Friends: The Complete Tenth Season

Warner | 467 minutes | 2003-2004 | Not Rated | Standard DVD reviewed by: Matt Brighton

“Friends” was undoubtedly one of the biggest TV shows to ever air and now that it’s all said and done, it will likely go down in history as one of the more popular television shows of all-time. Love it or hate it, that fact is pretty hard to dispute. I wasn’t really a fan of the show until about 1999, when Warner Home Video came out with two DVD’s of “The Best of Friends”. I reviewed them and found that I really enjoyed the show. This was back when “TV on DVD” wasn’t the craze that it was today. Since then I’ve seen just about every single episode at least a few times and it never ceases to get a few chuckles out of me. This tenth season represents the final season of the show. Some think that it overstayed its welcome by a few years, but it went out like it came in – with a bang. Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) and Ross (David Schwimmer), Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Monica (Courtney Cox-Arquette) and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) and Joey (Matt LeBlanc); we know their names but it didn’t really seem like “Friends” anymore.

This last season was very distant from the first few seasons. Yes, they still hung out at Central Perk, but the focus shifted to more real-life issues like Chandler and Monica finding a surrogate mother for their child. Joey and Rachel possibly realize their feelings for each other. Rachel and Ross’ child was in the mix as well. Bear in mind that these people were in their mid to late 20’s when the show started and now they’re approaching 40, so I suppose that there are only so many dates you can go on and jobs you can hop before you finally have to settle down. Right? The finale was pretty emotional, though I felt it was just setting the stage for the show’s spin-off “Joey”. That has proven not to be the equivalent of “Friends” showing that it was all six of them that made the show, not just Matt LeBlanc. As I said before, like it or hate it “Friends” will likely go down as one of the more popular television shows of all-time and now every episode is available on DVD.

”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 seasons, 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 the extent of the fault I can find with the way these look. Fans of “Friends” will not be disappointed as it's more of the same.

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 dialogue-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.

Much like the previous seasons of the show, this Tenth season features commentaries on three of the episodes. "The One with the Late Thanksgiving", "the One where the stripper cries" and of course "The Last One (Parts I and II)". Kauffman, Bright and Crane have done this routine many times before and their tracks flow - unlike some commentary tracks. Much like the show, these three seem to know each other so well and its conveyed in their track. The track for "The Last One" is, understandably, a bit moving as you can tell their show is finally ending. These are very informative tracks and a recommended listen as well. "Friends of Friends IV" is the continuing series in which the guest stars of the show are features. This season it focuses on Paul Ruud, Christina Applegate and Aisha Tyler. There's a music video, "Joey Joey" directed by Kevin S. Bright. Something that is pretty funny is the extensive gag reel with new footage from the first five seasons and the tenth season as well. This runs around 45 minutes and is pretty funny. Lastly there are the "Friends Final Thoughts" which is interviews with the cast and producers of the show during the final days. They reflect on the show, the good times and the impending end. Fans of "Friends" will want to pick this up. The show is now entirely available on DVD, so there's no reason not to pick up at least one season.