This article discusses suicide and alcoholism.
Although it is primarily a comedy, Health has had more than a few heartwarming episodes, and these 10 are the ones most likely to make the tears flow. One of the most beloved parts Health it's how emotional it is and how realistic the entire cast seems. Every character in the bar feels like a genuine person, and part of the way the show managed to make them so relatable was by giving them real problems. This also meant that some episodes of Health it could get very dark and sad, and they could really tug at the heartstrings.
A remarkable skill Health What few comedies have managed to replicate is its ability to balance serious topics like alcoholism and suicide with genuinely funny moments and touching endings. Health It's a comedy, so most of its sad moments had a pretty clear conclusion and happy resolution, but it never shied away from difficult topics. The saddest episodes of Health walked a very fine line between melodrama and being too light on real issues, and they walked that line so well that they're still as tragic now as they were over 30 years ago.
10
“Slumber Party Massacre”
Cheers Season 6 Episode 22
Carla Tortelli (Rhea Perlman) has always been quite defensive, so it was rare that Health I have to show her in a vulnerable state. “Slumber Party Massacre” was one of those opportunities. After Carla's daughter announced she was pregnant, Carla had an existential crisis about becoming a grandmother and being her own age. To cheer her up, Rebecca Howe (Kirstie Alley) organized a sleepover and invited the men from the bar to help Carla feel young again.. Everything went as well as expected, and only Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger) ripping his pants could make Carla laugh.
“Slumber Party Massacre“It's not the most moving episode of Healthbut the fact that it focused on Carla makes it surprisingly deep. Throughout all 11 seasons of HealthCarla was a rock. She was rarely mushy, rarely sad, and was rarely anything other than a tough lady who was ready to break heads whenever necessary. Seeing her vulnerable, thinking about death and the slow march of time, was as tragic as it was understandable.
9
“Rebound”
Cheers, season 3, episodes 1 and 2
Although he ran the bar, Sam Malone (Ted Danson) was actually a recovering alcoholic, a fact he revealed in one of the best episodes of Health. Sam went to great lengths to overcome his addiction, and his road to recovery was fraught with problems, which only makes it more tragic that he fell off the wagon in “Recovery.” After a fight with Diane Chambers (Shelley Long) over having a painting done by one of the Health'best guests – Christopher Lloyd – the couple broke up. Neither took it well, as Diane had a nervous breakdown and Sam fell back into the bottle..
Everything ended up working out in 'Rebound,' and that was until Kelsey Grammer's first appearance as Frasier Crane, but her happy ending doesn't make Sam's relapse any easier to bear.
Everything ended up working out “Recovery,” and it was even Kelsey Grammer’s first appearance as Frasier Crane, but its happy ending doesn’t make Sam’s relapse any easier to bear. It was hard to watch Sam stumble on his road to recovery, and it was hard to see how much his addiction affected his friends at the bar.. It was one of the many negative consequences Sam and Diane faced because of their hot-and-cold relationship, but it was also one of the most tragic.
8
“Passionate coach”
Cheers, season 3, episodes 6 and 7
Although he was just on Health During three seasons, coach Ernie Pantusso (Nicholas Colasanto) had some memorable moments. In “Passionate coach”, as the title suggests, Coach finds a new woman, Irene (Bette Ford), to love after the death of his first wife.. Although they get along very well and even plan a wedding, Irene ends up winning the lottery and decides she wants to live a more luxurious life than the coach can give her. This rejection hurt a little, but the fact that the coach continued as if it had never happened made the situation even worse.
On the day he was supposed to marry Irene, the coach arrived at the bar in a tuxedo and ignored everyone's warnings that Irene probably wouldn't come. After closing time, he answered her call with a moving speech where he wasn't angry with her, but just disappointed that she left him at the altar. The coach's grace under fire, especially after exposing himself as a widower and trying to find love, only to be so cruelly shot down, makes “Passionate coach“one of Health darker plots.
7
“How to make friends and electrocute people”
Cheers Season 7 Episode 7
Cliff Clavin (John Ratzenberger) is just as adorable as the rest of the cast of Healthand it's easy to forget that he's a bit of an idiot. Cliff never wanted a sarcastic response, a condescending comment, or downright selfish behavior. No wonder no one came to visit him in the hospital in “How to make friends and electrocute people“, but that doesn't make it any less sad. When Frasier hands over the card and regrets having to visit Cliff, there is a real sadness in Cliff's eyes. Cliff was alone, even in the place where everyone knew his name.
Cliff was alone, even in the place where everyone knew his name.
Cliff's tragedy as a character is only made worse by what happens after he leaves the hospital. Frasier convinces Cliff (rightly) that his personality is the reason he's so unpopular, but Cliff immediately takes it too far. He hires a psychiatrist to administer shock therapy in hopes of becoming a kinder, more polite man, which quickly turns into a ridiculous situation. Through Cliff's laughter clashing with each other, however, there is still a bit of tragedy as viewers get to see how far Cliff would go for his friends and how humble he considers himself.
6
“The Girl in the Plastic Bubble”
Cheers Season 11 Episode 7
Although it's mostly used for laughs,”The girl in the plastic bubble” still presents one of the darkest stories of Health history. Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) and Lilith (Bebe Neuwirth) had a rocky marriage from the start, but the wheels really started to fall off Health season 11. Frasier eventually discovered that Lilith had cheated on him and his wife filed for divorce. In a last desperate effort to make her stay, Frasier went to the top of the Cheers building and stood on a ledge, threatening to kill himself.
There are a lot of great jokes in “The girl in the plastic bubble,” as if Carla doesn’t know what reverse psychology is, but the fact remains that Frasier was seriously considering suicide in the episode. Frasier has always been a somewhat tragic character, but “The girl in the plastic bubble“I saw it at its lowest level. Even after he decides to live, there is a tragic moment when Lilith agrees to be with Frasier at the expense of her own happiness, and Frasier decides to let Lilith go at the expense of his. It was a bittersweet – albeit long-awaited – farewell for the couple.
5
“Peterson's Principle”
Cheers Season 4 Episode 18
Norm (George Wendt) and Vera's marriage was never taken very seriously in Health. Norm constantly joked about how much he resented Vera and would always rather drink at the bar than go home with her. “Peterson's Principle“, however, showed that when things were bad, Norm would always fight for the love of his life. In “Peterson's Principle“Norm was passed over for a big promotion at work because Vera was unpopular with the other executives' wives. In a very mature and noble moment, Norm resigned out of solidarity with his wife.
After his chivalrous gesture, Norm took a step forward. He called to tell Vera the bad news, and instead of revealing that she was named as the reason he wasn't promoted, Norm took the blame himself. It was the kind of selfless act of love that seemed very shocking for a man who spoke so humbly of his wife as Norm did, which only made it more moving to see. The sad fact remains, however, that Vera was a social outcast and Norm lost his job because of her morals..
4
“One for the Book”
Cheers Season 1 Episode 11
It's rare for a character in an episode to steal the show. Healthbut Buzz Crowder (Ian Wolfe) is one of the best to do it. Buzz was the beginning of “One for the book,” which led him to reserve the back room at Cheers for a reunion of his WWI company. As the night progresses, Buzz quickly realizes that none of his brothers in arms will be coming and that he is the last living remnant of his company.. There's a bit of tragedy in Buzz's story, and it fits as a stand-in for the real-world tragedies many veterans face.
Seeing an old man, and an Army veteran no less, cry is never a happy sight, and Buzz was so endearing that it was even more moving.
The nature of Buzz's story isn't the only sad part of “One for the book“, however. There is a moment, just before the gang tries to cheer up Buzz with a bad performance of an old song, where the old man hangs his head and cries. Seeing an old man, and an Army veteran no less, cry is never a happy sight, and Buzz was so endearing that it was even more moving.
3
“Coach's Daughter”
Cheers Season 1 Episode 5
Coach Ernie Pantusso isn't always seen as a tragic character, but he has had some emotional moments. In Health In the first season, the coach's daughter Lisa (Allyce Beasley) visits the bar with her fiancé Roy (Philip Charles MacKenzie). Roy is an idiot of a man, and the entire bar is confused why someone as nice as Lisa would settle for him, especially since he only wanted to marry her to get a promotion at their shared company. The coach finally confronted Lisa about this, and her daughter revealed that she had serious issues with her self-image and confidence..
Hearing Lisa proclaim that she didn't think anyone but Roy would ask her to marry him is touching in itself, but the coach's response is even more tragic. When the coach looked at his daughter, all he could see was his late wife's face and told Lisa that her mother grew more beautiful with each passing day.. Everything about the episode, from the coach's voice to Lisa's words about her mother, seems designed to make viewers emotional.
2
“Yes, goodbye”
Cheers Season 5 Episode 26
Sam and Diane were one of the best relationships in sitcom history, but it had more lows than highs. One of the most moving moments was Shelley Long's departure from Health. At the end of Health Season 5, Sam and Diane were getting married at the bar. Before the ceremony, however, Diane was offered a major book deal that would take her away from Boston and the bar. Sam insisted that Diane accept the deal rather than marry him, and he clearly understood that it would be the end of their relationship when he told her “have a good life.”
Even though they weren't a good match, the end of Sam and Diane's relationship was still hard to watch. Sam's selflessness in letting Diane go, even though she didn't realize what the book deal would mean, only makes the experience all the more melancholy. Furthermore, Sam was imagining their life as old men together”I accept, goodbye', and the episode's final scene of them dancing together wordlessly is enough to bring anyone to tears. It was probably the most genuine expression of love in Sam and Diane's entire relationship, and it's a shame it came at the end.
1
“One for the Road”
Cheers, Season 11, Episodes 26-28
It's rare for an episode of any show to be so sad that it transcends the confines of the television set, but if such a thing exists, it's “One for the road.” The Health The series finale was not a farewell to the series' characters, but rather to the series' fans and viewers. The writers of “One for the road“could very well have addressed the audience directly and thanked them for following him over the past 11 years. It's filled with beautiful endings to so many long-running character arcs, touching tributes to seasons past, and so many other tender moments.
It's as bittersweet as it gets, and there probably wasn't a dry eye in America the night Cheers ended.
The moving beauty of “One for the road” is best summed up in its final moments. Norm tells Sam that his true love is the bar, Sam tells a customer that they are closed and adjusts Nicholas Colasanto's photo of Geronimo before walking into the shadows.. It's as bittersweet as it gets, and there probably wasn't a dry eye in America that night Health it ended.