Honestly, who hasn't seen an episode of Friends? This is one of those rare shows where everyone at least knows the characters and a bit about the show. It's so popular that NBC cringes at the thought of a "Friend-less" schedule.
With Ross' name-swapping at the alter, his marriage to Emily is in question. Monica and Chandler decide to forego their "Only in London" rule, and start seeing each other officially, just in secret. And Phoebe gets rid of some extra weight when the triplets are born.
Video
Friends is broadcast in 4:3, and appears the same way on these DVDs. The colors in the picture are nice and bright, and the blacks are good, but there's something a little off with it. There's grain in quite a few scenes, and the picture looks a bit soft, and contains some minor edge enhancement. There aren't any chapters for the episodes.
Audio
Like the previous sets, this one contains a Dolby Digital 5.0 track. While the track is really good, a sitcom doesn't really push the audio envelope when it comes to sound design. Yes, the audio is clear, but there rear speakers aren't used much at all; it's a dialog driven show. The missing .1 isn't missed at all; I don't know what bass would do for the show. The show is subtitled in English, French and Spanish.
Commentary on Selected Episodes
Executive Producers Kevin S. Bright, Marta Kauffman and David Crane provide commentary on "The One Hundredth," "" and "The One Where Everybody Finds Out." Each commentary track is great! These three were great participants on the track, providing a lot of information on each episode.
Cast & Crew (1 screen)
Just a single screen with the names of the actors and the characters they play, and also a list of the executive producers.
Gunther Spills the Beans (1:35)
Gunther gives us a quick rundown of the sixth season.
The One That Goes Behind the Scenes (42:26)
This is a great documentary that examines everything to do with shooting an episode. We're walked through the preproduction meetings with the writers and the rest of the crew, set dressing, lighting, cameras, rehersals, audience participation, taping, editing, foley, music and the final mix. If you've ever wondered how a sitcom gets done, this will answer almost all your questions.
Friends: On Location in London (2:15)
Quick interviews with the cast in London, including lots of the British guest stars.
Summary
This is another solid Friends DVD release. The packaging still contains a synopsis of the episode, original air date, and director. If you're not sure which episode you want to watch, they've even provided a short (0:25-0:45) snippet for you to watch. The highlight of the set is the wonderful documentary created for the Discovery Channel. It's nice to see that these sets are consistently good. Other studios should use this as a template for sitcom releases.
