5 Shows to Watch if You Liked ‘Cheers’
Cheers is streaming in its entirety on Peacock and Paramount+, and a few seasons are still on Hulu. 11 seasons gives you 273 total episodes to watch, but let’s say you’ve already watched them all. At under 30 minutes each, it would only take you 136 hours, so less than a week if you don’t sleep. Anyway, here are five other shows you might like if you also like Cheers.
‘Taxi’ was the show that led to ‘Cheers’
Glen and Les Charles were writers on Taxi when they enlisted director James Burrows to create Cheers with them. So, in many ways it’s an origin story. The cast of Taxi checked into their dispatch center where they would commiserate over the wacky passengers and shenanigans that had ensued.
The cast included Danny DeVito, Judd Hirsch, Marilu Henner, Jeff Conaway, Tony Danza, Christopher Lloyd, and Andy Kaufman. There are five seasons of Taxi streaming on Paramount+.
‘Wings’ followed ‘Cheers’ in the ‘90s
Back when NBC Thursday night was must-see TV, Wings was a vital part of that lineup. In 1990, it joined Cheers on Thursdays and continued for eight seasons. Wings also shared Cheers writers David Angell, Peter Casey and David Lee, who together went on to spin off Frasier. Burrows directed the Wings pilot too.
Tim Daly and Steven Weber starred on Wings as brothers who ran a Nantucket airline. The airport provided a hub for all the characters to interact. Costars included Crystal Bernard, David Schramm, Rebecca Schull, Thomas Haden Church, Tony Shalhoub, and Amy Yasbeck. If you watch enough Wings, a few Cheers and Frasier characters will show up. Wings is streaming on Paramount+.
‘Golden Girls’ was another NBC sitcom staple
Overlapping Cheers on the air, NBC’s The Golden Girls had a smaller ensemble than the bar where everybody knows your name. Still, the four roommates in Florida filled each half hour with hilarious banter and comic shenanigans. Instead of beer, they spoke over cheesecake.
Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, Betty White and Estelle Getty played Dorothy, Blanche, Rose, and Sophia. All seven seasons are streaming on Hulu, along with the spinoff Golden Palace which is worth a look too.
‘How I Met Your Mother’ has more wacky bar shenanigans
How I Met Your Mother was more of a postmodern sitcom than Cheers. While Cheers followed the “situation comedy” mold to the tee, creating situations in its single setting, HIMYM played with the format. They filmed some scenes in front of a live audience, but played with editing and scenes that could only be filmed on location.
The gang’s local hangout was MacLaren’s pub so many episodes centered around conversations or pickup tactics in the bar. All nine seasons are streaming on Hulu along with the new How I Met Your Father.
‘Frasier’, obviously
Of course, if you love Cheers, you’re going to have to continue to watch the further adventures of Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer). Frasier joined Cheers in season 3 when Diane (Shelley Long) needed a new love interest. When Diane went back to Sam, Frasier married Lilith (Bebe Neuwirth). They stayed together long after Long left the show, but divorced in time for Frasier to move to Seattle for his own spinoff.
Frasier sees Crane host a radio call-in show. It introduces his brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce) and father Martin (John Mahoney), his caretaker Daphne (Jane Leeves), and Frasier’s producer Roz (Peri Gilpin). All 11 seasons of Frasier are streaming on Hulu and Paramount+ but only the latter will get the upcoming Frasier revival.
