Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Night Court, season 3, episode 4.Night Court Season 3 Episode 4, titled “Happy NaviDead,” lives up to its name and revolves around a murder mystery game gone rogue. After Abby receives a mysterious death threat in the middle of a trial, all eyes are on Andy Daly's Fred. The vacuum cleaner salesman is lost in his own world, and the group plays “Murder in Malibu” to force him to confess. However, when he appears to have been killed for real, Dan panics and admits that the event was supposed to be a Christmas present for Abby.
In yet another twist in the story, Abby says that she had already discovered Dan's plan and turned the tables on him. Fred stops playing dead and all the police officers pose as actors. The biggest shock of the episode comes during the final seconds, when Fred and Kratz (Joe Lo Truglio, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) are alone in the cafeteria. Revealing themselves as angels, the pair return to heaven just before Flobert enters the room with his harp, warming it with a golden glow.
TelaRant Daly interviews about his love for the original Night Court series, the angelic finale of the Christmas episode and working alongside guest star Joe Lo Truglio.
As an OG fan, Daly never believed he would have the chance to be on the night court
“It felt like a time machine situation to me.”
ScreenRant: Were you a fan of the original Night Court series?
Andy Daly: I was a huge fan of the original Night Court series. Yes. My parents and I used to go to the TV room, sit on the couch and watch primetime shows, let them roll, and Night Court was always a favorite. I loved Harry Anderson and I loved John Larroquette. It seemed like every time he opened his mouth, he laughed. I loved it.
How did you end up getting involved then? Did you just get the call to do the show?
Andy Daly: Yes, and I couldn't believe it. It felt like a time machine situation to me. Sure, I would have dreamed as a kid of being in the Night Court, but that's a dream I definitely abandoned a long time ago. And then all of a sudden I got a call saying they'd like you to come and be literally at Night Court – I couldn't be more excited. It's crazy.
I wondered: was it difficult for you to stop using the salesman's voice when the camera cut away?
Andy Daly: Probably not. It was very easy to fall into it, I can say that. [Laughs] It didn't take any effort to become that guy. I think this is my attitude. But as soon as the cameras were turned off, everything started playing with Gary Anthony Williams and Melissa Rauch and immediately went into casual mode off-camera.
Daly enjoyed working with longtime friend Joe Lo Truglio for the holiday episode of Night Court
“We live very close to each other, so I've known Joe for a long time. It was great having him there.”
You did an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nineso did you have a chance to work with Joe Lo Truglio before this?
Andy Daly: Wow, that's a good question. Yes. We must have worked together on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but I've known Joe for a long time, back in New York and just hanging out in the city. We're neighbors, apparently. [Laughs] We live very close to each other, so I've known Joe for a long time. It was great having him there.
It can always be a little tricky coming into a show as a guest star and feeling like I'm the new guy and I'm not going to be here for long. Will I meet people? So it's great when there are people you already know. And I already know Gary Anthony Williams and Joe Lo Truglio, so that made it easier and more fun.
Dan is essentially playing a character when he interacts with you in this episode. What was it like playing with John Larroquette like that?
Andy Daly: It was amazing to watch as a kid. This character is so funny. His cynicism and the fact that he gets over it all the time and his sarcasm and everything he says is just hilarious. So getting to work with him was surreal but wonderful.
Did you get a summary of the episode beforehand or did you figure it all out while reading the script?
Andy Daly: I was told the basic premise that this guy is a murder mystery actor, and maybe I was told that he doesn't break character or anything like that. But the rest I had to read to find out. A lot of times, what I do, the first time I read a script, I just read my lines and make sure I understand them. If I have to read the dialogue around my line to understand what it means, I will do so.
But I try not to read everything because then we do a table read, and I like to be surprised and really laugh at the things read at the table. I don't know if this is the most professional approach or if it's what everyone does [laughs]but I really like showing up at the reading table ready to be surprised by the twists and turns. So that definitely happened to me at this table read. I was like, “Oh, I get it now!”
Night Court's angelic ending was a surprise for cast members
“It's so funny because that wasn't the original ending of the script. That came into play maybe on the last day of rehearsals.”
This begs the question: was there ever a moment when you thought Fred was actually dead?
Andy Daly: I couldn't believe they would do that. [Laughs] It's such a funny show that sometimes impossible things happen on Night Court, which is unusual. And so, yeah, I guess it could have been, but reading it I thought, “No, there's no way. Right? You're not going to do that on a primetime network comedy. Just kill a man in cold blood.” I was skeptical.
What was your opinion of the final scene when Fred and Kratz disappeared? There were real angels in Night Court quite?
Andy Daly: It's so funny because that wasn't the original ending of the script. This came into play perhaps on the last day of rehearsals. I remember Joe and I walking on set for the first time and I said to him, “Did you see we’re angels?” And he said, “Yes!” We were like, “Okay! Crazy!”
And part of me, because it was a new idea, thought, “Maybe it will be replaced by another idea. Is that really going to happen?” But we did it and there were others on set saying, “Are we really doing this?” But yes, I would say the end of this episode is that Joe and I were angels straight from heaven.
It's a very Christmassy ending. I like that.
Andy Daly: Me too. It's a great TV idea to have a Santa Claus who looks like a crazy old man and then at the end he disappears and you hear sleigh bells in the distance. They'll even do it in St. Elsewhere or something. It's happened on so many shows that you think, “Wait a minute, was that Santa Claus?” [Laughs] This Night Court ending, I think, went beyond that. I think that kicked things up a notch. There are some literal 'It's A Wonderful Life'-style angels here to save John Larroquette's soul.
About Night Court Season 3
In her quest to bring order and dignity to the courtroom and reign in her colorful group of eccentrics, Abby enlists former night court district attorney Dan Fielding (John Larroquette) to serve as the court's public defender. Still supremely self-confident, Fielding must adapt to a new boss and a new job – standing up for the oppressed. And beneath his arrogant demeanor, there's an empathetic side to Fielding that Abby is determined to uncover.
Check out our others Night Court season 3 interviews:
Night Court Season 3 returns Tuesday, January 14 at 8:30 pm ET on NBC.