Blu-ray Release: Friends: The Complete Series

Blu-ray Release Date: Nov. 13, 2012
Price: Blu-ray $279.98
Studio: Warner Home Video

Still in syndication, the long-running 1990s sitcom Friends has been available as a Complete Series Collection set since 2006, but only on DVD. Diehard fans won’t care, though, jumping at the chance to enjoy the exploits of Rachel and Ross, Monica and Chandler, Phoebe’s crazy antics and Joey with… every girl, in high-definition, especially as the Blu-ray has new special features.

The TV show made household names out of Jennifer Aniston (Horrible Bosses), Courteney Cox (TV’s Cougar Town), Lisa Kudrow (Easy A), Matt LeBlanc (TV’s Episodes), Matthew Perry (TV’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip) and David Schwimmer (Nothing But the Truth) and featured a bunch of star actors during its 10-season run. Among those who were guests are Hank Azaria (Love & Other Drugs), Paul Rudd (Wanderlust), Tom Selleck (TV’s Blue Bloods), Bruce Willis (Red), Giovanni Ribisi (Middle Men), Jon Favreau (Swingers), Anna Faris (What’s Your Number?), Kathleen Turner (Romancing the Stone), Sean Penn (Fair Game), Christina Applegate (Hall Pass), Reese Witherspoon (Water For Elephants) and Hugh Laurie (TV’s House, M.D.).

The Friends: The Complete Series Blu-ray includes all 236 broadcast episodes, plus 20 hours of special features, including three hours of new extras. The box, which features a lenticular cover, contains a 32-page episode guide and a hardcover book housing the 21 Blu-ray discs.

Here’s the list of the new bonuses included in the Blu-ray set:

• “True Friends: Documentaries” retrospective interviews looking at the 10 years of the show and how it changed the cultural landscape in the 1990s and beyond
  • “Friends From the Start” about how the show was created and the challenges of finding the perfect cast
  • “When Friends Become Family” about the Writers Room and the inspiration and development of favorite moments from the show
  • “Legacy of Friends” about why the show ended, its influence on pop culture and the legacy it left behind
• Original Producer’s Cut for “The One Where Rachel Tells Ross,” showing the episode re-assembled to its original form with an introduction by Kevin Bright to explain why it edited before it aired
• Original Script for “The One Where Rachel Tells Ross”
• Friends on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno in 2005
• Friends on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2004
• “The Ones With More Friends” original extended broadcast episodes
• “The One With the Never-Before-Seen Gags” gag reel originally made for the cast and crew
• music video for The Rembrandts’ “I’ll Be There For You”

These special features also will be on the Blu-ray but have already been on the television series’ DVDs.

• “Friends Around the World” looking at the Friends phenomenon around the globe
• “On Location in London” English visit with Friends
• “The One That Goes Behind the Scenes” hour-long Discovery Channel documentary about the show
• “Behind the Style: The Look of Friends” with costume designer Debra McGuire, hair stylist Jonathan Hanousek and makeup artist Robin Siegel
• music video for The Flaming Lips’ “Phoebe Battles the Pink Robots,” featuring Kudrow and directed by Kevin Bright
• “Friends Final Thoughts” with the cast and crew reflecting on the show during their final days on set
• Uncut version of “Smelly Cat”
• music video for “Joey Joey” with LeBlanc
• commentaries for 31 episodes
• gag reels from multiple seasons

Buy or Rent Friends: The Complete Series
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