Niles Crane and Daphne Moon might be seen as total TV couple goals – but Frasier fans have suggested that their love story wouldn’t work if the series came out today.
The acclaimed sitcom aired between 1993 and 2004, and focused on Kelsey Grammer’s iconic titular character, radio psychiatrist Frasier, returning to his home town of Seattle.
It ended 20 years ago but thanks to Channel 4 reruns every morning, and multiple streaming platforms, we have been able to relive the chaos of the Crane household whenever we want.
This means that viewers have uncovered some very awkward moments decades after they originally aired, raising questions over whether some awkward moments would see the light of day now.
In a recent post on the Frasier Reddit page, Immediate_Map_6604 sparked an intense discussion, asking: ‘Which episodes do yall think would be too controversial for 2024?’
Surprisingly, many claimed that Niles’ (David Hyde Pierce) long-running crush on Daphne (Jane Leeves) – before they finally got together – wouldn’t work properly today.
Niles was seen lusting after his dad’s physical therapist from the second they were introduced, despite being married to Maris, and he would always find not-so-subtle ways to be near her, even going so far as to smell her hair without her consent.
One awkward scene early on in the series saw him asking her to try on dresses for his wife, even though they weren’t the same size.
Unpacking the plots on Reddit, Prestigious_Bat6275 suggested: ‘Niles’ infatuation with daphne would probably not be received well today especially with how blatant it is to the audience.’
CamelCaseUserNamed agreed: ‘Great point. The hair smelling in particular would be very not-okay today.’
Volta-do-Martin posted: ‘They couldn’t do the Niles and Daphne story in general. People just aren’t going to find a “Nice Guy” and his parasocial love charming anymore.’
Original poster Immediate_Map_6604 replied: ‘100% agree. Isn’t it crazy, the best parts of the show included Niles lusting after Daphne and it wouldn’t even be allowed to be made today.’
As FigureSubstantial970 penned: ‘Honestly the whole Niles and Daphne storyline, he could come across as very creepy in the beginning (sniffing her hair, watching her as she bends down and just obsessing over her in general) people would have a big problem with that if it aired today.’
While many others threw out a selection of instalments from over the years – including the awkward introduction of Dr Mary in season seven.
Niles’ crush on Daphne was one of the longest-running storylines on Frasier, and ended with the characters finally getting together at the very end of season seven.
They went on to get married and the series finale ended with the pair welcoming their first child, son David – who is a huge part of the recent Paramount+ revival.
Although some episodes may not quite work as well in the current climate, writer and executive producer Joe Keenan previously vowed that the program had mostly aged well.
He touched on whether any plots would need to be changed now during a chat with , insisting: ‘Nothing stands out to me.
‘I’m sure if you go on a [forum], you’ll find people who find that moment didn’t age well… If there are, I don’t think it’s more than a couple of things that we might not have done if we’d been doing the show today.
‘But in all honestly, I don’t go back and watch it that much. You’re focused on the next thing all the time, I don’t know if I have to go back and relive my glory days.
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‘I don’t know, if I watched it more often, I might find things.’