Rating: 
Summary: This is the greatest show, period
Review: The television show 'Cheers' meant so much to so many people. For me, I could relate to many characters. I went through my "Diane' and my 'Rebecca'. The appeal of this show was not just the comedy, but the writing. Cheers was a soap opera disguised as a SitCom. We cared about the people on the show. I still remember when Coach died. I thought it was the end of the show. Thankfully that wasn't the case. He was replaced, but never forgotten (Geronimo). We all cared about Sam and Diane, we wanted them to be happy. In the end though, the very last episode, I still don't know if they were or not.But you can see the crazy, first season that made it all happen. Possibly the most touching episode is 'Coach's Daughter'. She finally understands what his idea of beauty is. That was great acting, and great writing. It doesn't get better than Cheers.
Rating:
Summary: This is the greatest show, period
Review: The television show 'Cheers' meant so much to so many people. For me, I could relate to many characters. I went through my "Diane' and my 'Rebecca'. The appeal of this show was not just the comedy, but the writing. Cheers was a soap opera disguised as a SitCom. We cared about the people on the show. I still remember when Coach died. I thought it was the end of the show. Thankfully that wasn't the case. He was replaced, but never forgotten (Geronimo). We all cared about Sam and Diane, we wanted them to be happy. In the end though, the very last episode, I still don't know if they were or not. But you can see the crazy, first season that made it all happen. Possibly the most touching episode is 'Coach's Daughter'. She finally understands what his idea of beauty is. That was great acting, and great writing. It doesn't get better than Cheers.
Rating:
Summary: "Thank God There's One Place In The World...."
Review: There are a few shows that are always, and will always, be included on every list there is naming the best shows that of all time on television. One that has always been there since it's time, and will continue to do so, is the brilliant piece of work that detailed the lives of people in the quaint Boston bar known as Cheers. It's rare for a television show to be as perfect as can be and gain all the right accolades, but this show was one of them. Premiering in 1982, and finishing the first season at number 72, out of 72 shows(!), the bar where everybody knows your name became a national treasure and introduced the world to a cast of characters that would become some of the most beloved people to appear on your screen. Ex Boston Red Sox player Sam Malone(Ted Danson), snooty barmaid Diane Chambers(Shelley Long), tough as nails barmaid Carla(Rhea Perlman), dim but loveable bartender Coach(Nicholas Colasanto), perennial barfly Norm(George Wendt), and know it all postman Cliff Clavin(John Ratzenberger). You knew right away that there was something special to this show. The premiere episode, "Give Me A Ring Sometime", introduced Diane to Cheers, and got the set up going. There were many great episodes, actually all of them, but too many to list all. "The Coach's Daughter" was a strong and emotional episode with Coach trying to help his daughter who is marrying an obnoxious leech of a man. "One For The Book" is a classic with Diane getting involved with a young man who plans to go into a monastery the next day. "The Spy Who Came In For A Cold One" is classic Cheers when a mysterious man comes into the bar and everyone wondering who he is. Classic Diane is shown in "Let Me Count The Ways", where she is devastated over the death of her beloved cat, Elizabeth Barret Browning, and the gang's cold shoulder towards her. "The Boys In The Bar" find the Cheers regulars worried that their favorite watering hole might become a gay hangout after a friend of Sam's reveals his homosexuality. Classic. "Someone Single, Someone Blue" is a big favorite of mine. Diane learns her mother will lose her late husband's fortune if Diane doesn't get married. So, her and Sam try what they can to save her mother from poverty. The two part season finale, "Showdown Pt. 1" and "Showdown Pt. 2" is Cheers at it's earliest best. The Sam/Diane triangle was exceptional, and it really got going in these two episodes, especially when Sam's more glorious older brother throws things into the mix. My favorite ep is "Diane's Perfect Date", where Sam sets Diane up on a blind date with a man who turns out to be a nurderer. There are so many more wonderful eps and moments here, but there are just too many to mention. Just one of the great things about this masterful show. A lot of good stuff!. The writing was so strong, funny, and intelligent. Writing that is almost extinct in sitcom world nowadays. The acting was superb, and everyone had their own distinction to their character. It was, and still is, as well as with cast changes down the road, one of the most exemplary depictions of a pitch perfect cast. Season one is a treasure. Bring on seasons 2 -11!!.
Rating:
Summary: Ensemble Comedy At Its Finest!
Review: This is the finest first season of ANY sitcom. I would strongly disagree with the customers who think that the show hit its stride in the second season. "Cheers" hit its stride when Diane said "You gather my inference" to an obnoxious customer in episode 3. It flew into the stratosphere in the two-part finale which featured some of the sharpest acting and writing in film or tv. Don't let those reviewers fool you. "Cheers" was in full bloom from nearly the very beginning.I am excited about the DVD release. Now how about "The Duck Factory" with Jim Carrey.
Rating: 
Summary: PERFECT SET....BUT....
Review: THIS SET IS NEAR FLAWLESS...THIS IS A FANTASTIC SHOW, BEST EVER WITH UNEDITED SCENES NEVER BEFORE AIRED ON TV....THE ONLY PROBLEM IS THAT THE DVD ISN'T IN AIRDATE ORDER, EPISODES ARE MIXED....THIS TAKES AWAY FROM STORY A BIT...A MUST BUY AND HOPEFULLY AIRDATE ORDER WILL FOLLOW NEXT TIME A SEASON OF CHEERS ROLLS AROUND...
Rating:
Summary: Definitely one of the classical comedies of our time....
Review: Unlike most of the reviewers on this site, I was not a very big Cheers fan and started watching the series just so that I could understand what my friends were talking. When I finally did start watching Cheers, it was probably into its latter seasons with the introduction of Kirstie Alley as Rebecca. I must admit, I thoroughly enjoyed the show and not surprisingly I find the laughs comparable to present shows likes Friends. But during this time, through references in the show, I was always curious about the earlier seasons, particularly numerous references to "Diane" and such. It was with rather guarded expectations that I picked up this first season as I really don't expect much from them. Usually the characters are yet undefined and I thought the storylines were written with "we may not be returning next season" in the background. The first seasons of Simpsons, Friends, even Star Trek TNG, for me, emphasized this point.
Fortunately, I was very very wrong. The first season of Cheers was quite the surprise by offering a totally different type of experience that from the sitcoms that I had been used. While I view modern sitcoms as pure comedies (enjoyable, but far from moving), the first seasons of Cheers had a great balance of comedy and romance. While the latter seasons with Cheers was a great laugh, I don't think I ever pulled for any one character and simply enjoyed the stories for what they were worth. However, with the first season, I thought the Diane and Sam story line was done brilliantly and I actually found myself genuinely hoping that the two characters would get together. The Diane and Sam story line seemed much more enjoyable... pleasant than latter stories between Sam and Rebecca. In my view, Sam and Rebecca was pure laughs and while I certainly did laugh at their various exploits, now that I have watched the first season, I definitely don't think it has the same sentimental value as the Sam and Diane storyline. While I don't think there are too many people such as myself who jumped on the bandwagon late. But for those people, and I guess anyone, I would definitely recommend this DVD. It has certainly showed me that Cheers did not develop into one of the greatest sitcoms of our time, but it started out that way.
Rating:
Summary: Cheers Is Reopened
Review: When Cheers premiered on NBC on September 30, 1982 it got off to very auspicious start. The show was the lowest rated program for the week. From those humble beginnings, it would eventually last eleven seasons, become the highest rated program for the 1990-91 season, win an amazing twenty-eight Emmy Awards including four as Outstanding Comedy Series and become one of the most popular and beloved television shows in history. The show revolved around a bar, Cheers, owned by former Boston Red Sox reliever, Sam "Mayday" Malone played by Ted Danson and Sam's co-workers and regular patrons. Sam is a ladies man/playboy who is superficial and vain. He is also a recovering alcoholic who is kept on the straight and narrow by his mentor and fellow bartender, Ernie "Coach" Pantusso, played by the late Nicholas Colasanto. Coach is a kind-hearted dimwit who was also a former major leaguer (early on it is mentioned he played for the St. Louis Browns who were the doormats of the American League for years) and dispenses odd, but caring advice to Sam and the other patrons. Very little activity took place outside the confines of the bar. The first episode finds Diane Chambers, played by Shelly Long, coming into Cheers to wait for her fiancée while he picks up the engagement ring from his ex-wife. The fiancée never shows up and Diane accepts a job from Sam to be a waitress. Diane is a stuffy, uptight, highbrow who feels she is morally and intellectually superior to everyone at the bar and isn't afraid to let everyone know it. She becomes the immediate target of Cheers' other waitress, Carla Tortelli, played by Rhea Perlman. Carla is the exact opposite of Diane, streetwise and incredibly acerbic. George Wendt is Norm Peterson, the barfly who has a long running tab and a seat at the corner of the bar. He is an accountant who is miserable at his job and with his wife, the never to be seen, but often mentioned Vera. John Ratzenberger's Cliff Clavin was only a recurring character for the first season (his character was listed in the closing credits, not the opening credits as it would be from season two until the end of the series), but his persona as the master of trivial information and devoted postman and son is established. The first season would focus on the budding relationship of Sam & Diane. There was a constant tension between the two and it is the will they or won't they get together relationship that was the show's dominant plot. Outstanding episodes include "Coach's Daughter" where Coach's daughter brings her fiancee to meet him and he turns out to be a real jerk, "Coach Returns To Action" where both Coach & Sam vie for the affections of Coach's new neighbor (the episode ends with a hilarious pratfall by Coach down a flight of stairs), "Now Pitching, Sam Malone", where Sam becomes a TV pitchman and one of the show's all-time best episodes "Diane's Perfect Date" where Sam & Diane bet they can find the perfect date for another and Sam forgets to pick someone for Diane and must scour the bar for a last minute date and finds a guy Andy (Derek McGrath) in the pool room who turns out to be a motorcycle driving ex-con. The show featured numerous guest stars including Harry Anderson who appear in several episodes as con man Harry "The Hat" Gittes and helped pave the way for him to star in another NBC hit comedy Night Court. Other first season guest stars include Julia Duffy as on old friend of Diane's who Sam hits on, Christopher McDonald as a Red Sox pitcher who Sam loans his lucky bottle cap to in order break out of a slump, Fred Dryer as a local newsman, famous DJ Rick Dees, former Red Sox great Luis Tiant as himself and Boston political legend and former Speaker of The House, Tip O'Neil also portraying himself. Keenan Ivory Wayans has a brief bit in one episode playing a customer. An interesting bit of trivia, Paul Willson who would appear throughout the series run (and become a semi-regular) as bar patron Paul, appears in the first season but is referred to as Glen. Although its ratings were low, Cheers was a major success with the critics, many of which hailed as the best show on television. They were justified when Cheers won five Emmys at 1982-83 awards including its first win as Outstanding Comedy Series, Ms. Long won for Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series and show also won for best direction and writing.
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