Blind Date

I've held off reviewing this comeback / reboot of one of my all time favourite TV characters until now after the halfway point in the series. I was going to leave it until the end of the season and then rewatch the entire series in a binge to get the best out of it.

Having been incredibly disappointed with the show so far I though episode 5 showed some promise so eagerly awaited this episode hoping they were finally hitting their stride. I have just finished watching the episode for the second time and it was as poor as the first 4 unfortunately.

The cast jus doesn't gel, there is no chemistry except maybe between Frasier and Alan (Nicholas Lyndhurst) but the reimagined Freddie son o Frasier is totally implausible and really does not work especially when interacting with his father. Worse though is the son of Daphne & Niles, David who is neither one thing nor the other and is caring inducing and an embarrassment as a character. The show has only served to emphasise what I feared when I first heard Frasier was returning without any other of the original series cast.

The magic of the original series was the brilliance of each individual character and the depth they all had whilst excelling as an ensemble cast with incredible chemistry.

I really really wanted to like this show but it has become the biggest disappointment in a long time on TV. Even Kelsey Grammar is hard to watch as he is noticeably frail and unsteady on his feet, of course he's still a great comic actor but he has precious little to work with here and it's hard to see how they could make a second series without some major changes to the cast and writing.

This particular episode didn't draw a smile let alone a laugh, I will stick with it for the final 4 episodes but it's only out of a sense of loyalty to one of the greatest comic characters in US TV history not from a sense of enjoyment.

I hope the last 4 finally find their footing but I'm not holding out much hope.

It took far too long to get to actual episodic situations, but six episodes in we are scratching the surface of what a comedy sitcom's strengths are. Matured Frasier is no fun, just because he's older and wiser doesn't mean he doesn't fall for the same petty quirks his personality has always had. If he doesn't have those quirks, why have the show at all? This episode better showed his refinement, his jealousy & actually had a situation occur and went through the motions of having it be the main part of the scene. A previous episode had a guy get a armor suit arm get stuck on him and the scene was flat because they did nothing with it. He waved once, what's the situation there? Here, we see the situation of not knowing who a date is there for... the awkwardness makes it funny. Funny is goal. 10 eps is not enough to get this show going. It's just gotten started right here... this should have been the pilot or second episode.

This episode takes a fairly well-worn sitcom premise and makes it thoroughly enjoyable through clever, somewhat self-aware writing and great performances by Jack Cutmore-Scott, the guest cast, and especially Kelsey Grammer. Freddy and Frasier are set up on blind dates by Eve, but they don't know whose date the first arrival is. After they both hit it off with her, the father-son rivalry heats up and is made more complicated by two other women who knock on their door.

The B-plot is short, featuring Alan and Olivia viewing a horrible play that Eve is in. It is a short and simple plot that is made more enjoyable by Nicholas Lyndhurst's reactions. Fortunately, the main plot carries the day here.

Freddy and Frasier show a bit of a genre-savvy self-awareness when referring back to Frasier's previous antics. Frasier's remark as the dates end is also a subtle call back to his punch line at the end of The Ski Lodge, which is widely considered one of the best episodes of the original series. This show took a few episodes to get into the groove, but now I am genuinely looking forward to each new episode every week! I hope they can keep it up!

Episode 6 is the first episode that harks back to the glory days of Frasier, the main plot was fantastic and the sub plot had some great moments.

There was one thing missed from this episode that made it work... David did not feature... I get this is an American sitcom but that character just isn't working, he is nothing like Daphne or Niles and is very much a character would have found one a 1 Season and done show in the 90s.

This episode has given me hope for the future of this show especially with the wealth of guest stars that could feature from Cheers and Frasier to choose from.

Looking forward to Lilith's return next week.

Finally, I felt like this episode was more reminiscent of the old Fraiser writing. I understand Fraiser has a new life. Just like he started a new life when he left Cheers in Boston for Seattle. People say give reboot a chance. By episode 3 of the original Frasier and they were at the Timbermill, I was hooked. You know whether you love a show or not.

Unfortunately, I haven't really loved the new series. The writing seems more like cheap jabs than wit, and less warmth. With the old Frasier, there was lots of clever, witty dialogue, and you knew the characters loved each other, and there were only a few jabs here and there. But the new series, there's no warmth. I getting tired of Freddie hating Frasier. You didn't feel any love underneath. All the characters like Alan does is take cheap shots at one another. David was promising the beginning, but now they've turned him into a bumbling idot.

With the old Frasier, there was also a lot of self-deprecating humor and there was vulnerability that humbled the characters. While that has been absent in this series, I felt like this episode brought that back. Also, enjoyed the mix up that often happened in the original Frasier. I will keep watching because I love Frasier. I hope there's more episodes with less jabs and more fun and warmth. And I hope that Freddie starts warming up to Frasier more.

This episode seemed lighter.