Something Borrowed, Someone Blue

Infobox Television episode | Title = Something Borrowed, Someone Blue
Series = Frasier
Season = 7


Caption = Niles elopes with Daphne from her wedding
Episode = 23
Airdate = 18 May 2000
Production = 40571-167 & 40571-168
Writer = Christopher Lloyd & Joe Keenan
Director = Pamela Fryman
Guests = Millicent Martin (Gertrude Moon)
Anthony Montgomery (waiter)
Cameron Dye (Nigel Moon)
Prev = The Dark Side of the Moon
Next =
Episode list = List of Frasier episodes (Season 7)

"Something Borrowed, Someone Blue" is the twenty-third and final episode in season 7 of American sitcom "Frasier". It is an hour-long episode, and is notable because it brings to a climax the romantic character arc between Niles and Daphne, a significant running plotline for the first seven years of the show's production.

Cast and characters

Main cast and characters

*Kelsey Grammer – Dr. Frasier Crane
*David Hyde Pierce – Dr. Niles Crane
*John Mahoney – Martin Crane
*Jane Leeves – Daphne Moon
*Peri Gilpin – Roz Doyle

Recurring cast

*Jane Adams – Dr. Melinda "Mel" Karnofsky
*Saul Rubinek – Donny Douglas
*Anthony LaPaglia – Simon Moon

Plot outline

Part I

Frasier, Daphne, Niles, Mel and Martin return from the funeral of Morrie, the doorman of Elliott Bay Towers. Daphne in particular is very emotional, which everyone attributes to nerves before the wedding. Martin bears a final gift from Morrie; a rare bottle of wine retrieved from France following the Second World War. Simon, Daphne's boorish and obnoxious brother, arrives unexpectedly, and Martin invites him to stay in his Winnebago. Mel leaves to prepare for a mid-week retreat to celebrate her and Niles' six-month anniversary, and Niles confesses to Frasier that he feels anxious about their relationship. After Niles denies that he still possesses lingering feelings for Daphne, Frasier urges his brother to seize the moment and move on from his habitual sense of caution.

When Martin gives Daphne the bottle of wine as a wedding gift, Daphne break downs once more. Frasier is left to comfort Daphne, and Daphne reveals that she knows about Niles' seven-year crush on her. She has tormented herself about her own feelings towards Niles, and believes that she has fallen in love with him in return. Despite her impending marriage, Frasier urges her to confront Niles and discuss this with him before her marriage. When Niles returns, however, he has exciting news: he has, on impulse, eloped with Mel and married her.

Part II

Frasier arrives at the luxurious hotel where Daphne and Donny's wedding will take place, hoping to speak to Daphne about recent events. Daphne brushes the matter off, dismissing her feelings as just nerves, and gives Frasier the bottle of wine to thank him for all his kindness and support. They are interrupted by the arrival of Daphne's overbearing and hypercritical mother, Gertrude.

That night following the rehearsal dinner, Frasier and Martin discuss Daphne and Niles. Frasier confesses that he does not believe either Daphne or Niles when they claim to be happy, leading Martin to warn him about interfering; two marriages are at stake. Meanwhile, Niles and Daphne join each other for a dance, and Frasier watches them as they dance close together. Cornering Niles in a hotel room, Frasier reveals that Daphne knows how he feels towards her, and that there is a possibility she shares his feelings. Niles is tormented, but resolves to talk to Daphne to find out. Managing to get Daphne alone, Niles confesses that Frasier has told him of her feelings towards him, and tells her that he loves her. Before they can discuss anything, they are constantly interrupted, firstly by Martin, then by Donny, then Mel, and finally by Daphne's entire family. Escaping the party to the balcony, the two stand together awkwardly, until Daphne takes action, and the two share their first kiss. She then tells him that they have made too many commitments to others to back out now. Niles is left on the balcony, alone.

The next morning, as the wedding taking place, Niles sits in the front cabin of the Winnebago, unable to watch Daphne be married. Martin and Frasier join him, Frasier bringing with him the rare bottle of wine to honour Niles' bravery in at last opening his heart to Daphne. The three men prepare to enjoy a glass, only to discover that the wine is undrinkable; unfortunately, Morrie kept his wine rack in the boiler room. Frasier and Martin leave to attend the wedding, leaving Niles alone, until a knock at the door rouses him. He turns to see Daphne, before him in full wedding dress, asking him if he wants to go on a date. She has chosen him after all, and as the two prepare to flee the wedding, Daphne realises that she can finally call him "Niles".

Episode title cards

*"Memento Morrie"
*"Absence makes the heart grow fatter"
*"The rehearsal dinner"

Cultural references

*The title is a play on the traditional wedding verse indicating what a bride should wear on her wedding day in Western cultures. The full rhyme (including the final line, not traditionally referred to in the United States) is thus:::"Something old, something new"::"Something borrowed, something blue"::"And a lucky sixpence in her shoe."

*The bottle of wine given to Martin by Morrie, the 1945 Château Pétrus, really is one of the rarest and most expensive wines in the world. One bottle is frequently valued at $5000.

Memorable Quotations

"Roz is not keen on Frasier's suggestion that he accompany her to Daphne's wedding"
Roz: Frasier, I can't go with you. I mean, going to a wedding with your boss is like going to the prom with your brother.
Frasier: Niles and I did not go to the prom together!

"Niles has just given Martin the news that he and Mel are now married. Martin is stunned, and unsure how to react"
Martin: So, you're happy, right?
Niles: Happy? I'm delirious!
Martin: Yeah, you'd have to be, wouldn't you?

"The final words of the episode, as Daphne and Niles prepare to leave the wedding together in the Winnebago"
Niles: Fasten your seat belt, Daphne.
Daphne: Fasten "yours", Niles!

ee also

*List of "Frasier" episodes