Miles-10

Alan: If you would just stop trying, I promise you will stop failing.

The show could take the professor's advice. Kelsey Grammer keeps trying to be funny. (He always did, but he used to have better writing to work with.) All of the characters are awkward and don't work, reaching too far, the cast trying too hard. Freddy would not have turned out the way he does here.

In one scene, the back and forth between Frasier and Alan ends with Alan saying, "And I question your rejection of my projection suggestion". This sort of thing used to work, but now it sounds like going through the motions.

Frasier's return to Boston raises many problems. He never ever runs into anyone from "Cheers". Also, they keep talking about Boston as if Harvard is there. (It's across the river in the fouth-largest city in Massachusetts--Cambridge.

The most exciting thing here is the car crash at the beginning, even though Erin tries to minimize it as "a fender-bender". I enjoyed this episode for the character development, but if you want the usual cops-and-robbers action, skip this one.

Taking Erin at her word, here are the four stories in a nutshell:

Erin is upset after a non-fatal car accident.

Danny gets bent out of shape about a non-violent graffiti artist tagging police vehicles.

Jamie and Eddie get a dog. (Cute story.)

Frank and the new mayor butt heads over budget negotiations. (The real opposition in this one.)

Oh, BTW, Nicky comes to visit. (Usually she gets a credit in the opening without actually appearing on screen.)

As usual, Abigail does not appear on screen often enough or get enough lines.