Hot on the heels of @TNG_S8, the parody Twitter account posting synopses of the “unaired” eighth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, comes a similarly styled feed about everyone’s favorite show about nothing, Seinfeld. Run by Buzzfeed sports editor Jack Moore with help from comedian Josh Gondelman, @SeinfeldToday answers one simple question: what if Seinfeld was still on the air? Hit the jump for more.
The short answer to the above question is that Seinfeld would be a very different sitcom if it were still running today (although you could also argue that it would still be “a show about nothing”). The @SeinfeldToday feed brilliant captures what many modern episodes would likely be about. As a format, Twitter perfectly replicates the shows old plot summaries for modern times by being succinctly and hilariously vague.
Thinking about these tweets in the context of when the show actually took place is what makes this parody account so effective, but it’s also a little jarring. While the realization that Seinfeld ended its run almost 15 years ago should make everyone feel old, its even more staggering to consider just how different our culture is when it comes to entertainment, technology and communication, and basic norms—the very things that often served as macguffins for the episodes.
Since the first tweet was posted Dec. 9, the account has garnered over 120,000 followers. You can view a couple of my favorite tweets below:
Kramer accidentally restarts the Occupy movement. Jerry's new girlfriend (Emily Mortimer) watches Fox News. George offends a black coworker.
— Modern Seinfeld (@SeinfeldToday) December 11, 2012
Bania steals jokes from Jerry's tweets. George lies on @foursquare to avoid his parents. Kramer leads the less popular #Kony2013 campaign.
— Modern Seinfeld (@SeinfeldToday) December 10, 2012
George thinks his GF is faking a gluten-intolerance, feeds her real cookies, sending her to the ER. Autocorrect ruins Jerry's relationship.
— Modern Seinfeld (@SeinfeldToday) December 10, 2012
Kramer uses Kickstarter to fund a line of dog tasers. "Tasers for dogs to protect themselves. To protect themselves, Jerry! "
— Modern Seinfeld (@SeinfeldToday) December 10, 2012
Thanks to Mashable for the heads-up about this story.