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“The Finale”
Seinfeld episode
The 'New York four' are led into prison at the end of "The Finale".
Episode no.	Season 9 Episode 179-180
Written by	Larry David Jerry Seinfeld
Directed by	Andy Ackerman
Guest stars	See Guest stars below
Original airdate	May 14, 1998
Season 9 episodes
Seinfeld - Season 9 September 1997 - May 1998
The Butter Shave The Voice The Serenity Now The Blood The Junk Mail The Merv Griffin Show The Slicer The Betrayal The Apology The Strike The Dealership The Reverse Peephole The Cartoon The Strong Box The Wizard The Burning The Bookstore The Frogger The Maid The Puerto Rican Day The Clip Show, Part 1 The Clip Show, Part 2 The Finale, Part 1 The Finale, Part 2
List of Seinfeld episodes

"The Finale" is the name given to the final two episodes of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. It aired on May 14, 1998 to an audience of 76 million viewers.

The working title for this show was "A Tough Nut To Crack" to throw off outsiders about the contents of the episode.^{[citation needed]}

After finally striking a deal with NBC over their sitcom pilot, Jerry, Jerry and George are faced with having to leave New York City for California. Before doing so, they decide to take NBC's private jet to Paris with Elaine and Kramer, for one "last hurrah". Unfortunately, Kramer causes engine troubles by hopping up and down on the plane while trying to get water out of his ears, nearly killing the four friends in a crash. Upon what looks to be their final moments of life, George reveals he cheated in "The Contest", and Elaine tells Jerry "I've always loved you", but the pilot manages to steady the plane, so Elaine awkwardly finishes her comment by adding "-nited Airlines." They make an emergency landing in the small, fictional town of Latham, Massachusetts.

While killing time in Latham, waiting for the plane to be repaired, they witness an overweight man getting carjacked at gunpoint. Instead of helping him, they crack jokes about his size while Kramer films it all on his camcorder, then they proceed to walk away. The victim notices this, and tells the reporting officer. The four main characters are then taken into custody for violating the Good Samaritan law that requires bystanders to help out in such a situation.

A lengthy trial ensues, bringing back many characters from past shows as character witnesses testifying against the group for their "selfish" acts from throughout the series. The Virgin, the low-talker, the Bubble Boy, Babu Bhatt, the Soup Nazi, George Steinbrenner, Susan Ross' doctor from the night she died, the overweight man who was carjacked, and several others are called to the witness stand, among many more enemies and acquaintances. Attorney Jackie Chiles defends them with the defense that the witnesses are just trying to settle scores with the four and are really exaggerating, that the four did not want to get shot by the criminal, and even George's mother tries to get them released by offering to have sex with the judge. The four are found guilty, and sentenced to a year in prison, with Judge Arthur Vandelay (Art Vandelay - George's fictitious alter ego) proclaiming: "I can think of nothing more fitting than for the four of you to spend a year removed from society so that you can contemplate the manner in which you have conducted yourselves. I know I will."

In the final scene before the credits, the four main characters sit in a jail cell - strangely unfazed by what has just happened to them, still concerned mostly with the minutiae that preoccupied them beforehand. Jerry begins a conversation about George's shirt buttons, using lines from the very first episode of the series ("The second button is the key button. It literally makes or breaks the shirt..."). George then wonders if they have had that conversation before. Also, Kramer is ecstatic about finally getting the water out of both his ears, which was the real cause of the near plane crash accident in the first place. Elaine still cannot believe they are in prison, but Jerry tells her they can get out on parole in six to seven months, which is the amount they will have to pay on the apartment, and he will attempt to have Jerry picked up again.

In a last bit of comedy during the credits, Jerry is seen wearing an orange jumpsuit, performing a stand-up routine of prison-related jokes to an audience of fellow prisoners (including Kramer and George). "So what is the deal with the yard? I mean when I was a kid my mother wanted me to play in the yard. But of course she didn't have to worry about my next door neighbor Tommy sticking a shiv in my thigh." No one is laughing, except for Kramer. He is eventually threatened by a heckler/fellow prisoner (voiced by Larry David). The final line of the series is Jerry, being yanked off stage, saying "Hey, you've been great, I'll see you in the cafeteria!" while the crowd boos him.

• Newman: All right, but hear me and hear me well. The day will come - oh, yes, mark my words, Seinfeld - your day of reckoning is coming, when an evil wind will blow through your little play world and wipe that smug smile off your face! And I will be there, in all my glory, watching, watching as it all comes crumbling down!

• Prosecutor: State your name please.
  Soup Nazi: Yev Kasem.
  Prosecutor: Could you spell that?
  Soup Nazi: NO! Next question.

• Prosecutor: How long was his book overdue?
  Mr. Bookman: 25 years. We don't call them delinquents after that long.
  Prosecutor: What do you call them?
  Mr. Bookman: Criminals.

• Elaine: [before she is taken to prison] Puddy! Don't wait for me!
  David Puddy: [nonchalantly] Alright.

• Elaine: His soup wasn't that great anyway.
  Soup Nazi: WHAT DID YOU SAY?!

• Jackie Chiles (leaving with Sidra after the trial is over): Oh, and Mr. Seinfeld, they're real....and they're spectacular!

• Jerry: You've been great! See you in the cafeteria. (The last line of the series)

The finale of Seinfeld was criticized by many for being vindictive towards the characters - who are shown to be amoral, selfish misanthropes - and, by extension, towards the audience who tuned in to watch them every week. Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker seemed to echo the majority sentiment in declaring the episode "off-key and bloated...Ultimately, Seinfeld and David's kiss-off to their fans was a loud, hearty, 'So long, suckers!'"^[1] Others valued it for the large number of cameo appearances from past episodes, as well as the perceived in-joke of the four characters being convicted and imprisoned on the charge that they did nothing, a play on the "show about nothing" mantra. One way or the other, the 1998 episode made TV history as the third most watched finale of a U.S. television series ever, behind only M*A*S*H in 1983, and Cheers in 1993.

1. ^ "So long, suckers!". )