New @ MPL: Staff Recommendation #19: Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Staff Recommendation #19: Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs

It's the rare spin-off show that lives up to its predecessor. (You remember Friends, but what about Joey?) When Cheers was cancelled after a spectacular 11-season run, the character of Dr. Frasier Crane -- a stuffy psychiatrist originally brought in to complicate the Sam/Diane relationship -- had become an undeniable part of the show. But he was, perhaps, the last character audiences expected to see in a spin-off series. (When asked in a survey, only 2% of viewers picked Frasier as a character they wanted to see get his own series.)

But perhaps it's precisely the unexpected fun and heart the came from having the character at the center of his own story that made Frasier the powerhouse sit-com it was. Lasting for 11 seasons of its own, the show was the creation of the same writers who created Cheers, and they wisely decided to take the character of Dr. Frasier Crane and give him a show that was entirely different -- and entirely his own.

With stellar casting, snappy writing, and storylines that often employed farce in its most artful form, Frasier is simply a fun show. But it's also a show about family, exploring the relationships between parents and children, between siblings, between spouses, and between the friends that become like family. And in the end -- like all good stories -- Frasier is about its characters.

The show, a long-standing favorite of mine, is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year, having first premiered on September 16, 1993. In honor of the occasion, let's take a closer look at the Frasier family:

-- Dr. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer)

"This is Dr. Frasier Crane -- I'm listening."

On Cheers, Frasier was a practicing psychiatrist who worked at a psychiatric ward in Boston. When the time for a spin-off series came, however, a freshly-divorced Frasier has relocated himself to his home town of Seattle, where he takes up a new career as a Dr. Phil-like radio host.

Out of the office, Frasier is, perhaps, the stereotype of the typical academic: stuffy, pompous, and particular, but also well-read, intelligent, and thoughtful. What balances out Frasier the most, however, is the fact that he's got a big heart. Legitimately caring about his family, his friends, and his listeners, he's got a strong moral compass and almost always tries to do the right thing -- even if it usually backfires on him. He's also a guy that, while actually having some truly good advice for those who ask him for it, is also on a quest to figure out his own life.

His catch phrases might sum him up best. While a bit pithy, they also show a guy who sincerely wants to help those listeners who call in for advice: "I'm listening," and "I wish you all good mental health!"

Best Moment: As both a writer and an older sibling, I'll always have a special place in my heart for the Season 1 episode "Author, Author." It's little brother Niles who has always dreamed of being an author, but when Niles gets the idea of writing a book about sibling relationships, he enlists older brother Frasier to help him out. With a deadline fast approaching, the two brothers lock themselves in a hotel room for 24 hours to hammer out the first few chapters ... and things go about as well as you'd expect them to.

Watch the scene from "Author, Author"

-- Dr. Niles Crane (David Hyde Pierce)

"You're a complex little pirate, aren't you?"

Like his brother, Niles is also a psychiatrist in Seattle -- although, rather than hosting a radio show, Niles still has his own private practice. He's married to a woman called Maris (who, much like Norm Peterson's wife, Vera, on Cheers, is much discussed but never seen), though he still harbors a secret crush on his father's physical therapist (more on that in a bit).

Also like his brother, Niles is every bit as pompous and stuffy. He's also even more neurotic than Frasier -- the first thing we ever see Niles do is wipe down his seat at a restaurant table, a la Adrian Monk. His nervous personality and fussy habits make him a comedic masterpiece of a character, but his personal struggles add a touch of relatable humanity that can be a rare thing indeed in your average sit-com.

Best Moment: Nominated for an Emmy every year of the show's run (and taking home four of them), Hyde Pierce's superb comedic timing and acting prowess makes it difficult to pick just one moment. But if forced to choose, my vote has to be for the opening scene of the Season 6 episode "Three Valentines." Opening in Frasier's apartment (which Niles has borrowed for the evening to entertain a date), this nearly-wordless scene plays out like a Charlie Chaplin routine, as Niles's preparations for his date slowly build into a scene of utter catastrophe.

Watch the scene from "Three Valentines."

-- Martin "Marty" Crane (John Mahoney)

"You want to establish this great father-son relationship. Well, that kind of thing takes a couple of years -- not a couple of days."

Profession-wise, Frasier and Niles take after their mom, who was a research psychiatrist. But Martin Crane is no slouch in the intellect department, having once been a detective on the Seattle police force until an on-the-job injury forced him to retire. At the start of the show, Marty has not sufficiently recovered physically to be able to live on his own, and so he moves in with his newly-relocated son, Frasier.

Significantly more down to earth, practical, and casual than his somewhat-snooty sons, Marty is often at his comedic best when antagonizing Frasier and Niles for their various fussy habits. But even without a psychiatry degree, Marty also has plenty of wisdom on the trials and tribulations of life, which he always offers to his sons when they need it the most. And if he's still not entirely sure how his sons turned out so differently from him, he doesn't love his boys any less for it.

Best Moment: There's often a touch of condescension from Niles and Frasier when they're talking to their blue-collar father -- so it's always fun to watch that condescension come back to haunt them. In this episode, Frasier cajoles his father to play a round of chess with him -- only for his "uneducated" father to promptly beat the pants off him. Slightly daunted, Frasier challenges Marty to game after game, until he finally reaches the late-night moment when he's convinced he's finally defeated his father. Or so it seems for one brief, shining moment. (Marty's nonchalance about the whole thing only adds to the fun.)

Watch the scene from "Chess Pains."

-- Roz Doyle (Peri Gilpin)

Niles shouldn't have made fun of Roz while standing in front of her with a newly-purchased antique novel.

While Frasier is primarily a show about family, I do enjoy the addition of Frasier's radio station "office life" -- best personified by Roz, who, over time, becomes like family herself. The executive producer of Frasier's radio show, Roz is smart, sharp, outgoing, and remarkably patient (most of the time). Skilled at her job, Roz must guide new-to-the-airwaves Frasier through his initial days as a radio star, but even after he's learned the ropes, the two go on to form a great partnership.

With an active social life, Roz also has plenty of stories to regale Frasier with -- much to his exasperation (and the audience's amusement). But as time goes on, she also becomes his best friend, someone he has to help him sort out his own personal conundrums (and he's always happy to return the favor for her).

Best Moment: This isn't just my favorite Roz moment, but one of my favorite moments of the whole show. It takes place in the very first episode, "The Good Son," when a despairing Frasier is wondering why his best intentions of growing closer to his father aren't working out the way he wanted them to. The story Roz responds with puts things neatly in perspective -- for Frasier, as well as for the audience.

Watch the scene from "The Good Son."

-- Daphne Moon (Jane Leeves)

"I must confess -- I'm a bit psychic."

Starting as something of a spear-carrier, Daphne is a physical therapist who moves into the Crane household to work with Marty on his post-injury therapy, as well as serving as an unofficial housekeeper. She is, however, quickly made another member of the family, providing some much-needed balance to the tension between father and son. ("Daphne, you can't go," Frasier implores her in one episode, when she's considering moving out. "You have to stay. I've only just recently realised how important you are to us. You see, if you go, Dad and I will kill each other.")

She's got her eccentricities, though in a far different way from the Crane brothers. Born and raised in Manchester, England, she fancies herself as the receiver of flashes of psychic insight and enjoys regaling those around her with unbelievable stories about her wacky family. But she's also funny, insightful, and quite sure of who she is, and is much more outright and forthcoming than the generally more reserved Frasier and Niles.

Speaking of Niles: the not-so-secret crush that Niles harbors for Daphne may have started life as a throwaway joke, but the evolution of their relationship becomes a major component of the show for more than a few seasons.

Best Moment: This is another hard one for me to choose, as Daphne is a favorite character of mine. That said, it has to be in the Season 2 episode "The Innkeepers." Niles and Frasier have gone into the restaurant business together with the purchase of a fancy Italian restaurant. When their entire staff walks off the job on opening night, it's up to the family to carry out the evening's duties. The results are classic -- especially for Daphne, whose practicality proves to be particularly hilarious as she helps prepare the star dish.

Watch the scene from "The Innkeepers."

-- Eddie (Moose & Enzo)

"DA-AD! I can't eat my breakfast; Eddie's staring at me!"

"Oh, Dad, not Eddie! He's weird!" When Marty moves in with his son, he's not about to leave his best friend behind. Eddie, a Jack Russell terrier, quickly becomes the bane of Frasier's existence, climbing up on the furniture and spending long periods of time sitting and staring at Frasier with apparent rapt fascination. Beloved by Martin and tolerated (mostly) by Frasier, Eddie -- like many TV dogs -- seems possessed with an uncommon intelligence that makes for hilarious results.

The role of Eddie was played for many years by "dog actor" Moose (and, later, by Moose's son Enzo, when Moose himself stepped down to "retire"). Impeccably trained, Moose and Enzo both did their duty in making Eddie an undeniable part of the Crane family.

Best Moment: Every time he stares at Frasier.