Speaking of Finales...

...tonight's the 10th anniversary of the Frasier finale, which is apparently has done the impossible in this day & age: avoided nostalgia:

After all, “Frasier” has more Emmy Awards than any series other than “Saturday Night Live” (which has the advantage of decades on the air); it was a consistently highly-rated series that was widely-known enough that Frasier’s dad’s dog ended up on the cover of Entertainment Weekly. How did “Frasier,” which is still on-air in syndication, lose its frisson as an object of conversation? Why isn’t it a trending topic today?

“Frasier” never had the oddity of a “Friends” or a “Seinfeld,” where characters could be entertaining with their spiky, unique chemistry. The ways the characters interact — father-son, brothers, boss-employee — are well-done, but familiar to the point that one doesn’t need to be nostalgic for them. They show up on TV season after season. Why would anyone miss something that at its very best is well-executed television and at its worst was boring television? “Frasier” was so generally competent that its best moments blur together, while its worst were mildly annoying or boring. One remembers particular storylines or jokes from “Friends”; one remembers a general “Frasier” mien of highbrow humor and frustrated aristocrats without any specifics.

My favorite episode was Ham Radio, and my favorite single moment was when Niles subbed in on Frasier's show while he was out sick: