In a show where the main characters are completely self-centered and find humor in other people’s struggles and tragedies, every now and then, each member of the Seinfeld main gang gets a taste of their own medicine. Its witty writing is just one reason why it's named one of the best 90s sitcoms, according to IMDb.
Elaine is one of the characters who takes the most pleasure out of her friend’s problems, but she’s had her fair share of issues, too. More often than not, it’s her very own friends that actively do things to her for their own gratification, which has led her to have some of the funniest storylines of the show.
Occupying Her Apartment
Kramer is responsible for some of the best episodes on the series, but when he starts dating Elaine’s girlfriend, it briefly ruins her life, and Kramer has absolutely no remorse. Elaine first starts complaining about the way he makes pasta in her flat, and then about the make out sessions in her living room, and if that wasn’t bad enough, Kramer walks in to her bedroom and catches her naked.
But that didn’t stop the madman, as he then started playing jungle sounds and tribal music in her living room while dancing in nothing but a towel around his waist.
Making Her Sit In Coach
After Jerry and Elaine book a last-minute flight to LaGuardia Airport, there are only two seats left, one in coach and the other in first class. Jerry, ungentlemanly, refuses to give up his first-class seat to Elaine, so she sits in a small seat next to the rudest and most ignorant people a person could possibly fly with.
In the meantime, Jerry has the time of his life in first-class, as he's served bottomless drinks and ice cream, and sits next to the model, Tia Van Camp. To add insult to injury, Elaine’s bags were shipped to Honolulu.
Keeping Elaine From Moving Into Jerry’s Building
On Jerry’s own advice, Elaine agrees to move into an apartment in Jerry’s building. But not long after, Jerry regrets telling Elaine about the vacant apartment and then spends the episode doing everything he can to keep her from moving in.
After Jerry is forced to loan $5,000 To Elaine for the flat, Kramer finds somebody who is willing to pay $10,000, and as Elaine feels uncomfortable borrowing that much money from Jerry, she decides not to move in.
Making Her Stay With Jerry’s Parents
Jerry is responsible for one of the worst periods of Elaine’s life. When she traveled with him to Florida to visit his parents, it wasn’t just the torturous hot nights that ruined her trip. She was also forced to sleep on an uncomfortable sofa bed and she wasn’t allowed to turn on the air conditioning because Jerry’s parents are “nuts about temperature.”
To make matters worse, Elaine’s back was so bad after sleeping on the sofa bed that she was bedridden for most of the vacation. At the end of the trip, a chiropractor told her she couldn’t go anywhere for five days, which made her trip insufferably longer. Elaine’s misery is what makes “The Pen” one of the most iconic Elaine episodes.
Laughing At Her Murphy Brown Spec Script
After Jerry gives his spare keys to Elaine to look after, in a turn of events, he desperately needs to reclaim them. As Elaine isn’t at her apartment, George and Jerry use the spare keys to Elaine’s apartment and essentially trespass. But this isn’t the worst part.
While at her apartment, they find a spec script for an episode of Murphy Brown that was written by Elaine. The pair read and laugh over it, which is a massive breach of her privacy.
Almost Killing Her Boss
When Elaine’s boss mistakes Jerry for a pharmacist, Jerry tells him to mix his heart medications. Though this negligence wasn’t directly aimed at Elaine, Seinfeld intentionally told an old man that he could mix two pills together, without knowing anything about the medications or considering the circumstances.
There were a lot of repercussions in the aftermath that landed on Elaine, as Mr. Pitt figured out that Jerry and Elaine were friends. This led him to suspect they partnered together to try and murder him, as he included Elaine in his will earlier in the episode. As a result, Mr. Pitt fired Elaine.
Using Her To Prove A Point
The shamelessness of the show is one of the ways Seinfeld changed television, but some might argue that George and Jerry went too far when they used Elaine to prove the point that any man will automatically look at a woman's cleavage if in the vicinity.
This was after Russell, the head of NBC, caught George horrifyingly gawking at the cleavage of his 15-year-old daughter. But things got worse for Elaine, as Russell became obsessed with her and she was forced into a relationship that she didn’t want to be in.
Taking Back A Proposal
After an attractive woman broke up with Jerry, the only person around to console him was Elaine. And after an on-off relationship through the years, Jerry spontaneously got down on one knee and proposed to her.
Elaine ran away in a panic, but after a few hours of soul searching and getting hit on by old Jewish men, she returned and accepted Jerry’s offer. Only now, Jerry has come to his senses and he took the offer off the table like it was nothing more than a business negotiation.
Laughing At Her Problems
Everybody’s life seems to be going swimmingly, Jerry is getting loads of comedy gigs, Kramer’s coffee table book is a go, and even George, of all people, has found a beautiful girlfriend and landed a great job.
However, for somebody whose life usually goes to plan, Elaine has been dumped and she got evicted from her apartment. The whole gang, being the horrible friends that they all are, take comfort in knowing that her life is becoming a Shakespearean tragedy, especially George.
Giving Her Cash For Her Birthday
In what is one of the most offensive but hilarious birthday presents, Jerry gifts Elaine $182, and this was after they had known each other for years and were currently sleeping together.
Jerry was confused about what to get her, as he wanted to find something that accurately represented their strange relationship, but he massively missed the mark. What made Jerry look even worse in this situation is that Kramer got her the gift that she really wanted.