# Does anyone hate 'Friends' as much as I do? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 16, 2018, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762 "2018-08-16T23:54:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2018, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/101 "2018-08-21T19:27:17Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > And Newman. Hello, _Newman_. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2018, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/102 "2018-08-21T21:37:56Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I can’t say I hated it, but it was never something I deliberately watched. I would catch episodes if I was vegging out in front of the TV and it was the best thing on. I found it mildly amusing, but not “must see TV.” > > I found _Seinfeld_ much more interesting because all the characters, even the minor ones, were so _twisted_. It didn’t start out that way; I began to watch it more regularly once the sociopathic nature of some of the characters became established. (In particular I recall the third season episode where George has sex with the office cleaning lady on his desk, and when fired over expresses surprise that this is against company policy.) Or when Jerry steals the marble rye from the older lady, pretty much mugging her in the process. I thought _Friends_ was OK. I’m older than the target audience, but it was good for a few laughs. I don’t expect much from network TV, and it was one of the better shows you could find there. If I want something deep (for TV), I’ll watch HBO or PBS. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2018, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/103 "2018-08-21T22:55:12Z")
> [@chaika](#): > > I can’t say I hate it but I never thought it was more than mediocre. It was occasionally funny. There were some fairly decent comic actors in the cast, especially Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow. > > I have been surprised by how popular “Friends” was (and continues to be) in the UK. People quote lines from it, refer to specific episodes, use the characters as shorthand to describe someone’s behavior. I’ve never known anyone in the US with that level of knowledge or interest in this old (and not terribly accomplished or captivating) TV sit-com. You aren’t kidding. A friend of mine recently went to Friends Fest in Manchester [http://friendsfest.co.uk](http://friendsfest.co.uk) ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2018, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/104 "2018-08-21T23:58:21Z")
I loved it then and I love it now. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/105 "2018-08-22T04:44:58Z")
> [@Enright3](#): > > There are still characters I can’t stand (Ross). What a fucking cry baby. For the most part it’s still pretty funny to me. > > I saw a form of it posted above; I think there’s a lot of people who ‘hate’ the show because it’s their personality to hate something because everyone else likes it. > > Also, I don’t get how anyone can say it’s like Seinfeld. 😕 So they’re both set in NYC. Nothing else is the same. Different type of humor. What makes them the same… that they have people in them who are friends? Then it’s also like TBBT, Taxi, Cheers, 30 Rock, M_A_S\*H, Roseanne, etc. I think that’s a silly comparison. Ross is my least favorite too. But isn’t it like that in our own tight circle of friends, always an odd one out you’re slapping your head over? I agree most of the hate for _Friends_ usually seems to be because it’s become cool to hate it, from what I can tell. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/106 "2018-08-22T05:05:58Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Ross is my least favorite too. But isn’t it like that in our own tight circle of friends, always an odd one out you’re slapping your head over? I agree most of the hate for _Friends_ usually seems to be because it’s become cool to hate it, from what I can tell. Hardly. It’s not possible to have a different sense of humor than you? Sent from my LGMS631 using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/107 "2018-08-22T11:24:43Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > Hardly. > > It’s not possible to have a different sense of humor than you? > > Sent from my LGMS631 using Tapatalk A different sense of humor leads to indifference, not hatred. Hatred takes emotional investment or a feeling of betrayal. You cannot reason a person out of a position they didn’t use reason to reach. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/108 "2018-08-22T12:22:01Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > …It’s not possible to have a different sense of humor than you? > [@DrFidelius](#): > > A different sense of humor leads to indifference, not hatred. Hatred takes emotional investment or a feeling of betrayal. > > You cannot reason a person out of a position they didn’t use reason to reach. Excellent post, **doc**. Apparently you have a doctorate in common sense. mmm ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/109 "2018-08-22T12:58:29Z")
I can’t say I hate it, or think about it much one way or the other. I watched it when it was on. The early years had some laughs and actually some clever writing every once in a while, but it was just a dumb sitcom. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/110 "2018-08-23T16:50:01Z")
This morning on the local morning radio show, they were taking callers to answer a question to win a prize. The caller had to answer three questions in five seconds. One caller’s question was name three characters on _Friends_. Caller: “Ooh, I hate _Friends_!” Needless to say, she didn’t win the prize. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/111 "2018-08-23T19:13:16Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > I can’t say I hate it, or think about it much one way or the other. I watched it when it was on. The early years had some laughs and actually some clever writing every once in a while, but it was just a dumb sitcom. Actuall, the first year, the one with the monkey- was crap. It didn’t hit its stride until 2nd season or so, and then somewhere, around “we were on a break”, it jumped the shark. ---
**Author:** ![Clawdio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d07c76/32.png) [@Clawdio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clawdio)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/112 "2018-08-23T20:10:14Z")
It had its moments. My only complaint was that in the end I didn’t want Ross and Rachel to be together anymore, they both would be better off just moving on with their lives! However, it hasn’t aged very well. Not sure if its the clothing, the humor, or the laugh track (or all three) but it screams “THIS IS THE 90’s” when I see it now. ---
**Author:** ![rat\_avatar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rat_avatar/32/255_2.png) [@rat\_avatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rat_avatar)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/113 "2018-08-23T20:14:44Z")
Friends used lots of [lampshading](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LampshadeHanging) which even outside of the moral considerations is not that funny to me for some reason. Oddly enough I do like lampooning like in Blazing Saddles etc… ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/114 "2018-08-27T03:45:51Z")
> [@gonzoron](#): > > …There is one bit that still sticks with me as quite funny, both in writing and delivery… > > Joey and Chandler have somehow mixed up Ross’s baby with another baby. One baby is wearing clown pajamas, and the other duck pajamas. They decide to flip a coin to decide which baby to take… > > Joey: Ducks is “Heads”, because ducks have heads. > Chandler: What kind of scary-ass clowns came to your birthday? 😃 This was my favorite line of the entire series. My son (now 21 years old) was born around the time that I saw this episode. He had a red, black, and white clown mobile for his crib when he was an infant, and the clowns looked somewhat creepy to me.\* My wife and I used to therefore call it his “scary-ass clown mobile.” 🙂 This term came directly from that episode, which I got to explain to my son years later when he he was a teenager. \*Note that there was nothing actually particularly creepy about the clowns in his mobile, other than the fact that all clowns are creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/115 "2018-08-27T05:37:13Z")
I’m watching _Friends_ right now! It’s the one where Joey is trying to persuade Chandler to cast him for the commercial that Chandler’s agency has landed. And Ross is up for a $25,000 Dewer Grant, but his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend is the one who decides who wins it, the ex-boyfriend played by Greg Kinnear. And Monica and Rachel try to get out of being gifted Phoebe’s bizarre doll. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2018, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762/116 "2018-08-27T05:46:07Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > There are whole cable channels devoted to showing ‘Friends’ hour after hour, night after night, week after week. I have tried several times to watch this show, and I simply don’t GET it. I tried tonight. I loathe each and every one of them, I hate this show. I have tried. What am I missing? I think it’s a dumbass fairy tale of what life in NYC can be. I get that part. But I simply cannot watch it. Yes I hate it. So I don’t watch. Problem solved. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-hate-friends-as-much-as-i-do/819762.md?page=5)