Plot
Jerry is on a plane returning to New York when a drunk man, Gavin Polone (played by Joseph Maher), seated next to him falls sick and asks Jerry to take care of his dog while he is taken to the hospital. He promises to call Jerry and reclaim the dog when he comes to New York. The dog, Farfel (although it is frequently heard barking, the dog is never seen), irritates Jerry with its barking and making messes, and Jerry feels as though he does not dare leave his apartment, for fear of what Farfel might do. He resents the animal: "I like dogs. I'm not sure this is a dog."
Jerry, George and Elaine had a date to see the movie Prognosis Negative, but Jerry asks them to go without him.
George and Elaine realize they don't have much in common without Jerry around; they begin to have a good conversation only when they start making fun of Jerry.
Kramer attempts to break up with his girlfriend, Ellen (also unseen), in a melodramatic fashion—and later attempts to get back together in the same fashion. Kramer gets genuinely angry at Jerry and Elaine because, first, they encouraged the break-up, and then they applauded when Kramer fixed it up. This is an important scene for Kramer, who rarely is seen in a lasting relationship and is rarely seen more than a bit perturbed:
Jerry: Yeah, I really think you guys are good together.
Elaine: Yes, she understands you and she is not demanding.
Kramer: Do you think that I forgot what you two said about her?
Jerry: I was just trying to be supportive, you know. I knew you were upset.
Kramer: From now on when we pass each other in the hall, I don't know you, you don't know me.
Elaine: Oh, Kramer, we didn't mean it.
Jerry: Kramer? What did we say that's so bad?
Elaine: I believe I referred to her personality as a potential science exhibit.
Jerry: I said, "How come no one's killed her?" Probably shouldn't have said anything, everyone knows the first break-up never takes.
Jerry, tired of the dog, tries to contact the sick man, but finds out Gavin checked out of the hospital several days ago. Jerry decides to take the dog to the city pound. This upsets Elaine:
Elaine: Jerry, do you know what they do to dogs at the pound? They keep them there for a week and then if nobody claims them, they kill them.
Jerry: Really? How late are they open?
She persuades him to let her stay with the dog for one more day. Gavin finally calls while Elaine is there. Gavin reveals that he was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy, the reason he could not call earlier, and comes for the dog, to Jerry's relief.
Gavin, a true dog-lover, promises Jerry, "Pre-prediction. You'll be calling me to ask if you can come and visit him before the month is out." Jerry replies, "Prediction. I never see you or him again for the rest of my life."
Read more about this topic: The Dog (Seinfeld)
Famous quotes containing the word plot:
“Ends in themselves, my letters plot no change;
They carry nothing dutiable; they won’t
Aspire, astound, establish or estrange.”
—Philip Larkin (1922–1986)
“After I discovered the real life of mothers bore little resemblance to the plot outlined in most of the books and articles I’d read, I started relying on the expert advice of other mothers—especially those with sons a few years older than mine. This great body of knowledge is essentially an oral history, because anyone engaged in motherhood on a daily basis has no time to write an advice book about it.”
—Mary Kay Blakely (20th century)
“The plot was most interesting. It belonged to no particular age, people, or country, and was perhaps the more delightful on that account, as nobody’s previous information could afford the remotest glimmering of what would ever come of it.”
—Charles Dickens (1812–1870)