IR Greatest TV Show Tournament: (1) Seinfeld vs (16) Friday Night Lights

[Izulde]

And here we are, set to kick off the FOFC Izuldean Rules Greatest TV Show Tournament! We begin with a 1 vs. 16 matchup, tournament favorite Seinfeld against the plucky upstarts, Friday Night Lights. This one looks to be a blowout in favor of Seinfeld, but Friday Night Lights could make a respectable showing for itself.

Tale of the Tape
Seinfeld ran for 9 seasons on NBC from 1989-1999 and won the 1993 Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series, the 1994 Golden Globe for Best TV Series - Comedy and the 1995, 1997, and 1998 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.

Friday Night Lights, another NBC program, will start its fourth season on April 30th, 2010 and it has been confirmed that its fifth season will be its last (as per Wikipedia). In 2007, the show won the Peabody for Broadcast Excellence, the Television Critics Association Award for Outstanding New Program and the Emmy for Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series. The episode titled "Tomorrow Blues" won the 2009 Humanitas Prize in the 60 minute category.

[Izulde]

Oh, and I'd also like to point out that Friday Night Lights actually scored first.

[Big Fo]

Not a tough choice for me, Seinfeld is one of my all-time favorites and I've never watched an episode of Friday Night Lights.

[RainMaker]

Two of my top 5 shows ever meeting in the first round. Love Seinfeld but I think FNL is the greatest TV drama that has ever been made.

[Greyroofoo]

Probably the easiest one to decide.

[SirFozzie]

hate seinfeld with the passion of a thousand burning suns. Easy call.

[CrimsonFox]

I don't like boxing matches. Seinfeld it is

[Lathum]

Is this the only match up right now?

[Izulde]

Originally Posted by Lathum

Is this the only match up right now?

Yeah, I'm going to take the suggestion to release one poll a day, so this one will still be ongoing (but be considered officially closed earlier than the date listed because I screwed the date up), but I'll release the second one tomorrow, the third one Monday, fourth one Tuesday and so on.

But I'll make sure to not have more than four polls active at once.

[Lathum]

hmm, seems like that will take an awfully long time

[Greyroofoo]

Only about 2 months!

[CrimsonFox]

...not that there's anything wrong with that!

[mauchow]

I thought one poll would take care of multiple matchups...

This will take a while.

[Izulde]

Originally Posted by mauboy1

I thought one poll would take care of multiple matchups...

This will take a while.

....That's an excellent idea. Thanks for the suggestion!

[jbergey22]

Seinfeld it is. FNL is underrated but I can still watch Seinfeld re-runs and enjoy them.

[Peregrine]

I like FNL as much as anyone but this is no match at all.

[Drake]

I've seen exactly two episodes of FNL, so this was an easy pick for me.

[larrymcg421]

FNL did have a mostly awful 2nd season, but I'm just not a fan of shows that are self contained. I prefer continuing stories because it all adds up to a much better experience. Seinfeld had some hilarious moments, but the overall experience of FNL is better.

[sterlingice]

Izulde, you could do something like the NCAA tourney has multiple games going at the same time but rarely the same seeds. Maybe pick one from each region but don't do all 1/16s then 2/15s, etc. Have a 1/16 but another region's 8/9 and yet another 3/14 and 6/11. Mix it up to make it more interesting

Just have 4 different threads going at once. Not sure how the logistics work with 4 games in 1 thread.

As for the matchup, have never watched an episode of FNL and don't like Seinfeld so I abstain (courteously).

SI

[lcjjdnh]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

FNL did have a mostly awful 2nd season, but I'm just not a fan of shows that are self contained. I prefer continuing stories because it all adds up to a much better experience. Seinfeld had some hilarious moments, but the overall experience of FNL is better.

Obviously, it's not as detailed a story as FNL, but Seinfeld actually had a number of season-long story lines. I think syndication has sort of hurt it in a way, because you tend to forget it wasn't entirely self-contained.

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by lcjjdnh

Obviously, it's not as detailed a story as FNL, but Seinfeld actually had a number of season-long story lines. I think syndication has sort of hurt it in a way, because you tend to forget it wasn't entirely self-contained.

Maybe not entirely. They certainly had lots of call backs and characters would show up for several episodes in a row. But it certainly wasn't on the same level as modern sitcoms like The Office.

[Pyser]

i think this would be closer if more people have seen fnl, but also if anyone but directv people have seen fnl s4, which was mindblowing

i take fnl

[Dr. Sak]

Easy pick, FNL.

[Groundhog]

Never heard of FNL.

[CrimsonFox]

Whoa! Connie Britton! She was the best girl in Spin City for me! And glad Janine Turner got more work. Always loved her in NOrthern Exposure.
That said I really doubt I'd like this. High school small town drama, no thanks. I lived it. Don't need to see it.

[Sun Tzu]

Yo Yo Ma.

[Suburban Rhythm]

Never watched a full episode of either.

Seinfeld was just annoying. And I've always wanted to see a 16 seed beat a 1 seed.

[Terps]

No upset happening here... Seinfeld wins with it's 3rd stringers.

[DaddyTorgo]

Seinfeld's humongously overrated IMO

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Seinfeld's humongously overrated IMO

No soup for you!

[Kodos]

DaddyTorgo is a very, very, very bad man.

[DaddyTorgo]

i mean sure...jerry is funny...i just like my tv shows with a bit more...plot i guess. then again i'm the kind of guy who likes more plot in everything.

[Radii]

If Seinfeld can only win its first round matchup 75/25 maybe this may be more wide open than I originally thought(I assumed that a simpsons/seinfeld clash was near inevitable). I know there are a couple big Seinfeld detractors here but I really expected this to be 110-5 or something. Interesting.

[CrimsonFox]

I excited that 117 people so far have voted. That's really cool and will make this more meaningful

[Izulde]

So far it's 77-23, which I think is more a reflection of FNL being arguably the top 16 seed than any real weakness on Seinfeld's part (much to my annoyance, as I'm one of the Seinfeld detractors)

[BreizhManu]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Seinfeld's humongously overrated IMO

I just finished watching the whole 9 seasons on DVD and must agree with that.

Still the show was good and while I really like FNL I think Seinfeld deserves the win here.

[Ronnie Dobbs2]

I think Seinfeld is properly rated. It was a huge influence on many of best sitcoms that followed it and did a lot to shape my comic sensibilities.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Pyser

i think this would be closer if more people have seen fnl, but also if anyone but directv people have seen fnl s4, which was mindblowing

i take fnl

If more people had seen FNL, it wouldn't be the 16th seed.

The sad thing about FNL is that a lot of people toss it aside as just some high school drama. It's nothing like that. It's about small town America and the stories are done in such a realistic way that it's captivating. They touch on real issues.

Might not seem like a good comparision, but if you liked The Wire, you will probably like FNL. The shows are done in a similar way and try to capture a bigger picture than what the summary would suspect. In fact, a few actors from The Wire have moved to FNL.

All I'll say is that if you like good dramas, liked The Wire, give the first 10 episodes of Season 1 a try. You can find them online, on DVD for practically nothing, or streaming through Netflix. There is not a person I've told about this show who went out and watched it that didn't love it.

'Friday Night Lights': A series worth cheering about - Los Angeles Times

[JimboJ]

Should it be a requirement that you have seen at least one episode of both shows before you're allowed to vote? I love Seinfeld, but I've never seen FNL, so I'm not voting. How can I tell which is the better show if I've never seen one of them?

I'm just wondering how many votes Seinfeld got just because no one has seen the other show.

[CrimsonFox]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Dobbs2

I think Seinfeld is properly rated. It was a huge influence on many of best sitcoms that followed it and did a lot to shape my comic sensibilities.

Agreed. Seinfeld is one of the most brilliant sitcoms ever and definitely of its time. It never claimed to be more than it was, a comedy and they had one purpose with it, the joke. Everything was about the joke or the gag. THey had a couple rules when writing it from beginning to end: No one will ever learn anything. There will not be any character growth. And Jerry and Elaine will not get back together. These horrible people will stay horrible people.
Quite a unique way of looking at things and definitely a spot on observation of our sensibilities in the 90s, as selfish and selfcentered as everyone became. Their observations of the minutia of life and how funny it all is even in its complaints is just hilarious. Granted like any comedy, once you've seen it, the magic is gone until you forget it and go back to it a few years later. I go through Seinfeld phases. HAve to put it down after awhile so that it can be funny again.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Dobbs2

I think Seinfeld is properly rated. It was a huge influence on many of best sitcoms that followed it and did a lot to shape my comic sensibilities.

I think the true sign of its greatness is it's lasting appeal. Ten years later and it's still funnier than anything we've seen on TV. It's also a show I can watch over and over and not get sick of.

[Greyroofoo]

Originally Posted by JimboJ

Should it be a requirement that you have seen at least one episode of both shows before you're allowed to vote? I love Seinfeld, but I've never seen FNL, so I'm not voting. How can I tell which is the better show if I've never seen one of them?

I'm just wondering how many votes Seinfeld got just because no one has seen the other show.

If the people at the Acedemy Awards are allowed to vote without seeing every movie, then I feel I shouldn't have to either.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by JimboJ

Should it be a requirement that you have seen at least one episode of both shows before you're allowed to vote? I love Seinfeld, but I've never seen FNL, so I'm not voting. How can I tell which is the better show if I've never seen one of them?

I'm just wondering how many votes Seinfeld got just because no one has seen the other show.

If we had that requirement, I suspect most of these polls would have many less votes.

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I think the true sign of its greatness is it's lasting appeal. Ten years later and it's still funnier than anything we've seen on TV. It's also a show I can watch over and over and not get sick of.

Agreed. I'll sit down and watch Seinfeld almost every night with/before dinner and still enjoy it as much as when I first saw it.

[Bad-example]

One of the most overrated shows of all time = Seinfeld. The only way Seinfeld gets my vote is if the other choice is Curb Your Enthusiasm.

[ntndeacon]

I would even vote the Wire over Seinfeld. Seinfeld is complete and utter Dreck

[Karlifornia]

I find it astonishing that Seinfeld was ever the highest rated TV show in America, considering the complete lack of taste Americans have.

[Kodos]

I love how they get pissed off about the smallest slight, but when George's wife dies, they're all like "That's a shame. Wanna go for coffee?"

Seinfeld is second only to the Simpsons on my all-time comedy list.

[Rizon]

Shocked it's so close.

[sterlingice]

Well, a couple of things
1) It's a football board so FNL might get a boost there
2) Seinfeld has high positives but it also has high negatives. You'll have some people who really vote hard for it but you'll also have people who will turn out just to vote against it
3) C'mon, it's still pretty much 80-20. Seinfeld just let up in the 4th quarter and the backups gave up some points

SI

[Rizon]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Well, a couple of things
1) It's a football board so FNL might get a boost there
2) Seinfeld has high positives but it also has high negatives. You'll have some people who really vote hard for it but you'll also have people who will turn out just to vote against it
3) C'mon, it's still pretty much 80-20. Seinfeld just let up in the 4th quarter and the backups gave up some points

SI

My high school had to play games on a Saturday afternoon because there was too much crime playing games at night. So I just can't relate to friday night lights. Maybe Saturday Afternoon Sun.