What do we all think of Frasier?

cloud493 · 29-09-2014 4:13pm #1

Just out of interest, what do we think of Frasier, now we're over ten years since the last episode. For my two cents.

- Daphne is never the best character, and putting her with Niles at the end of season 7 makes her near unbearable, to be honest.
- The only two consistently funny character are Martin and Niles, with maybe Roz as a third.
- Daphnes family should have stayed unseen.
- I used to dislike frasier as a character a lot, but I like the way with him towards the end.
- Wasn't a massive fan of the episodes with Freddie in them, but I like the ones with Lilith a lot.

curioser · 29-09-2014 4:22pm

cloud493 wrote: »

Just out of interest, what do we think of Frasier, now we're over ten years since the last episode. For my two cents.

- Daphne is never the best character, and putting her with Niles at the end of season 7 makes her near unbearable, to be honest.
- The only two consistently funny character are Martin and Niles, with maybe Roz as a third.
- Daphnes family should have stayed unseen.
- I used to dislike frasier as a character a lot, but I like the way with him towards the end.
- Wasn't a massive fan of the episodes with Freddie in them, but I like the ones with Lilith a lot.

Always enjoyed the show, thought the scripts were very clever.

IMO John Mahony hammed up Martin a lot.

When Kelsey Grammar signalled that he would give up the role after 20 years (between Cheers and Frasier), Jane Leeves' team jumped into action and negotiated an upgrade of her role that made her an equal of the three male characters, rather than an employee, in order to maximise her asking price in the post-Frasier world.

mrDerek · 29-09-2014 4:24pm

amazing show the writing is on the upper echelons of humour alongside the likes of arrested development only fools and horses father ted etc

cloud493 · 29-09-2014 4:24pm

Daphne always feels like a sub character though. I can't think of any 'good' story lines she has after her Niles get together. The fat one isn't much cop.

endacl · 29-09-2014 4:25pm

I thought it was funny.

Beano · 29-09-2014 4:56pm

I was never terribly keen on the freddie character but it if meant that Bebe Neuwirth might appear then i was willing to put up with him.

29-09-2014 5:02pm

I've enjoyed almost every episode of Frasier I've seen but I've never seen them in sequence. I really have to watch them all properly some day.

I thought all of the main characters offered a lot to the show; Daphne may not have been as funny as the others (though she certainly had her moments!) but she often played the role of "straight man" quite well, and that's a role that shouldn't be underestimated. I agree that her family were badly written though, they're meant to be from Manchester and yet her brother has a strong Cockney accent? Research department fail!

KungPao · 29-09-2014 5:09pm

Remember the episode when Woody was in town and met up with Frasier for the first time in years? Frasier realised soon after that he had moved on from his Cheers days and just couldn't bear to be with Woody and wondered how to get shot of him. You feel bad for the poor simple bar man until it emerges he can't stand Frasier either...and they both agree not to catchup for another 10 years...if ever again. Then say their farewells.

It was a good show and it was intelligent, not like most of the rubbish today (TBBT doesn't count - it's not actually intelligent at all really).

Rachineire · 29-09-2014 5:11pm

I love Frasier, Its like a comfort blanket.
My husband and I will leave on a few episodes in the evenings while we are pottering around the house and watch bits here and there.
I love the strangeness of Maris.
Remember when Niles started dating her plastic surgeon and she gained tons of weight? I thought how that episode was done was very clever

syklops · 29-09-2014 5:12pm

Deleted User wrote: »

I've enjoyed almost every episode of Frasier I've seen but I've never seen them in sequence. I really have to watch them all properly some day.

I thought all of the main characters offered a lot to the show; Daphne may not have been as funny as the others (though she certainly had her moments!) but she often played the role of "straight man" quite well, and that's a role that shouldn't be underestimated. I agree that her family were badly written though, they're meant to be from Manchester and yet her brother has a strong Cockney accent? Research department fail!

There is a small handful of episodes I didn't like. Anything involving Bebe.

Also, one or two episodes where Frasier has met an absolute stunner and still manages to f^%k it up some how.

SK76 · 29-09-2014 5:14pm

It's the one show I can watch over and over again. As regards Freddie, i never really like younger actors in shows. Also agree that not as good when daphne and niles got together

Still, my favourite comedy

Jellybaby1 · 29-09-2014 5:15pm

Watched Frasier for many years and enjoyed the series for only one reason, NILES! Just remember the one where he was ironing his trousers - very Chaplinesque!

Beano · 29-09-2014 5:16pm

syklops wrote: »

There is a small handful of episodes I didn't like. Anything involving Bebe.

....

Blasphemy!

cloud493 · 29-09-2014 5:19pm

I like Bebe, the one playing her (can't remember her name) is brilliant.

This bit is from my favourite episode

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWFeDurHzx8

syklops · 29-09-2014 5:19pm

Beano wrote: »

Blasphemy!

Maybe so, but any episode I know to involve Bebe gets skipped, with the exception of the one with Kristen Chenowith. I suffer through Bebe for her.

syklops · 29-09-2014 5:25pm

cloud493 wrote: »

I like Bebe, the one playing her (can't remember her name) is brilliant.

This bit is from my favourite episode

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWFeDurHzx8

Probably my two favourite episodes are "out with Dad"(above) and "The doctor is out", co-starring Patrick Stewart.

It doesn't get any better than that.

Bacon and Cabbage · 29-09-2014 6:47pm

Absolutely brilliant, by far the funniest show I've ever seen

Lady Chatterton · 29-09-2014 10:14pm

Rachineire wrote: »

I love Frasier, Its like a comfort blanket.
My husband and I will leave on a few episodes in the evenings while we are pottering around the house and watch bits here and there.

I agree 100%, it's the perfect comfort blanket.

I've great memories of regularly skyping a dear old friend (living far away) in the early hours and we'd both be chatting while watching the same episode of Frasier

CountyHurler · 29-09-2014 10:19pm

I think we were both skyping the same person MrsD...

I love Frasier... There's something comforting about watching the show alright... Like they are old friends or something... The only other show I really got that feeling watching was probably "Only Fools And Horses", particularly at the Christmas..

cloud493 · 29-09-2014 10:22pm

Frasier is very comforting. That and fawlty towers maybe.

shayno90 · 29-09-2014 10:31pm

Great comedy, well written and the main cast interacted superbly to deliver some classic scenes.
Always looked forward to the one episode each season that was the funniest e.g. the skiing trip when the 3 Cranes bring dates

Also Starring LeVar Burton · 29-09-2014 10:37pm

Currently re-watching the whole series and just started season 10. Still brilliant.

_Whimsical_ · 29-09-2014 10:39pm

I absolutely love Fraiser, I think it's earned it's place as a classic. There was a special type of brilliance that managed to make two fusty metrosexual snobby doctors so endearing to the masses. The characters are so well rounded for comedic roles, they have their vulnerabilities, express a humanity we can all relate to in their loneliness or whatever it happens to be at the time. So few modern comedies manage to marry hilarity and genuine human emotion. I love Martin as well, I think he was the perfect foil for Niles and Frasier.

Even fifteen years on, no internet, no mobile phones, it still feels as fresh and relevant as it ever did.

One of my favourite episodes is Trophy Girlfriend where Fraiser meets a beautiful gym teacher but her treatment of a pupil reminds him of his old gym teacher and the humiliations he inflicted on him . Suddenly the beautiful woman is played by Bob Hoskins and we see her exactly how he does.
It's absolutely genius!

Dirty Dingus McGee · 29-09-2014 10:39pm

Best sitcom of all time alongside the Simpsons in my opinion.

The quality for the first 7 seasons was unbelievably high and it made a comeback to those levels in the last season as well.I actually got into the show when watching seasons 8,9 and 10 which are the three weakest, which probably indicates how good it was if its 3 worst seaosns were still better than almost anything else on TV.

Brilliant scripts,brilliant acting (including Eddie) and the one liners were terrific as well. A show that would appeal to all generations (something where Seinfeld falls down).

Joe Keenan is the greatest sitcom writer of all time in my opinion.Almost every episode he wrote was a classic.

It has a brilliant main cast and a brilliant supporting cast with Bebe,Bulldog,Gil,Lilith etc being hilarious and some of the guest appearances were brilliant as well, Patrick Stewart and Michael Keaton being 2 of my favourites.

The one liners were brilliant and also it features the greatest double entendre in the history of TV. (you can guess which one I'm talking about)

Liam O · 29-09-2014 11:10pm

Always thought Daphne was a great prop more than anything, it seems mean to talk about a character like that but she got the best out of Niles, the counterbalance to the enigmatic Maris

When they tried to expand the character there really wasn't much behind her being the live in therapist. Though it may have been more of a novelty to American audiences. I suppose it didn't help that I was kind of infatuated with her too

As for Frasier in general, brilliant show. Watched it before Cheers so wasn't clouded by Frasier's character in that which maybe helped but him and Niles and their rivalry really stands out to anyone who suffers from sibling rivalry, even when their interests don't overlap with any of mine/my brothers really

. A tight group of characters meant that it was rare anything could disrupt the flow of the show and made it all the funnier when someone blew their top or got into an outrageous situation.

Also with regard the OP, Frasier is brilliant right through imo. He could step back and allow the others to play off his ridiculousness or provide some great moments when he lost his cool. There's very few funnier sights in television than Frasier screaming 'YOU WILL RUE THE DAY...' or something to that effect. Something the Simpsons writers really played off too

Degag · 29-09-2014 11:17pm

One of the best if not the best sitcoms ever IMO. quality TV. Niles is one of the best characters I've ever seen.

cloud493 · 29-09-2014 11:20pm

I actually forgot about Bulldog, can't believe he wasn't in it for so long, how long was it, a season or so? 'THIS STINKS, THIS IS TOTAL BS, THIS IS oh wait no its ok'

madmaggie · 30-09-2014 12:08am

It was simply brilliant. I loved the way Martin would remind the sons of their roots whenever they were being really pompous. That, and the tatty armchair, and what was the name of the dog, it's bugging me?

Degag · 30-09-2014 12:10am

madmaggie wrote: »

It was simply brilliant. I loved the way Martin would remind the sons of their roots whenever they were being really pompous. That, and the tatty armchair, and what was the name of the dog, it's bugging me?

Eddie.

efb · 30-09-2014 12:13am

Loved Frasier, bought this boxset, but watch the episodes on c4 at the weekends

efb · 30-09-2014 12:14am

The one where they were skiing and everyone wanted to sleep with each other (no one wanted Frasier) was the funniest imo

extra gravy · 30-09-2014 12:21am

I love the episode where they're trying to stage the radio play and everything that can go wrong goes wrong. Roz and her "woot canal"...cracks me up every time!

Vorenus400 · 30-09-2014 12:31am

extra gravy wrote: »

I love the episode where they're trying to stage the radio play and everything that can go wrong goes wrong. Roz and her "woot canal"...cracks me up every time!

Ham Radio is one of the best episodes of a comedy ever. Frasier tries to micromanage everyone and drives them crazy. I love when a voice actor quits after frasiers constant criticism "my game keeper sounded too cultured, that my irishman sounded more protestant than catholic and that my dwarf sounded too tall!"

Duggy747 · 30-09-2014 12:34am

Frasier going completely over the top and hiring an orchestra to record the jingle to his radio show was just brilliance.

Myself and the GF went through the whole lot a few months back, utterly loved the show and I loved it when Frasier or Niles went full thespian during their regular freak outs. :pac:

syklops · 30-09-2014 1:01am

extra gravy wrote: »

I love the episode where they're trying to stage the radio play and everything that can go wrong goes wrong. Roz and her "woot canal"...cracks me up every time!

And Niles steps in to do all the voices and manages brilliantly until Frasier over directs and Niles pulls the plug.

O'Toole the gardener: Aye, twas himself and no mistake!

FunLover18 · 30-09-2014 1:57am

Love Frasier but not to the same degree that others here seem to. Niles and Daphne getting together was a complete anti-climax, although I think it was always going to be since they left it so long. One of the main reasons for this I think is that Daphne had never really been a fully developed character, she just sort of pottered around coming out with kooky stories and stuff, so when it came to put her in a relationship they had to tone that down and actually give her some character depth. They should have got together in one of the so-often teased moments of spontanaity and passion.

Cheers was/is a far better show in my opinion, and Frasier works better in Cheers as a supporting character in the ensemble than he does as the lead in his own show. Other opinions are available.

Jellybaby1 · 30-09-2014 2:00am

Absolutely agree. Cheers was a great series. I always thought a spin-off with Norm and Cliff would have been a better idea than Frasier.

Liam O · 30-09-2014 2:05am

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

Absolutely agree. Cheers was a great series. I always thought a spin-off with Norm and Cliff would have been a better idea than Frasier.

Ah no way, you can't take 2 of the best supporting characters in comedy history and make them main characters! Would have ruined their legacy from Cheers and been unfunny. Cliff and norm without Cheers have nothing imo.

FunLover18 · 30-09-2014 2:08am

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

Absolutely agree. Cheers was a great series. I always thought a spin-off with Norm and Cliff would have been a better idea than Frasier.

A show about Norm and Cliff … outside of Cheers :eek:

I'm watching Season 9 at the moment, the episodes where Frasier is reading the bar Dickens and gets obsessed with karaoke are fantastic.

horseburger · 30-09-2014 3:02am

I like the scene where he argues with Niles about trying to fit a stapler into a drawer and says "I paid good money for an upright stapler"

I didn't find a video of it on google, so here's the transcript!:)

http://www.kacl780.net/frasier/transcripts/season_10/episode_19/some_assembly_required.html

Frasier: Hmm. Darn. This drawer isn't closing properly. I'd better
go get my tools and have a look at it.
Niles: You sure you know what you're doing?
Frasier: Niles, please. I built a house. I think I can handle a
simple drawer. You know, it's probably the slidey thing.
Or the drawer may have become warped. If that's the case,
then she's going to need to be planed, sanded, and refitted.

I]Niles kneels and examines the drawer.[/I

Niles: Or you could turn the stapler on its side.

I]He does this. The drawer smoothly slides shut.[/I

Frasier: I]dryly, somewhat embarrassed[/I I paid good money for an upright
stapler.

I]Frasier turns the stapler back up and attempts to close the drawer, which sticks again. He walks back to the kitchen. Niles rolls his eyes. Fade out.[/I

RobbingBandit · 30-09-2014 3:14am

I prefer Sideshow Bob and Cecil to Frasier and Niles.

Skerries · 30-09-2014 7:59am

btw some people are getting confused on here
Bebe Neuwirth = Lilith

cloud493 · 30-09-2014 8:06am

The episode where they go to Boston is pretty funny though.

Beano · 30-09-2014 9:37am

Skerries wrote: »

btw some people are getting confused on here
Bebe Neuwirth = Lilith

she is so good she deserves to be named twice.

syklops · 30-09-2014 9:54am

Skerries wrote: »

btw some people are getting confused on here
Bebe Neuwirth = Lilith

To clarify. Lilith - I loved.

Bebe Glazer(Agent) - I hated. Her character is like nails on a blackboard to me.

Beano · 30-09-2014 9:58am

syklops wrote: »

To clarify. Lilith - I loved.

Bebe Glazer(Agent) - I hated. Her character is like nails on a blackboard to me.

I'd forgotten about the other Bebe. a few posts make a LOT more sense now.

efb · 30-09-2014 10:27am

Yeah I like both Lilith and Bebe
So manipulative

jmayo · 30-09-2014 10:52am

Deleted User wrote: »

I've enjoyed almost every episode of Frasier I've seen but I've never seen them in sequence. I really have to watch them all properly some day.

I thought all of the main characters offered a lot to the show; Daphne may not have been as funny as the others (though she certainly had her moments!) but she often played the role of "straight man" quite well, and that's a role that shouldn't be underestimated. I agree that her family were badly written though, they're meant to be from Manchester and yet her brother has a strong Cockney accent? Research department fail!

Anthony LaPaglia is actually Australian, although now sounds totally American.

The episodes I can think of most are the one where Lillith and Niles sleep together, they order room service and then Frasier turns up.

Anyone remember the episode where Milo O'Shea is the shrink trying to deal with the two of them ?

Speaking of guests, there were an impressive amount of famous guest stars and guest callers to the phone in show.

The writing was superb and the interplay between the main characters was excellent.
How they managed to sell two snooty nosed highbrow opera loving doctors to the general public and make them loved was one of the huge achievements of the show.

cloud493 · 30-09-2014 11:08am

I love that episode. He tells Niles and Frasier to avoid each then, then they see his diplomas aren't from their kind of universities, and they suddenly bond over it. Amazing comedy.

syklops · 30-09-2014 12:26pm

jmayo wrote: »

Anthony LaPaglia is actually Australian, although now sounds totally American.

The episodes I can think of most are the one where Lillith and Niles sleep together, they order room service and then Frasier turns up.

Anyone remember the episode where Milo O'Shea is the shrink trying to deal with the two of them ?

Speaking of guests, there were an impressive amount of famous guest stars and guest callers to the phone in show.

The writing was superb and the interplay between the main characters was excellent.
How they managed to sell two snooty nosed highbrow opera loving doctors to the general public and make them loved was one of the huge achievements of the show.

I must drive my girlfriend up the wall. We'll be watching an episode where someone rings in and I'll be going "Wait a mminute, isn't that Debbie from the West Wing?" And she will be like "Where?" And I'll be like "On the phone!".

bogmanfan · 30-09-2014 12:52pm

Superb show with some of the sharpest dialogue of any sitcom ever. I remember watching the first episode, having been a big fan of Cheers, and it just clicked immediately. Took a bit of a dip in quality when Daphne's mother came into it, but was still very funny. Still watch it at weekends on Channel 4 and still laugh as loudly as ever. Up there with Seinfeld, Yes Minister and Only Fools for me as the greatest sitcoms of all time.

What do we all think of Frasier?

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