I laughed a lot during "Jerry Before Seinfeld."

| Jul 11, 2019

There might not be any earth-shattering revelations about his rise to fame, but there's still enough to excite a comedy super-fan's interest.

| Jul 11, 2019

Seinfeld works the cramped stage of his old haunt with not only the effortless and inevitable confidence of the old pro and cultural touchstone he is, but with an enthusiasm belying any hint of obligation.

| Original Score: B | Jul 11, 2019

Here is a comic performance that's from the ages, and for the ages. It doesn't get any better than this.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Jul 10, 2019

Jerry Seinfeld is as funny and observant as ever in Jerry Before Seinfeld.

| Jul 10, 2019

But repackaged with a new narrative, those same jokes can hold up some 40 years later. Inside The Comic Strip, Jerry Seinfeld can be cool once more.

| Dec 19, 2017

It's wry observation and it is as intensely funny as it is an intense avoidance of anything political or dark.

| Oct 10, 2017

Fans of the man, who arguably invented post-modern observational comedy "about nothing" (and yet about everything), will be delighted by the set-up.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 4, 2017

Truth be told, Seinfeld's ambitions are still admirably humble for having a reputation so massive.

| Sep 22, 2017

It's certainly pleasant, and anyone who is a fan of his will chuckle their way through it. But it's unclear what we're being sold here.

| Sep 20, 2017

It's the best kind of minimalist comedy television. Just a comic, a mic, a stage and an audience.

| Sep 20, 2017

This is watching a craftsman at work.

| Sep 20, 2017

It was such a pleasure to sink down into these jokes with Seinfeld, such a treat to be carried along by such a confident professional. It's rare to be treated this way by any piece of current entertainment; enjoy his achievement here.

| Sep 19, 2017

Jerry Before Seinfeld's structural banter doesn't quite hit the mark. It's almost as if Seinfeld couldn't decide exactly what he wanted this to be. These criticisms not withstanding, Jerry Before Seinfeld shines whenever it lets the comic be a comic.

| Sep 19, 2017

He tends to start with a small idea, then figure out the big idea behind his observation, then figure out the shortest way to communicate the absurdity of that imbalance - the absurdity of putting so much stock into the smallest thing possible.

| Sep 19, 2017

Seinfeld-before-"Seinfeld" fans will especially enjoy this congenial, familiar hour special.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 18, 2017

It's still quintessential Seinfeld, poking fun at cereal and air travel and prepositions, but his set is looser, intimate and more biographical, a rebrand for the podcast age.

| Sep 18, 2017

There's always another bon mot, and the occasional dud humor in Jerry Before Seinfeld in no way detracts from the larger pleasures of watching this peerless comedian pay tribute to his roots.

| Sep 18, 2017