"Drew Live" is the eighth episode of the fifth season of the American sitcom The Drew Carey Show, and the 109th overall. The episode's plot focuses on Drew (Drew Carey) trying to stop his friend, Kate (Christa Miller), from pursuing a relationship with a mystery man, as Drew is in love with her. However, Drew is unaware that he is stopping Kate from pursuing him. Meanwhile, Drew's brother Steve Carey (John Carroll Lynch) and his fiancée Mimi Bobeck (Kathy Kinney) hold a joint bachelor and bachelorette party. The episode was written by Clay Graham and directed by Gerry Cohen. It first aired on November 10, 1999 on the ABC network in the United States. Executive producer and series co-creator, Bruce Helford came up with the idea for "Drew Live" after seeing medical drama ER'''s live episode in 1997. To make "Drew Live" stand out, two-minute improvisational segments, in which the cast had to invent their own lines, were added in during filming. The cast and crew performed the episode live three times for the Eastern, Mountain and Pacific time zones. It was shot on tape and broadcast with a small delay. Performers from Whose Line Is It Anyway? also made guest appearances. "Drew Live" was seen by 19.1 million viewers, finishing inside the Top 10 in the ratings for the week of November 8–14, 1999. It was the third highest-rated show on ABC that week and the most watched episode of The Drew Carey Show in 44 weeks. It received mixed reviews from critics, with The Boston Globe's Matthew Gilbert calling it "gimmicky" and "a smug mess". David Bianculli from the Daily News branded it "a hoot", and Bill Brioux of Canoe.ca praised the cast for being "fearless". Plot Steve Carey (John Carroll Lynch) stops at The Winfred-Lauder department store to ask his brother, Drew (Drew Carey), about the plans for his bachelor party. Steve becomes upset with his fiancée, Mimi (Kathy Kinney), when she reveals the plans for her bachelorette party include a visit to a strip club. Steve later finds Mimi at The Warsaw Tavern and they make up by deciding to combine their bachelor and bachelorette parties together. Kate O'Brien (Christa Miller) tells Lewis Kiniski (Ryan Stiles) that since Drew is dating again, she is finally going to confess her feelings for him. Drew and Oswald Lee Harvey (Diedrich Bader) overhear Kate and Lewis talking, but Drew