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Frasier Online Episode Guide -> Season 9 -> Episode 9.22

The Guilt Trippers
Episode Details

Written by: Lori Kirkland

Directed by: Wil Shriner

Original US airdate: 14th May 2002

Original UK airdate: 24th May 2002


Cast Information
Main Cast
Frasier Crane .... Kelsey Grammer
Niles Crane .... David Hyde Pierce
Martin Crane .... John Mahoney
Daphne Moon .... Jane Leeves
Roz Doyle .... Peri Gilpin
Recurring Cast
Gertrude Moon .... Millicent Martin
Harry Moon .... Brian Cox
Denise Dawson .... Suzanne Cryer
   
   
Guest Cast
Craig Dawson .... Ted King
Aunt Pearl .... Marcia Ann Burrs
Curtis .... Bobby Brewer
Guest Callers

Episode Synopsis

It's Daphne's birthday which culminates in everyone giving Daphne her presents - Frasier and Martin buy her a journal, while Niles surprises her with a trip to Hawaii for just the two of them. Daphne's mother, though, is still driving everyone to distraction with her constant moaning leading to Daphne wanting to change her birthday wish! After the party, Roz doesn't really want to go home as she'll be all by herself as Alice is at her grandma's, leading to Frasier and Roz spending the evening just shooting the breeze. However, both of them get a a shock the next morning as they realise they just slept together!

Frasier tries to get Roz to talk about what happened, but she just wants to leave as quickly as possible. Niles, though, after listening to Daphne feeling a bit sad about the fact that her father won't be able to give her away at her wedding, has a brainwave - he asks Daphne to take her mother to Hawaii to try and cheer her up. There is a method to his madness - he is planning to fly to England and try and convince Daphne's father to come to Seattle and reconcile with Daphne's mother. Frasier, on the other hand, is worried that Roz's refusal to discuss what happened between them will endanger their relationship so on hearing that Roz has gone to visit her parents in Wisconsin, he decides to fly there and see her. So Martin drops Daphne and her mother off at the airport, followed by Niles, then Frasier. Will Frasier be able to sort everything out with Roz, and will Niles convince Mr Moon to fly back to Seattle......?

Episode Title Cards
  • And She's The Carrots

Episode Highlights

- Martin seems to want to disown his and Frasier's present to Daphne of a journal:
Martin: I wanted to get you one of those robot dogs - you know, something you could really use!

- After another dose of the grumpy Mrs Moon, Daphne relights her birthday cake:
Niles: What are you doing?
Daphne: I want to change my wish!

- Martin greets Frasier the morning after he slept with Roz:
Martin: Seen the paper?
Frasier: No, not yet.
Martin: Big story about how Roz's handbag spent the night on the coffee table!

- Martin drops Daphne and her mother off at the airport:
Martin: [to Mrs Moon] How come you can fly to Hawaii but you can't fly to England?
Mrs Moon: How come you can drive a car but you can't do your own laundry?
Martin: [pauses] Have a nice trip!

- Niles manages to track Mr Moon down in a Manchester pub:
Niles: I'm here to reunite you with your wife.
[ Pub goes silent, followed by Mr Moon throwing Niles out of the pub!]

Frasier Online Episode Review

This is one of those episodes that is stronger on plot than script and features a particularly irritating performance by Mrs Moon - she has begun to grate in recent episodes but this is the one that finally turned me against her. On the other hand, Roz and Frasier sleeping together was a bit of a shock - something that has been discussed and almost reached in previous episodes but it has now finally been achieved. It was quite well handled - the scene where Frasier visits Roz's family pretending to be Roger could have been played as farce but instead pieced back together Frasier and Roz's relationship, which is one of the show's best. On the whole, though, this episode seemed as if it had been written to move the plot forward which leaves the funniest lines to Martin - his way of revealing to Frasier that he knows Roz has spent the night was brilliant.

Rating

69 %

Latest Viewer Episode Review

Avg. Viewer Review: 76.0%
Total Number of Reviews: 8


Sincerity, May 21, 2013

Reviewer: Sammy J from Melbourne, Australia


Continuing on from "Frasier Has Spokane" (and really, an entire season of development), Roz falls apart after her breakup with Roger, ultimately leading her into Frasier's arms... and his bed. Since time immemorial, friends and colleagues have made the transition to sexual partners without meaning to, and it seems only fair for "Frasier" to explore one of its few legitimate pairings in this way. It's actually not out of the blue for this series - think Roz/Bulldog, Frasier/Gil, Niles/Lilith, and those very fleeting moments where Martin (in "Three Valentines") and Frasier considered Daphne as a potential partner. It happens between people of matching sexual attraction. It's a satisfying little episode for Roz and Frasier, capping off a tension that began two seasons ago but finally resolving their issues through farce. The suburban portrayal of the Doyle clan and the ultimate undoing of Roz's sister are very funny, and the final scene on the porch is a lovely affirmation of Frasier and Roz's friendship. (Although the highlight will always be Martin's news bulletin on Roz's purse.)

Over in the not-really-a-sub-plot sub-plot, Mrs. Moon's depression overshadows the rest of the family. Millicent Martin is very good at playing the harridan and, while I sure wish they'd shipped Gertrude back to England in the finale, she's been reliable all of this season. As a force of strain upon the entire household (and the Daphne/Niles relationship), she makes sense. The highlight of this plot is definitely Niles' little rant on difficult, although who can resist the adorable scene of Eddie going one-to-one with his robot self?

Truthfully, this isn't one of my favourite episodes. The Niles/Daphne business is all set-up for next week, with reasonably few laughs, and something tells me that the writers got their hands on the robot dog before inserting it into the script rather than the other way round. Still, I'm happy to see the Frasier/Roz relationship analysed in a strong way... at least for now.


Rating: 76%

 

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