By making use of one very specific trick in its comedic approach, Frasier proved itself far superior to its parent show, Cheers. After finding success with audiences with a stint on Cheers, Kelsey Grammer was approached to star in another sitcom. Though the original premise didn't involve the Cheers character at all, that sitcom soon became Frasier, a spin-off about Grammer's pompous psychotherapist. Moving Frasier out of Boston and across the country to Seattle, Frasier also introduced the titular character's family: his father Martin, his brother Niles, and Daphne, a live-in physical therapist hired to help Martin recover from an old injury.
The colossal success of Frasier saw it become the most successful spin-off of all time, thanks in part to the brilliant chemistry between its cast. Frasier became known for its biting wit and willingness to put its main character through his paces with humiliation. It also loosely maintained ties to Cheers, with Frasier's one-time bar buddies stopping by to make guest appearances on his new show every so often.
In fact, the success of Frasier was also born of its connection to Cheers - and to the way it changed its approach to comedy. Shifting the focus away from a Boston bar and towards the high-society aspirations of Frasier Crane allowed for a very different type of comedy. The trick of quietly making Frasier a terrible psychotherapist and having his well-spoken and often pompous ways become the basis for the show's humor contributed massively to its success, largely because of who the laughs were being aimed at.
Frasier Was Less Relatable Than Cheers – And That Made It Funnier
The key component of Frasier's more successful comedy is how much less relatable its general story is. Whereas Cheers told the story of a group of very plausible average people who met in their local bar, Frasier told the story of a highly-educated and often insufferable windbag - thus taking aim at a much less believable character. The fact that Frasier is somewhat larger than life is key, because it nullifies even the show's riskiest jokes: they can't offend anyone when they're at the expense of a character as insufferable as Frasier Crane.
That change was by far one of Frasier's best spin-off ideas, because it moved away from reliance on being relatable and instead allowed the show to more actively pursue its comedy. Though Cheers offered some memorable funny moments, Frasier proved to be decidedly funnier, especially when its jokes were at the expense of its titular character. By having Frasier delicately toe the line between pomposity and outright unpleasant behavior, he was always sympathetic but still always deserving of the vague misfortunes visited upon him. Ultimately, moving away from the Cheers connection to pursue a safer form of comedy was a stroke of genius, and it was one that secured the reputation of Frasier as the better show.