We all know that Friends was known for its Thanksgiving episodes. Most people cite season five’s “The One with All the Thanksgivings” as the best. That one is fantastic (really, they all are), but here are some scenes from my personal favorite, “The One With Rachel’s Other Sister.”
Happy Thanksgiving!
Lists, lists, we got yer lists here!
I don’t know why I am constantly making up pointless lists about TV in my head. That’s just me. And yes, I’ve done it again. After the Glee album was released a few weeks ago, I started thinking about my favorite Glee moments, which led to thinking about my favorite TV musical moments. That led to me making a list of said favorites, which brings us here.
Before I begin, a few things: First, I’ve not seen every show out there. These are just some of my favorite moments. I know, for instance, that Ally McBeal was chock-full of musical performances. Unfortunately, I’ve never seen it. Ditto for the first four seasons of American Idol. Second, by musical moments, I do not mean montages. I mean characters actually singing, or music being used effectively in a scene. (But there are a few exceptions for truly outstanding montages that could not be ignored.) Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a musical montage. But the list is long enough already; if I included every musical montage I loved, I’d be writing this entry forever.
Ready? Okay, here we go, in no particular order. Continue reading
Ladies and gentlemen, the wait is over. Your prayers have been answered. The long-anticipated blog post is finally here. That’s right, it’s Part 3 of The Great Frasier Rewatch! Don’t know what I’m talking about? Go here and here to read parts 1 and 2. Excited? Me too, let’s get started!
Season 3
Okay, hold on. Before I begin, let me just say that season 3 has a lot of great episodes, but I only picked a couple for this list. I’ll list some notable mentions at the end. Okay. Now, for reals, the list.
Here’s the second installment of The Great Frasier Rewatch. If you’re totally lost, scroll down, or go here for part one. Let’s get right to it, shall we? Here are some more of my favorites.
Season 2
The Matchmaker: One of Frasier’s most famous episodes, this is the first farce they ever did, and the first episode written by the show’s farce master, Joe Keenan. The plot gets a wee complex, so I’ll do my best to whittle it down. Daphne is depressed about her lack of a love life, and she and Frasier have a heart-to-heart. The next day, Frasier tells Roz about Daphne’s woes, and she offers to set Daphne up with one of her former boyfriends. He declines, insulting (hah, I first wrote “insluting”) her in the process. Later on at work, the new station manager, Tom, comes by during Frasier’s show. Frasier decides to invite Tom over for dinner, after finding out he used to live in London and is recently single. When Tom talks to Roz, he tells her Frasier asked him out – and since she is still angry from their earlier conversation, she doesn’t bother to correct his assumption that Frasier is gay. Got it so far? Ok. We cut to the night of the dinner – and – well, here, I’ll let you watch what happens next. Fun fact: Tom is played by Eric Lutes, who turned this gig into a starring role on Caroline in the City. According to the audio commentary (yes I listen to audio commentary, shut it), the day after this episode aired, the producer’s phones were ablaze – everyone wanted to know who the new guy was.
Niles’ reaction to finding out Tom is gay is absolutely priceless, and cracks me up every time. Ditto Daphne’s reaction.
Flour Child: So, this show makes me laugh. A lot. Pretty much every episode has me laughing at something. But during the rewatch, this is the first episode that made me laugh till I cried. Ironic, too, because when the episode started, I thought it was going to turn into a huge cliche. Why? Because the three Crane men are in a cab when the driver goes into labor. It actually ends up being quite funny, and afterwards, Niles starts thinking about having a child of his own. Frasier jokingly says he should do the old high school experiment of carrying around a sack of flour, and Niles takes his suggestion to heart, since Maris is once again out of town. Much hilarity ensues, and in the end, Niles decides he’s not ready. Here’s just a sample of said hilarity, but you really just ought to watch the whole episode.
Breaking the Ice: So, my favorite relationship on the show is, surprisingly, NOT Niles and Daphne, but rather the relationship between the three Crane men. Frasier and Niles have little in common with their father, but beneath the surface is a deep father/son bond. This is one of the few episodes in which their relationship is explored. In an attempt to bond with their father, Frasier and Niles agree to go ice fishing with Martin after his friend backs out. They both have their reasons: Niles just wants to get closer to Martin, while Frasier wants to Martin to finally say “I love you.” Once they get to the cabin, the bickering starts, and culminates with Niles dropping their car keys in the fishing hole. Forced to be with each other, and aided by Jim Beam, they begin to confide in each other (or, “break the ice”, if you will). Just before being rescued, Martin shyly tells his sons he loves them. It’s really Frasier (or any sitcom) at its best – perfectly combining the funny (such as Niles learning a bunch of inane facts about ice fishing to impress Martin) with the serious.
An Affair to Forget: Y’all remember this episode, right? It’s the one where Niles has an old fashioned duel. (Sort of.) It also won the 1995 Emmy for best writing in a comedy series. I have no idea what else it was up against, but for my money, the award was totally deserved. Niles tells Frasier how much more relaxed and pleasant Maris has been since she took up fencing on the same day Frasier gets a call from a German woman who suspects her fencing instructor husband (Gunnar) is cheating on her. Frasier puts two and two together, goes to confront Maris, but accidentally tells Niles instead. On Martin’s advice, Niles decides to confront Gunnar. The only problem is, Gunnar doesn’t speak a word of English. Luckily, Niles’ maid Marta speaks German. So, in an odd game of telephone, Niles tells Frasier in English, who tells Marta in Spanish, who tells Gunnar in German. Here’s how the scene plays out:
Next: More farce and a big heartbreak, with seasons three and four. Stay tuned!
Regular readers know that there’s nothing I love more than a Great Re-Watch. Past ones include Sex and the City, Mad About You, and Cheers. After finishing Cheers eariler this year I thought it only natural to move on to Frasier. This summer, I promised a recap of said re-watch, but never followed up with one.
This is not for lack of trying, people. First of all, I had to narrow it down, because this show is so brilliant, my first list of favorites included more than 40 episodes. Clearly, that’s too many, even for a series of posts. Then, I got writer’s block. The show really speaks for itself, so what else can I say about it? I’m still not sure about that, but I have it narrowed down to a lean (haha) 24 episodes, and will try to give it a go. (Don’t worry – I’m not posting all 24 at once.)
First, a word on Frasier vs. Cheers. I posted my progress on the Cheers watching earlier this year, but never wrote a wrap-up entry. I never finished. I don’t know why, but I couldn’t bear to say goodbye to this show for a second time. The first time was painful enough.
So, for whatever reason, Cheers is super emotional for me. I don’t know why, so don’t try and figure it out. Frasier, on the other hand, is completely different. It was an absolute delight from start to finish. Almost every episode cracked me up, and it just made (makes) me happy. Even the sad episodes are so well done, they still make me smile. (They’re like Sex and the City – it’s a GOOD sad.) So, without further adieu, and in no particular order, I give you part one of my favorites.
Season 1
A Midwinter Night’s Dream: This is the first in a years-long series of episodes chronicling the Niles/Daphne saga. Niles’ plan to spice up his marriage by dressing up as a pirate backfires when the maid finds him before Maris does. She storms out of the house in a fury, leaving Niles alone. Daphne offers to help Niles cook up a romantic evening in an attempt to win her back. But the evening takes a sharp turn when bad weather keeps Maris from returning – and Daphne from leaving Niles’ house. I love this episode for many reasons, but mostly because it features Niles in a pirate outfit, and because it contains the now-infamous line: “Dr. Crane! Your glockenspiel has sprung to life!”
Travels with Martin: This is one of the episodes I remembered, even though I hadn’t seen it since it first aired, and I was only 12 at the time. Travels With Martin is a master class in writing. It sets up a simple, yet hilarious premise (the family takes a trip together…in a Winnebago), and the climax makes sense in the context of the story (they cross the border, only Daphne doesn’t have her green card yet, so getting back into the country is a little sticky). While the whole episode is one laugh after another, my favorite line comes from Niles. He and Frasier are bemoaning the prospect of taking another car trip with their father, and Niles says, “I was 13 before I realized cows aren’t blurry.” Here’s the set up for this gem of an episode:
My Coffee With Niles:For its season 1 finale, Frasier did nothing flashy; instead, the episode is shot in real time, and center around Niles and Frasier having coffee at Cafe Nervosa. Frasier realizes it’s been one year since he moved to Seattle. The two brothers talk about their lives, culminating in Niles asking if Frasier is happy. And that’s it. There’s a running gag with the waitress never getting Frasier’s coffee right, and of course they are interrupted by Daphne, Roz and Martin, but the premise of the episode remains simple. Because it’s so simple, and doesn’t have the farcical elements the show got known for, this episode is easy to overlook.
Coming up: More favorites, including The Matchmaker, Flour Child and Moondance from seasons 2 and 3. Stay tuned!
Retrowatching 
