s deep, I’m wondering when Larry will be back in New York, which is supposed to be a major plot arc for this season. Oh yeah, and Sammi Green’s pretty hot now.