F.R.I.E.N.D.S (1994 - 2004)
After seeing a lot of posts on Facebook about how awesome Friends is, my curiosity was piqued. I wanted to see exactly what this series had, that made it so great. It was 6th May 2017. The thirteenth anniversary of the very last time the world saw the six friends on TV. That was the day I watched the first episode. And for the next month, I was totally hooked to it.
The plot of the series is quite straightforward: Six friends - Phoebe Buffay, Chandler Bing, Monica Geller, Ross Geller(her brother), Rachel Green and Joey Tribbiani - hang out at the cafe called Central Perk. Their lives kind of revolve around that single place, because four of them live in the apartment above it for a few years. The show focuses on their lives for a span of roughly ten years.
The characters couldn't be more imperfect. The characters all complement each other perfectly. Some of them, you know, just suck at relationships but have a flourishing career, while others have a thriving love life but their careers are seriously messed up. There a those whose parents couldn't have ignored them more and then there are those who were pampered by their parents. They all help each other as much as they can and every single way to create problems and jokes using the difference in financial status and personal life is utilized to the maximum extent without making things look repetitive or offensive.
It's basically a riot, but it is not the conventional sitcom. That would be restricting its scope. This series actually focuses a lot more on what the protagonists make of their lives than on how funny they are. It has a lot of relationship drama and covers all the problems one could face when they try to make it on their own. It is, thus a lot more than just a sitcom. It's an all rounder. But the most important thing to be noted about this series is the way the characters bond with you. It's very easy to get addicted to the series. We keep coming back not just because we want a good laugh, but also to know what happens in the life of our favourite characters and that is something I am yet to find in any other series or movie. That is a great achievement made by this series.
Unfortunately, due to the very same reason, ten seasons seems a little too lengthy. As the focus is not on the comedy but on the relationships, the series can survive only till all the characters get closure. And I think, by the eighth season, all of them could've got closure. After a certain point the Ross-Rachel will they/won't they suspense got a bit too much and was too annoying to bear. The last two seasons seemed like an effort made to get closure for Phoebe, Chandler and Monica as well and shows how old-fashioned the show is as everyone had to get married for closure. The only reason Joey doesn't get married till the end is that there was a spin-off series in the offing(which turned out to be horrible I guess, I don't have enough courage to watch it!)
But I have to hand it to Friends, as this is the first ten-year long sit-com that I have watched(the second being TBBT) and as the series also takes place over a period of (roughly) ten years, the actors actually look their age - in their twenties in the beginning and in their thirties in the last one. This is a pleasant surprise as I have only watched those shitty Tamil serials that my grandma watches, where people over 40 act as newly weds. Also as I already mentioned, this show emotionally connects with the viewer and thus, will probably be famous for posterity, unlike any other series.
Here are some of the most famous dialogues:
The plot of the series is quite straightforward: Six friends - Phoebe Buffay, Chandler Bing, Monica Geller, Ross Geller(her brother), Rachel Green and Joey Tribbiani - hang out at the cafe called Central Perk. Their lives kind of revolve around that single place, because four of them live in the apartment above it for a few years. The show focuses on their lives for a span of roughly ten years.
The characters couldn't be more imperfect. The characters all complement each other perfectly. Some of them, you know, just suck at relationships but have a flourishing career, while others have a thriving love life but their careers are seriously messed up. There a those whose parents couldn't have ignored them more and then there are those who were pampered by their parents. They all help each other as much as they can and every single way to create problems and jokes using the difference in financial status and personal life is utilized to the maximum extent without making things look repetitive or offensive.It's basically a riot, but it is not the conventional sitcom. That would be restricting its scope. This series actually focuses a lot more on what the protagonists make of their lives than on how funny they are. It has a lot of relationship drama and covers all the problems one could face when they try to make it on their own. It is, thus a lot more than just a sitcom. It's an all rounder. But the most important thing to be noted about this series is the way the characters bond with you. It's very easy to get addicted to the series. We keep coming back not just because we want a good laugh, but also to know what happens in the life of our favourite characters and that is something I am yet to find in any other series or movie. That is a great achievement made by this series.
Unfortunately, due to the very same reason, ten seasons seems a little too lengthy. As the focus is not on the comedy but on the relationships, the series can survive only till all the characters get closure. And I think, by the eighth season, all of them could've got closure. After a certain point the Ross-Rachel will they/won't they suspense got a bit too much and was too annoying to bear. The last two seasons seemed like an effort made to get closure for Phoebe, Chandler and Monica as well and shows how old-fashioned the show is as everyone had to get married for closure. The only reason Joey doesn't get married till the end is that there was a spin-off series in the offing(which turned out to be horrible I guess, I don't have enough courage to watch it!)
But I have to hand it to Friends, as this is the first ten-year long sit-com that I have watched(the second being TBBT) and as the series also takes place over a period of (roughly) ten years, the actors actually look their age - in their twenties in the beginning and in their thirties in the last one. This is a pleasant surprise as I have only watched those shitty Tamil serials that my grandma watches, where people over 40 act as newly weds. Also as I already mentioned, this show emotionally connects with the viewer and thus, will probably be famous for posterity, unlike any other series.
Here are some of the most famous dialogues:
"How you doin'?"
"Oh. My. God."
"Welcome to the real world. It sucks. You're gonna love it!"
"It's moo point. It's like a cow's opinion: It doesn't matter. It's moo."
"Hey, you know what I just realized? 'Joker' is 'poker' with a J. Coincidence?" "Hey, that's 'joincidence' with a c."
Now for the rating:
9/10 - Amazing
Note: Just FYI, Joey doesn't share food and Monica has 11 categories of towels in her bathroom.
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