Frasier was and still remains one of my favourite television shows. I love it. However this episode "Motor Skills" from season 8 has to be one of the worst episodes of the series.
After their car stalls while driving home from an outing, Frasier and Niles realise they have absolutely no automotive knowledge and decide to enroll in an auto shop course.
Although initially enthusiastic, they soon find the course difficult. The teacher, Randy, tries to help them. However rather than accept that they will just have to work harder than they initially thought to achieve a successful outcome, they instead effectively give up, and decide instead to become the class clowns,being extremely disrespectful to both the teacher and the class and behaving like complete fools.
I guess because we understand that both Frasier and Niles were extremely high academic achievers when they were students themselves,and would not normally have treated a teacher or class this way, that somehow it is OK now, that they are somehow just playing out a harmless fantasy to be the 'coasters' who don't try and just dis everything.
When you are in your forties and in the presence of others who want to learn, or in the case of the teacher, want to help you learn, it is not cool to behave like that. It was not funny, it was ridiculous and I think quite insulting. Frasier and Niles just looked like morons. The episode lacked the familiar Frasier charm and just not entertaining.
After their car stalls while driving home from an outing, Frasier and Niles realise they have absolutely no automotive knowledge and decide to enroll in an auto shop course.
Although initially enthusiastic, they soon find the course difficult. The teacher, Randy, tries to help them. However rather than accept that they will just have to work harder than they initially thought to achieve a successful outcome, they instead effectively give up, and decide instead to become the class clowns,being extremely disrespectful to both the teacher and the class and behaving like complete fools.
I guess because we understand that both Frasier and Niles were extremely high academic achievers when they were students themselves,and would not normally have treated a teacher or class this way, that somehow it is OK now, that they are somehow just playing out a harmless fantasy to be the 'coasters' who don't try and just dis everything.
When you are in your forties and in the presence of others who want to learn, or in the case of the teacher, want to help you learn, it is not cool to behave like that. It was not funny, it was ridiculous and I think quite insulting. Frasier and Niles just looked like morons. The episode lacked the familiar Frasier charm and just not entertaining.