What began as a hopeful spin-off series from the beloved sitcom Cheers, Frasier turned into a legend of its own, spanning more than a decade. The series focused on the titular character, a radio psychiatrist, and all his friends and family's ups and downs. It was an absolute underdog story that paid incredible dividends for the network, the critics, and the viewers.
The highbrow intellectual humor of the show, while perhaps not a likely candidate for victory, demonstrated through the years to be a lucrative success. It garnered more than one hundred critically acclaimed awards over its eleven-year span. Frasier’s comedic genius was truly a force to be reckoned with, so much so, that a sequel series is in the works.
Niles Trying to Be Strong and Independent, But Not By Himself
Frasier’s brother, Niles, was a pretentious man. He was very academic and highbrow, and more often than not, he was too deadpan to be hilarious. When trying to explain to Frasier that he wanted to prove he was a strong and independent man, he got frustrated in saying so, and very seriously ended by saying he couldn’t prove he was strong and independent on his own.
Such a subtle comment, but an absolute riotous joke. It played into the hilarious personality that was Niles, always trying to prove himself self-sufficient, but always asking for help to do so. He might have been a bit stuffy, but he definitely had absolute zingers because they would often come out of the blue and hit with a weight that was unexpected.
Martin Making the Best of a Dreadful Situation
Frasier’s father was often a downer. He always seemed to sound grumpy. Like Niles, though, Martin would occasionally drop a line that was sheer genius. When reading news of a dead body washing up on shore, he decided to look at the bright side by indicating that a dead body wouldn’t rise to the surface until the weather warmed up, so Spring must be right around the corner.
While somewhat morbid, Martin’s take on this event came across as so straight-faced and deadly serious (no pun intended), that it was almost difficult to laugh at. But looking back on his record of always being like that, it becomes hilarious because of his perfect comedic timing.
Niles Almost Burns Down Frasier’s Apartment
As he was preparing to have a fancy date over to Frasier’s apartment that he borrowed for the evening, Niles is in the process of ironing his pants, and because he has the attention span of a squirrel, he loses track of things and his pants go up in flames, which then causes an amazing cavalcade of hilarity to ensue.
This entire sequence feels like a beautiful throwback to the days of silent films when extreme physical comedy was the only way to relay a message. Niles truly goes full eccentric in this scene as every single quick of his comes out and makes a mess of something – all to the delight of the viewer.
When Frasier Was Too Full of Himself
When talking to Niles about a recent romantic endeavor, Frasier discusses just how being with him would change a woman. Frasier thinks very highly of himself, and he says that once a woman has had the chance to test the waters of “Crane lake,” that dry land would never feel the same again.
While it is always a good thing to have positive self-esteem, and a wonderful thing to get to experience, the dryness of Frasier's delivery is what makes this one of his funniest comments throughout the entire series.
Martin Hustling Frasier in a Game of Chess
What began as a sweet moment of Frasier trying to be patient and teach his dad how to play chess, turned into an incredible hustle on Martin’s part. He kept referring to the various chess pieces by the wrong name, pretending to not fully know what was the point of the game, then only to attack Frasier barely moments into the game with a surprise checkmate.
What an absolute joy to watch as Frasier’s face went from joy of playing a game of chess with his dad and being respectful and kind as he taught him the rules and how to play - only to completely change as he was cheated. Martin absolutely hustled Frasier, and it was sheer bliss – likely because Frasier was ignorant of it.
Frasier Being a Total Genius, But Only to Himself
Frasier was not known as a genuinely funny man. Now, he absolutely had funny moments, but those were always more eclectic than consistent. When he did have the opportunity to drop those fantastic one-liners, he did not always have the audience he deserved.
After dropping what he felt was an immeasurably funny joke, he looked up to realize that he was under the weight of being clever and also alone. The curse of being laughable and lonely is quite an unfortunate one, but one that Frasier was disappointed by more than once. Fortunately, the cameras were always there to show how truly fantastic his humor was.
Niles Dreaming About Muffins in the Mail
After witnessing his taxi driver going into labor, Niles decides that he needs to be more prepared for the possibility of becoming a father, and so he begins caring for a flour baby – a literal sack of flour that Niles treats as a baby. Much like what might be seen with an egg and a high school project.
The absolute absurdity of this idea is only paralleled and by the fact that Niles comes to explain that he had a nightmare that his flour sack was taken and that the thieves mailed him muffins in the mail to torment him. There has likely never been something so wildly hilarious from such a serious show said before, and it is an absolute treasure.
Niles Correcting Grammar for Martin
Niles tends to drop some of the funniest lines throughout the series. As Martin is writing a letter, Niles looks over his shoulder and corrects Martin’s use of a preposition at the end of the sentence. After Martin corrects it and hands it back to Niles, it is assumed that Martin wrote another choice phrase, as Niles indicates that technically “off” is a preposition as well.
That is simply comedic gold. The way that Niles delivered such a straightforward comment, without cracking even a smile, it just shows how much of an absolute gem he was on that show. The clear implication given of what the corrected note said, coupled with his genuinely dry response, is a real treasure to watch.
Frasier’s Unintentional Date With His Boss
In an attempt to set Daphne up with his boss, Frasier invites Tom (his new boss) over for dinner at his apartment. Little did Frasier know that Tom was of the belief that Frasier was the one interested in dating him. After a brief interruption, Niles finds out that Frasier is the focus of Tom’s romantic intent, which ends up being a source of hilarity for the audience.
Frasier was trying to set his friend up, never expecting anything like this to come of it. The episode comes to a close and Frasier explains his innocence in the entire matter, apologizing as he never would have imagined that Tom was a homosexual. Tom responds by saying that it never would have occurred to him that Frasier was straight – what an absolutely hilarious moment.
Frasier is Wounded
What became likely one of the most quoted lines in all of Frasier’s television history, was one of his funniest reactions to an insult from his brother. After Niles insults Frasier’s feigned innocence in the matter of his romantic life, he then also insulted his “big fat head,” to which Frasier responds with his deep, deadpan voice that he was wounded.
Frasier became known for this quote, and it became one of the most widely used phrases from the entire show. It was the sheer hilarious nature of the comment, and then also of Frasier’s dry and very serious response that makes it one of the funniest moments from the show.