Reviewer Rating: 1.5/5.0
1.5
It’s another farce from the fourth episode of Family Season 2, which starts out as grief over the loss of a friend but turns into Family forgetting how the field of psychology works.
This episode really managed to nail down where this season is in the show’s timeline compared to season one (at least to me).
But overall, it’s an awkward half hour that even guest star Amy Sedaris can’t save.
moment in time
It’s been a year since Adam—Eve’s firefighter boyfriend (fiancé?) and Freddy’s best friend—died in the line of duty. I had forgotten how fresh the loss of both of them was at the start of season one.
I do have to agree with Fraser, Eve’s description of Adam’s favorite things makes him sound like a child, which… is supposed to be charming?
The fire station dedication ceremony was well done (although: did the show really let Freddy do a Boston accent?) and gave us a chance to see everyone in uniform.
References were made to Fraser’s first edition of Keats’ poems during the ceremony. This is the first of two strange C plot settings that seemed to mean more, but were edited out, just not all of them.
The show’s recent Valentine’s Day episode and Season 1’s Christmas party finale should have warned me, but I’m still surprised that Season 2 aired within the same calendar year.
Maybe it’s because it’s been a while since Adam (or Martin) has been mentioned, but the series seems to be moving ahead a bit this season.
Maybe it’s just my subconscious whispering that I want this season to be over soon.
Well, I really can’t ask Frasier for he seemed to have forgotten every principle of his chosen profession.
The first rule of the Mind Club
After the ceremony, when Frasier sees Freddy with the area therapist, Dr. Stassos, he becomes obsessed with finding out why his son feels the need for therapy.
More importantly, Fraser wants to know why his son didn’t choose he as his therapist.
As Dr. Stassos points out to Fraser later in the episode, “If kids talk to their parents, we will Bankrupt!
Until then, however, Dr. Fraser Crane, the titular titan of psychiatry, seemed completely unable to understand why becoming his son’s therapist might be a huge conflict of interest and not a good idea.
I can see the root cause of this being that Frazier was hurt and his son didn’t let him know that he was struggling with anything.
But Frasier was really confused as to why Freddy didn’t immediately think, “Well, I need a therapist, and my therapist” dad is a therapist, so maybe I’ll see him in a professional capacity.
Even if Freddy’s only reason for seeking therapy was to grieve the death of his friend Adam, it still seemed like something best left to a mental health practitioner outside of his own family.
Especially when Frasier steals Freddie’s patient file from Dr. Stassos’ office instead of simply asking his son why he wants to see her.
If there’s one thing television viewers have learned from decades of crime shows, it’s the sanctity of medical confidentiality.
If you are a long time fan this It turns out that Dr. Frasier Crane often suffered consequences for adhering to a strict personal and professional code of ethics (usually while dating).
Well, now you can be like the Harvard Psychology Department and forget all about it, because them have!
Well, I guess Alan is the voice of reason while Fraser and Olivia try to figure out what loopholes allow them to legally read Freddy’s files.
Allen also had a truly poignant moment when he advised Frasier not to lose his children’s trust, which was reminiscent of his own recent revelations on the subject.
However, Allen’s morality does not extend to breaking and entering, so it is he who helps Fraser return Freddy’s files to Dr. Stassos’ office.
find the key
The locked filing cabinet and Dr. Stassos’ early return to the office lead to a series of increasingly strange sights.
Dr. Stassos was already known as a star-struck professional with a goofy personality. Still, it’s hard to believe that Frasier’s fake therapy sessions distracted her so easily and completely.
Amy Sedaris is great at taking a small role and making it a memorable event. But even she doesn’t seem to know what to do with the strange lines she’s given in this episode.
However, I still think her character creates the most magic a human being can muster.
I’m sure Alan would be sandwiched between that swinging gym bag and Sparky the Dalmatian.
As Frasier rushes to wrap things up with Dr. Stassos, a different kind of cringe replaces my relief that that’s not happening.
He suddenly switches into “serious” mode and admits what we’ve known all along, which is that Freddy sought expert help elsewhere and that he (i.e. his ego) was hurt.
What’s in the box?
Meanwhile, Freddy and Eve are packing the last of Adam’s belongings in her apartment.
Freddy’s “help” involves saving everything Eve threw away, so they’re really just putting all of Adam’s stuff into another box.
Their way of speeding things up is alcohol, but unfortunately this doesn’t help their process much. What’s more, it also doesn’t provide any new information about Adam or his relationship with the two people closest to him.
Oddly enough, Eve and Freddy don’t seem to know much about Adam either. They don’t understand why he left half of it in the box, and all they have is a vague, banal memory.
The dedication ceremony of the fire station provides a more solemn and complete send-off for Adam’s character than this supposedly cathartic night, as his loved ones rummage through his last box of personal belongings.
David also attended this classification meeting, seemingly just to set second A C-plot in a strange and abandoned plot.
This subplot is about “Quazar,” a video game that Adam once played. David also played with it, and he suggested that it was as addictive as a drug.
He then puts on his headphones and plays Quazar on his laptop, making no further mention of him, the game, or his relationship to it for the rest of the episode.
I’m starting to think the show is contractually obligated to give David three or four lines of dialogue in at least one scene per episode. That’s the only explanation for this Quazar subplot that goes nowhere.
This episode seemed to be mostly about closing the door on Adam’s storyline, so I don’t expect to see him mentioned too much in the future. Of course, it’s not that different from the previous episodes, but I feel like the show will now allow Eve to move on with her life and maybe even start dating – if she wants to!
TV Fanatics, what did you think of this episode? Is the show’s focus on slapstick effective overall?
Let us know in the comments!
