History Recap / FrasierS03E19CraneVsCrane

* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: Frasier and Niles give this to each other at the end. Niles has a JerkassRealization about what an AttentionWhore he let himself become. Frasier assured him that there is nothing wrong with wanting to be seen for what you're good at, and Niles is an excellent psychiatrist. Frasier was beating himself up for misdiagnosing Safford. Niles told him that Safford is capable of being lucid for extended periods and that if Frasier was biased by anything it was his "desire to see old age not as a time of inevitable decline, but a time when your childhood dreams and wonders can be rediscovered" and it was good to have such a positive outlook.

The Crane brothers take opposite sides in a court of law after Niles is hired by the family of a wealthy octogenarian to testify that he is mentally mentally unfit during a televised trial. Frasier is sought out by the man for a second opinion, and determines that he is simply eccentric, deciding to testify in his defense.

* WrongfullyCommitted: Martin believes Safford’s heirs are attempting to wrongfully commit him so they can gain control over his estate. Frasier also believes this after speaking to the man and believing that he is merely eccentric and that he’s being punished simply for not acting how an adult “should” act. It turns out that no, he really is insane.

'''Frasier''': I just have to tell you that I found Harlow Safford to be of completely sound mind ''[Niles is clearly on the verge of exploding again]'' and don't say "What"!\\

* JerkassHasAPoint: Once the chaos of the hearing is over and both Crane brothers have experienced their humiliations, they admit the other had a point despite their petty behaviour; Frasier concedes that Niles' diagnosis of Safford was correct, while Niles admits that he really was just in the case because he was looking to be on television. Played with in the case of Safford's son, who we never meet and so never learn whether he was just a greedy jerk looking to secure his inheritance (as Martin believed) or whether he was genuinely worried about his father's alarming behaviour (as Niles claimed); however, either way it turns out he really did have cause for concern.

* CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot: The entire conflict between the Cranes could have been avoided if, in any of their conversations on the subject, Niles had [[PoorCommunicationKills bothered to mention]] the part about Safford taking off his pants and trying to put them on the cat. Largely justified since it really is Niles' jealousy and desire to be publicly proven as right (and, once it arises, right over Frasier) that is fuelling his side of the conflict; he doesn't bring it up to give himself the opportunity to humiliate Frasier publicly.

'''Frasier''': I just have to tell you that I found Harlow Safford to be of completely sound mind... and don't say "What"!\\

* PyrrhicVictory: Niles is technically proven right when Safford has a mental breakdown during the middle of Frasier’s testimony. But this happens ''before'' he has the chance to testify on TV, which was what he actually wanted, so he ultimately just humiliated himself by whoring himself to the camera.

* DumbassHasAPoint: Downplayed, since Frasier isn't really dumb. However, once the hearing is over, he is naturally beating himself up over his inability to diagnose Safford's obvious dementia and asks Niles what the clue that gave him the insight into Safford's mental state was. Niles, by this point having suffered his own humiliations throughout the hearing, admits that the main reason he was able to diagnose Safford wasn't due to some penetrating psychological insight, but because Safford suffered an episode during their interview where he tried to take off his trousers and put them on the household cat. He then defends Frasier against his own self-rebuke by acknowledging that Safford is clearly still capable of significant moments of lucidity which could look make his mental deterioration look like simple eccentricities to someone who hadn't seen him at his worst.

* CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot: The entire conflict between the Cranes could have been avoided if, in any of their conversations on the subject, Niles had [[PoorCommunicationKills bothered to mention]] the part about Safford taking off his pants and trying to put them on the cat.

* AmoralAttorney: Mr. Giroux, Harlow Safford's lawyer, who recruits Frasier to testify that his client is perfectly sane. When Harlow starts acting up during the competency hearing, Mr. Giroux looks embarrassed, but not surprised, indicating he knew full well his client is a demented loon.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Once the chaos of the hearing is over and both Crane brothers have experienced their humiliations, they admit the other had a point despite their petty behaviour; Frasier concedes that Niles' diagnosis of Safford was correct, while Niles admits that he really was just in the case because he was looking to be on television.
** Martin is furious with Niles for helping Safford's ''"scum-sucking jerk"'' of a son get his father committed to get his hands on the family fortune; but if Martin saw Safford acting up during the court hearing, he might come around to Niles's view that the son is legitimately concerned for his father's well-being.
* NeverTheObviousSuspect: To Martin, it is stupidly obvious that Harlow Safford's son is wrongfully trying to get his father committed so he can get his hands on the family fortune before Harlow fritters it away; but when Harlow's dementia takes over during his competency hearing, the audience begins to credit Niles's claim that the son really is ''"worried sick"'' about his father.

** Martin casts Niles as the Jerkass for helping Safford's ''"scum-sucking jerk"'' of a son get his father committed to get his hands on the family fortune; but if Martin saw Safford acting up during the court hearing, he might come around to Niles's view that the son is legitimately concerned for his father's well-being.

* GrowingUpSucks: Pretty much the theme of the episode, although focusing on becoming elderly and not general adulthood. Frasier doesn’t like the idea that growing old is necessarily bad, and so interprets Safford’s oddities as him finally embracing his inner child after decades of hard work - and not the unfortunate reality that he’s succumbing to dementia and can no longer take care of himself.

The Crane brothers take opposite sides in a court of law after Niles declares an eccentric man to be mentally unfit but Frasier is willing to advocate for him.

* ScatterbrainedSenior: When Frasier meets the client, he's able to explain his earlier eccentric behavior in a logical manner, which makes Frasier think that Niles' diagnosis was wrong. Everything falls apart in the actual courtroom, when the client starts randomly acting like a train conductor before Niles can even present his findings.