Product Description

Friends Are Forever on DVD! Remember forever how the #1 Comedy in America ends with this "Limited Exclusive Edition" DVD. Releasing only 5 days after the series finale airs, the broadcast version of the 2-part episode will only be available on this DVD. This DVD will also include the Series pilot and the DVD version of the finale with additional never before seen footage, along with several other bonus features.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19719 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2004-05-11
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Special Edition, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .25 pounds
• Running time: 22 minutes

Amazon.com
"Closure. That's what it is, that's what I need." So determined a drunken Rachel in the season 2 episode "The One Where Ross Finds Out." And closure is what this mega-hyped series finale gives loyal and faithful viewers who have been there for Monica, Chandler, Ross, Rachel, Phoebe, and Joey, even when Friends seemed stuck in second gear. Television's most popular and comforting comedy did go gently into that good night, packing off new parents Monica and Chandler to the suburbs to start a family; domesticating the once free-spirited Phoebe, and, yes, finally bringing star-crossed, on-again-off-again Ross and Rachel together ("I got off the plane" will take its place in series lore alongside, "We were on a break").

There were some keenly felt absences, most notably Elliott Gould and Christina Pickles as Monica and Ross's maddening parents, and very few surprises, save for one climactic Ross revelation that allowed David Schwimmer's hapless character one of the episode's best lines: "We almost made it 10 years without that coming out." Gunther professing his unrequited love for Paris-bound Rachel was a nice grace note for one of the series' most valuable players, as was the touching, sniffle-inducing ending in which each Friend turned in their key to the apartment each had shared at one time or another over the past 10 years. In the end, it was all about Ross and Rachel, but it seems we will not have ultimate closure until the inevitable reunion special, "The One with Ross and Rachel's Wedding." Until then, between reruns and home video, Friends fans need not fret. As singer Dan Hicks once said, how can we miss them when they won't go away? --Donald Liebenson

Customer Reviews

Not what I expected
I am a huge Friends fan. I pre-order all of the DVDs and I pretty much know all the episodes by heart (it's sad I know). I actually thought that the finale was perfect. Everything ended how it should, BUT I was EXTREMELY disappointed with the finale DVD. I thought that it would have the hour long segment that was aired on TV before the finale but it didn't, and that was very disappointing. I had also hoped that there would be way more special features, but to be honest with you there was absolutely nothing special about the features that were on the DVD. I was also very upset because I had hoped that they would show the cast coming out to take their final bow and they didn't. Which honestly just sucks. So all and all the Finale was great but the DVD really sucks.

An Honest Review of Friends and this DVD
I think there are two different reviews here, one for the show and one for this DVD. As far as the DVD is concerned, it is "good". It isn't great, but it is good.

The DVD does have:

1. A nice extended version.

The DVD does not have:

1. Interviews with each cast member.
2. Interviews with the writers.
3. Behind the Scenes footage.
4. Outtakes and Bloopers.
5. Alternate endings.

I think that if the DVD had these things then I would have given it a perfect 5-Star rating.

As far as the show is concerned, the ending is "okay". It is rushed. It is only 1 hour, instead of the expected (and deserved) two hours. You will not see Rachel and Ross get married, even though we deserved to see it after following the show for 10 years. There are a number of pieces missing from the ending. You literally get the sense that they put a major rush job on the ending just to get it out the door and over with. It is very sad to see the show end, but even sadder to not feel like you received the ending you deserved after 10 long years of faithful watching. I do think that, at the ever least, Rachel and Ross should have gotten married or even just a proposal in the finale but it didn't happen.

So, yes, you will want to buy the DVD if you are a fan of Friends, a collector, or just want to see what you missed. It is worth having. But you may be sad and disappointed if you expected a packed DVD with a lot of features and the ending you really wanted to see.

There are pros and cons
Cons:
Both episodes appear in season packages, and the main reason you would have to buy this DVD is because you want to watch the extended version of the finale. Besides, it's just a waste of time to watch the intro videos of the 10 seasons...like 7 minutes of the same, and the music video "I'll Be There For You" just sucks!.

Pros:
However, I own this DVD because the 10th season still hasn't been released in my country, and the extended edition of the finale has lots of really funny parts that don't appear in the broadcasted edition, and it's very funny. Plus, you can watch also the 1st Friends episode ever, which is so, so funny, I think it's one of my favorites so far (I already own 4 complete seasons).

Now, to end with this:
WHY SOULD I BUY THIS?: Because you want to see the ending and you don't own the 10th season. Because you want to watch the extended version of the finale, which has about 3 minutes with extra scenes (they're so funny). Because you want to watch the first episode, which is very good. Because you're just a collector who owns every single "Friends" item there is.

WHY SOULDN'T I BUY THIS: Because you own the 1st and 10th season. Because you don't care about the 3 extra minutes in the extended version of the finale. Because the 3 episodes it includes don't worth the money. Because it's boring to watch the intro videos and the music video.

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I really like this DVD and I gave it 4 stars because of the extended finale and the first episode. I didn't give it 5 stars because it doesn't include almost any interesting bonus features.

Now I just told you the pros and cons I could find, you make the decision. Bye.