DVD Review: “Frasier: Season 10”

Pull up a chair at the Cafe Nervosa for the penultimate season of the long-running Emmy-winning comedy series about an irritating, but endearing radio psychiatrist (Grammer) who moved from the Boston of Cheers to Seattle to start a new life. On hand are his brother Niles (Pierce), his father Martin (Mahoney), radio producer Roz (Gilpin), and Dad’s physical therapist, now Niles’ second wife, Daphne (Leeves). By this point in the goings-on, the gang is showing its age, yes, but there are still gems to be had. Look for the clever episode Star Mitzvah where Frasier’s well-meaning speech at his son’s bar mitzvah was supposed to be in Hebrew, but was actually in Klingon. Speaking of Star Trek, Nana Visitor and Brent Spiner are two of the many guest stars making an appearance (also Dean Cain, Bob Hoskins, and best of all Felicity Huffman, now a Desperate Housewife, in a recurring role as KACL’s financial analyst). Like many a TV show before it, Frasier wasn’t improved by the consummation of a long-running platonic relationship, here between Niles and Daphne. Still, as I mentioned in my comments on the recent release of the last season of Seinfeld, mediocre Frasier was still better than most other TV choices. Unlike the superlative Seinfeld set, though, there’s nary an extra here…not even the original air dates of the episodes. Seattle’s most neurotic radio personality, as portrayed by the brilliant Grammer, deserved better.