‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Season 12 Review: Old Reliable and Never Better

Babe, wake up — Larry David is back.

Yes, indeed. The new season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” has arrived and get this: it’s pretty good.

HBO’s critically acclaimed, hit TV show “Curb Your Enthusiasm” returned for its 12th (and sadly last) season on Feb. 4. The show, which began in 1999, has wooed audiences with a talented cast, perfect use of situational irony, and hilarious one-liners.

Season 12 starts right where Season 11 left off. Larry is entangled in an endlessly complex web crafted from his poor decisions, as he is forced to cast Maria Sofia Estrada (Keyla Monterroso Mejia) as one of the lead stars for his new hit show “Young Larry.” After Maria was blackmailed by her father over a mishap with a city pool fencing law (trust me, it would take too long to explain, just watch Season 11), Larry finds himself thrust into a new spotlight and trapped in a one-sided relationship with Irma Kostroski (Tracey Ullman), the city councilwoman.

The premiere opens with Larry traveling to Atlanta to attend the birthday party of an influential businessman, Michael Fouchay (Sharlto Copley), a fan of “Young Larry.” While in Atlanta, Larry creates for himself a series of sticky situations that escalate, interconnect, and aggravate all those involved: his interactions with an unenthused hotel maid over his messy hotel room and a 10-dollar bill in the toilet result in Larry’s belongings being thrown out a window. Introducing himself to a guest at a party devolves into a debate about the particularities of nicknames and when someone is privy to use them. Larry’s kind act of offering Auntie Rae (Ellia English) water while she is in a voting line ends in his arrest for violating a specific voting policy law. And this is only the first episode. By the second, Larry finds himself in jail and, after being released, he is lauded for his “heroic” actions by the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Stacey Abrams.

Sure, there are moments within these early episodes where the humor can feel a bit overdone and melodramatic (i.e a scene when furious Larry lashes out at his car’s navigation system, which, as expected, keeps mistranslating his directions), but “Curb Your Enthusiasm” still manages to maintain its unique charm and dominance in the world of sitcoms.

Larry’s comedic prowess truly shines when he is in conversation with the other characters. Leon Black’s (J.B. Smoove) blunt honesty, which he shares with Larry, makes the two such a potent duo. Leon’s fat-shaming tirade against Maria Sofia’s emotional support dog, Pechuca, might not be as high-brow as other jokes in the show, but it’s funny enough that you can skip your next ab workout. Maria Sofia, one of the newest additions to the cast, does a fabulous job portraying and satirizing the new influencer generation of Hollywood — she might not have any real acting talent, but she has a “brand” and that’s good enough.

“Curb Your Enthusiasm” is a show that knows itself well, and its audience even better: it never tries to be anything it’s not and sticks to what works. Yet this is not to say the show has become rote. The show seamlessly navigates the changing cultural climate with grace and confidence, traversing tricky topics of politics, class, and gender through witty and intelligent humor.

Larry voices the opinions that everyone is thinking though aren’t bold enough to say. His authentic, no-filter approach is both entertainment and social commentary. The show’s carefully crafted predicaments beg the question: What kind of society would be created if everyone spoke their minds? And though his out-of-pocket statements might get him into trouble, should they and does telling the truth always end in calamity?

Perhaps what makes “Curb Your Enthusiasm” a show so many keep returning to is its undeniable relatability. Though Larry's experiences are certainly non-universal, the audience can still empathize with his annoyance with social norms as he handles life in the public eye. Watchers can sympathize with the way his good intentions so frequently go awry and also cringe internally (and externally) when they do. Despite being an elderly man (sorry, Larry), viewers attain a sense that Larry is still just trying to figure out life for himself, just as everyone is. As Larry says, “I’ve been expecting more from myself my whole life, and it's just not there.”