Friends Reunion — 5 best moments and the 2 worst

Afterwards ten seasons, 17 years apart, and a significant delay due to a certain global pandemic, Friends: The Reunion is at terminal streaming on HBO Max.

The feature-length special reunites the cast of beloved sitcom Friends and fondly looks dorsum on the series through nostalgia-tinted goggles. It's been a long time in the works, just now that it's finally out we can definitively say that it was worth the wait ... for the most part.

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• Check out our HBO Max review
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While we certainly had our reservations early on, particularly after a roster of seemingly random guest stars was announced, the tear-jerking trailer won us over. The episode hits all the right notes and volition plow fifty-fifty coincidental fans of the show into a blubbering mess by the time the start few chords of the iconic theme song begin to play.

It might not be the 11th season or full movie that some fans have been demanding pretty much since the prove ended in 2004, but that's not necessarily a bad affair. The Friends Reunion was a stroll downwardly memory lane for the Fundamental Perk six and the television equivalent of a warm hug for longtime fans — something we've all needed after the hard last year.

There were plenty of parts that stood out. From the emotional initial reunion on the reconstructed set to David Schwimmer's revelation that he actually hated working with that monkey Marcel. Beneath we've picked out the very all-time moments from the Friends Reunion, besides as a couple of sequences that unfortunately didn't quite work.

Best: The introduction

(Prototype credit: HBO Max)

Nailing the opening was e'er going to be primal. After all, seeing the entire cast dorsum on our screens after more than a decade and a one-half is a momentous occasion.

The special begins with David Schwimmer walking into the Warner Bros sound phase where the bear witness was filmed and onto fully recreated sets. It's non hard to get a little misty-eyed as you sentinel him slowly wander around, picking up various set-dressing trinkets and reminisce.

One by i, Schwimmer is joined by the other cast members until all six of them are standing in the apartment set together. Jennifer Aniston even asks Matthew Perry (who is the last to arrive) "could you lot Exist anymore late?" It was a remarkably understated introduction for such an predictable boob tube event, but it felt intimate in the best mode possible.

Best: The quiz

Riffing off the classic episode from season four, The One with the Embryos, ane of the all-time segments of the Friends Reunion saw the cast partake in a boys vs girls quiz. Absolutely, the cast did play pretty fast and loose with the points scoring organization.

(Prototype credit: HBO Max)

The questions asked weren't ones that would stump a superfan, only watching Courteney Cox get extremely invested in the competition in classic Monica way was arguable the whole special'south single best moment.

The segment was likewise used to bring back Joey's identical hand twin (with a cameo from actor Thomas Lennon) which was a great throwback to one of the evidence's well-nigh ridiculous gags.

Worst: Pointless celebrity interviews

We were worried virtually the lengthy list of confirmed glory appearances prior to the reunions airing. And that was for practiced reason, it turns out.

While a couple of the A-lister cameos were well done, Lady Gaga popping up to sing Smelly True cat with Lisa Kudrow being the highlight, others felt like pointless filler. Was anyone desperate for David Beckham to reveal that he watches Friends when he feels deplorable in hotel rooms? Or that Mindy Kaling actually likes the testify's physical one-act? Or that Kit Harington's favorite moment is the legendary "pin!" scene?

These talking-head interviews took up fourth dimension that could accept been spent with the master sixsome or been dedicated to the show's large supporting cast who were often glossed over.

Best: The supporting cast cameos

Speaking of the supporting cast, the Friends Reunion featured appearances from not only the main six merely also several boosted cast members including James Michael Tyler (who portrayed Central Perk manager Gunther) and even a pre-recorded segment with Reece Witherspoon (who played Rachel's bratty sister, Jill).

The real highlight came when it was revealed that Elliott Gould and Christina Pickles, who played Ross and Monica'southward parents Jack and Judy Geller, were sat in the socially distanced audience. Both acted as sort of on-gear up parents to the cast during filming, and information technology was a real treat they were able to exist included.

The merely disappointment here was that much of the supporting bandage members who did characteristic got merely a couple of seconds to talk before vanishing never to be seen again. Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai got more screen time than Tyler (who features in all 10 seasons) which is a pretty weird pick.

(Image credit: HBO Max)

Best: The Bright, Kauffman and Crane interviews

While the half dozen main cast members are very much the face of the bear witness, its creators deserve just as much credit for crafting ane of television's almost beloved sitcoms.

Interspersed with the live interview sections (hosted by a mercifully subdued James Cordon), and the cast wandering around the rebuilt sets, were talking head clips featuring creators Marta Kauffman, Kevin Bright, and David Crane.

During these sections, we got an insight into the tricky task of casting the leads, as well as why Friends had to end when it did and the very proficient reason equally to why another season or the long-rumored full feature wouldn't quite piece of work.

The information gleaned in these sections might not be all-new, and diehard fans will likely take heard it all before, but it was appreciated that the wealth of talent behind the cameras besides got a take a chance to reflect on the series.

Best: The table read

Recreating a full episode or staging an entire scene probably would accept felt a piffling uncanny, but getting the six bandage members to perform an in-grapheme tabular array read was a stroke of genius.

(Image credit: HBO Max)

Lisa Kudrow in item seemed to effortlessly fall back into playing Phoebe, and Matt LeBlanc proved that he nonetheless has impeccable comedic timing. Information technology's a shame this function of the special wasn't significantly longer as information technology really distilled the essence of what fans wanted from this reunion episode.

If the cast e'er fancy doing some form of Friends live prove where they table read a full episode on stage, I'd pay good money to see.

Worst: The fashion show

Having a couple of famous faces parade down a catwalk in iconic outfits from the show, including Ross' Spudnik Halloween costume and Rachel's garish pink Bridesmaid clothes, seems a cute idea on paper.

Placing information technology at practically the very stop of the special was an odd conclusion, to say the to the lowest degree. This segment really killed the pacing at a crucial moment where the Friends Reunion should have been reaching an emotional crescendo.

I gauge Justin Bieber in a tater costume was sort of funny, merely the joke lost its luster by the time he'd reach even halfway up the catwalk. His awkward walk dorsum down was painful. This segment should have been shown far earlier in the episode and been trimmed to a third of the length.

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Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/news/friends-reunion-5-best-moments-and-the-2-worst

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