Frasier: The Complete Series

One might not expect it from a spin-off TV show, but somehow Frasier managed to become one of the greatest shows in television history. It manages to be one of the smartest shows ever to air, and yet never got so full of itself that it was afraid to throw in some physical comedy. In fact, David Hyde Pierce in the role of Dr. Niles Crane gave us some of television's finest physical comedy. And yet it also manages to discuss serious emotional content with a wit rarely seen in the medium, simultaneously appealing to the most intelligent person in the room and accessible to the least intelligent person in the room. The comedy in this show manages to maintain its wide appeal without ever talking down to the audience by employing a strategy of layered humor. Literary and operatic references abound, for instance, appealing to the educated viewer who gets these jokes, but the lines always function at at least two levels: the joke itself and the meta-joke. Everyone understands *that* the character has said something obscure and intellectual, and this is funny in a self-referential sort of way, while the joke or reference itself is funny to those select audience members who get it. One of the remarkable things is that much of the show's humor comes from the conflict between the erudite and the everyday without ever insulting either side. Sure, the Doctors Crane can occasionally be "lovably pompous," and we sometimes laugh at their expense. And of course, their father can sometimes be amusingly crass and we occasionally laugh at his expense. But the brilliance of the show is that it manages to portray all of its characters respectfully. Even when we sometimes laugh at one of them, we seldom find ourselves thinking negatively of them. For a show about class to be so even-handed is a remarkable thing. More remarkable still, the show manages to be about the emotional and psychological toils of everyday life, yet none of the on-screen characters ever seen villainous or as if they've been used merely as a foil for another character. The sole exception to this rule is the never-seen Maris Crane whose portrayal is so over the top as to be delightfully absurd. Still, not all of the show's humor comes from the conflicts between such different people. Many of the best (and by "best" I mean both funniest and most thought-provoking) clashes occur between the most similar of characters. Frasier and his brother Niles are remarkably similar characters: sherry-swilling, opera-loving, French-speaking psychiatrists both. Yet the conflicts between these two are as profound and entertaining as those between any other characters, precisely because they speak the same language and understand each other so thoroughly. For all its even-handed intellectualism, it also manages to be one of the funniest shows I've ever had the pleasure of seeing. Better still, its humor has aged remarkably well. For a show whose early episodes are now pushing thirty years old, everything feels just as timely as ever. And the humor and drama both survive repeat viewings as well, making this a perfect series to own on DVD. I've watched the complete series several times (and individual episodes more times than I can count), and I never fail to be completely entertained and pleased by the show. Speaking of the DVD, let's quickly turn our attention to this DVD set and consider its quality independent of the show's. Overall, I'm quite happy with it. A few people have complained about the transfer quality, but I don't see any problem there. The thing we all need to remember is that this is a thirty-year-old television program, not a recently-produced feature film. It's not going to look as good on our high-definition televisions as more recent programming is, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with the video quality presented. The set's packaging is compact but effective. The forty-four discs are divided into two plastic cases (one containing the first six seasons and the other containing seasons seven through eleven) and both are housed in a cardboard slipcase. Special features are enjoyable but inconsistent. The first three seasons contain a "Celebrity Voices" feature in which we can listen to the often-humorous calls to Dr. Crane's radio program while learning which celebrity's voice guest starred. This feature doesn't return in the remainder of the seasons. However, while it was an amusing feature, I don't really think I wanted to watch eleven seasons' worth of it anyway. Two of the episodes feature an audio commentary track, both of which I found quite interesting. I rather wish there were a few more of them. Additionally, there are several featurettes and retrospectives scattered throughout the discs, though many discs don't have any bonus features at all. Ultimately I find myself pleased with the features included but wishing for just a little bit more. Ultimately, though, I didn't buy this for the features, enjoyable though they were. I bought it because I wanted to own a copy of one of my favorite shows of all time. I'm incredibly pleased with my purchase. It has a place of honor in my DVD library, and I can't recommend it highly enough.

I watch this all the time. I recently got a DVD player and needed something for it. Of course I chose Frasier! I will warn you: the earlier seasons do NOT have an AutoPlay all option. You WILL have to individually start each episode. As the later seasons released, so later in the box set, you will be able to AutoPlay all.

This review is for the Blu Ray Box Set of the complete Series. Before buying this box set, I think you should consider the new streaming version of Frasier that's currently available (free for Prime members) on Amazon. I've viewed both versions side by side and the streaming version is an exceptional 1080p taken from the original 35mm film. The quality also is VERY close to the Blu Ray. What you may not know is that the original show was shot on 35mm film which is a 1.5:1 aspect ratio. The width of the film was then cropped to fit your TV screen which was a 1.33:1 (4:3) aspect ratio. Of course the Director took this into account when filming the show and the sides were meant to be discarded. Never the less, the original film still contains a wider image than what you saw on the original broadcast TV show. The streaming version takes advantage of this extra width and only crops a little off the top and bottom to produce a new 1080p image that fits your modern 16:9 TV. This Blu Ray box set has seasons 1 through 9 in their original 4:3 aspect ratios as shown on broadcast TV. Seasons 10 & 11 are in the original 16:9 aspect ratio. All episodes of both the streaming and Blu Ray versions are 1080p. I think the streaming version is a better viewing experience than the original 4:3 aspect ratio because there are no black bars on the sides of your TV screen. This is just my opinion and I'm only suggesting that you view the streaming version (free for Prime Members) before buying this set. About Aspect Ratios: Standard Definition TV is 4:3 which is the same as 1.33:1 35mm Film dimensions are 36mm x 24mm, which is an aspect ratio of 1.5:1 High Definition TV is 16:9 which is the same as 1.78:1 A conversion directly from 1.33:1 to 1.78:1 is garbage, too much of the original is lost. This is not applicable here, but some "cheap" conversions used to do it this way. A conversion from 1.5:1 to 1.78:1 is pretty good, less image is lost. The Streaming Version does it this way. If you found this review helpful please say so, I 'd like to know if someone actually reads this!

I watched this right after completing the Cheers set of DVD's.. I loved Cheers and hated to see it end. It truly entertained me and had so many moments that made me laugh. Like many spin-offs, or even new shows, Frasier needs a few episodes to get into the groove and develop the characters and break the comparison to Cheers. It wasn't Cheers so I found it disappointing and a dim second the first few episodes. Then the second disc was played. I started laughing then and didn't stop until the last disc. I mean REALLY laughing HARD---to tears!. Incredibly funny! David Hyde-Pierce, as Niles, Frasier's younger but equally stuffy brother, can bring me to tears of laughter with just a look. There is nobody to compare to this man's talent. His timing and expressions are brilliantly ON THE MARK funny. All characters are perfectly casted. Kelsey Grammar as Frasier, really comes to full bloom in this series. I couldn't imagine him with his own show when on Cheers, but---wow--- he really took off. Equally funny is the crusty, lovable father who bears no resemblance to his sons. They couldn't be more opposite. He's a good-ole boy, retired cop, wise-cracking, impish and always up to something. The show's characters play off of him perfectly. The show is lively and every show retains a fresh and original script. At no time did I feel any of the episodes were rehashing of themes or material that's already been done in a myriad of ways by other shows. No dull over-played jokes. Every episode was one of a kind. SO happy I bought this complete set. I will watch it over and over again, especially when I feel I need a good laugh. For me it has that same timeless and brilliant script that will endure the test of time, and can be watched time and again for decades to come.

Perfect set for a great sitcom. Fan of Frasier during its final seasons, I needed something to watch after Seinfeld ended. This set is just as good if not better than the regular DVD set which is honestly, much more of a neutral viewing experience. Seasons 1-9 feature a new Paramount/Viacom/CBS ending signature, but the final 2 seasons feature the regular Paramount fanfare. Seasons 1-9 are presented in 4:3 while the final 2 seasons are presented in full 16:9. Visual breakdown of each season... Season 1 High Grain Season 2 High Grain Seasons 3, 4, 5, 6 are perfect Season 7 is soft Seasons 8 & 9 are really really great Season 10 is the first in full HD for actual broadcasts and it looks the worst, really strange. It's not much better than DVD quality. Season 11 is perfection, full 16:9 and everything looks crisp. Frasier fans will love this set, regular fans just buy the DVD. Packaging was THIN, if this set drops you'll have a problem.

A National Treasure!

4 stars for the DVD set, 5 stars for Blu Ray (since I just upgraded to the new Blu Ray set that came out a few years ago). DVD set: I won't go into the series at all - one of my all time favorites, some of the most intelligent comedy I've ever seen on TV. Phenomenal characters who were fleshed out and grew as the story went on. Something that doesn't happen often. It's as great now more than 2 decades after it began as it was at the time. But I really have to give props for the cases. I absolutely LOVE this, more than just about any other disc set I have of any show or series. Large books, and every "page" has a disc on each side, so you simply go from one page to the next. NONE of the junk I hate, like discs UNDER other discs. Nothing nested here, each one has its own page. I've had no issues with any of the discs so far, video and sound are very good quality. And to get all this for this price? Insane. Can't get better value than this. Only reason I took a star off is because the same time (season 4) they introduce a play all option is when you hit the annoying commercials that you can't skip through. All input is greeted with the red circle and you have to sit through them trying to sell you more DVD's for other shows... BLU RAY set - I"ve had the DVD set for 9 years now, and started watching it again, and quickly was annoyed with the lack of Play All on the DVD's and the poor video quality. So I saw a Blu Ray option came out a few years ago and snaged it. Right from the start, a Play All option. Subtitles. MUCH better video quality. I am only near the end of Season 1 in the set but it is night and day so far. Smaller package, easier to store. I just need to find someone who would like the DVD set and I can give it away.

Streaming services not being available where I live, I've been relying on loans from my libraries or purchasing DVDs to view series and movies I cannot access via DirecTv. For several years now I have needed to view with Closed Captioning or subtitles in order to fully understand audio. All seasons of Frasier at the library indicate that Closed Captioning is provided. It is not. The DVD boxed set of Frasier I just returned to Amazon indicate that Closed Captioning is a feature. It is not. So, the last resort for Frasier was the Blu-ray boxed set I just received from Amazon and, hooray, subtitles are included and work wonderfully well! Also, the Blu-ray boxed set edition provides higher quality picture, color and sound - much better than the regular DVDs. I am very happy, finally! NOTE: Many of the other reviews I've read here seem to be reviewing the regular DVD boxed set, and not the Blu-Ray boxed set. This review is specifically relating to the Blu-Ray boxed set .

Frasier The Complete Blu-ray Collection - Region Free on all Seasons. The set comes in a thin outer box with 11 individual Season boxes. The individual cases are very refreshing and much nicer to look at with each Seasons covers and look nicer than what we would probably get in the UK. For me it is much more preferred when compared to the horrible bulky cases where the discs are stacked on top of each other and get scratched and come lose (Like most UK DVD boxsets nowadays). The sound and picture quality of the episodes are outstanding. I'm already half way through Season 1 and I have no complaints. The episodes do have black bars down the sides and natural grain present but this does not distract from enjoying the series. The episodes are the sharpest and clearest I have seen them in and probably the best the show will ever look and sound. Only released in America I took a chance at purchasing this boxset from Amazon US knowing that nearly most of the time the product always comes with some kind of damage or shipped in poor packaging. To my surprise it was packed in a a suitable box with good packing and arrived very quickly. The only damage I can see is a slight Tear along the side of the outer box. Perfection on products no longer exists nowadays I'm afraid to say. This is an outstanding Blu-ray boxset and maybe one day it might reach the UK. For now I very happy with this purchase. Maybe the Complete Cheers Blu-ray Collection could be the next purchase from the US. "For eleven years you have heard me say, "I'm listening." Well, you were listening too. And for that I am eternally grateful. Goodnight, Seattle."

Semplicemente perfetto. Imprescindibile per i fan della serie.

La serie completa que compré está preparada para aparatos lectores NO EUROPEOS. Cuidado si alguien piensa adquirirla pues (creo) que es para zona americana exclusivamente.

A laugh a minute. This series is a perfect example of what can be done when you get a perfect combination of writers, actors and directors working in complete harmony. Frasier touches upon everyday experiences most of us have encountered and each episode highlights the ups and downs of life from the totally mundane to the inane, from no pain, no gain to let's live that all over again. Should be experienced by every psychiatrist. I watched every episode in the series and often had to watch some episodes again as there are subtle gems and jokes that are easily missed in the first viewing. I will never tire of Frasier no more than I will tire of life.

No está en español pero tiene subtítulos en inglés y el pixelaje es de menor calidad. sin embargo es una excelente compra