Year:
1994
Studio:
Warner Brothers
Feature:
5/5
DVD:
1/5
Feature
Season 1 consists of 24 episodes. I hadn't realized that I've been
watching the show since almost the beginning since I kept seeing these
episodes and thinking "I thought this was season 2 or 3". It's that
well made even in the first season. Even the pilot I had seen as a
rerun a couple years ago, though not when it originally aired.
"Friends" is a situation comedy (sitcom) -- a half hour weekly
television show about a group of six
twenty-something-sometime-aftet-college New York friends. It has wit
and humor and it sparkles, partly because I'm the exact target audience
since I graduated in 1993.
The characters are distinct and people you'd like to know (unlike say
"Seinfeld", with characters I'd avoid in real life). Monica (Courteney
Cox), the obsessively organized one; her brother Ross (David
Schwimmer), the geeky Paleontologist helplessly in love with Rachel
(Jennifer Aniston), the air-head rich girl; Joey (Matt LeBlanc), the
dim-witted actor with a heart of gold, and his roommate Chandler
(Matthew Perry), the guy with the quips; finally Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow),
the weird one.
In the first season the characters establish themselves and the main
arc is Ross working himself up to ask Rachel out on a date. We also
have Ross dealing with his lesbian ex-wife and the birth of his son
Ben. There is the blackout episode wherein all the Thursday comedies
(all taking place in New York I think) experienced the blackout.
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Actors
Courteney Cox was always "that girl in the Dancing in the Dark video".
Then she did "Misfits of Science", of which I saw five of the six
episodes. And then she had the role of Lauren, Alex P Keaton's new love
interest (after his breakup with Ellen and that beautiful Billy Vera
and the Beaters song, "At This Moment") in "Family Ties". And then she
got his role and her career really took off.
DVD
Other than the episodes, the DVD is kind of light. There is a
commentary track for the pilot episode, wherein the creators talk about
the history of the show and how it came together. The fourth DVD has
four extras: an index of guest stars along with clips, a closer look at
Central Perk along with some audio commentary, a Friends quiz with
clips, and an uninteresting commercial for the Season 2 set.
Recommendations
An intensely funny series, it was great to see the episodes again in
order. I'm not sure how worthwhile it is for people who've already seen
the show, but if you like the show and haven't seen the first season,
then you must get this set. |