I have gone through the first four seasons of Friends on Netflix the last couple of weeks for the first time since the DVDs came out which was probably around ten years ago.
A few observations:
It is generally well preformed but Lisa Kudrow shines as the sharpest and funniest actor in the group. I never really appreciated her much when it originally aired but she can make weak gags funny. All six were good but she was the best.
Matthew Perry seemed to take success the hardest. He lost a ton of drug weight other the first couple of seasons to the point where he looked kind of sickly.
The prevalence of land lines and answering a machines in the plots must be like a time machine to younger people these days who are watching for the first time.
The show holds up so far. I don’t plan to re-watch the entire run as I remember the show starting to fall apart in later seasons but so far so good.
There always seems to be a rerun on one channel or another and if it’s an episode I like (yes, I recognize all the episodes by their titles:o ) I often stop to watch.
Although the show really started to suck right about the Rachel pregnancy era, I watched to the bitter end. Unfortunately the storylines started to decrease in quality, but at the same time I think the individual actors really found their comedy chops.
I pretty much hated Ross for the first several seasons, but David Schwimmer could be pretty funny when he was acting like a goof ball, such as “PIVOT!” and the one with the leather pants. Courtney Cox was never hilarious but she became easier to like as time went on.
I always loved the Thanksgiving episodes with my favorite being the one where Ross and Monica’s parents are there.
<Mrs. Gellar> Rachel, no you weren’t supposed to put beef in the truffle. It does not taste good. <Mrs. Gellar>
I always thought Matt LeBlanc was underrated on Friends. It takes a genius to play an idiot with that much conviction and heart. His facial expressions alone always got a laugh. Perry and Schwimmer were much better at the overall physical stuff, though. They all had different strengths which is what made it such a strong ensemble show.
Aw, Ross was always my favorite character. The leather pants episode is a classic. “The lotion and the powder have made a paste!”
Monica started out as loveably OCD, but got more and more shrill as the show went on. Courteney Cox deliberately played up that aspect of her character because she thought it made her funnier, but to me it was just annoying.
When I watch the show now I have a much better appreciation for both Chandler and Phoebe.
Chandler and Joey were the best characters early on (seasons 1-3).
Ross shined in seasons 4 and 5. Post-second-divorce he was able to let loose and return to his high school creeper/awkward self.
Monica got funnier as the show indulged her neurotic tendencies. Boy, she was smokin’ early on when she was basically a toothpick.
Rachel was at her best during the first Ross encounters. She floundered after that. The whole pregnancy, Joey-likes-me thing was utter dogshit.
Phoebe was always the least funny and most forced. Quirkiness is fine, but when you have no purpose other than to be the “weird one” you’re just a typecast. She could have never been written into the show and virtually nothing substantive would have changed.
Friends went from amazing early on, to mainly narrative midway, to completely stale, run-of-the-mill cliche toward the end.
The earlier seasons seem much more dated than Seinfeld does, despite starting later, I guess that’s the price of trying to be too trendy. Or maybe too twenty something. Or are those the same thing?
Agreed. Everytime someone says that “I cannot tell the difference between now and the 1990’s” or words to the effect, I want to say, that they should watch the first few seasons of Friends.
I’ve been watching it on Netflix, having not watched more than 25% of the episodes before. I’m only up to season 3, and I keep falling asleep, but whatever. It’s fun and I enjoy it.
One thing so far is why do they all hate Janice so much? So she’s a little loud but she seems to genuinely care about Chandler and honestly seems like a lot of fun. They’re so snobby about her. I would rather hang out with her over Rachel for sure.
I didn’t like Phoebe as a character (that is to say, were she real, she’s not someone I’d likely be friends with) but I have a genuine appreciation for Kudrow’s comedic talents.
The producers sure had fun making Ross look like a complete idiot and at least half an asshole, but to be fair, they also let him date some of thehottestwomeneveronasitcom.
Not entirely correct; they had cellphones about midway through the series, and computers played a role in at least some episodes (the one that comes immediately to mind is the one where Ross fakes his own death to see who comes to his memorial service).
I loved “Friends” from beginning to end - I recently re-watched it, too, and enjoyed it immensely. I have to say my least favourite character is Phoebe, for the reasons mentioned (there’s only so much quirky I can take, apparently).
My favourite “Friends” moment - Joey never leaves home without a fork. The episode with all the cheesecakes featured Rachel and Chandler together, which was not a usual pairing, and I thought it showcased how strong they all were - it didn’t matter the pairings, they all were fantastic comedic actors.
