All Episodes Talk

[andromeda331]

8 hours ago, Camera One said:

I'm close to the end of Season 5 already.  I was wondering if the actress who played Roz was pregnant.  I've been having mixed feelings about the storyline.  

The episode I disliked the most (even though some parts were hilarious) was Niles and Lilith.  I don't like how far they went with that.  It's not like I want to be reminded of it, but it was a huge thing but like the usual sitcom plot was forgotten by the next episode.

The "date" between Niles and Daphne in "First Date" was sweet.

I did realize I have watched a single episode of this season on reruns many many years ago.  It was "The Ski Lodge".  

I didn't like Niles and Lilith either or how far they went either.

[Camera One]

I can't believe I'm almost done Season 6 already.  I only have 3 episodes left.  A season goes by fast when you binge watch.  

I'm still finding the series very funny.  Dr. Nora was a hoot, as well as Niles trying to set up Roz with Donny and Niles moving back to his old place.  There were a few episodes which were embarrassing to watch because Frasier was acting like such a buffoon with women.  You just know he was going to self-sabotage pretty much every relationship he gets into.  The episodes with Frasier and Niles competing with each other sometimes got a tad irritating as well (eg. the auction/IQ episode or the Dinner Party planning episode).

I remember seeing Donny from commercials when I didn't watch the show, but it was sad that he came along right when Niles finally became free from Maris, who became quite the antagonist.

I was surprised that they had so many episodes at the start of the season with Frasier unemployed.   They weren't afraid to mix up the formula a bit, which was nice, though I was happy to see radio station subplots again once he got his job back.  

I find it strange every time they start talking at full volume in the kitchen about someone who's in the living room.  There isn't even a door!  

I'm still really curious which season I started watching the show consistently.  I guess I wasn't watching in 1999 yet, LOL.  Boy, I feel old.    

Edited February 3, 2019 by Camera One

[Camera One]

I'm six episodes into Season 7, and I think I have reached a rough patch with this show.  I found a number of episodes quite difficult to watch and unfunny.  Niles and Frasier's rivalry was annoying in Season 6 but the mean-spiritedness sometimes is almost unbearable (eg. "Everyone's a Critic", "Rivals").  I hated the bullies in the breakfast show in "Radio Wars" and was disappointed Frasier couldn't effectively take them down a few notches (and it was frustrating how his family didn't support him at all).  Bulldog is funny in moderation but his treatment of women is horrendous.  I guess stuff like that doesn't play as well in the current era.  

[Camera One]

I finished Season 7.  Once I got past that first section of the season, I enjoyed the rest of it.  I can't believe in the seventh season, they finally had Daphne finding out that Niles had feelings for her.  That was really well done, and led to several nice episodes. 

I liked the Daphne/Niles scenes in the season finale, though I also disliked how they had engagements/marriages with other people hanging over them. 

Niles eloping with Mel was so unnecessary.  They were really in an impossible situation since Donny was a nice guy.  The show was a little inconsistent with Mel... sometimes, she was portrayed quite negatively but at other times, she seemed okay.  

With the individual episodes, I laughed at that ridiculous jingle Frasier made up in "They're Playing Our Song".  I was afraid we wouldn't get to hear the full thing but we did.  Martin pretending he was gay was funny in "Out with Dad".  I thought Frasier was pretty good with the next-door neighbor, so I was disappointed that didn't work out.  Daphne's brother was super annoying and not funny at all.  

I think I might be getting close to when I started watching this show.  I vaguely remember Daphne wearing the wedding dress in the winnebego.  Maybe I started watching at the beginning of Season 8?  

[andromeda331]

11 hours ago, Camera One said:

I finished Season 7.  Once I got past that first section of the season, I enjoyed the rest of it.  I can't believe in the seventh season, they finally had Daphne finding out that Niles had feelings for her.  That was really well done, and led to several nice episodes. 

I liked the Daphne/Niles scenes in the season finale, though I also disliked how they had engagements/marriages with other people hanging over them. 

Niles eloping with Mel was so unnecessary.  They were really in an impossible situation since Donny was a nice guy.  The show was a little inconsistent with Mel... sometimes, she was portrayed quite negatively but at other times, she seemed okay.  

With the individual episodes, I laughed at that ridiculous jingle Frasier made up in "They're Playing Our Song".  I was afraid we wouldn't get to hear the full thing but we did.  Martin pretending he was gay was funny in "Out with Dad".  I thought Frasier was pretty good with the next-door neighbor, so I was disappointed that didn't work out.  Daphne's brother was super annoying and not funny at all.  

I think I might be getting close to when I started watching this show.  I vaguely remember Daphne wearing the wedding dress in the winnebego.  Maybe I started watching at the beginning of Season 8?  

I disliked the engagements/marriages hanging over them too. It still bothers me that they decided to put Niles and Daphne together but after Niles elopes and Daphne was about to get married. That's crappy thing to do to Mel and Donny. Plus it ruins what should be a really great moment.

[ketose]

I have to say, it's kind of odd to see criticism of "Radio Wars" and not for "Dr. Nora" as they are basically the same story.

[Camera One]

7 hours ago, ketose said:

I have to say, it's kind of odd to see criticism of "Radio Wars" and not for "Dr. Nora" as they are basically the same story.

For me, there were several differences.  In "Radio Waves", Frasier was being constantly humiliated by those bullies and it was all played for laughs.  Frasier also never got them back effectively or he was not allowed to fight back intelligently. 

In "Dr. Nora", Frasier was exchanging barbs and going head to head with Dr. Nora.  They were on more equal footing.  He also used his intelligence to get her back in the end.

Frasier was presented as a competent adversary to Dr. Nora in the latter, while he was presented as a gullible fool in the former.

Edited February 10, 2019 by Camera One

[ketose]

15 hours ago, Camera One said:

For me, there were several differences.  In "Radio Waves", Frasier was being constantly humiliated by those bullies and it was all played for laughs.  Frasier also never got them back effectively or he was not allowed to fight back intelligently. 

In "Dr. Nora", Frasier was exchanging barbs and going head to head with Dr. Nora.  They were on more equal footing.  He also used his intelligence to get her back in the end.

Frasier was presented as a competent adversary to Dr. Nora in the latter, while he was presented as a gullible fool in the former.

In Radio Wars, Carlos and the Chicken were obviously made out to be the high school bully types in the episode, but Frasier already had many defense mechanisms for that. Most of Frasier's humiliation was due to his own idiosyncrasies that he displayed proudly, except for the humongous ass thing. That was just funny. In the end, Frasier attempted to out-argue the guys, but actually destroyed them by accidentally tapping into the resentment between them, Finally, we saw Frasier attack the Chicken because he corrected Frasier's French pronunciation, something he really cares about. 

Dr. Nora was worse in the sense that she was playing on Frasier's turf of psychiatry and was contradicting him and even stealing his callers to tell it like it is to them. Frankly, she managed to get the last word in just about every exchange. Frasier's intelligence didn't really get Dr. Nora back. He wanted to heal her with a reconciliation. Instead, he fell prey to a grifting mother who wanted to extort Nora. That was not Frasier's intention.

There's some differences, but both episodes involve colleagues who get under Frasier's skin and seem to one-up him. Frasier tries to win the battle, his plan ends up being too complicated, but he still succeeds largely by accident.

[Camera One]

3 minutes ago, ketose said:

except for the humongous ass thing. That was just funny.

Comedy is really subjective and everyone laughs at different things.  I didn't find that (or their other pranks, including the mixtape of Frasier and Roz having sex) to be funny, so that would have impacted my personal enjoyment of that episode. 

Edited February 10, 2019 by Camera One

[stonehaven]

I think some aspects of Radio Wars is funny...like the reward for Roz's ass vs.. Frasiers...and Frasier's "I'm inthe mood for love..(thump, thump)..still makes me laugh....

The Dr. Nora episode would annoy me but my love for Christine Baranski knows no bounds.

[ketose]

I think Radio Wars is a bit of a throwback to the Bulldog days with more sitcom gags than usual for the show, which makes it more memorable to me. Dr. Nora is a good episode, but well within the Frasier wheelhouse. The one problem is that Dr. Nora aired near the end of Season 6 and Radio Wars aired near the beginning of Season 7. They really need to be further apart from each other.

The worst radio competitor story line still has to be Julia Wilcox in Season 10.

[Camera One]

I did find Bulldog funny sometimes, though some of the sexual harassment stuff probably wouldn't go over as well these days.  I didn't find him as mean-spirited.  It's hard for me to laugh at people being bullied... it just makes me angry but I can see why other people would find that episode funny.  

I just finished Season 8.  There was a stretch in the middle that I found a little boring, but there were some good episodes.  I have mixed feelings about the way they dealt with the pregnancy of the actress who played Daphne.  Some of the fat jokes were too much.  I wonder if the actress was okay with them going that route.  I thought the episode where Daphne returned was surprisingly thoughtful, in terms of why she started over-eating.  

I wasn't a huge fan of Lana as Frasier's love interest.  I disliked her in her first episode, but I sort of grew to like her friendship with Frasier when they repaired the popsicle house together.  But I really disliked the development in the finale with Frasier having a sex dream about her.  I liked Claire and Frasier was being such a pill in Belize.  I wish they brought back one of these old girlfriends for him when the series ended.  I didn't like the love interest they ended the show with.  I thought maybe I watched Season 8 but I don't think I did since none of it felt familiar.

[OutOfTheQuestion]

On 2/9/2019 at 1:54 AM, Camera One said:

Niles eloping with Mel was so unnecessary.  They were really in an impossible situation since Donny was a nice guy.  The show was a little inconsistent with Mel... sometimes, she was portrayed quite negatively but at other times, she seemed okay. 

It kind of made me wish the producers had stumbled upon Jane Adams a few years earlier, since I think she actually could've been Maris if Maris had been made into an actual character.

[readster]

On 2/19/2019 at 10:29 PM, OutOfTheQuestion said:

It kind of made me wish the producers had stumbled upon Jane Adams a few years earlier, since I think she actually could've been Maris if Maris had been made into an actual character.

How very true and everyone even said that it was thrown together just to make things harder for Niles and Daphne. They should have made the cliffhanger at the end of season 6 be Daphne finding out about Niles love for her and then being proposed too. Then we get to season 7 that Daphne said no and then find out that Niles met Judy and then spent a reversal the rest of season 7 and then have it where Niles was going to get married and Daphne keeps that from happening. Because Donny was not portrayed to be someone you would hate, Jane Adams was. Though I think it made zero sense for Donny and Daphne to just SUDDENLY go out and be a couple.  

[tessaray]

So, Kelsey Grammer seems to be dropping a lot of revival/reboot hints again.  Not sure how I feel about it but I'd probably watch it anyway.   

https://parade.com/854277/lindsaylowe/happy-birthday-kelsey-grammer-is-a-frasier-reboot-actually-happening/

[chessiegal]

I watch reruns on Cozi every evening. They recently started with the Pilot, and I'm not sure if the producers intended it from day one, but it soon becomes clear they never intended to show Maris. It was the running schtick of the series.

[ketose]

28 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

I watch reruns on Cozi every evening. They recently started with the Pilot, and I'm not sure if the producers intended it from day one, but it soon becomes clear they never intended to show Maris. It was the running schtick of the series.

Probably. On Cheers, we never saw Norm's wife Vera, either.

[Camera One]

I just finished Season 9.  I thought this season was still pretty funny.  Though I'm looking at the episode list right now and it is hard to remember exactly which episodes I liked or didn't like.  The upstairs neighbor was annoying for awhile, but I did like the one where he sort of became Frasier's friend since they were so alike.  I don't usually like Frasier's son too much, but the spelling bee episode was pretty good.  I didn't like Frasier falling for Michael Keaton's trick.  I thought the three blind dates episode was amusing.  

I don't think I've enjoyed any of Daphne's family members at all, including the mother (I wasn't happy to see the brother again).  

I was relieved Frasier and Roz didn't sleep with each other last season, so I was disappointed they did this season.  I actually do see a bit of chemistry between them, but knowing that they wouldn't end up with each other, I would rather they have stayed strictly friends.  

[ketose]

5 hours ago, Camera One said:

I just finished Season 9.  I thought this season was still pretty funny.  Though I'm looking at the episode list right now and it is hard to remember exactly which episodes I liked or didn't like.  The upstairs neighbor was annoying for awhile, but I did like the one where he sort of became Frasier's friend since they were so alike.  I don't usually like Frasier's son too much, but the spelling bee episode was pretty good.  I didn't like Frasier falling for Michael Keaton's trick.  I thought the three blind dates episode was amusing.  

I don't think I've enjoyed any of Daphne's family members at all, including the mother (I wasn't happy to see the brother again).  

I was relieved Frasier and Roz didn't sleep with each other last season, so I was disappointed they did this season.  I actually do see a bit of chemistry between them, but knowing that they wouldn't end up with each other, I would rather they have stayed strictly friends.  

The Michael Keaton episode and the Roz episode are both clunkers. At least the episode with Roz and Frasier is watchable, but there was no buildup and there was no real motivation for them to get together that night. 

[Camera One]

I just finished Season 10, and once again, the whole Roz/Frasier thing popped up out of the blue at the end.  I was a little excited to see Roz in a new job, so I was disappointed when she turned it down and then had the blowup with Frasier and the Felicity Huffman character.

I didn't like the Felicity Huffman character at all.  She was unpleasant towards Frasier for so long that I couldn't buy their relationship either.  She was poorly fleshed out.  I've liked the actress in other things like "Desperate Housewives" so it's more the writing.  

There were a few funny episodes here and there this season (I thought "Daphne Does Dinner" was amusing), with a bunch of forgettable ones.  Nile's surgery was sort of unexpected and was an interesting experiment.  I don't find Daphne's mother that funny, so I was surprised they kept her on for so long.  

I can't believe there's only one season left to watch and now I think I only watched this final season in the original run (since I heard good things about the show and decided to give it a try since it was its final season).  I don't know if I saw the entire final season, though.  

Edited March 11, 2019 by Camera One

[chessiegal]

I love the last 2 episodes of the final season.

[andromeda331]

6 minutes ago, Camera One said:

I just finished Season 10, and once again, the whole Roz/Frasier thing popped up out of the blue at the end.  I was a little excited to see Roz in a new job, so I was disappointed when she turned it down and then had the blowup with Frasier and the Felicity Huffman character.

I didn't like the Felicity Huffman character at all.  She was unpleasant towards Frasier for so long that I couldn't buy their relationship either.  She was poorly fleshed out.  I've liked the actress in other things like "Desperate Housewives" so it's more the writing.  

There were a few funny episodes here and there this season (I thought "Daphne Does Dinner" was amusing), with a bunch of forgettable ones.  Nile's surgery was sort of unexpected and was an interesting experiment.  I don't find Daphne's mother that funny, so I was surprised they kept her on for so long.  

I can't believe there's only one season left to watch and now I think I only watched this final season in the original run (since I heard good things about the show and decided to give it a try since it was its final season).  I don't know if I saw the entire final season, though.  

I didn't like Julia at all either for the same reasons. They didn't fit and she was so horrible to him for so long. And really not that better when they were dating. I really can't see what Frasier saw in her. I also hate that Frasier's putting so much after his family mentioned that he doesn't stick with it when it come to women. Right advice, wrong person. I hated her blowing Niles and Daphne's announcement. The only great part about that episode is him finally yelling at her. I didn't like Daphne's mother either I liked Simon but only for an episode or two he got old really fast. 

[andromeda331]

5 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

I love the last 2 episodes of the final season.

I love those episodes except for Frasier leaving. That was the only thing that never felt right to me. Him remaining, or expanding his radio show, deciding to see patients almost anything else would have been perfect. It would have been a great book end to the pilot when Frasier says his career had grown stagnant and he wasn't close to his family.  Eleven years later his career has bounced back and he was doing very well and he was so close to his father and brother now. I just couldn't and still can't imagine Frasier deciding to leave all that. Other then that I loved the wedding and non-wedding, Daphne delivering at the vet and Niles walking out holding the monkey. Martin's wedding and getting in trouble because he picked Eddie's birthday as their wedding date. I love Frasier telling the mover who was the same man who brought the recliner to be careful taking it out of his apartment. Roz getting promoted. The possibility that Niles's baby may take after Daphne's side.

[Ailianna]

7 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

Him remaining, or expanding his radio show, deciding to see patients almost anything else would have been perfect.

They had already done all those things though, most in the last two seasons.  And the show definitely took a turn toward the relationship side, except that Frasier himself never got to have that happily ever after.  I don't mind him chasing that dream, but I think Charlotte wasn't the strongest love interest.  I still think he should "stay with Claire" (in Marty's lobster charming voice).

[DisneyBoy]

I'm doing a rewatch of the series myself right now. I saw it back in the 90s but never followed it religiously. I'm sure I'm going to find some surprises the deeper I get into the show. I don't remember watching much of the final seasons after Niles and Daphne got together. I'm partway through season 3 and I've noticed a bit of a dip in the quality of the writing compared to season 2. I don't want to know when they changed up writers significantly, though...I'll just wait and see whether the show changes its voice at some point. (I'm assuming here that at some point there was a big switchup in the writers room. I could be wrong.)

I had completely forgotten how much I loved Niles.  DHP is a gem. So great at physical comedy.

The one thing I'm looking more closely at now is Roz, who confused me a bit when I first saw the show years ago. The show wants to portray her as some voracious maneater but she just seems to be too smart and savvy for that. Peri Gilpin just seems wise and mature, so much so I really can't get a handle on what age Roz is supposed to be. Late 20s? Mid-30s? The way the actress plays her it's like she already has two kids and a husband. I remember that she gets pregnant and becomes a single parent somewhere along the way, but I never really understood the need for that storyline. Did the writers think it up or did the actress become pregnant and they had to write it in?

I really didn't understand the look of her apartment when they showed it in that episode where Bulldog tries to seduce her. I believe she has a soft side, but to surround herself with stuffed animals even when her bed faces her entrance doorway? Sure, it can be a small apartment, but the whole interior just made her look like an immature little girl, not some sexy single woman luring men home to her boudoir. It's like there was a huge disconect between who the script said Roz was, what that bedroom apartment said about Roz and the performance Peri gave. Somehow, the character is still  really enjoyable but I just haven't completely bought into whatever it is the writers are trying to convince me of.

It's a little bit like Elaine on Ally McBeal -she was desperate to convince us she was some crazy slut (their word, not mine!) but I didn't completely believe it. I think Jane Krakowski did a really good job making Elaine very sexual and forward. I don't get that from Roz, at least not in the way that would justify Frasier's constant insulting remarks about her dating life. She never had sex on-air or with her boss at the station. She didn't seem interested in barely legal men working in department stores either.

In my mind, Roz has got it pretty well together. So shut up Fraiser.

[Annber03]

11 hours ago, DisneyBoy said:

Peri Gilpin just seems wise and mature, so much so I really can't get a handle on what age Roz is supposed to be. Late 20s? Mid-30s? The way the actress plays her it's like she already has two kids and a husband. I remember that she gets pregnant and becomes a single parent somewhere along the way, but I never really understood the need for that storyline. Did the writers think it up or did the actress become pregnant and they had to write it in?

The writers thought up that pregnancy plot. I seem to recall reading somewhere that the network felt it seemed a natural consequence of her sleeping around so much or something to that effect. But I also seem to recall reading that the writers kinda regretted that storyline. 

As for Roz's age, there's that episode where she's talking to the father of her baby and she's rattled by the fact that his mom's 37 years old, and cuts him off when he starts being all, "You and my mom would get on really well, in fact, you kinda look alike...". 

And that was in season 5. So if she's in, say, her mid 30s then, she must've been about 30 when the show began. 

Quote

In my mind, Roz has got it pretty well together. So shut up Fraiser.

Agreed. I always liked how she would call him out on his BS double standards about their respective dating lives and such. 

[Camera One]

I can't believe I finished watching a show that lasted 11 seasons from beginning to end, in order and not skipping any episodes or pausing for a year or five because I got bored.  I thought the final season was still very funny.  It's rare a show hasn't gone stale after so long (at least for me on this binge watch).  I definitely remember seeing this season when it first aired.  I must have only watched Season 11.  I remember Ronnie and the episode where Frasier dressed as a clown (which was still pretty funny).  

I remember the first time around, I thought Ronnie was too young for Martin and the Laura Linney character was too young for Frasier.  I guess in real life, each of those pairings were about 10 years apart.  I still sort of feel that way, though I grew to like Ronnie/Martin.  I think I also didn't warm as much to Frasier and Laura Linney because her character was involved with someone else.  I'm not confident that she liked Frasier as much as he liked her.  

I have mixed feelings about the 2 hour finale. Daphne's brothers had always annoyed me and this episode was no exception.  I do like that they tried to bring some old characters back.  I guess one omission would be Bulldog, though he did appear earlier in the season.  So many shows end with a wedding and a birth and the episode didn't rise above those tropes enough and unfortunately, I just didn't find most of that funny.  Having said that, I liked the second part more and there were some hilarious moments like when everyone thought Frasier was dying and he talked about seeing the Golden Gate.  

On 3/10/2019 at 7:56 PM, andromeda331 said:

I love those episodes except for Frasier leaving. That was the only thing that never felt right to me. Him remaining, or expanding his radio show, deciding to see patients almost anything else would have been perfect. It would have been a great book end to the pilot when Frasier says his career had grown stagnant and he wasn't close to his family.  

That's a really good point and that changed how I thought about it.  I was liking the little bit we saw of Frasier in his private practice.  

I either forgot or didn't realize the show was cancelled, which means there wasn't really the foreknowledge to write a "final season".  I was just reading this article from January 2004:

https://people.com/celebrity/nbc-officially-sends-frasier-packing/

I'm looking at my streaming service and another late 90s sitcom I never watched was "Everybody Loves Raymond", so I might try that one.  I don't know, though... it's not easy to start a new show, especially one I never really felt like watching when it aired the first time around.

Edited March 17, 2019 by Camera One

[chessiegal]

We watch Frasier on Cozi every evening. I think we are on our 3rd time through the series. My husband says once we get to the series finale, we need to watch something else. I could watch it forever.

[chessiegal]

Watching today, it occurred to me that this show wouldn't be as good if it didn't have DHP. I realize it's an ensemble cast, but I really think he made the show.

[tessaray]

I didn't realize how popular Niles and Daphne were at the time until recently when I Googled something related to the "Heart and Soul" song. 

I think my husband is on his 4th rewatch. He watches 2 or 3 episodes almost every morning and is always sharing something he noticed.  This time through he's actually paying attention to the callers. 

[chessiegal]

7 hours ago, tessaray said:

I didn't realize how popular Niles and Daphne were at the time until recently when I Googled something related to the "Heart and Soul" song. 

I think my husband is on his 4th rewatch. He watches 2 or 3 episodes almost every morning and is always sharing something he noticed.  This time through he's actually paying attention to the callers. 

They list who the callers are in the credits, but Wikipedia has a list of callers by episode. On a rare occasion I can recognize a voice. Reba McIntire's voice is distinctive enough to pick out.

[DisneyBoy]

So I just finished Season 3. I don't know if I'm going to have the stamina to make it to the end of season 11, especially since I'm borrowing these from a library and I'm not sure the library has all of the seasons, LOL. I did notice a dip in quality at the start of season 3, but by the end of it the episodes were back up to snuff. I really enjoyed the twist of Bebe trying to marry that old tycoon while quitting smoking at the same time. She's pretty much gold in whatever form she appears.

I found myself very disappointed with the third season finale however. Usually the series finales were pretty good (S1 & 2), but they made some big mistakes with this one. If you're doing a flashback and the actors all look significantly differently than they did in the pilot, you have to go through the trouble of getting them wigs and re-styling their clothing. I absolutely preferred Frasier's shorter hair in season 3, but couldn't they have put some extensions in just for those flashbacks so we could actually suspend our disbelief that this was how things were during his first broadcast?

I also felt a lot of those flashback scenes fell flat. We got to see Niles dust off a chair again - whoopie. That was his original entrance gag. Why repeat it? And then there was Frasier pointing out to his brother, who he hadn't been spending much time with, that he is a "weird little man". What the hell? That's a really shitty thing to say to a relative much less a sibling you haven't spent any time with...but then to top it off, he says this to Niles after thanking him for having him over for dinner. ?!?

The scenes at Martin's apartment were no better. The vibe between them was so hostile it's hard to imagine they agreed to live together. In the pilot episode it was clear they did it reluctantly and there was certainly some tension, but in the flashback it's like these were two men who really would have preferred never to see each other again because the pain was too great. At least that's how it felt to me.

I just think in general they did a really crappy job of trying to show us who Frasier was mere months before the pilot episode. Did any of you particularly enjoy this episode?

I ended up finding the Golden Girls episode online that flashed back to events before the pilot, showing how Rose and Dorothy moved in with Blanche. I'd never seen the episode during the show's original broadcast and was kind of worried to watch it in case it was weak tea. It turned out to be pretty darn good. It's a shame the Frasier equivalent isn't.

I definitely didn't remember that Daphne had had a boyfriend this early in the series. I thought she was pretty much single until she met that guy she got engaged to. I wish they would show a bit more of her boyfriend though. I forgot about the handyman altogether because in other episodes where we see Martin dating some random woman she's been completely wiped from existence by the time the next episode starts.

Do we see more of the police woman Martin was considering dating in season 4? I know she later played the mom in Malcolm in the Middle, but I don't remember seeing much of her on this show so I'm guessing she was forgotten as quickly as she was introduced as well.

I'm jumping ahead of myself a little bit here but I do consider myself among those who disliked Wendy Malik as Martin's love interest. She just seemed far too young for him and I remembered not buying them as a legitimate couple. Maybe if they'd stuck with the lady cop for a while, she could have been a believable option because at least she and Martin had a lot in common.

It really bugs me when realistically-shaped male characters end up with Hollywood-skinny love interests half their age. Martin is a great guy....but why couldn't he have ended up with a pear-shaped, middle-aged/senior woman? I definitely think he would have valued a partner in his age range, even if it meant she wasn't as conventionally "pretty". I think the producers made a big mistake there.

At least Dorothy ended up with Leslie Nielsen.

Edited March 22, 2019 by DisneyBoy

[Ailianna]

The police woman (Maureen) does keep appearing, and ultimately Martin has a couple of other long term love interests that are "pear-shaped, middle-aged/senior" women.  Keep watching.  And if you see how he and Ronnie (Wendy Malik's character) get together, the age difference is addressed specifically and pretty well.  

Honestly, Frasier is the one who has the one episode only love affairs, more than anyone else.  But even he manages to have a few girlfriends that last more than one episode.  

Some of the best episodes are ahead of you, especially in season 4, in my opinion.  It has my favorite episode (because I adore Bebe Neuwirth as Lilith), A Lilith Thanksgiving, which really shows both why Frasier and Lilith didn't work, and why they did.  I would encourage you to keep going.  If you have Amazon Prime, the entire series is free on Prime Video.

[chessiegal]

I watch 3 hours every day Monday-Friday on Cozi. They are currently past the middle of season 9. I absolutely adore this show.

[DisneyBoy]

Yay, I'm glad Maureen returns. I think I will continue to watch season 4 and onward. I guess I'm just dreading the moment where this show inevitably starts to lose quality, as most do. It really is quite witty and sharp and I love Frasier's apartment. Definitely one of those sitcom sets that grows on you and becomes a happy place to visit.

[chessiegal]

I'm clearly an unabashed fan of Frasier. I don't think the quality of the writing or acting ever declined. The final 2 episodes of the series are comedy gold.

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, chessiegal said:

I'm clearly an unabashed fan of Frasier. I don't think the quality of the writing or acting ever declined. The final 2 episodes of the series are comedy gold.

I do think it was always funny.  I do think some seasons were better than others but it wasn't linear the way some series are.

[Camera One]

I was surprised by my recent binge of the series that the show still maintained its quality to the end.  There were a few dips at various points, but to me, the show always eventually recovered.  I don't think that has been the case with any of the series I've watched over the years, as most have a jump-the-shark moment (even the series I look back on most fondly).  

On 3/21/2019 at 5:08 PM, DisneyBoy said:

I found myself very disappointed with the third season finale however. Usually the series finales were pretty good (S1 & 2), but they made some big mistakes with this one. If you're doing a flashback and the actors all look significantly differently than they did in the pilot, you have to go through the trouble of getting them wigs and re-styling their clothing. I absolutely preferred Frasier's shorter hair in season 3, but couldn't they have put some extensions in just for those flashbacks so we could actually suspend our disbelief that this was how things were during his first broadcast?

Yes, that was really sloppy.  They did a better job with that in later flashback episodes.  Though I actually didn't notice when I first watched it.

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I just think in general they did a really crappy job of trying to show us who Frasier was mere months before the pilot episode. Did any of you particularly enjoy this episode?

I thought there was a nice message behind it and had some amusing moments, but it wasn't a favorite.

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I also felt a lot of those flashback scenes fell flat. And then there was Frasier pointing out to his brother, who he hadn't been spending much time with, that he is a "weird little man". What the hell? That's a really shitty thing to say to a relative much less a sibling you haven't spent any time with...but then to top it off, he says this to Niles after thanking him for having him over for dinner. ?!?The scenes at Martin's apartment were no better. The vibe between them was so hostile it's hard to imagine they agreed to live together. In the pilot episode it was clear they did it reluctantly and there was certainly some tension, but in the flashback it's like these were two men who really would have preferred never to see each other again because the pain was too great. At least that's how it felt to me.

I just rewatched the Season 3 finale and then the pilot after.  I didn't find it as jarring as I thought I would.  There was still quite a bit of animosity in both.  I think siblings can revert to their familiarity pretty quickly.

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It really bugs me when realistically-shaped male characters end up with Hollywood-skinny love interests half their age. Martin is a great guy....but why couldn't he have ended up with a pear-shaped, middle-aged/senior woman?

That bothers me too.  I had the same problem with the Wendy Malik character though she did grow on me.  I liked her singing on the show.

[ketose]

I think there were more weak episodes and annoying characters for me than entire bad seasons. I generally won't watch any Doctor Mary episodes and I refuse to watch that one with Lilith's huckster brother.

[chessiegal]

There are episodes I don't care for, including the one with Lilith's half-brother. I almost deleted it without re-watching, but stuck it out and found a few amusing moments. Niles as a character and DHP as an actor never fail for me.

[ZuluQueenOfDwarves]

The Lilith’s brother episode is worth it for me, solely for:

Brother, admonishing the congregation: Now, now, he’s one of God’s children. 

Frasier, indignant: I am no such thing!

[DisneyBoy]

The fourth season premiere was gold. Laughed several times. Was that guy really British or was he pulling a Dick Van Dyke?

I've been thinking a lot about Golden Girls as I rewatch this show. Bea Arthur wanted to end the series because she felt they had run through all of the formulas possible, so I'm wondering how Frasier is going to manage to survive longer than that show and still be watchable. It's good to know that for many of you the show always recovered from its rocky patches. Let's see if I can make it to the very end!

[tessaray]

Frasier himself doesn't change all that much over the course of the show but the supporting characters do, which keeps things interesting.

My personal low for the show is the storyline written to accommodate Jane Leeves' pregnancy.  The fat shaming is cringe-worthy and I don't think the writers could get away with a similar plot today.  (Though I don't watch many sitcoms, so maybe they could/do?)  

[chessiegal]

I just realized Cozi managed to skip Niles and Daphne's wedding(s) episode. I wonder why?

[SnarkySheep]

The other day, I was watching the one where Roz's young-twenties cousin Jen came to visit, and Roz was exhausted because Jen wanted to go clubbing every night...

Maybe I'm feeling my own age here, but it kind of annoyed me how it was boiled down to an issue of being young vs old, instead of Roz having to get up for work the next morning vs Jen being able to sleep all day if she wanted! But of course nobody said a single word about that.

[Ailianna]

Since Jen was also going out to museums and sightseeing in the day, as you can see from the conversation when she gives Frasier the bust of Freud, I think the implication was she was going going all day too.  But it would have been nice to either explicitly say it, or note that Roz did have a lot more on her plate.

[DisneyBoy]

Finished seasons 4 & 5. "Hot and Foamy" might be my favorite episode of the series. So great watching Niles move through all the stages of his breakup only to freak out about his "mother's obsession with VERMIN!?". God bless DHP for his physical humor. I may not have watched the show since it aired but I never forgot how Niles moved when he was freaked out.

I didn't mind him and Marris reuniting for a while. They mined it for all the humor they could and I always laughed.

Sherri had a nice exit but I really did think of her as using Martin until it was proven otherwise. I couldn't buy that a woman as comely as her would want fuddy duddy Martin. Sorry, Martin. I really can't picture you having sex. There - I said it. His hip is weak, he looks about 75 (yes, I know he's supposed to be 65 but....) and spends almost all his time drinking or on the sofa or both. Sherri could have snagged any guy at a bar for good times, guys in their 50s. I felt like she always was going at 150% to compensate for him being at 50%.

Anyone else with me?

[chessiegal]

I think Peri Gilpin has great hair. I realize she had pros styling her hair, but still, they had great hair to work with.

[ketose]

On 4/10/2019 at 7:56 PM, DisneyBoy said:

Finished seasons 4 & 5. "Hot and Foamy" might be my favorite episode of the series. So great watching Niles move through all the stages of his breakup only to freak out about his "mother's obsession with VERMIN!?". God bless DHP for his physical humor. I may not have watched the show since it aired but I never forgot how Niles moved when he was freaked out.

I didn't mind him and Marris reuniting for a while. They mined it for all the humor they could and I always laughed.

Sherri had a nice exit but I really did think of her as using Martin until it was proven otherwise. I couldn't buy that a woman as comely as her would want fuddy duddy Martin. Sorry, Martin. I really can't picture you having sex. There - I said it. His hip is weak, he looks about 75 (yes, I know he's supposed to be 65 but....) and spends almost all his time drinking or on the sofa or both. Sherri could have snagged any guy at a bar for good times, guys in their 50s. I felt like she always was going at 150% to compensate for him being at 50%.

Anyone else with me?

I found Sherry to be so "brassy" that it was unattractive. The show generally had her in small doses, so it didn't deter me from watching the episodes. Personally, I think 1)Sherry wasn't that stunningly beautiful 2)Martin isn't that lousy of a catch and 3)The heart wants what the heart wants and Sherry was attracted to Martin. It was believable to me, but YMMV.

[margol29]

I didn't discover Frasier until seeing the reruns in the 2010's. I  tried to watch it in order on Netflix but some episodes were missing.

Now I watch it on Cozi whenever I get a chance. Every once in a while I will see an episode that is new to me and it feels like a gift. LOL!

It seems that some episodes get played more than others. I don't know, maybe that is just me.

Kelsy Grammer is such a wonderful actor. It is too bad that none of his attempts at television have been successful since Frasier. He does wonderfully as an evil character, too. Has anyone seen his show on Star a few years ago it was named "Boss" he was the mayor of Chicago and he did evil so well!