“Friends” is a genuine 90s classic that follows the lives of six close knit friends in Manhattan, New York. The six main characters of Rachel, Phoebe, Monica, Joey, Ross and Chandler lived up to the show’s name and bonded on the screen as did the actors off-screen.
“Friends” included Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller and Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing. This eccentric group of characters challenge the variety of struggles young adults face on a daily basis.
The show first aired in 1994 and filmed for ten lengthy seasons. It aired on NBC from 1994 until 2004. Sometime after the last season aired, the show became available on Netflix and HBO, two popular television and movie streaming services. Reruns of the seasons play on the TBS network.
Season after season, the cast grew to learn and appreciate their respective characters, which allowed them to develop more each episode. This made it possible for audiences everywhere to relate and appreciate the characters and the contributions each personality brought to the show throughout the ten seasons. The writers brought wit and humor to every episode of the show.
Given the popularity of the show, “Friends” has impacted viewers young and old both with style from back in the day and jokes that still hold up today. For example, Tribbiani’s catchphrase “How you doin’?” has become a part of the Western English slang, and Rachel’s hairstyle has been replicated from the beginning of the series up until now. Additionally, “Friends” has played a role in inspiring many other similar sitcoms, for example: “How I Met Your Mother,” “New Girl,” “Happy Endings” and even “The Big Bang Theory.”
The show’s popularity grew immensely throughout the time it first aired on television. When the series finale aired in May of 2004, 52.5 million Americans tuned in to watch. This brought the show to being the fifth most-watched series finale in America. Additionally, the finale was named the most watched television episode of the 2000s. “The One with the Prom Video” which aired in 1997 was ranked number 100 on TV Guide’s 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time list.
“Friends” has received many awards for its writing, acting and viewership. The show was nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards and won six of these nominations, the eighth season won the show the Outstanding Comedy Series award in 2002 and also won a Golden Globe. The show was ranked number 21 on TV Guide’s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All-Time and ranked number seven on Empire Magazine’s The 50 Greatest TV Shows of All-Time. Additionally, the Writers Guild of America ranked Friends number 24 on the Best Written TV Series of All Time list.
To continue the “Friends” series, crowds around the world were excited to hear about HBO Max releasing “The One Where They Got Back Together” in the Spring of 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the filming and release date of this reunion episode has been postponed.