Cheers Cast 10.11: I’m Okay, You’re Defective

5 responses to “Cheers Cast 10.11: I’m Okay, You’re Defective”

1. Great discussion. I agree the scene in the doctor’s office was a highlight of the episode. I could swear that receptionist had a little bit of a Diane Chambers vibe about her. Something about the way she smiled and saw through Sam’s lying reminded me of Diane a little bit.

   I’m glad we’re almost to the end of the Sam-and-Rebecca-trying-to-have-a-baby arc. That means we’re moving on to the superior second half of the season. Having said that, the baby arc didn’t seem as bad to me this time as I remembered it, maybe because it wasn’t really the main focus of that many episodes.

   That final scene with an older Lilith and an adult Frederick is great. Lilith saying “that damn bar” is perfect. Like you mention, the scene gives us the impression that Lilith hasn’t seen Sam or been to the bar in many years, but she still remembers how it caused problems and dragged everyone down.

   For some reason, after the Frasier spinoff started, I always wondered if David Hyde Pierce played the adult Frederick in that final scene in this episode. Of course, that was before streaming and DVDs, or even IMDb, so I had no way to check that at the time. He would have been perfect as an adult Frederick as portrayed in this episode, as opposed to the version of Frederick in the recent Frasier sequel series.

   1

   Reply

   1. That would’ve been wild if DHP had played adult Frederick. John Mahoney appears next season, though obviously not playing Martin Crane.

      1

      Reply

2. Ummm… so I’ll try to handle this as… delicately as possible.
   Semen samples have to be analysed “fresh”, as it were; sperm aren’t particularly robust and don’t travel well, compared to – say – cells in a blood sample.
   That’s why chaps have to go into a clinic or hospital and “perform” as opposed to being able to knock out a specimen in the comfort of their own home. (Cue the tired sit-com tropes about guys being too nervous to do the deed in a clinical cubicle, critiquing the quality of erotica supplied etc etc. Glad Cheers was able to dodge these cliches.)
   It’s important that the sample is fresh, as the lab don’t just measure the number of sperm, but how many have the correct shape (head,body and tail) and what proportion are abnormal (eg multiple heads or tails) – abnormal forms are much less likely to achieve successful conception. They also look at sperm motility; strong swimmers versus those sperm that hang around aimlessly – the Norm Peterson of spermatozooa, if you will.
   It’s the motility that gets lost fastest on contact with air, staying mobile for just a few minutes. (They can survive much better in the female reproductive tract- up to a few days.)
   All of which is to say that – YES! With a diligent lab and reproductive doctor, a same-day semen sample result is absolutely possible.

   2

   Reply

   1. Thanks for all that, umm… data, Chris! Some of that I knew, but a lot was fresh. Great comment.

      1

      Reply

3. A thing that always bothered about this episode is it hinging on Sam equating “fertility” with “virility.” I think this mindset was abating in the 90s, but not positive. Either way, it’s a false equivalence (dang it, sounding like Frasier!) and it bugs me. But again, Sam has never been portrayed as enlightened, and even more so in the later seasons, so I shouldn’t complain but so much. Will I complain anyway? Of course!

   Still, this episode is hilarious, especially Lilith needling Frasier, which of course comes back to bite her years later. That’s a long time for a karmic payoff.

   Reply