Book ~ "Friends and the Golden Age of the Sitcom" (2024) Joanna Hagan

From Goodreads ~ "Friends" ran for ten years, beginning in 1994 and airing its final episode in 2005. The show is inarguably the peak sitcom of its era. It's the most remembered, most quoted and so essential that companies have spent hundreds of millions on the streaming rights to "Friends" in recent years. But why does "Friends" mean so much to so many? What did this sitcom have that the other giant shows of that era didn’t?

This is a deep dive into the history of "Friends" but it’s also the history of ten years of network television. How did the world of sitcoms evolve through that decade? How much of a show’s success is down to small details like schedules and syndication, and how much of it is down to the content itself?

The landscape of television has changed drastically in the years since the end of "Friends", but the biggest show of sitcom’s golden age has endured like no other. This look at the history of "Friends", its legacy and the history of television in general will show you why. Both why the television industry has become what it is today, and why "Friends" has survived long beyond its decade. This is a celebration of "Friends", an interrogation of its success, and a history of television that explains much of what’s on our screens today.

I liked Friends and watched it throughout its run and still watch it occasionally. This book gives you a high level yet comprehensive review of the show. It was interesting getting the behind-the-scenes scoop on what was happening with some of the episodes. With the series, I was happy when the focus shifted from Rachel and Ross and I hated the Rachel-Joey crush/romance.

I also found it interesting to read about what was happening during Friends' run with the other networks and why some decisions about shows and programming were made. Lots of TV shows are discussed and I found myself Googling them because I'd forgotten about them, wondered why I hadn't watched some or hadn't heard of them. During Friends' original run, I was traveling for work often, taking lots of courses at night, didn't have a PVR or I guess just wasn't interested.

I found it odd there was a large focus on British viewers, their channels and shows and see the author is in England ... it at times felt like it was being directed at British readers rather than world-wide fans.