Title: A Kiss Is Still a Kiss
Directed by: James Burrows
Written by: David Lloyd
Air Date: December 3, 1987
Previous: Pudd'n Head Boyd
Next: My Fair Clavin
Guest Starring: Tom Skerritt, Harry Anderson
"A Kiss Is Still a Kiss" is the 10th episode of the sixth season of Cheers.
Evan Drake, Rebecca's longtime crush, is no longer The Ghost! Drake (Tom Skerritt), mentioned repeatedly through the first nine episodes, finally shows up at the bar. After Evan the baseball fan shoots the breeze with Sam Malone and enjoys some of his old stories, he invites Rebecca to a party for the company's executives. He also lets slip to Sam that, after several other executives at the company asked Rebecca Howe out and got shot down, people began to wonder if she's a lesbian. Rebecca, horrified that the man she loves thinks she's gay, invites Sam Malone to the party to prove her heterosexuality.
In the B plot, Frasier gets a case of the hiccups. In the C plot, apparently Cliff is temporarily living with Norm and Vera since his house got bulldozed a few episodes back. And in the cold open, genial con artist Harry the Hat makes his first appearance at the bar since season 2 and his last until season 11. (Harry Anderson was too busy being the star of Night Court).
Tropes:
- And Starring: Skeritt and Anderson both get special credits, the former getting "Special Guest Star" and the latter getting "Special Appearance By".
- Bait-and-Switch: Norm complains about how Cliff is keeping his room and how he left the bathroom... he complains that Cliff is too neat, and is doing too much of the housework and thus giving Vera more time to focus on Norm.
- The Big Damn Kiss: Subverted. After Sam tricks Rebecca into kissing him, he says that it must have meant something, that no one could fake passion like that. To prove him wrong, Rebecca grabs the very next person to walk into the bar—Frasier—literally throws him down onto a table, and kisses him so hard that Frasier is left dazed.
- The Bus Came Back: Harry the Hat makes a brief return to Cheers. He implies that he spent some time in jail, although he may have been running a long con in which he impersonated a New York City judge.
- Continuity Nod: Cliff's house having been razed three episodes ago, he is temporarily living with Norm and Vera.
- Hiccup Hijinks: In typical sitcom fashion, everyone at the bar keeps coming up with their own cures for Frasier's hiccups.
- Inadvertent Entrance Cue: Sam's comment about how it's ridiculous and paranoid to think that Evan Drake is coming to the bar to fire Rebecca is immediately followed by Woody peeking in the office and telling them that Drake is there.
- Inelegant Blubbering: Rebecca is doing her usual inelegant crying and muttering as she stalks back into the bar after the disastrous party.
- Mistaken for Gay: Drake and apparently a lot of the senior management at the company think that Rebecca's a lesbian.
- Oblivious to Love: Rebecca has been in love with Evan Drake for two years and he hasn't picked up on it. He still doesn't pick up on it when she says "Take me!" and tackles him in this episode; instead he thinks she was drunk.
- Sexy Backless Outfit: Rebecca wears a slinky backless dress for the party.
- Ship Tease: Another instance of the Frasier-Rebecca ship tease, as Rebecca lays a passionate kiss on Frasier just to prove a point to Sam, leaving Frasier dazed.
