Cheers 6.16: “Yacht of Fools”

Airdate: 2/4/88

Evan Drake’s deal fell through and now he’s alone on his yacht for the weekend – so he invites Sam to come… along with Rebecca, whom he presumes Sam is dating. Sam ignores the suggestion and instead asks a gorgeous blonde named Julie along, but Rebecca already got the word she got an invite, so now there’s a quartet on board – but the four don’t quite couple up according to plan. Julie, posing as Sam’s sister, gets seduced by Evan, leaving Sam and Rebecca along and frustrated that their respective potential paramours have found greener pastures. In their shared misery, Sam and Rebecca almost kiss, but Evan barges in, regretful that he succumbed to his “urges” and averring that “nothing happened.” Rebecca resumes her torch-carrying and Sam-hating ways, but Sam can’t resume her play for Julie; she’s bedding the chef! Subplot: Gullible Woody gives away free beers to anyone claiming it’s his birthday; Cliff and Norm get in on the ruse, only to face the wrath of Carla when she finds out.

So close – yet so far away! The long-awaited assignation of Sam and Rebecca’s sexual tension takes another detour as her on-again, off-again infatuation for Drake goes through a few fluctuations. Clearly, their bedding will change the spin of series, as it did with him and Diane, so the writer’s are apt to be careful in using it for a story. In the meantime, we get a finely crafted bedroom farce – asea, in this case – full of the necessary elements: pajamas, timed opening and closing of doors, misunderstandings and misbehavior.

Cold open (the show’s funniest scene): Cliff and Norm excitedly prepare to watch some classic 50’s sci-fi movies, only to have Frasier sour their anticipation with a socio-poliitical deconstruction of each and every one of them.