What I’m Watching: Curb Your Enthusiasm

Curb Your Enthusiasm: Season 9, Episode 8 “Never Wait for Seconds!” (B+)

There aren’t many causes where Larry is the one to go to bat for someone else, but a person being able to go right up to get seconds instead of waiting in line all over again is one that’s close to his heart. This episode brought back up a season-long plotline that we haven’t heard about in a bit, which is the fatwa put on Larry’s head. I haven’t watched every season of this show, but it was fun to see Morsi going around to talk to many of the people who have interacted with Larry over the years, taking notes and concluding that much of what Larry has done isn’t all that misaligned with the principles of those who ordered the fatwa. I loved the casting of Navid Negahban, best known for playing terrorist Abu Nazir on “Homeland” and starring in the recent Israeli film “Baba Joon,” as Morsi, and having the members of the council bicker about things like using too much ketchup was entertaining. I’m not sure why Larry was worthy of another chance in Marilyn’s eyes, but these interactions weren’t nearly as unpleasant. I do wish Lauren Graham had a more substantial and interesting role, and it seems this might be the last we see of her on this show now that Larry had the audacity to ask the admissions staff to host his handyman’s family at their pool. The interview didn’t seem to be going all that well even before that, but Larry sure knows how to sabotage a sure thing.