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He is seen in the likeness above in a rare, 19th century woodcut. This
image was rumoured to have been
commissioned after a bout of unpleasantness
in the White Chapel district of London. Do enjoy your stay and peruse our many, varied offerings, much of which cannot be found elsewhere!
:: Frasier season 1 ::
by Thunderdude
"Hello Seattle, I'm listening......"
There you have the famous line for Psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane's call in
radio show, the character's job on the series "Frasier". The series just ended
with an impressive 11 seasons. Very few sitcoms have that power to last so long.
We now take a look at the first season out on DVD. The show was a big question
mark when it first began, with a lot of eyes on it considering it was a spin-off
of the very popular "Cheers", that at the time recently ended. The story goes
that Frasier decides to move back to his hometown of Seattle where he is offered
a job as a radio Psychiatrist on an AM talk radio station.
Along with a little depression concerning his being divorced and not able to see
his son, Frasier must also deal with his retired police officer father who can
no longer live by himself, his father's mutt Eddie and his competing younger
brother Niles who is also a psychiatrist. Frasier asks his father to come live
with him, he hires a health care provider from England named Daphne.
Little personality conflicts interfere with any domestic bliss when cultures
clash. Frasier and Niles are both wannabe aristocrats while their father Martin
is a down home working class guy. Frasier is dumbfounded by the love that Martin
has for an old ratty recliner that he insists on keeping. Frasier finds the dog
Eddie to be a rather disturbing dog that just stares at him. Niles lives with
his strange rich wife that we never see but here about in joke often. Niles
develops a crush on Daphne, who is refreshingly not a posh English woman
stereotype, but more a down home working class lady.
Frasier must also deal with the conflicting personality of the producer of his
radio show, Roz. The show doesn't spend too much time on his job, more dividing
his work and social life in a good balance that mesh together well. The first
season focuses on Frasier establishing himself back home with his family and the
new job. The show often has celebrity voices pose as the callers to the show. On
the DVD there's a special feature that mentions each celebrity with along with
their call. The calls are often funny, showing the quirky nature of the Frasier
Crane character.
The strength of the show falls on the supporting characters, which are often
much funnier than the buffoonish main character. Frasier often gets himself into
many of his messes through his own foolishness, which can make the character
pretty damned annoying at times. Who the hell would hire this guy as their
shrink?! However, the rest of the characters are loads of fun to watch. There's
sort of a vaudeville olde time humor to a lot of the episodes. David Hyde
Pierce, who plays Niles shines on this show and is always fun to watch.
Be fairly warned, if you need testosterone in your sitcoms, this show isn't for
you. Much of the humor comes from the aristocratic ways by which Frasier and
Niles like to see themselves. Good ol' dad wonders where the hell he went wrong,
raising to boys that combined have less testosterone than him. I consider
Frasier: Season 1 an acquired taste, but I did enjoy much of it.
I give it a solid B.
