Released concurrently with their great Cheers Season One set, Paramount also bring us the mighty Frasier. 

It's not often spin-offs match the greatness of the source material but Frasier is a true classic. Taking the character of psychiatrist Frasier out of the Boston bar and sending him home to Seattle works a treat. 

Newly divorced from wife Lilith, Frasier is settling into his new job as resident shrink on radio station KACL. Happily independent and settled in a nice new apartment in Elliott Bay Towers Frasier's joy is short lived when his prissy brother Niles (played by the superb David Hyde Peirce) arranges for their ageing and very grumpy father Martin to move in with Frasier. Martin brings with him his English physiotherapist Daphne Moon (Jane Leeves) (Niles develops a serious crush on Daphne even though he is married to the never seen Maris. Add in Frasier's strained relationship (platonic) with his boss at the radio station Roz (played by Peri Gilpin) and you have the basic set up. 

Frasier benefits from truly great writing, scripts that never talk down to the audience and a very high giggle rate, the cast are uniformly excellent, Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Peirce as Frasier and Niles are just so alike, not just in looks but in feel and mind too. John Mahoney is also great as their gruff father Martin (a former cop) and Jane Leeves practically steals every scene she is in. Also worth mentioning are the phone in guests to Frasiers show, these are always well known Hollywood celebs and have included everyone from Mel Brooks to Art Garfunkel. A must have release then!

EXTRAS: These include a commentary from the creators on the pilot episode, they make it plain that they wanted Frasier to be a cut above most other sitcoms from the very beginning, a mini documentary and a look at the celebrity voice overs.