In Western culture, almost every decade since the birth of television has its own characteristic series, which encapsulates the perception and values of life in a given period of time. If we talk about the nineties of the last century, when foreign television products became available on our screens as well, for many they will be “soap operas” with an insight into the peripeties of the rich and mighty life. Today’s thirties experience was certainly helped by the rich offer of situation comedies or “sitcoms”, many of which have already sunk into childhood memories today. However, “Friends” is an exception, which has become a cult series of our time from the cult series of that time, and the long-awaited reunion series of the actors of the series has just had its premiere. What is behind this television phenomenon?
Today, we are trying to convince us that the format of the series became really important at the beginning of the 21st century, when screen legends such as The Soprano Family and The Wire were born. Indeed, these series marked a new turning point in the history of television at the time, as their excellent quality and message could not only be safely measured in cinema, but also surpassed, proving that the series is not just family entertainment in the evening, but a serious, fundamental value. an embodied work of art.
However, if we return to the well-known notion, then in the previous decades, from time to time, serials appeared that sought to change our notions. “Friends” is an interesting phenomenon in this respect, which, on the one hand, is an extremely typical American television product of the 90s, but, on the other hand, was able to talk about current phenomena and offer a new, fresh view of a young person’s life. . Today, Friends, whose last series aired in 2004, is once again at the top of the most-watched series, with many children in their 90s giving in to nostalgia and children of our time getting to know it for the first time thanks to the Netflix and HBO streaming platforms. Max ”.
In 1994, when the first season of “Friends” began, no one could have predicted that it would leave the screens only a decade and the same season later (236 series were made in total). At the time, it was just another “sitcom” of young people, it was true that nominating a company of friends instead of a traditional American family was not a common thing (nowadays it is already a cliché), and basically only the Seinfield series, which has been on the air since 1989. seasons) represented a similar concept, the court emphasizing absurd humor rather than friendship. NBC wanted to create something relevant for young townspeople and beat Seinfield’s success (also produced by NBC).
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