Frasier/Characters
Main Characters
Frasier Crane
The first leading character of his aptly named show, Fraiser has moved to Seattle (from Boston as he was a character in Cheers.) and takes a job as the local radio station KACL, where he gets his own call-in show as a therapist. Tropes from Cheers still apply to him.
- Audio Erotica: Is regularly complimented on his sexy voice, which just encourages him to dial the charm up further.
- Berserk Button: Never challenge his intelligence, be it with psychiatry or anything else he considers himself educated in.
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Frasier: "Chicken! I believe it was Laroshe-foucalt, the great thinker, who said..." |
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- Book Dumb: Anybody without an Ivy League education, according to him and Niles.
- Break the Haughty: A big part of the humor of the show is seeing if it's Frasier's or Niles's turn to get broken, or if they'll share it, and how it's going to happen.
- Camp Straight
- The Casanova: Subverted, though he often has several love interests at once, his attempts to juggle them inevitably end with all of them finding out what he's doing and he's left with no one.
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"I'm a one woman man. If that." |
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- Catch Phrase: "Oh dear god!" and "What the hell was THAT!?"
- And of course, his radio greeting and sign off--"Hello <caller>, I'm listening" and "This is Doctor Frasier Crane, wishing you good mental health."
- Character Filibuster: He loves to give speeches, and the rest of the characters know it and complain about it.
- Lampshaded as early as the second episode.
- Cool Loser
- The Dandy
- Deadpan Snarker
- Drama Queen: When his ego and/or social position is on the line, he cranks up the ham.
- GASP: Prone to this when enamored of something. Mocked in "Out With Dad" when Martin mentions it as one of the more unrealistic tropes of Opera, and Frasier immediately obliges. Martin gasps himself when he realizes the old crone of a mother is waving at him.
- Glory Hound: Yes.
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Niles: Oh please, in your sixth grade production of Oklahoma! you took so many curtain calls Mrs. Van Raphorst had to lasso you and pull you from the stage. |
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- Hair Trigger Temper
- Horrible Judge of Character: Largely due to judging people based on appearances.
- Incredibly Lame Pun: He's fond of the joke "Freudian slip" in reference to a psychiatrist tripping or falling somehow. No one ever laughs when he makes it, not even those who probably understand it.
- Insufferable Genius
- Jerk With a Heart of Gold: As egocentric, arrogant and self-serving as he can be, Frasier shows on more than a few occasions that he is a good man at heart and truly cares about the people in his life.
- Large Ham
- Not So Above It All: Though it's uncommon, Frasier is definitely capable of cutting loose.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness
- The Shrink
- Sibling Rivalry: With Niles. The two constant try to outdo the other when one of them gets some sort of recognition or position the other lacks, or outdoes the other in a competition. Deconstructed quite well when the two openly discuss their constant need to one-up the other and realize that their mutual fear of being outdone probably helped motivate them to become as successful and intelligent as they are, making their rivalry an ultimately positive influence on their lives.
- Stop Helping Me: In-universe. He's obviously popular and helpful on the radio, since they keep him on the air and he usually has a good influx of callers. However his attempts to give advice to his friends and family often backfire horribly, and they call him out on it.
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Frasier: "Well Niles, if you want my advice-" |
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Niles Crane
Frasier's brother, even more uptight and snooty than he is. Initially married to a Manipulative Bitch named Maris and an extreme doormat, he falls in love with Daphne at first sight. His Character Development over the series has him grow a backbone as he tries to escape his increasingly unhealthy marriage and some day confess his feelings to Daphne.
- Aborted Declaration of Love: The few times he finally works up the courage to tell Daphne how he feels, something happens that makes it inappropriate or otherwise scares him off.
- Adorkable
- Berserk Button: Stay away from Daphne when he's around. Hitting on her makes him angry and hurting her feelings just makes it worse. Though Frasier and Martin hold him back and talk him down when he gets tempted to use violence in these situations, he won't hesitate to throw out an articulate The Reason You Suck Speech.
- Breakout Character
- Break the Haughty: As with Frasier, a major theme is that one or both of them get broken over the course of an episode. Niles's breaking however takes place over several seasons as his divorce costs him his home, his lifestyle and his reputation.
- Camp Straight
- Cannot Spit It Out: It takes him seven years to confess to Daphne he has a thing for her. And even then it's only because Frasier has already accidentally spit it out to her.
- Covert Pervert
- The Dandy
- Deadpan Snarker
- Gentleman Snarker: moreso than Frasier
- Dogged Nice Guy: Towards Daphne.
- Drama Queen: For the same reasons as Frasier.
- Drop in Character: Usually to return something of Frasier's, to pick him up for something, or just to get away from Maris. Lampshaded once he and Daphne finally get together.
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Niles (to Daphne): A patient canceled, so I thought I'd... drop by and see you. Oh my god, you have no idea how good it feels to say that. I'm here to see you! No more flimsy pretenses. No more making tedious small talk with Dad! |
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- Happily Married: With Daphne, eventually.
- Henpecked Husband
- Hidden Badass: When he thinks Maris is having an affair with their fencing instructor he challenges him to a duel, and does quite well against him, even taking a moment to give a cocky shake and a smirk atop the piano.
- I Didn't Mean to Turn You On: Oh Niles. How many times has Daphne had you clutching onto a table for support staring into space with seemingly the most innocent conversations?
- Insufferable Genius
- Jerk With a Heart of Gold
- Replacement Flat Character: the former Trope namer.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness
- Sibling Rivalry: See above under Frasier's entry.
- Sophisticated As Hell
- The Woobie
Martin Crane
Frasier and Niles's father who moves in with Frasier, he's an ex-cop who was forced to retire when he took a bullet to the hip. Has little patience for his son's antics and tries (usually with them not listening) to give them valuable advice to make them realize how things are much simpler than they perceive.
- Aw Look They Really Do Love Each Other: Though he is sometimes exasperated with how snootish they can be, Martin truly does love his sons. In "A Room Full of Heroes", Niles dresses like Martin for Halloween and in character begins to say Frasier and Niles were disappointments to him, only for Martin to sharply cut him off and tell him he has always been proud of them.
- Book Dumb: He's not as book smart as Frasier or Niles, but has far more common sense and can outsmart them by catching things they overlook in their arrogance. And, as he never hesitates to remind them, he was a detective for several years, and he occasionally demonstrates he's picked up a bit of psychiatry from listening to them and their mother.
- By the Book Cop: When he was younger.
- Cool Old Guy: He has more empathy than his psychiatrist sons.
- Deadpan Snarker
- Faux Yay: In the episode "Out With Dad", who tells a woman he's gay, so as not to offend her by turning her down, and subsequently offers to "gay it up a little" so her daughter doesn't suspect he's straight when she sets him up with a friend.
- Foil: To Frasier.
- Happily Married: To Ronee, and otherwise to Hester with a few bumps in their marriage.
- Iconic Item: His ancient easy chair.
- May December Romance: With Ronee
- Old Soldier: Tells constant stories about Korea.
- Retired Badass
- The Stoic: He can't express his feelings so easily. At least he has problems getting moved and saying "I love you".
Rosalinda "Roz" Doyle
Frasier's producer and close friend. Her very active sex life is the butt of many jokes.
- Better As Friends: With Frasier.
- Deadpan Snarker
- Double Entendre: If she meets an attractive man, at least one will be dropped before the scene ends.
- Ladette
- Law of Inverse Fertility: Gets smacked with it due to Executive Meddling, though she acknowledges that with her lifestyle, it was fairly inevitable.
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"Even the best birth control is only effective ninety-nine out of a hundred times. I can't beat those odds." |
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- Really Gets Around
- Sassy Secretary: not actually one, but fits the character type.
- Women Are Wiser
Daphne Moon
Martin's physical therapist who lives with him and Frasier, she's from England and serves as a working-class presence in a sitcom of mostly high-class characters. Is the subject of affection for Niles, thought she has no idea for the first six seasons.
- Cloudcuckoolander
- First Name Basis: Shifts to this with the Cranes when she gets together with Niles. Lampshaded.
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Daphne: "Oh, for heaven's sake Dr. Crane!" (she kisses him) |
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- Informed Attractiveness: Not ugly by any measure, but it isn't really clear why Niles obsesses over her for seven years.
- Happily Married: With Niles, eventually.
- Hide Your Pregnancy: For Jane Levees' first pregnancy they wrote Daphne becoming fat due to compulsive eating, and going to a spa to lose the weight (when Jane Leeves left to have the baby). Lampshaded when Niles came back from first visiting her at the spa, saying she had "just lost 9 pounds, 12 ounces." Also lead to one of the best puns on the show:
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Martin: "I just thought of something funny: it took three Cranes to lift you." |
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- Hilariously Abusive Childhood: Not abusive in the literal sense, but her family was so bizarre it's amazing she didn't become a lunatic (although considering she's rightly listed as a Cloudcuckoolander, it's not exactly a great leap to suggest that this had something to do with it). As one snippet, her brothers apparently used to bowl their baby brother over a frozen lake in the winter and see who could get him the furthest. Then came the year the spring thaw set in early...
- Male Gaze: Niles has quite an affection for her rear end. Lampshaded in one of the last episodes "Coots and Ladders" while looking at photos of them early in the series.
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Daphne: Why are you all hunched over in this one? |
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- Noodle Incident: See above.
- Oblivious to Love
- Oop North: Manchester, to be exact.
Eddie
Martin's faithful dog, Frasier and Niles can't stand him and he seems to know it, as one of his favorite pastimes is staring at them to annoy them. Is more a character than a pet, because he's incredibly expressive and intelligent.
- Amplified Animal Aptitude: Eddie's actor, Moose, and his son Enzo who took over the part in later seasons, were incredibly well-trained. John Mahoney has stated that he considered them animal actors rather than token pets.
- Animal Reaction Shot: He's very emotive.
- Ensemble Darkhorse: A common rumour is that Moose received more fan letters than any other cast member.
- Even the Dog Is Ashamed: Eddie burying his head under the sofa cushions was a popular pose.
- The Other Darrin: Moose (the dog who played him) was replaced in the final four seasons by his son Enzo, who first appeared as his stunt double. Yes, the dog had a stunt double.
- Flashback With the Other Darrin: In "Crock Tales"
Supporting Characters
Maris Crane
Niles's initial wife, she's an incredibly bizarre and eccentric Rich Bitch that Niles bends over backwards to please, and even that doesn't work. Their marriage dissolves over the course of the show, and Maris makes it as painful for him as she can.
- The Faceless: The writing team did toy with the idea of revealing her, but by that time they had created so many bizarre descriptions of her that they eventually decided no human actress would be able to portray her adequately.
- Ice Queen: Niles even compares her with said substance a few times
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Niles: It was pitch dark, I thought he was Maris. |
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Lilith Sternin
Frasier's ex-wife, she drops in on occasion as they still maintain a friendship and professional interest in the other's work. The rest of the family is terrified of her.
- Amicably Divorced: She and Frasier, most of the time.
- Brainy Brunette
- Ice Queen
- Raven Hair Ivory Skin
Frederick Crane
Frasier's son with Lilith.
- Character Development: Initially a Child Prodigy, he develops into a normal kid as he grows up, frustrating Frasier as they grow apart.
- Not So Different: While infinitely Closer to Earth than his father and uncle, he will, at least once per appearance, do something to demonstrate that he is still very much Frasier's son.
- Manipulative Bastard: Is this in a Christmas episode where he manipulates Frasier and Lilith into thinking he wants them to get back together, planning to act emotionally crushed so they buy him a minibike. The two surmise this means he's a typical growing kid.
Bob "Bulldog" Briscoe
The host of the Gonzo Sports Show at Frasier's radio station, his show usually comes on after Frasier's. Has an on and off relationship with Roz due to the fact she's physically attracted to him but otherwise finds him a disgusting pig (and he is).
- Cannot Spit It Out: By the time he's actually in love with Roz he can't tell her and so settles for scaring off her dates and playing babysitter to Alice to spend time to her. He does spit it out once she catches on though.
- The Casanova
- Kavorka Man, really. He's short, bald, rude and annoyingly loud-mouthed.
- Dirty Coward: In "Bad Dog," upon seeing a man with a gun at the cafe, he tried to use a pregnant Roz as a human-shield. Thing is, it actually appeared as if he was trying to pull her to safety, so he is dubbed a hero by all - except Frasier, who knows the truth and spends the rest of the episode obsessing over it.
- Hidden Depths: He genuinely falls in love with Roz, and was once so passionate about a relationship that when she dumped him he was reduced to tears.
- Jerk Jock
- Jerk With a Heart of Gold: Has his moments.
- Ladykiller in Love: Happens twice, first with Roz's friend Shannon and later on Roz.
- No Indoor Voice
- Testosterone Poisoning: A subtle in-joke, as actor Dan Butler is gay in real life.
Sherry Dempsey
A girlfriend of Martin's in earlier seasons, a cocktail waitress who plays the banjo. Of course, Frasier and Niles can't stand her.
Bebe Glazer
Frasier's agent who will resort to anything to get her clients fame and fortune, largely because she likes basking in it herself.
- I Did What I Had to Do
- Its All About Me: As dedicated, hardworking and charismatic as she is, she admits that the main reason she pushes her clients to succeed is so she can bask in their residual glory.
- Large Ham: If anyone on the show could out-ham Frasier, it's her.
- Manipulative Bastard
- Older Than They Look: She's had so much cosmetic surgery that everyone was surprised to find her son is forty.
Kenny Daly
The station manager at KACL, he's a very friendly guy unable to make the hard decisions and is easily swayed.
Gertrude Moon
Daphne's mother who makes no secret she is deeply disappointed in how her daughter turned out.
Duke
A good friend of Martin's who owns a bar.
- The Unseen: Averted, though it's easy to miss. He does show up in a handful of episodes, but not enough to be recognizable on sight, and plays a much larger role in the series through Martin's conversations with him on the phone than he does in any on-screen appearance.