Friends: The Complete Series 4K Ultra HD Review

THE MOVIE — 4/5

When it aired in September of 1994, “Friends” was a ratings success and eventually became the headline of NBC’s “Must See TV” airing after “Mad About You” (and later in its first season after “Seinfeld”). From Season 2 ‘till Season 10 it continued to be a top 10 rated series opening up “MST” leading the network to some of the highest ratings ever.

Beyond the series’ wild success in the ratings, it also was a cultural phenomenon with numerous catchphrases, led to new fashion designs and, for millions of women at beauty parlors, request the ‘Rachel’ haircut. Culturally “Friends” stood above the rest and even today still stands as one of the best sitcoms to air and one of the last in the classic format to succeed (today it’s an almost outdated concept left that only lives on CBS).

One of the reasons I enjoyed “Friends”, mainly through memory lane as I wasn’t an avid watcher in my teen years when it aired, is the characters are likeable and incredibly funny and the stories, throughout the 10 seasons, remained mostly hilarious. The biggest downside is the on again, off again Ross/Rachel (DAVID SCHWIMMER/JENNIFER ANISTON) relationship which got on the annoying side, although I do appreciate the writers didn’t drag out their initial romance hanging for several seasons (a la Niles/Daphne on “Frasier”), instead starting it in the middle of season two. That being said, as the creators mentioned in one of the featurettes, getting them together too soon wasn’t the best idea as it took away the sexual tension.

Beyond the Ross/Rachel relationship (which I recall everyone talking about in school), the others get their due: Monica (COURTNEY COX), after numerous failed romances finds a few suitors (including guest appearances by Tom Selleck); Phoebe (LISA KUDROW) has her holistic/free lifestyle; and Joey (MATT LEBLANC) and Chandler (MATTHEW PERRY) were in a bromance before it was a popular phrase…

Above the stories and the jokes that hit the mark 80% of the time – and even with some which tends to date the series – “Friends” succeeded for 10 seasons because of the chemistry the cast shared. Yes, the back and forth between Ross and Rachel went too far and there was the occasional repetition with the others, but through it all I was still able to laugh. There are shows on today that have attempted, and with some success, to replicate the sitcom’s dynamic (the closest is “The Big Bang Theory”), but nothing will come close to “Friends”, a cultural phenomenon before the Internet was huge, though I do acknowledge the latter years did benefit.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 4/5

Season 1 (1.5/5)
Episode Commentary by Executive Producers Kevin S. Bright, Maria Kauffman and David Crane on ‘The Pilot’ (or ‘The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate’)

Friends of Friends (8:33) cover the various guest stars that appeared throughout the first season from Hank Azaria to George Clooney to Fisher Stevens. Nothing particularly interesting as it’s just clips of the guest stars (in full frame mode).

The One with the Trailer of Season 2 (1:17) is just that, a preview for the second season DVD release. Much to fans schagrine, the announcer also mentions the “never before seen” footage which, well, isn’t included in this set.

Season 2 (1.0/5)
Friends of Friends (11:12) features more of the cameo appearances from season two.

What’s Up With Your Friends? (7:50) are a set of clips from the show with each of the main characters. So yeah, it’s pretty pointless.

Smelly Cat Video (1:49)

Season 3 (1.75/5)
Episode Commentaries by Bright, Kauffman and Crane on ‘The One Where No One’s Ready’, ‘The One with the Football’ and ‘The One the Morning After’

Friends of Friends (10:44) and What’s Up with Your Friends? (8:11) are the only other features for this season.

Season 4 (2.25/5)
Episode Commentaries from Bright, Kauffman and Crane on ‘The One with the Embryos’ and ‘The One with Ross’s Wedding’

“Friends” Around the World (7:36) explores the popularity of the show in different countries and for Japan, features those who do the dubbing for the episodes. It’s a short featurette but quite fascinating to watch.

And, a staple on any season, there’s more Friends of Friends (8:10) and What’s Up With Your Friends? (9:08).

Season 5 (3.5/5)
Episode Commentaries featuring Bright, Kauffman and Crane on ‘The One Hundredth’, ‘The One with All the Thanksgivings’ and ‘The One Where Everybody Finds Out’

Under Behind the Scenes are two featurettes: The One That Goes Behind the Scenes (42:29) and “Friends”: On Location in London (2:16), the former offers far more information on the series than previously available (in this set anyway), especially the BTS featurette which is well done.

Gunther Spills the Beans (1:31) has the actor giving a preview of what may happen in season six.

Season 6 (1.75/5)
Episode Commentaries once again features Bright, Kauffman and Crane on ‘The One Where Ross Got High’, ‘The One That Could Have Been’ and ‘The One with the Proposal’

Also included is more Friends of Friends (12:31) this time with some interview footage; a Gag Reel (9:37) with on stage antics and flubbed lines and Gunther Spills the Beans (1:26)… again.

Season 7 (2.25/5)
Episode Commentaries – Bright, Kauffman and Crane provide insights on ‘The One with the Holiday Armadillo’, ‘The One with Joey’s New Brain’ and ‘The One with Monica and Chandler’s Wedding’

The season also has another round of Friends of Friends (19:49), a Gag Reel (9:26) and Gunther Spills the Beans (2:11).

The Ones with More Friends: The Original Broadcast ‘Super-Sized’ Episodes has the extended episodes of ‘The One Where Rosita Dies’, ‘The One Where They Turn Thirty’, ‘The One with Joey’s New Brain’ and ‘The One with the Truth About London’. It’s nice to have them all here, though they are in SD and 1.33 full frame aspect ratio.

Season 8 (1.5/5)
Episode Commentaries – Bright, Kauffman and Crane commentate on ‘The One Where Rachel Tells Ross’, ‘The One with the Videotape’ and ‘The One Where Rachel Has a Baby’

Friends of Friends (19:40), a Gag Reel (8:37) and Gunther Spills the Beans (2:00) has also been included.

Season 9 (2.0/5)
Episode Commentaries – Bright, Kauffman and Crane chat about ‘The One with the Male Nanny’, ‘The One with Rachel’s Other Sister’ and ‘The One in Barbados’

Behind the Style: The Look of “Friends” (20:09) – The costume designer, hair stylist and makeup artist offer an inside look at the show’s fashion over the years.

The Gag Reel (6:40), Phoebe Battles the Pink Robots (2:08) Music Video and Gunther Spills the Beans (3:00) yet again.

Season 10 (2.5/5)
Episode Commentaries one final time with Bright, Kauffman and Crane on ‘The One with the Late Thanksgiving’, ‘The One Where the Stripper Cries’ and ‘The Last One’

Also included is the Friends of Friends (17:04), Joey Joey Music Video (2:37), “Friends” Final Thoughts (25:30) and Gag Reels for seasons 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10.

Bonus Disc
True Friends Documentaries includes the following: Friends from the Start (27:50), When Friends Become Family (29:20) and The Legacy of “Friends” (10:46). Each one of these takes a look back at the series – from concept to casting – from the perspective of creators/executive producers Maria Kauffman, David Crane and Kevin Bright amongst others who worked on the show (including some of the minor characters). Basically, in between the reminiscing and chatting, there’s footage as well. You do learn a bit about the series though nothing outstanding or noteworthy. However, fans probably will get something out of them.

The Original Producers’ Cut for ‘The One Where Rachel Tells Ross’ (22:49) includes an intro by Bright explaining this lost episode which was reworked due to 9/11 and involved a joke about a bomb.

The Original Script for ‘The One Where Rachel Tells Ross’ – If the episode wasn’t enough, you can read the script with side notes and provide insight into the process of filming an episode.

The rest of the disc includes the Music Video (3:09) for “I’ll Be There For You”, Friends Visit “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (16:08), Friends on “The Tonight Show” (22:01) and a never-before seen Gag Reel (7:01).

VIDEO – 4½/5

Each episode is presented in the original 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and given a 2160p high-definition transfer. The picture quality here, while not perfect, still looks quite good with bright colors and decent detail throughout. This does look like a show shot and aired in the 1990s but even so, I thought this still is a good upgrade over the Blu-ray and especially the DVD.

AUDIO – 4¼/5

Alongside the video transfer, the audio also received a noticeable upgrade. While the 2012 Blu-ray series set only had a Dolby Digital 2.0 track, this set comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. Of course, this being a strict sitcom, you’re not going to get incredible depth, still dialogue comes across primarily the center channel with good depth and the rear speakers are mostly utilized for the music and score.

OVERALL — 3¾/5

Friends was a cultural and iconic show which has yet to be outdone. Its success was thanks in most part due to the cast which worked so well together and shared amazing chemistry throughout the 10 year run. While some of the stories or jokes didn’t quite hit the mark (I wasn’t a fan of the clip shows) and the Ross/Rachel relationship went off and on numerous times, it still was very funny.