Curb Your Enthusiasm “The Grand Opening”

There’s a moment in this episode where Cheryl, having an emergency, exits Larry’s car in the middle of a car wash.  I’d say it was the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to Cheryl Hines, but she is married to RFK Jr, and that guy is kinda weird.

Actually, I think Larry won one for this one despite his own best efforts.  Besides, for once, Susie is mad at a different member of the David family instead of Larry because of a series of lunch date cancellations between Susie and Cheryl.

No, Larry keeps causing problems.  He finds the chef for his restaurant, a guy Larry hired because he was bald and proud, walking around with a toupee.  It’s not even a good toupee, and Jeff is not helping much because Jeff is never helping much, but Susie apparently let him come back after the last episode.

Then Larry gets involved in a parent/child dodgeball game with the food critic that will make or break the restaurant.  He gets a little aggressive, as does the critic, and he breaks the other man’s trademark thumbs, but the critic does recommend a new chef that Larry thinks is a Holocaust survivor.  He’s not.  He wrote lottery numbers on his arm in ink, and he has Tourette Syndrome.  That’s a problem for a restaurant with an open kitchen if the guy suddenly starts swearing during the dinner rush.

But then, Larry comes through.  Larry is a real pro.  He’s a hero, even!  Inspired by kids he saw earlier in the episode that shaved their heads in solidarity for a cancer patient classmate, when the chef starts swearing on opening night in front of a lot of the reoccurring characters that may or may not be playing fictional versions of themselves, Larry sees his chance and starts swearing himself.  Then Jeff does.  Then the other investors.  Then Cheryl.  And then Cheryl’s dad, and then the other customers, and everyone seems to be enjoying just cussing.

Michael York, by the way, is a very classy guy even when he swears.  Why do I suspect Larry David, the real Larry David, got the guy just to get him to swear in the season finale?  I mean, he’s kind of an odd choice to be here otherwise.

So yes, the day was saved for everyone by swearing.

Well, except for Cheryl because she let hers loose just as Susie was showing up and Susie got mad and left.  But hey, I’m sure they’ll patch everything up in time for season four.