Seinfeld: 10 Worst Things George Costanza Has Ever Done

Of all George Costanza’s negative qualities, tightfistedness might seem like a fairly minor sin. And while there are worse things about the man, it was his penny pinching that led to the death of fiancee Susan.

The seventh season is a disgraceful time for George, who gets engaged to Susan in a fit of pique, then spends the remainder of the run trying to weasel his way out of it. By the two part finale, he has just about accepted his fate, but remains true to form, cutting costs on envelopes for invitations.

Excessive licking of these cheap envelopes ends up poisoning and ultimately killing Susan. While her death isn’t George’s fault as such, his reaction is one of nothing short of relief (later described as “restrained jubilation” by the doctor).

The sheer coldness of the episode was a controversial one for fans (who presumably had never seen Seinfeld before), but this was the perfect ending for one of the show’s great arcs. Simply by being his usual self, George managed to off his fiancee and wriggle out of the marriage he dreaded.