Frasier discussion thread

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Peace N. Love, Apr 16, 2015.

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  1. Peace N. Love

    Peace N. Love Forum Resident Thread Starter

    I get the feeling that Frasier doesn't quite get the respoect it deserves but every time I go back to it, I am reminded just how good it usually was, despite some flaws. Anyone up for a discussion of what was great and what could've been better?
     
  2. jriems

    jriems Audio Ojiisan

    I'll chime in more as the discussion progresses, but for now will just say that it is one of the few shows that I can re-watch ad nauseum, and still enjoy. I love the characters, and I still laugh at the jokes even though I've heard them a million times.

    I think that says an awful lot about how good Frasier is.
     
  3. tommy-thewho

    tommy-thewho Senior Member

    Location:
    detroit, mi
    I agree it doesn't get attention it deserves.
     
    smilin ed likes this.
  4. DreadPikathulhu

    DreadPikathulhu Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    I watched the show during its entire run, and I'm pretty sure I didn't miss any episodes. It was also the last series that I taped on my VCR so I could time-shift and the last new network sitcom I watched.

    Strange that it's totally vanished from my memory. I'd love a complete series set on Blu ray.
     
  5. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    Best spinoff show evah?
     
    bababooey likes this.
  6. stepeanut

    stepeanut The gloves are off

    Niles makes the show, for me.

    Worst aspect: Daphne's family, particularly her brother. In whose world is that a Mancunian accent?
     
  7. DreadPikathulhu

    DreadPikathulhu Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    I see that a complete series DVD just came out, but the comments on Amazon are less than stellar.

    Many people are belly-aching because it's not reformatted for 16:9 so they have to stretch it so it fills their screen. :shake:

    The deal-killer for me is that it isn't captioned or subtitled and may be edited.
     
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2015
  8. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    I'm curious if the Yanks can tell from his accent that "Martin" is originally from Manchester?
     
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  9. stepeanut

    stepeanut The gloves are off

    It's Simon, isn't it?
     
  10. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    I mean Frasier's dad - John Mahoney grew up in Manchester.
     
    Trapper J likes this.
  11. stepeanut

    stepeanut The gloves are off

    Ah, I see. I didn't know that. Put it this way, as a Mancunian, I can't hear a trace of my accent in his.
     
    Mal likes this.
  12. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    I'm a Southern Jessie but I can't either - wondering if it's noticeable to a North American?

    How does Daphne's accent sound to you?
     
    Trapper J likes this.
  13. stepeanut

    stepeanut The gloves are off

    Not Mancunian, either. It's a caricature of a northern accent, closer to parts of Lancashire, or even Yorkshire.
     
    Mal likes this.
  14. Peace N. Love

    Peace N. Love Forum Resident Thread Starter

    I feel that maybe part of the reason it didn't get as much recognition might be that it didn't always play to it's strength, which to me was the Frasier-Niles dynamic, endless competing with each other, getting into scrapes, etc. I think sometimes the show was weakened by the need to, say, create a storyline for Daphne or Martin in episodes where the real strength was the Crane brothers, which had the effect of making it feel a little too much like a "conventional" sitcom.

    Having said that, even now I am amazed by the brilliance of the dialogue. A random example:
    Frasier: ..spending the afternoon riding bicycles with a bunch of hooligans is not my idea of fun.
    Kenny: It's just kids and families.
    Frasier: Yes, well so was the KACL family picnic at the zoo, until those urchins jostled me into the orangutan grove. Let me tell you: orangutans are not the playful gentlemen of the trees the nature shows claim.
     
  15. StereoFanOregon

    StereoFanOregon Forum Resident

    I had no problem with the other characters getting time and storyline episodes, it made the show much more rounded, plus it allowed for Frasier and Niles' snobbishness to be viewed to its full, hysterical effect. It also kept the show fresh for a longer time period. i do agree, it was this dialogue and its delivery that made the difference. It was unpredictable and or sharp-witted consistently.

    I was a bit surprised that Ros didn't get spun off into a show of her own, as her character had so much room to grow, much like Frasier at the end of "Cheers".
     
  16. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    Behold - 30 seasons of Roz:

    http://frasierverse.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Roz_episodes

    :D
     
  17. john greenwood

    john greenwood Senior Member

    Location:
    NYC
  18. Peace N. Love

    Peace N. Love Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Also, going back and revisiting the show, I am surprised by how some of my favourite episodes came in the last few seasons. At the time, I felt like the show had kind of lost its way around Season 7 or 8, but there are some gems in the later seasons, IMO - not least "The Doctor is Out" and "Taking Liberties."
     
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2015
    El Duderino420, cuddlytoy and jriems like this.
  19. four sticks

    four sticks Senior Member

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Great show. I didn't pay much attention to it while it was on but watched the whole series a few years back on TV Land. I could've done without Daphne's family or the Kirby story line but the rest was brilliant.
     
    OldSoul and Peace N. Love like this.
  20. sportzdad

    sportzdad Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Athens, GA
    Great show. In my former suit and tie life, my friends nicknamed me Frasier, as much for my resemblance to the actor and my admitted propensity to be a pompous ****
     
  21. redmetalmoose

    redmetalmoose Forum Resident

    Location:
    New England
    Great writing. Didn't get to see it until it was in syndication. It was brilliant how they would weave new characters into and then out of the stories.Also the one offs with Bob Hoskins,Patrick Stewart, Derek Jacobi etc.right to the end of its run.My favorites were his agent Bebe...
    [​IMG]
    And his dad's girlfriend,Sherry
    (Marsha Mason).Niles snide one liners under his breath about her were classic.
    I still use the bad boy/dirty girl line on my wife from the episode where he's on the air while getting freaky with his new boss.
    This was a funny show for a long time. Not an easy thing to do.
     
    Peace N. Love likes this.
  22. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    I believe most of Frasier was shot in 3-perf 35mm negative, so it's already formatted for 16x9. All they have to do is spend the money to retransfer it to HD. Paramount was generally pretty forward-thinking when it came to TV, and a lot of their 1990s film shows were shot in 3-perf from about 1995 on. It's very possible the first couple of seasons of Frasier was only shot in 4x3 4-perf 35mm, but I bet at some point they shifted to 3-perf, which was 25% cheaper to shoot.

    I didn't watch Frasier regularly, but when I did I always found it to be a smart, funny show that was very well-written and also looked great.
     
    artfromtex, RubenH, Maggie and 2 others like this.
  23. OldSoul

    OldSoul Don't you hear the wind blowin'?

    Location:
    NYC
    Season 10 was done 16×9, or at least mastered that way on Netflix. It's definitely HD, but looks cropped. Season 11 looks like it was actually shot in, or for, 16×9.
     
  24. Benno123

    Benno123 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    When this was first announced I was in 8th grade, right around the time of the finale of Cheers. I remember being happy that Cheers (in some form) was going to continue on but upset it was with the Frasier character. After watching the series for all 11 years I have to say that it really is/was one of the great smart comedies (ala Mary Tyler Moore) in TV history.
     
    El Duderino420, ted321 and OldSoul like this.
  25. Myke

    Myke Trying Not To Spook The Horse

    Since getting my newest TV last summer, my UK DVDs now look like crap. It's a shame since I've always loved the show, and was about ready for another viewing, but simply find the poor visual quality too distracting to enjoy now.
     
    stinsojd likes this.
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