I must be one of the few people who regretted learning that the Frasier reboot will not reach a third season on Paramount Plus, which is a shame for a brand that made history on broadcast TV with 11 seasons and 37 Emmys.

The news confirmed on January 17, 2025, is not really a surprise: the series was far from pleasing old fans or critics, much less creating a new audience. The classic sitcom format did not work on streaming and part of the failure was the style, but also the lack of a story to move forward. On the other hand, CBS Studios remains committed to the series and plans to sell it to other channels.

As a fan of the series that broke award records and continues to be hilarious (the old seasons are in the archive), I was surprised by the return, but Paramount+ had confidence. The series was ordered in 2022 and a year later the first season premiered, with Kelsey Grammer once again playing the psychiatrist who became famous in the 1980s as a supporting character in Cheers and the protagonist in the 1990s.

In the series that won more than 30 Emmys, Frasier returned to Seattle to reconnect with his brother, Niles (David Hyde Pierce), and his father, Martin (John Mahoney), while starring in a self-help radio show. The series was hilarious, but in 2022 Frasier returned to Boston to reconnect with his son, Freddy (Jack Cutmore-Scott). The reversal of situations didn’t work so well, starting with the felt absences of Hyde Pierce (who didn’t want to come back) and Mahoney, who passed away.

Nicholas Lyndhurst did what he could as Alan, Frasier’s old college classmate turned college professor, and Toks Olagundoye was a great fit as Olivia, Alan’s classmate and head of the psychology department at Harvard University. Jess Salgueiro as Eve, Frasier and Freddy’s neighbor; and Anders Keith as Niles’ son, David, did what they could, but it was impossible not to notice that it was dated. Not even the cameos of other characters made up for the absence of the main original characters.

It was a sad and unnecessary farewell to such a classic character and to end her story with this cancellation. The second season was supposed to fix many of the flaws of the first, but apparently, it didn’t have time. I’ll miss my favorite psychiatrist!

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