Casual Cogitations

When I was growing up, 70's show was the seminal sitcom that hit me. Though there was some brief overlap, Simpsons peaked almost perfectly to become Alpha Sitcom when 70's show started getting old. And then, after Simpsons reign, Friends became the last sitcom. Of course some sitcoms have come close to reaching Friends' rarified height but none have permeated so deeply into the my consciousness. And considering the sorry state of contemporary sitcoms, none may ever reach that levels again.

The premise of Friends is both well known and simple: six urban twixters—three men, three women—share the travails of early adulthood. Though the show occasionally presents absurd storylines, for the most part it sticks to exploring the more prosaic aspects of a quarter-crisis: frustrations with the searches for a suitable career and mate.

The three female lead characters are: the anal Monica Geller; the spoiled Rachel Green; and the spacey Phoebe Buffay.

The three male lead characters are: Monica's uptight brother, Ross Geller; the sarcastic Chandler Bing; and the goofy Joey Tribbiani.

One of the most popular television series of all time, Friends debuted on NBC in 1994 and ran to 2004. It also can be found in syndication just about everywhere. "Everyone can relate to the characters, whether it be to yourself or amongst your own friends". Friends found its niche throwing a group of attractive young people together in a couple of apartments in New York and providing them with endearing qualities and snappy dialogue. Everyone has a favorite "Friend" be it Ross, Rachael, Joey, Phoebe, Monica or Chandler.

The show thrived by engaging viewer first in the on/off relationship between the nerdy Ross and the worldly Rachael and later, the surprise pairing of the OCD Monica and wise acre Chandler. Womanizing dumbell Joey and airhead Phoebe served up a lot of comic fodder and provided the cohesive that held them together. Everyone almost uniformly love Friends, with the lone exception simply tired of seeing the reruns everywhere.

For as overexposed as the series has become in syndication, when you sit back and actually watch some of these episodes all the way through, one has to marvel at the comedic timing and ensemble these six actors have created. Matthew Perry and Matt LeBlanc share a comedic bond that rivals Hope and Crosby or Martin and Lewis. Jennifer Aniston has grown into an actress of impressive emotional range, especially for a sitcom. Courteney Cox has established a character that is almost unconsciously funny. Lisa Kudrow deftly delivers some of the shows best one-liners—"If we were in prison, you two would be my bitches!" David Schwimmer showcases more problems and anxieties than any three characters combined.

Sure, Friends is far from innovative, and its astronomical success prompted network executives to green light an abundance of sitcoms featuring young, hip urbanites. But its unthreatening humor and conventional drama somehow managed to captivate a nation, and only cynics and contrarians could deny the series' well-deserved acclaim.

Tell me again why we as a society spend so much time watching other people's lives instead of living our own? Social commentary aside, the writing, directing, and acting on this series is par excellence. It may have lost some steam in later seasons, but this show is the best sitcom in television history.

Go on, admit it: You like Friends.