George Costanza (Jason Alexander) is grumpy, always thinks that he's down on his luck, and loves a good scheme. He's one of the most beloved sitcom characters ever, along with his friends Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), Jerry Seinfeld, and Kramer (Michael Richards). During all nine seasons of Seinfeld, George makes a ton of wild decisions, insults many people, and generally doesn't seem to function very well.
George always makes fans laugh, but his bad behavior got repetitive as season wore on and his character didn't seem to develop at all. Here are 10 ways that George got worse and worse on Seinfeld.
Never Takes Responsibility For Anything
George never takes responsibility for anything and often blames other people when things go wrong. In the season 2 episode "The Busboy," George, Elaine, and Jerry are having dinner at a restaurant when they notice that the next table over is literally on fire. A menu is in flames, but George blames a busboy named Antonio (David Labiosa), which isn't great.
Certain people need to remember to think before they speak, but for George, he just says whatever he wants, and others have to suffer the consequences. In this case, the busboy loses his job, which is a shame. What's worse is that George never learns from this over the course of the show.
Never Gets His Anger Under Control
George yells on his girlfriend Carol's answering machine in the season 2 episode "The Phone Message," which is definitely isn't the right way to behave, and it's a perfect example of how he never gets his anger under control. He just never seems to learn.
George is completely unable to sustain a relationship without messing things up in the early stages by doing something like this. It's almost like if George could do the wrong thing in every single situation, he totally would — which he does for all nine seasons.
Thinks The Bad Things He Does Are No Big Deal
In the season 3 episode "The Red Dot," things seem to be looking up for George because Elaine helps him get hired at Pendant Publishing. Of course, this is George, so nothing good ever lasts, mostly because of his crazy antics and inappropriate behavior.
By this point in the series, George was definitely making poor choices, like when he sleeps with a cleaning woman at the office. Worse, this happens on his desk. She doesn't keep the secret, and when Mr. Lippman asks him about it, George says, " I've worked in a lot of offices and I tell you, people do that all the time." George thinks the bad things that he does are no big deal, and his behavior becomes repetitive and annoying.
Never Learns Any Lessons About Working Hard Or Staying Employed
George is famous for quitting jobs when he's mad or in a horrible mood. He has a strange approach to work and doesn't seem to think that he needs to try at all, which is why he gets worse and worse as the show goes on.
The other characters have a much better relationship with money and work. Elaine has always done well in publishing, even though she's incredibly neurotic, and Jerry is a successful comedian. But George never learns any lessons about working hard or staying employed, and fans can't believe that season after season, he finds himself in the same situation over and over again.
Remains Dependent On His Parents
When George moves back home in the fifth season episode "The Puffy Shirt," it's definitely a problem, and it's another example of how he only seemed to get worse on the show. George remains dependent on his parents, and it can be seen as a lack of character development because he never grows up.
George is way too old to live with his parents, and it seems like this happens because he's not responsible with money. What's even worse is that he even complains about his new living space when he should be appreciative for having a roof over his head.
Makes Worse Choices About His Employment Status
In the third season, George doesn't have any income, and he actually dates someone to get unemployment. This is absolutely a new low for this character who does things like this all the time.
He strikes up a relationship with Mrs. Sokol's daughter, but this situation is a total disaster because she doesn't like that he has no job, which is pretty hilarious to watch.
Remains Scared Of Marriage And Doesn't Open Himself Up To Love
Although George and Jerry have a bit of a nervous breakdown over the idea that they're still single, it's pretty impossible to imagine either one of them being someone's husband. They're both way too immature for that.
Susan (Heidi Swedberg) is a hated character on Seinfeld and perhaps nobody loathes her more than George. Another way that he gets worse and worse is when he proposes to Susan even though he really doesn't want to marry her. Who does that? Didn't he think that he would continue to be miserable? (Well, George doesn't seem to mind being miserable since it's his normal state of being, so there's that.) George remains scared of marriage and doesn't open up to the possibility of real life, and this is something that gets worse with every episode.
Becomes A Worse Liar As The Series Progresses
George never seems to have an issue with lying to absolutely anyone. For instance, he even lies in a season 9 episode that he owns a house in the Hamptons.
Who would do this? Why is this even necessary? People are going to find out the truth eventually. George's lies just get sloppier and sloppier.
Always Wants To Take The Easy Way Out
In the season 8 premiere "The Foundation," George gets what he thinks is truly terrible news: he and Susan would have gotten money... but since she died, that wasn't going to happen.
George isn't upset that she died. Nope. He's upset that he won't get money that he feels that he totally deserves. This is so insulting and doesn't make it seem like he has any manners, morals or feelings at all. This is a perfect example of how even towards the end of the series, George always wants to take the easy way out and doesn't want to actually work to make money.
George Becomes A Bitter, Insensitive Person By Season 9
When George goes for a job interview in the season 9 premiere of Seinfeld, he pretends that he needs a cane and goes along with everyone at the office thinking that he's handicapped. George has become totally bitter and insensitive and doesn't understand why this is a horrible thing to do.
This is absolutely nuts and so offensive, so it's further proof that George kept getting worse and worse as the episodes of Seinfeld progressed.