Recap / Cheers S 10 E 22

Episode: Season 10, Episode 22
Title: Rebecca's Lover... Not
Directed by: James Burrows
Written by: Tracy Newman and Jonathan Stark
Air Date: April 23, 1992
Previous: Take Me out of the Ball Game
Next: Bar Wars VI: This Time It's for Real
Guest Starring: Harvey Fierstein, Jackie Swanson, Paul Willson

"Rebecca's Lover... Not!" is the 21st episode of the tenth season of Cheers.

Rebecca's gotten news: Her old flame from high-school, Mark Newberger, is coming to visit. Rebecca's overjoyed; finally she has a friend to talk to! Once Mark (Harvey Fierstein) shows up, it becomes pretty clear Rebecca hasn't noticed one seriously important detail: He's gay.

Sam, meanwhile, is going through a tough time. Some jerk stole his beloved Corvette. At Lilith's suggestion, he forms a support group for other people. And Kelly, preparing for her marriage to Woody, decides to get to know the barflies at Cheers.

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Tropes:

• All Gays Love Theater: Naturally, in high school Mark and Rebecca bonded during a production of South Pacific.
• And Starring: Harvey Fierstein gets "Special Guest Star" credit.
• Coat Full of Contraband: Carla offers Woody her grandma's silver wedding ring, describing it as a prized family heirloom. When Woody says Kelly would prefer gold Carla says "Oh, I have it in gold, too." Then she opens her coat to show a huge collection of rings.
• Gaydar: Rebecca appears not to have any, since she completely misses Mark's obvious homosexuality.
• Heroic BSoD: Sam is shaken by the theft of his Corvette. The police bring him into the bar, explaining he was just standing there, screaming at the sky.
• It's All About Me: Sam founds the support group mainly so he can moan about his own pain. Once he learns his Corvette is fine, he ends the meeting and leaves the others.
• Mercy Kill: Seeing an oblivious Rebecca excited about going on a date with Mark, Norm quips "if only she was a horse with a broken leg or something, we could shoot her."
• Old Flame: It sort of fits in with Rebecca's whole life that her old flame from high school turns out to be gay.
• Opinion Flip Flop: Frasier, on hearing Sam's put together a support group says it's a good idea. When Sam says it's Lilith's idea, he immediately changes his mind.
• The Thing That Would Not Leave: As Lilith puts it to Kelly, if she wants to get the barflies to like her, she simply has to give them a beer, and will never be rid of them.
• Transparent Closet: Mark is so obviously gay, and doesn't actually hide it, yet poor, stupid Rebecca doesn't notice until he outright tells her.
• Troll: Carla decides to keep Rebecca oblivious to Mark's sexuality solely so she can torment her after it.
• What, Exactly, Is Her Job?: As Rebecca introduces everyone at Cheers to Mark, Carla asks her what her job is.
  Rebecca: Shut up.
  Carla: (to the others) Thought I could trick her into telling us.
• With Friends Like These...: Cliff's idea of giving Sam emotional support is to tell him how if the Corvette's been stolen, it'll be taken to a chop shop, detailing how it'll be utterly destroyed. Sam even asks if Cliff thinks he's helping.