30 Best Frasier Episodes Ranked

Bring out the tossed salads and scrambled eggs: the blues are calling again. The multi-Emmy winning sitcom "Frasier" is getting a reboot on Paramount+. Kelsey Grammer will reprise his role as Dr. Frasier Crane, the pompous radio psychiatrist constantly thwarted in his attempts to climb the societal ladder.

Grammer originated the character on "Cheers," beginning as a guest star before becoming a permanent cast member. The spinoff relocated Dr. Crane from the Boston pub to his hometown of Seattle, where he frequently got into antics with his persnickety brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce), his blue collar father Martin (John Mahoney), his brash producer Roz (Peri Gilpin), and Martin's English caregiver Daphne (Jane Leeves), who catches Niles' eye. Oh, also Martin's dog, Eddie.

In anticipation of the reboot, here's a look back at the 30 best episodes of "Frasier," ranked worst to best.

Anyone who has ever wondered how the culturally cultivated Frasier and Niles could be the descendants of retired cop Martin Crane have their suspicions raised by the arrival of Leland Barton (David Ogden Stiers), the former research assistant of their mother, Hester Crane. 

The boys are so similar to Leland — from their love of wine to their shared allergies — that Martin begins to question his own parentage, until he learns something about Leland's personal life that puts his mind at ease. Meanwhile, Niles and Daphne argue over what to name their soon-to-be firstborn son.

Tensions between Frasier and Martin hit a breaking point, prompting Martin to temporarily move in with Niles. 

At first, the younger Crane is excited to have his father stay at his place, thinking it's an opportunity for him and Daphne to finally be under the same roof, but Daphne thinks Martin's hip might be healed enough for her to seek other employment. When Martin falls down the stairs, Frasier begins to suspect Nile's subconscious is causing him to hurt their father, in the hopes of getting Daphne to come back and take care of him again.

Niles' romantic yearnings for Daphne kick into high gear in "A Mid-Winter Night's Dream." When Frasier questions his brother's infatuation with their father's caretaker, Niles admits to some marital troubles with his wife, Maris. When his attempt to spice things up with some roleplaying goes awry, Daphne offers to help out by cooking a meal for them at Niles' home. But the weather turns stormy, stranding Daphne and Niles with Maris unable to travel back from a spa trip. It's up to Frasier and Martin to brave the elements and keep them from succumbing to temptation.

In the first part of the show's series finale, Frasier bids farewell to his girlfriend Charlotte (Laura Linney), who's moving to Chicago. Daphne's rowdy brothers Simon (Anthony LaPaglia), Michael (Robbie Coltrane), and Stephen (Richard E. Grant) show up unexpectedly to welcome the birth of her first child with Niles, while Martin is planning his wedding to Ronee (Wendy Malick). Chaos ensues when Martin accidentally books a venue a month early, leading Frasier and Niles to step in as wedding planners. In the midst of everything, Frasier is offered a new radio hosting gig in San Francisco.

"Frasier" often experimented with the confines of sitcom storytelling, including this Season 1 finale. 

A riff on the 1981 Wallace Shawn/Andre Gregory classic "My Dinner with Andre," "My Coffee with Niles" finds Frasier meeting up with Niles at their favorite coffee shop, Cafe Nervosa, for a friendly cup of joe. While struggling to get a table, Niles poses a simple question to his brother: "Are you happy?" His attempts to answer this are interrupted by the arrival of Roz and her date, then by Daphne and Martin — who is upset that everyone has forgotten his birthday.

Frequently, "Frasier" was at its best when engaged in pure drawing room farce, with the Crane brothers desperately trying to avert a disaster that would threaten their social stature. In "To Kill a Talking Bird," for instance, Niles is moving into a swanky new apartment building and decides to throw a dinner party for his neighbors. Frasier agrees to help out, eager to dine with Niles' attractive neighbor, Stephanie (Patricia Wettig). But things go haywire when Niles' talking pet bird Baby attaches itself to his head after getting frightened, and starts chatting with the dinner guests.

"Frasier" was nothing if not filled with hijinks, as the dignified radio psychiatrist often put himself in the most uncomfortable of situations. In this second season installment, he goes poking around in Daphne's bedroom to find a book she borrowed, only to be reprimanded when she catches him examining a pill bottle he found. He vows never to go into her room again, only to immediately break that promise in order to return the pill bottle he accidentally took with him. He decides to do this while Daphne is helping Martin with his physical therapy, but that backfires when they unexpectedly return early.

When Daphne ends her relationship with Joe, Niles sees an opportunity to finally make his move. Frasier encourages him to give her a day to get over her ex, which Niles agrees to do. Unfortunately, that gives Roz enough time to take Daphne to a singles bar, where she meets Rodney Banks (Kevin Farrell), a dead ringer in every way for the younger Crane. Devastated that his inaction gave Daphne enough time to meet a new guy, Niles urges Roz to take him to the same singles bar, where he hits it off with Adelle Childs (Allison Mackie).

As "Cheers" fans know, before he was a Seattle radio psychiatrist, Frasier was living in Boston and married to fellow psychiatrist Lilith Sternin (Bebe Neuwirth). Towards the end of that series, Lilith left Frasier after having an affair with another man. 

She made regular appearances on "Frasier," however, stirring up romantic longings for her ex-husband. In "Room Service," she's reeling from the breakup of her latest marriage, and in her vulnerable state she ends up going to bed with Niles. Unfortunately for them both, Frasier shows up at Lilith's hotel room hoping to rekindle their romance ... with Niles still there.

Many of the standout "Frasier" episodes revolved around the Crane brothers trying to pull off an impossible task, from joining an exclusive club to fixing a toilet. In "The Innkeepers," they decide to put their food expertise to good use by buying a struggling restaurant and renaming it Les Freres Heureux (The Happy Brothers). Of course, whatever could go wrong does go wrong, and on opening night, no less. Soon enough Martin is serving drinks, Niles and Daphne are cooking, and Roz is acting as waitress. Things go from bad to worse when "Restaurant Beat" host Gil Chesterton (Edward Hibbert) shows up with Seattle's top restaurant critics.

If there's one thing Frasier is particularly bad at, it's keeping a secret, so it's not exactly wise for Roz to let her boss know she might be pregnant. He invites her to Niles' Halloween party, where everyone is supposed to come dressed as a famous literary character. 

Frasier and Daphne come dressed as Geoffrey Chaucer and the Wife of Bath from "The Canterbury Tales;" Martin plays Sherlock Holmes; Niles dresses as Cyrano de Bergerac; and Roz goes as O from "The Story of O." A series of misinformation leads a drunken Niles to believe Daphne is pregnant ... and Frasier is the father.

In one of the show's greatest high wire acts, Daphne gets word that her ex-fiancee Clive (Scott Atkinson) is visiting Seattle and wants to see her. Afraid he'll want to rekindle their romance, she tells him she's married ... to Niles. This comes as a surprise to Frasier, who in this ruse is divorced from Maris, who is played by Roz. Roz (aka Maris) takes an instant liking to Clive, who reveals he's finally gotten his life together, making him suddenly attractive to Daphne. Martin plays along too, claiming to be a former astronaut. Eddie, meanwhile, remains Eddie.

A good finale is hard to pull off, but "Frasier" produced an all-timer. With his girlfriend Charlotte (Laura Linney) moving to Chicago, Martin set to marry Ronee (Wendie Malick), and Niles and Daphne expecting their first child, Frasier has found himself at a crossroads. He decides to take a new job at a radio station in San Francisco, and gathers his family to bid farewell. After a series of misunderstandings lead them to believe he's dying, Frasier tells them he just wants to take a chance on happiness. When we last see Dr. Crane, he's on an airplane that has landed ... in Chicago.

Considering it aired all the way back in 2003, "The Doctor Is Out" takes a surprisingly nuanced approach to its potentially offensive subject matter. 

A classically "Frasier"-esque series of misunderstandings leads Dr. Crane to be outed by a caller on his radio program, despite the fact that he isn't gay. He finds solace in the friendship of Alistair Burke (Patrick Stewart), the charming, cultured director of the Seattle Opera Guild. Alistair escorts Frasier around town, including backstage at his new stage show, and it soon becomes apparent he has more in mind than just friendship.

Above all else, "Frasier" was a precisely tuned comedy of manners, and "The Ski Lodge" is perhaps its most nimbly constructed example of this precision. When Roz can't use her free ski trip because of her pregnancy, she gifts the tickets to Frasier, who decides to bring the family along. Daphne invites her friend Annie (Cynthia Lamontagne), a swimsuit model Frasier has his eye on. Once there they meet Guy (James Patrick Stewart), a handsome ski instructor who Daphne immediately falls for ... despite him having a thing for Niles. Martin, meanwhile, keeps misunderstanding everyone since his ears are clogged.