Thanks to Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce’s performances, Frasier and Niles came off as lovably pretentious rather than insufferable snobs. While that made for great comedic moments, the show was also never afraid to demonstrate the often negative consequences of their personalities, especially when it came to their relationship with their father. The season 1 episode “Dinner at Eight,” for example, saw the pair planning to take their father out for a fancy dinner only to change plans at the last second and accompany Martin to his favorite steakhouse. Once there, the brothers spend the whole time making fun of the restaurant’s lack of class, which upsets Martin and forces Niles and Frasier to reflect on how their behavior affected their dad.
The revival show has thus far tried hard to emulate the style of the original, even making sly references to old “Frasier” episodes while simultaneously attempting to break new ground. Similar to the original series, episode 8 tries to explore the real-world results of the Crane brothers’ personalities, this time from the perspective of their sons. The episode focuses on Anders Keith’s David, who is heartbroken to have received a B grade on his latest paper from none other than his own uncle, Frasier. The development sends David into a spiral as he tries everything he can to retake the paper and up his grade to an A. Meanwhile, Freddy, who dropped out of Harvard to become a firefighter, reveals his hidden intellectual talents, which evidently only come to light when he drinks. As the episode goes on, Freddy demonstrates that he still has a passion for academia, getting excited at the prospect of helping David with his paper and clearly enjoying the process.
