Change Your Image
dgplatt-60121
Reviews
Cheers: Call Me, Irresponsible (1989)
Goodbye, Eddie, Goodbye
Jay Thomas's unceremonious departure from the series has become legend: most accounts agree that his character was written out when he insulted Rhea Perlman on his radio show. Perlman herself claims that she thought that the writers should preserve Carla's lone wolf status, and that Eddie was pulling her away from the bar. This episode suggests that while Thomas's gaffe made his exit more humiliating, Eddie was already on the way out.
Even though he's off camera for most of this episode, Eddie's behaviour is pretty bad. For all her outward cynicism Carla is a diehard romantic, and forgetting their anniversary is unforgivable. It doesn't help that Carla is humiliated in front of the bar. That said, the bit with multiple flower deliveries (including a cameo by legendary columnist Herb Caen!) is funny, as is Sam's wondering why Mormons can't send flowers.
The subplot involving yet more sports betting isn't bad, either, and we learn that Woody is a major sore winner. But in the end you can't help but feel sorry for Carla.
Cheers: The Gift of the Woodi (1989)
Woody tries his best
Woody isn't a love-him-or-hate-him character like Rebecca or Cliff, but he's never been in the top tier for me. Even with his courtship of Kelly he still comes off as a dim-but-sweet hick.
Kelly's snobbish father has invited Woody to his daughter's birthday party, knowing that Woody could never compete with the lavish gifts she usually gets. We're rooting for Woody, and his "Kelly Kelly Kelly" song is cute, but it's not really that funny.
There are two subplots, neither amounting to much. Having decided she's too sexy to be taken seriously, Rebecca gets a makeover from Lilith. The other subplot revives one of Cliff's sillier traits, namely growing weird stuff in his greenhouse. Will the Beetabaga take off and revolutionize agriculture? What do you think?
Cheers: What's Up, Doc? (1989)
More meh but nothing too bad
Once again this is a remake of an old episode with lower emotional stakes and less payoff. This time it's Don Juan Is Hell, which was the first inkling that Sam's wild sex life might be hiding deeper emotional problems.
Dr. Sheila Rydell is a colleague of the Sternin-Cranes, and Sam decides that the key to wooing her is to fake a psychological problem. He chooses impotence because the writers decided it would be funny. Dr. Rydell is played by Madolyn Smith, the kind of big-haired beauty which seemed to only exist in the 80s. She's a good match for Sam, and it's easy to see why she was in the running for the part of Rebecca.
This just isn't enough to keep it from being a retread of the earlier episode, and once again it shows that Sam has regressed from his time with Diane. The possibility that Sam might have a problem won't be addressed again until the end of the series.
Cheers: Hot Rocks (1989)
Seriously - What the Hell?
The Chairman Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff is the highest ranking military officer of the United States. They serve one term at the pleasure of the president and are chosen from the leaders of any of the branches of the Armed Forces. From 1986 through to 1989 the Chairman was Admiral William J. Crowe of the Navy.
Why a begin the review with this infodump? Because it's the only interesting thing about this episode, so interesting it's repeated several times.
Episodes with Special Guest Stars live or die by the main cast's interaction with the guest, and this one dies on the vine. Admiral Crowe (The Chairman Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff) is about as good an actor as Wade Boggs, which is to say he reads his lines clearly with little emotion. Forget sitcoms: this would be sad for a Bob Hope special.
The plot is some nonsense about Rebecca's earrings going missing, causing her to accuse Admiral Crowe (The Chairman Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff). There are worse episodes but none more pointless than this one.
Cheers: The Cranemakers (1989)
Silly Frasier is still Funny Frasier
By this point in the series it was clear that Fraser was the MVP character, and that his relationship with Lilith was comic gold. This is the Cranes at their goofiest, but it's still pretty funny.
Yuppies with babies were a big deal in the late 80s. The idea of someone changing a diaper while wearing a power suit was hilarious to many. (Not coincidentally two of the bigger comedies that used this plot starred Cheers cast members). The idea of the two most uptight yuppies on TV getting baby fever was too good to pass up.
It's a bit weird, with Ice Queen Lilith turning into an Earth Mother and the most repressed man alive channeling his Pa Ingalls. But Grammer and Neuwirth are up to the task, and Neuwirth's rendition of the "work song" My Funny Valentine is top notch.
The only subplot involves Woody being forced to go on vacation. We get it - he's a dumb hick.
Cheers: Don't Paint Your Chickens (1989)
Been there, done that
This one plays out like a rehash of two better episodes. The first storyline is similar to Norm At The Top but with Rebecca swapped for Diane as Norm's booster. Norm and Rebecca have developed a mildly charming brother-sister dynamic, and there's some funny physical comedy but this is still pretty dull.
The other plot (involving Sam and his athletic date) is a less serious remake of Dark Imaginings and it's yet another example of Sam regressing. The Magnificent Pagan Beast has become what Diane always thought he was: an aging horny jock. Even in a pretty bad season his lack of introspection is glaring.
Cheers: I Kid You Not (1989)
A lot going on here
This is one that could have been a great episode with a bit of tweaking, but as it stands it's only slightly better than the rest of Season Seven.
We finally meet Ludlow Tortelli, Carla's son with the esteemed Dr. Bennett Ludlow (Inexplicably Ludlow is two years older than he's supposed to be, but what have you). Chalking up one for Nature over Nurture, Ludlow is a kid with surprisingly cultured tastes. Frasier is excited to meet the little guy as he finally has someone with which to talk opera and paintings. Carla is flattered but also a bit threatened by this. Carla's complicated reaction is oddly touching: she really does love all her kids, but she realizes Ludlow is somebody special.
Frasier and Carla episodes are rare, and this one covers some new territory. Frasier's interest in Ludlow (which is tied in with his ambivalence about fatherhood- hence the spoiler alert) is a bit weird. Is he hoping to create his own Mini-Me, or does he have some misguided ambition to "save" Ludlow? Part of the reason this falls flat is that Kelsey Grammer was clearly not feeling 100% while filming this. Whether it's a head cold or the result of his excesses, Grammer is phoning it in here.
The subplot is pretty silly and amounts to Sam being overprotective of his 'Vette.
Cheers: Golden Boyd (1989)
Woody Finally Gets A Girl
Looking back it's strange that Woody hasn't had a steady girlfriend until this point. Harrelson was young and hunky (and still had his hair), so why didn't Woody get some lovin' like Sam did? Previously they used Woody's naïveté and attachment to Indiana to keep him from dating, but now they've finally let him meet somebody.
In her first appearance Kelly Gaines isn't quite the blissfully clueless rich princess she becomes later, but otherwise this is the template for most future Woody/Kelly stories. Woody is the good-natured hayseed and Kelly is sweet and innocent despite her wealthy background. There's a bit of conflict involving Kelly's boyfriend Nash (played by Tyrone Power, Jr., who looks frighteningly similar to his Hollywood legend father) but it's not much. The subplot involving Sam getting extra tips based on his hard luck stories is kind of funny.
Cheers: Please Mr. Postman (1989)
Cringe time
While all of the main characters devolved into caricatures by the end of the series, Cliff is probably the worst. By this point he had gone from the lovable (?) "resident Know-It-All" to the guy at the bar everyone avoided.
So what sort of woman would be attracted to Cliff? We find out here. Annie Golden is a nice enough actress (and an even better singer) but Maggie O'Keefe is just weird, and not in a good way. That Maggie will reappear in three more episodes shows how bad the writing has gotten.
The other plot yet again involves Sam being a creep. There are some funny bits (Frasier describing "erotic triggers" and getting distracted) but it's more of Sam not taking a hint.
(The central gag around "You've Lost That Loving Feeling" is ruined in syndication by replacing the song, and for no good reason: they ended up using it again in later episodes!)
Cheers: Adventures in Housesitting (1989)
More "Just A Sitcom"
There's nothing really wrong with this episode but there's very little right, either. Once again, if this was the first episode of the show you saw you'd wonder what all the fuss was about.
Mr. Sheridan (yet another charisma-free Big Boss for Rebecca to kiss up to) needs someone to house sit for him, and Rebecca agrees. Feeling nervous in the big spooky mansion, Rebecca gets the gang to come over, and Sam accidentally lets out Sheridan's prize Doberman Buster.
It's a silly plot but the cast and writers have made weak stories work before, just not in this case. As earlier episodes have shown, animals are better heard than seen, and while Buster is a handsome pooch the adage is true here.
There's no real subplot, just a throwaway gag where Frasier adopts Carla's tweak on the old "imagine your audience naked" ploy. It's really nothing but Grammer gives it his all.
Cheers: Bar Wars II: The Woodman Strikes Back (1989)
A good old fashioned caper
This one harkens back to Pick A Con, Any Con from the first season. It's nowhere near as good but it has its moments.
Gary (This time played by Gary #1 again for no particular reason) and his Olde Towne Tavern have bested Cheers in yet another challenge: the annual Bloody Mary contest. Tired of the humiliation, the gang resorts to subterfuge and some (seemingly) inept espionage by Woody. No spoilers, but expect some clever twists.
It's pretty silly stuff, but in an otherwise lousy season this episode shines in comparison. It's a reminder that this show was once one of (if not the) best written shows on TV.
Cheers: Send in the Crane (1989)
Funny Frasier, Sleazy Sam
This is a tried and true two plot episode, and it's a measure of Kelsey Grammer's talent that Frasier gets the title plot.
Ironically, a later episode of the Simpsons with Grammer shows why this plot works: in a flashback the tweed-suited, patrician Bob Terwilliger gets a pie in the face and immediately becomes Sideshow Bob. A clown is only sometimes funny; an Oxford-educated snob in a clown suit is always funny.
Sam's plot is, let's face it, creepy. Reunited with his old flame Judy Sam is relieved to find out she's still sexy, but he's also conflicted because her now grown-up daughter is also rather fetching. This kind of plot might show up on It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia or even Seinfeld, but it's a bit too twisted for Cheers.
Cheers: Jumping Jerks (1988)
Another boilerplate episode
"Character faces fear by going skydiving" is a pretty well-worn sitcom cliche by now, and it's hard to tell if it was any fresher in 1988. In any case Cheers takes a stab at it and it's not terrible because it's Cheers.
If there's any new wrinkle here it's that Sam is almost as big a wimp as the other guys. You'd expect Norm and Cliff to bail out (so to speak) but not Woody and definitely not Mayday.
This episode doesn't have much in the way of a subplot and there's little for the rest of the gang to do (Frasier does get a couple good lines). Mainly this episode makes you question the whole "back to the bar" strategy of the Rebecca years...
Cheers: How to Win Friends and Electrocute People (1988)
SHOCKER: Cliff Acts Like A Jerk!
Once again we have Cheers doing a plot that would embarrass the writers of lesser sitcoms. You can imagine Urkel trying a similar stunt to be less annoying, with similar results.
When Cliff has his appendix removed and only Frasier comes to visit, he decides to try some behavior modification. Despite Frasier's objections, he enlists someone to administer electric shocks every time he acts annoying. You can see where this is going a mile away.
The subplot involves Sam teaching Lilith how to drive. This doesn't really amount to much, either, and yet another half hour of the show's most nonessential season comes to a close.
Cheers: Norm, Is That You? (1988)
Not bad for 2.0
Once you get past the weirdness that Norm (the chief homophobe in The Boys In The Bar) is pretending to be gay, this is a pretty funny (if dated) episode.
This is yet another Career Norm episode, and it's ironic that one of the all time slackers turns out to be good at something. The real target here isn't gay people but the clueless yuppies who like their decorators to be "stylish." Norm's attempts to sound gay are a bit cringey, but it could have been a lot worse.
There's no real subplot other than a weird discussion about Cliff's brain. This is more sitcom fodder, with an occasional good joke. It's also a fairly Rebecca-light episode, which isn't a bad thing.
Cheers: Those Lips, Those Ice (1988)
From Greatest Show Ever To Just A Sitcom
When Cheers first aired, NBC (then at the bottom of the ratings) was run with a concept called Least Objectionable Programming. A show didn't have to be smart, or daring, or even good. All NBC asked for was nothing that would cause the viewer to change the channel.
This episode is Exhibit A: there are worse ones, but this is as close as Cheers ever got to being a generic sitcom.
The plot isn't much: Sam is hot for Eddie's costar Franzi, and Carla is convinced that Eddie is cheating on her with Franzi. Not unreasonably, Sam suggests that her paranoia might make this a self-fulfilling prophecy. (This was long before Jay Thomas hastened his own exit with some mean remarks about Rhea Perlman)
There are a couple of good lines (FRASIER: Well, Sam, I see no alternative. You're just going to have to become a communist.) and a funny gag about those then newfangled mobile phones. But this is more treading water.
Cheers: One Happy Chappy in a Snappy Serape (1988)
Down In Meh-xico
Almost as quickly as it started, Martin Teal storyline comes to an end. Teal is probably the most dated version of the Rich Jerk character: Bonfire Of The Vanities (which had the first example of corporate traders as "Masters Of The Universe") was a bestseller, and Wall Street had been a hit movie. Teal plays like a standard Yuppie villain with a dash of the pint-sized capitalist Alex P. Keaton from Cheers's Thursday night neighbour Family Ties.
It's obvious that Sam won't stay in Mexico, nor will Rebecca marry the "Geek Tycoon." In other words this is yet another placeholder episode. There are a couple funny bits, like how even in Mexico every bar has a Norm.
Cheers: Executive Sweet (1988)
Part One of a weird two episode arc
As with the last episode, this feels like a longer story arc that was abandoned due to the writers' strike. That's not a bad thing, because there's not much going on here.
Rebecca has a new boss, and she's all ready to suck up to him until she actually meets him. Martin Teal is a pint-sized corporate bigwig with a king-sized ego, and he has the hots for Rebecca. Wanting to ward him off, Rebecca tells Teal she's with Sam. Sam agrees, mostly out of horniness but also because he likes to needle Rebecca.
Meanwhile Woody has ordered a beehive through the mail. This is barely a subplot and adds little to the episode, although Frasier's freakout over an imaginary bee is pretty funny.
Cheers: Swear to God (1988)
Actually Not Bad?
This is one of the better Cheers 2.0 episodes. It may be a but uncharitable to suggest that this is because Rebecca isn't in it that much, but, well..
Sam gets a call from an old girlfriend with some jarring news: he might be a father. Meanwhile, Woody is the understudy for the part of Moses in a new play. Sam swears to God that if the kid isn't his, he'll give up sex... for three months, anyway. Superstitious Carla takes Sam at his word, but Sam is unconvinced until... Woody shows up in full costume and calls him an infidel.
It's silly stuff, but it's pretty well done. Although Sam doesn't seem like the devout type, Carla puts the fear of God (literally!) into him, and he even ends up consulting a priest (Eric Christmas in his first appearance as the drily witty Father Barry)
Cheers: How to Recede in Business (1988)
The start of an awkward season
Season 7 is an anomaly for Cheers. Due to the 1988 WGA strike it was the shortest season since Season 2, which might have led to lack of a season-long story. Neither Sam nor Rebecca have major character arcs, although some changes come for other characters (Lilith gets pregnant, while both Woody and even Cliff get girlfriends). There's a lot of treading water in Season 7. As Sam might put it, this is a rebuilding year.
As it stands, the season doesn't exactly start out very good. Sam is on the make again, figuring he can catch Rebecca on the rebound from Evan Drake. Instead, Rebecca is focused on the new boss Mr. Stone (a one-episode character who doesn't add much). Unfortunately for Rebecca, Mr. Stone is less than impressed with her work. This briefly puts Sam back in charge, a position he comes to hate. Sam tries to get Rebecca back at Cheers while using this leverage to get her into bed. It's not very interesting, let alone funny. There's nothing here as outright terrible as the worst of Season 6, but this is a sign that Cheers has become Just Another Sitcom.
Cheers: Backseat Becky, Up Front (1988)
Season Six ends with a whimper
And so the freshman season of The Rebecca Years limps to a close. The series will never quite reach the heights of the early episodes again, but it won't get much worse than it did for Season Six.
This episode says goodbye to Tom Skerritt as Evan Drake, and this is no big loss. Skerritt is a good actor (after all, he was in one of The Sweatiest Movies Ever), but he never really fit in the series, serving mostly as a straight man to Kirstie Alley's increasingly desperate histrionics.
This episode points to a future of more hammy neuroses from Alley, which will eventually become comfortable but never really as funny as Shelley Long's antics. Sam reacts to Rebecca's angst over Evan Drake leaving with a combination of chivalry and lechery, which again sets the stage for the rest of the series.
Cheers: The Big Kiss-Off (1988)
Sam and Woody at their sleaziest
There are worse episodes of Cheers, but this one is particularly sleazy. The show that once told stories worthy of Twain is now resorted to using plots that would be rejected by Saved By The Bell.
There's no getting around it - both Sam and Woody act like creeps here. In the show itself Carla lets Woody off the hook because the other guys cajoled him into it, but he's still pretty gross in his attempts to get a kiss from Rebecca. Woody's efforts, however, pale in comparison to Sam's, which as Carla points out are "entering Nick Tortelli Country."
The ending has Sam and Woody getting their comeuppance, but who really cares? This is yet another lowlight in a sad season.
Cheers: Bar Wars (1988)
More hijinks with Gary
Gary from the Olde Towne Tavern is back, and he's looking a little different, but he's just as weaselly as ever. Having conceded the bowling trophy to the Cheers gang, Gary and his crew are now resorting to childish pranks.
Cheers fights back as best they could, using the tried-and-true (dribble glasses) and the innovative (messing with Gary's cable feed). The punchline is a cute bit of commentary on the nature of paranoia (shades of the earlier episode Suspicion, where Diane was the target), and of course there's the cameo by Wade Boggs.
Boggs does about as well as any athlete-turned-actor does on the show (At least Luis Tiant was *supposed* to screw up his lines), but he's one of the least exciting guest stars in the entire series. Another example of nothing bad, but not much great, either.
Cheers: Slumber Party Massacred (1988)
A bit of an odd one
This one is weird for a few reasons. Anthony and Annie Tortelli are back, only to never be seen again. (The only other reference to them is a quick joke in a later episode when Rebecca asks Gino what Anthony is doing and Gino responds "Time." Ha?). Even odder, as the trivia entry for this episode points out, the central conflict in this story - Carla accepting that she'll be a grandmother - is never mentioned again.
Depressed, angry Carla is usually funny Carla, and there are some pretty good moments here. We actually do feel a bit of sadness at Carla's monologue about never really getting to be a teenager. As well, it's always funny to see Carla interact with Lilith (accompanied by her equally odd friend Dorothy Greenberg, another character we never seen again).
There's no real subplot, other than Woody's attempt to hook up the new TV set. What's really weird (and a bit depressing) is that this is probably one of the better Season Six episodes.
Cheers: Our Hourly Bread (1988)
More filler
This is yet another episode that takes place entirely in the bar, but it lacks the charm of earlier ones. Simply put, it's lacking any good quips from Diane or Coach.
The plot is boilerplate: everybody wants a raise, but the bar is in trouble so they hold a raffle. There's a silly subplot involving an abstract painting that Frasier pays a lot for. The plots collide, but none of it is particularly funny or consequential.
There's nothing that's offensively bad about this one, but it's the closest the show will ever get to a generic sitcom. If, somehow, you knew nothing about Cheers, you would never know from this it was worth watching.