The One With The Friends Reunion

Are you a hardcore Friends fan? Do you rewatch all ten seasons once a year, recite dialogue excerpts by heart, and have strong opinions when it comes to the show’s content and direction? artil editor and writer Sana Kothari definitely identifies – follow along as she shares 50 of her personal reflections on the Friends Reunion Special!

1. I cannot begin to imagine the system shocker it must be for the characters and cast alike: from every moment with your best friends for ten years then not being together again for almost two decades!

2. That Purple Door — iconic, right? Ending the final episode all those years ago and then beginning the reunion with that scene was essential. It felt so welcoming, so familiar — like it was just picking up where it left off.

3. Lisa Kudrow IS a grown-up Phoebe. The voice, the laugh, everything.

4. It’s interesting that none of the cast remembers the beam being a part of the set — all I can remember is baby Ben’s “Monka bang” moment!

5. "Where’s the tissue box?" is right, Rachel. Those aren’t tears, I just chopped an onion.

6. For me, the sets are a stand-out feature of the entire production. They have so many details, so much history. Although, I have to agree with Matt Le Blanc; “Does it seem smaller to anyone else?”

7. It's bittersweet that the cast doesn't remember the series like I do. I can’t help but wish they recalled the scenes that really did brighten up and shape my formative years.

8. The whole audience wearing masks is still messing with my head.

9. It’s wonderfully nostalgic that the interview is hosted in front of the original theme song fountain, but James Cordon’s turning the magic fountain off with a big red button is a little cringe-worthy. I side with Matthew Perry’s sarcastic “Had we known all those years ago...”.

10. I can’t even wrap my head around 100 billion views.

11. Friends is a rarity in how well they coordinated a true ensemble cast. For me, it’s impossible to pinpoint a “main” character. I loved each of them — their roles, their storylines, their arcs — differently. This seems to be a reason why people can never choose if they’re a little bit Joey with a touch of Monica or more Chandler with a sprinkle of Phoebe. They each have such relatable traits and experiences (both good and bad) that we all imagine ourselves in their shoes.

12. I love watching the cast rediscover the set. Seeing Matthew Perry and Matt Le Blanc sitting on the barcaloungers in their fifties and still exclaiming “Oh...OH!” seems like Joey and Chandler never left them. Their execution is what turned such simple script and props into one of the most memorable symbols of their relationship.

13. Hearing Jennifer Anniston refer to David Schwimmer as “Schwimmer” was almost unnerving — I can only imagine her calling him Ross!

14. "EIGHTEEN PAGES FRONT AND BACK!", does anyone else have flashbacks of a bald Christine Taylor?

15. "A-two-four-six…four-seven...five-seven...six-seven...SEVEN-SEVEN-SEVEN-SEVEN-SEVEN" — if you know you know.

16. "How you doin’?’” — need I go on?

17. Watching them table read lines is simultaneously sweet and cringe-inducing. They all look and feel like our parents rather than our friends now so it's all the more adorable to hear about them pranking each other.

18. There's been so much controversy about casting and diversity in this show. In my opinion, although the six characters, actors, and their chemistry was phenomenal; it could have been just as amazing with a more diverse cast.

19. “Twin Ursula” was the original character description?! Phoebe was based on Ursula and not the other way around?! I’m shook.

20. Young Matt Le Blanc was such a classic teen magazine heartthrob. I can completely imagine young American girls cutting his face out of a magazine and sticking it on their walls.

21. I can’t imagine the bug incident being choreographed but with Lisa’s screaming and Matthew’s sarcasm it just fit so perfectly.

22. Courtney has such stunning eyes.

23. LAX 2194 could have honestly been idiosyncratically cool, but I think Matthew Perry's comedic delivery would be wasted in any other role. He has such a knack of twisting even the most straightforward lines in Friends into hilarity.

24. What they say about Rachel is so true. She could have been so unlikeable, but the fact that most people sided with her against Ross, followed her character arc, loved her ambition and grit, got her haircut and even followed her fashion sense … It was all Aniston.

25. Nobody really knows what [Chandler] does for a living?” *In a Chandler voice* Oh, that is so not true! As a superfan, I still remember that Chandler did Statistical Analysis and Data Reconfiguration from the episode about him moving to Tulsa!

26. Honestly, going from practically unknown to famous worldwide is something I don't think anyone else could have understood. The fact that they became more tight knit rather than competitive because of the fame is so sweet. Fun fact: David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston initially took a pay cut to negotiate salaries jointly with the rest of the cast; I think this stands dually as a testament to the shows success and a confirmation of their bond as a team. Also, I personally watched it in Dutch growing up and can confirm it was a worldwide success.

27. I love these stories. It's one of those shows that I watch whenever I need a laugh or want to feel inspired. Monica and Chandler's engagement speech, which set my expectations for love, was one of the few moments on TV that brought me to tears.

28. Hot Take: Ross and Monica's dance should be a TikTok dance trend.

29. MR AND MRS GELLER! So sweet yet so strange. I truly didn’t realize how many innuendos were snuck in through their characters until I rewatched the show growing up! I love how protective they were toward the cast.

30. I love the diversity of the people that are obsessed with this show. The fact that everyone from BTS to David Beckham to Malala have been obsessed with it is just a testament to its popularity and relatability.

31. The concept of a “bottle show” — an episode that restricts production, sets, and cast to just the fundamentals to save money — is so interesting and smart! I love how much comedy can fit into just one room of interaction.

32. These tapings look like a rave! I love how much they pushed jokes, dialogue and storylines according to the live audience.

33. The audience’s continuing cheer in response to Monica and Chandler sleeping together had me in bits! The EPs made a great decision when they pushed this storyline. It turned into such a beautiful arc that included such meaningful plots like overcoming commitment issues, reconciling parental estrangement and infertility.

34. Side note: my cousins and I once made our grandmother (who barely speaks English) learn the entire Smelly Cat song. She still sings it on the regular.

35. I can’t relate enough when Lady Gaga called Phoebe the “different” one. Seeing her weirdness definitely enabled me to express my creativity and will to be my weirdest myself.

36. Their comedic timing and physical comedy are perfect. The fact that Ross and Chandler turned a simple script of two lines (“Pivot!”, and “Shut Up”) into a pop culture reference speaks to that.

37. I had goosebumps when Maggie Wheeler came in — she looks exactly the same! Her nasal voice and laugh were so iconic I had no idea that it was just her character.

38. Gunther is unrecognizable without the platinum blond hair!

39. No way! “Ross and Rachel” was a thing in real life?! They “channeled their adoration and love for each other" into their characters? That’s too wholesome for words. This scene and table read are just so raw and real, and knowing that this kiss was the culmination of their crush is beautiful. The backstage footage of them crushing on each other is so sweet and awkward!

40. I’m still on team “not on a break." Rachel was right, who sleeps with someone right after breaking up with the love of their lives?

41. The guest star cast of this show was something else. I felt the embarrassment of the Spudnik/Sean Penn story in my gut

42. That iconic Friends costume fashion show, seeing Cara Delevigne in the Holiday Armadillo and Justin Bieber in Sputnik, is something I never knew I needed but have always secretly wanted. Still extremely cringe-worthy though.

43. The "natural end” to the show makes so much sense knowing the show’s original elevator pitch of “the time in your life where your friends are your family”. I feel like knowing they got their happy endings is exactly what the viewers needed.

44. I’m so glad Ross and Rachel got together in the end. It ended the show so beautifully. "I got off the plane" was a love-language reset.

45. As I watched the original show for the first time I remember loving that the last line was “Where?” It's just so abrupt, funny, and in the comedic style of the rest of the show that it was the perfect ending.

46. Watching them in the hallway, taking their final bow in front of a standing ovation, has me cutting onions again.

47. Matt is Joey; Joey is Matt. They are one, they are the same. You’re telling me anyone but Joey could write the message “I shit here” on the scenery flats and giggle at "playing with bones”?

48. Their descriptions of what they would be doing are exactly what I imagined of their characters.

49. The orchestral rendition of the theme song is going straight into my happy cry playlist.

50. The huddle! I love that this is how they started each episode back in the day and ended this last one almost twenty years later.

Final Thoughts

This show has been and always will be iconic. It is a benchmark for an ensemble cast with six main characters. It will always be a standard for love and relationships within series, for relatable storylines laced with experiences that touched each and every one of its viewers. This reunion was an extension of that. I don’t think its objective was to provide closure - the final season of the show did that wonderfully. What it did provide, however, was a sense of comfort, nostalgia, and companionship where, worldwide, those things are tough to find. It did what the show has done all along — it brought us closer to each other.