Frasier (Season 4)

At this point, pretty much every season of Frasier has been an improvement on the last, and Season 4 is no exception. It's not just the best season yet, it's one of the best in the whole series.

Season 4 of Frasier pretty much continues the storylines that were being set-up in Season 3 along with adding in a few new ones, with a strong focus on the characters' love lives. Niles's relationship with Maris is still incredibly strained, Martin gets a new girlfriend named Sherry, and Frasier is beginning to realize that his love life has hit a bit of roadblock. Niles's storyline is probably the most interesting here, as he spends most of the season either struggling to get over Maris or trying to get back into the dating scene, both of which lead to a ton of great comedy. However, I did feel a bit disappointed when Niles decided to just try to make it work with Maris again at the end of the season, pretty much just resetting things to the status quo of Season 3. I also quite liked Sherry, she works well with Martin as well as being a great foil to Frasier and Niles. It's also worth noting Season 4 is the first Frasier season to end on a bit of a cliffhanger, though I think I still prefer the more reflective finales of the first three seasons.

Season 4 is the point in which Frasier starts to use farcical storylines nearly every other episode, resulting in one of the most consistently funny seasons in the series. There's barely a single weak episode throughout, nearly every one is well-acted, sharply-written, and cleverly plotted. As a matter of fact, I think the stretch between Ham Radio and Are You Being Served? might just be the best stretch of episodes in the entire show. I also think this season does a great job of utilizing the show's entire cast, juggling between episodes focused on Frasier's family and episodes focused on KACL. Minor characters like Bulldog, Gil, and even the family dog Eddie get their own focal episodes this season, all leading to my favorite episode Ham Radio which unites the entire cast, bringing the two usually disparate parts of Frasier's life together. As a whole, I think Season 4 just feels like Frasier at its most confident and complete. 

Being one of my favorite seasons of Frasier, it's only natural that there's a lot of strong episodes:

The Two Mrs Cranes: Season 4's first episode is already one of my favorites in the series. The Two Mrs Cranes is on of Frasier's best farces as Daphne's reunion with her ex slowly becomes more and more chaotic as more of her friends get involved, layering lies on top of lies on top of lies. With sharp writing and great comedic acting, this premiere is an absolute classic, in my opinion. 

Mixed Doubles: Nearly every season has had at least one episode focused on Niles's feelings for Daphne, and I think they're all some of the best the show has to offer. Mixed Doubles already has an entertaining premise about Daphne dating a doppelgänger of Niles, but what really elevates the episode is the heartfelt and genuine talk between Niles and Daphne at the end.

Ham Radio: This is my personal favorite episode of Frasier, and if you've seen many of my previous reviews, you might be able to piece together why. Not only is a fantastic farce, with tons of moving parts that all play into the final few minutes, but it's also a farce about the cast teaming up to attempt a radio play. There is so much crammed into Ham Radio, subplots for nearly every character in the series while still letting us hear the entire radio play performance. Ham Radio is a relentlessly hysterical episode of Frasier that leaves me doubled over in laughter every time I watch it.

Three Dates And A Breakup: This big double-length episode also has a really funny premise, with Frasier going on three dates and them going the exact same way every single time... all culminating in Sherry botching them up. Aside from that, though, the subplot about Martin's fear of being with a women other than Frasier's mom gave him a lot of depth. 

Daphne Hates Sherry: Similarly to Ham Radio, so much happened in this episode. Daphne and Sherry's arguments were ridiculously entertaining, Daphne sleeping over at Niles was super nice, and I loved the ending of the episode which had Frasier meditate the cast from his bubble bath.

Are You Being Served?: Niles freaking out about Maris is always a fun time, so the storyline about Niles breaking into Maris's house adds some light to the otherwise grim reality of his impending divorce. Once again, I think the fact that Niles and Maris get back together right after this episode undercuts it a bit, but it doesn't mean Are You Being Served? isn't still stuffed with great moments of hilarity.

Overall, Season 4 is just a really strong season of Frasier, packed to the brim with hilarious and well-written episodes while being tied together with a cohesive theme.

5/5 Stars