Larry David is back for another season of hilariously awkward situations in the eleventh season of HBO’s hit comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm. As the new season opens, Larry wakes up to discover that an intruder has burglarized his home, only to fall in his pool and drown on his way out. It turns out that the city of Santa Monica has a city ordinance requiring a five-foot fence surrounding all pools, something that was missing at Larry’s property. Larry soon finds himself being extorted by the victim’s brother, restaurant owner Marcos (Marques Ray, Dr. Ken), who threatens to sue Larry unless he casts his aspiring actress daughter, Maria Sofia (Keyla Monterroso Mejia), in his new Young Larry series for Netflix. However, when Larry discovers that Maria Sofia has no acting talent at all, he desperately searches for a way to get out of this situation, including seducing City Councilwoman Irma Kostroski (Tracey Ullman), a woman he despises, in hopes that he can get her to repeal the fence ordinance.
Larry has a knack for constantly putting his foot in his mouth, inadvertently insulting people as he speaks unfiltered about what’s on his mind. I may be in the minority, but I often agree with the things he complains about, getting just as frustrated as his character when people twist his words and make like he is in the wrong. Though I must admit that he does also do some despicable things. This season finds Larry becoming obsessed with a broken toilet seat, outing a COVID hoarder, faking a love of dogs in order to win over an actor, upsetting a sushi restaurant owner, sharing secrets with a date which leads to some unfortunate consequences, dealing with a tiny, frail female chauffer and an overweight roofer in the same day, visiting a chiropractor (Josh Gad) with some ratty underwear, stealing some shoes from a Holocaust exhibit, and more. Meanwhile, Larry is not the only one with craziness in his life. His houseguest Leon (JB Smoove) constantly auditions replacement women named Mary Ferguson to take on his expensive trip to Asia after he breaks up with his girlfriend of the same name. Also, Larry must help best friend/manager Jeff (Jeff Garlin) deal with an indiscretion with a dental hygienist, as well as the aftermath and his suspicious wife Susie (Susie Essman).
Every year, the series has an amazing array of guest stars, with many actors playing heightened versions of themselves. This season includes appearances from Albert Brooks, Jon Hamm, Lucy Liu, Dylan O’Brien, Ted Danson, Woody Harrelson, Seth Rogen, Richard Lewis, and more. As well as guest appearances by Vince Vaughn, Patton Oswalt, Kaley Cuoco, Julie Bowen, Rob Morrow, John Pirruccello, Reid Scott and other recognizable faces playing the various people Larry encounters (and often insults) over the course of the season. The major new additions this season are Tracey Ullman as City Councilwoman Irma Kostroski and Keyla Monterroso Mejia as the atrocious aspiring actress Maria Sofia. Both of these women really steal their scenes. Ullman proves she is still a master, really playing off the homeliness and unapologetic nature of her character, and Mejia is so good at acting so badly. She had me constantly cringing and laughing at the same time.
The series has this unique blend of scripted and improvised lines which help the show feel natural and spontaneous while also progressing a storyline. Each season is like its own self-contained story arc, which makes for a great binge. Each episode usually ends with some awkward reveal, which leads right into the next episode. You start watching one episode and suddenly you’ve watched five. This series is so funny and addicting. I had watched the season when it first aired on HBO, but found myself instantly sucked in all over again as soon as I popped in the first disc. The writing and situations are so witty and crazy, and feature lots of hilariously awkward twists and turns. I often found myself equally frustrated by Larry as well as by how other people react to his antics.
Like the past seasons, Warner Bros. has only released this eleventh season of Curb Your Enthusiasm on DVD, despite the fact the the series airs in HD on HBO. (Though it is also available for purchase digitally in HD.) The DVD picture quality is generally clean and quite good, and I never found it lacking or distracting. However, it is missing that little bit of extra clarity and detail that you get in the original HD presentation. The audio track provides clear dialogue, and showcases the show’s iconic whimsical score. The series is more dialogue driven, so there isn’t really a constant immersive feeling to the audio, though it is present at times.
The eleventh season’s 10 episodes are evenly split across 2 discs. The discs are placed in a tray and right side of a standard-size DVD case, which is placed inside a cardboard slipcover. There is no digital copy or bonus material included.
What’s Included:
- Episodes: (6:13:54)
- All 10 episodes of the eleventh season:
Disc 1 (3:09:47): “The Five-Foot Fence”, “Angel Muffin”, “The Mini Bar”, “The Watermelon”, “IRASSHAIMASE!”
Disc 2 (3:04:07): “Man Fights Tiny Woman”, “Irma Kostroski”, “What Have I Done?”, “Igor, Gregor, & Timor”, “The Mormon Advantage” - 480i / Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
- Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital
- Subtitles: English SDH
Extras:
-
There is no bonus material included on this release.
Final Thoughts:
In its eleventh season, Curb Your Enthusiasm continues to feel fresh and hilarious, making you cringe as much as laugh. This season brings two hilarious actresses into the mix, while also featuring a star-studded cast of guest stars, playing both heightened versions of themselves as well as other characters. Like previous seasons, the season has only received a DVD for a physical release, and includes no bonus material. However, the audio/video presentation is still quite solid, and worth picking up for fans of the series. The season is also available for purchase digitally. I can attest to the rewatchability of the season as I enjoyed it just as much the second time around via this DVD release.
