Frasier (TV Series) The Show Where Sam Shows Up (1995) User Reviews

Ah Sam Malone

[asarandes · 7/10 · 20 October 2018]

I liked this episode very much. I love that the writers periodically bring back Cheers characters. Sam Malone's character was on point as the lovable lothario we all remember from Cheers. And the lovely and talented Tea Leoni, playing Sam's love interest was great. Well cast.

Sam is back

[phillipsbg · 8/10 · 20 December 2020]

Sam as a character is funnier in this appearance than he is in probably 60% of Cheers episodes - here he doesn't have to play the straight man in quite the same way.

The effect Sam has on Roz and Daphne is hilarious, possibly inspiring Idris Elba's appearance in The Office (US) ("I am aware of the effect I have on women.")

Great lines include:

"It glows in the dark." "So do I."

"Who, me?"

"Believe me, no ball player is in Seattle because of the Mariners."

"She's one in a million." "For most guys, that's just an expression."

"Will she still take you back?" *laughing*

"And that was she?!" "No Niles, I told you that for absolutely no reason whatsoever."

It's also interesting that, purely for the purposes of a gag, Niles mentions "a congenital heart murmur that would plague me for the rest of my life" - 6 or so seasons later, Niles will undergo heart surgery and everyone will act as if it came out of nowhere.

My heart is very full at this moment

[bboge-20197 · 7/10 · 15 October 2020]

It certainly had the potential of being way better than that, but still I was grining like a child throughout the entire episode.

Holy Madame Secretary

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 30 September 2019]

Sam Malone shows up in Seattle to talk to Frasier. It turns out that he is engaged to be married and he has left the girl at the altar. The young woman is Tea Leoni who now stars in "Madame Secretary." Frasier talks Sam into taking her back but there is a kicker. It was nice to see the return of Sam and references to the guys at Cheers. The episode, however, was not great shakes.

A wasted opportunity

[studioAT · 3/10 · 13 July 2017]

With 'Frasier' just starting to move out of the shadow of 'Cheers', the show it was spun off from it was a strange move in my opinion in this episode to bring back Sam Malone from that show, played with relish as ever by Ted Danson.

It felt oddly like a step back for the show, and I remember reading somewhere that Kelsey Grammar (Frasier) himself was unhappy with this episode, despite it being written by two good writers, and directed by the legendary James Burrows.

The first half of the episode where Frasier tries to guide Sam into a life of committing to one woman is nicely played, but the second half gets a bit silly, with a plot that adds nothing to the Frasier/Sam dynamic.

It's a shame because this episode had obvious potential, but doesn't live up to the hype.

Cheers

[puzgolac · 2/10 · 31 January 2023]

Perhaps this is funny if you saw Cheers and know about the characters from that show. Maybe then all of the references from this episode would be meaningful and funny to you. I haven't seen Cheers, so to me, this episode was pretty much completely unfunny. Norm? Cliff? I have no clue who those people are and I don't think that it should be a necessary prerequisite to watch a different show. Of course, showrunners everywhere have always tried to cash in on nostalgia and popularity of other shows, which has culminated in these days when nothing is ever a standalone product and everything is always a part of a "universe" or a "franchise".

One of the weakest episodes of Frasier so far.