Plot: What’s it about?
By the beginning of the 1997 season, Friends was a bona fide hit. The show was now the cornerstone of the Thursday night lineup and between it and Seinfeld (which was entering it’s final season); the two made up a force that was to be reckoned with, to be sure. Though only in its early seasons, and still somewhat critically panned, Friends still continued to garner new fans worldwide and the fourth season had some of the funnier episodes that I can remember. However, the season embarked on something that led to my personal disparagement of the show. Yes, the dreaded “hooking up” of the cast members. Though it’s at the tail end of the season, this is finally when Monica (Courtney Cox-Arquette) and Chandler (Matthew Perry) were found in bed together (by us, anyway) at Ross’ wedding in England. Though the next season would deal with the repercussions of that act (or acts); it was this season that introduced it. Now you might ask, why is this such a big deal? To me, it signaled the end of the “friends” and the beginning of something else. Yes, the cast was full of multi-millionaires by now but somehow the innocence of the show seemed to be gone and it embarked on a new level of the show. While the show has continued to endure and maintain its popularity, this was the last season that I enjoyed the show as much as I did.
Though the season does start with Chandler urinating on Monica’s leg (albeit to “cure” a jellyfish sting) and ends with them in the sack, this was still a pretty good year for the show. We do still see a little more depth in the show’s characters. Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) does become a surrogate mother for her brother’s kids (all three of them( and as we see Chandler (Matthew Perry) cross the line with one of Joey’s girlfriends, he’s reminded of his friendship with Joey (Matt LeBlanc) by spending a Thanksgiving in a Box (my personal favorite episode of the season). Ross finds new life and love in Emily (Helen Baxendale) that culminates in the season-ending wedding in “Jolly ‘ol England”. Meanwhile Rachael (Jennifer Aniston) pines for a recently divorced love (Tate Donovan). While all the characters were being challenged emotionally, they still managed to entertain us week after week. It was after this season that the show would take the reigns from Seinfeld to become the number one show on television. A place that they have essentially remained atop for the last five years. As the show enters its last season, it’s sure to go out as one of the best series’ ever.
Video: How does it look?
Friends is shown in its full-frame aspect ratio, which makes perfect sense seeing as how it’s a television show. Just like the previous Volumes, these appear very clear and the level of detail is excellent. Though some episodes tend to vary in clarity, I did a comparison to the digital cable that I’m used to watching them on and the DVD is superior to even that. Some of the episodes tend to have a bit of halos to them, mainly in the panning city shots (that feature a lot of shots of the World Trade Centers), but that’s about all the fault I can find with the way these look. Fans of Friends will not be disappointed as it’s more of the same. And that’s a good thing.
Audio: How does it sound?
Again, just as in previous seasons, Friends is presented in a Dolby Digital 5.0 mix that does add a new layer of depth the audio portion of the show. While a dialog-driven comedy, the scenes do feature some fairly strong audio portions. What I notice most is the applause (filmed in front of a live studio audience) coming from the rear speakers and the guitar music for the “in between” shots does sound nice as well. I think I said the same thing about the previous version, but it’s essentially the same thing, just different episodes. While not the best audio presentation in the world, it certainly gets the job done.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The supplements for the season aren’t quite as robust as some seasons, but there is still some material for everyone. There are some selected episode commentaries on certain, and my favorite “The One with Chandler in a Box” made the cut. Most all of these are the same as the others, but Crane, Bright and Kauffman do deliver some solid commentary tracks here. Granted, the episodes are only 25 minutes in length, so there’s a lot to cover, but there’s never any dull spots and each one you listen to will be a good one (“The One with the Embroys” and “The One with Ross’ Wedding” also have commentary tracks). The rest of the supplements are found on Disc 4 and we start by watching the featurette by exploring the Friends phenomenon in other countries. Yes, it’s not just a United States thing, but the show is just as popular (and even more so) in other countries. This featurette tells and shows us the worldwide impact of this hit television show. The “Friends of Friends” guestbook is similar to that of the other seasons, in which you can highlight a celebrity guest star and be treated to a brief clip of when they appeared on the show. The same goes for “What’s Up with your Friends” feature, which you select a Friend and a series of clips from that season are shown. The best feature is the interactive Trivia Game that somewhat parallels the episode in which Joey and Chandler compete for Rachel and Monica’s apartment. All in all, another great season. The discs look and sound great and have just enough extras to coerce any person “on the line” to go ahead and buy the disc. Four down, six to go…
