So, here is the sad truth: I had never in my life watched "Friends." It's not just that I had never watched the hit '90s TV show from start to finish, but I honestly didn't know the characters' names, the plot lines or anything about the show. The farthest I have gotten is watching "The One With The Holiday Armadillo" every year in school on that half day before winter break. I’m sure you’re shocked. That’s how everyone reacts.
When "Friends" came out on Netflix, I made my decision. With a little pressure from my boyfriend and close friends who are obsessed, I was going to watch the entire 10 seasons in order, from a clean slate. Though it was hard to avoid major plot points from the Internet, I have finally made it to Season 10. Apparently, this is a rarity, so I will share my thoughts from losing my "Friends" virginity and watching the show from the very beginning.
At first, I had a hard time believing the show. I mean, how do six best friends in their early 20s afford fully furnished, gorgeous two-bedroom apartments in the middle of Manhattan? Not to mention their occupations: a freelance masseuse, chef, actor and coffee house waitress, who could hardly afford living in one small house. Other parts of the show's plot didn’t totally match up. How did "fat girl" Monica drop all that weight out of nowhere? She never seems to work out or eat particularly healthy. How did Phoebe ever get off the streets to become a reasonably put-together human being? How did Rachel manage to become a major businesswoman with Ralph Lauren, when she couldn’t even be a waitress a year before?
I wasn’t totally convinced the first few episodes, but as time went on, things changed. I began to understand each character’s quirks and stories; I became attached to them. I spent episode after episode trying to figure out exactly which "Friends" character I identified with most. It got to the point where I had to force myself to turn off Netflix, just to write this article.
What made my experience different than anyone else's was that I was completely blind to the plot line. It was fresh and new, and I was able to react naturally to every event that took place. I cried when Monica and Richard broke up, but then I wanted to kill him when he tried to take her from Chandler. I laughed out loud at every single one of Joey’s brainless comments or Phoebe’s obscure stories. I most definitely sobbed when Chandler finally proposed and, most recently, I cried when Emma was born.
Sometimes when I would go to the gym, I would turn on Netflix and get through an episode or two. More times than I want to admit, I found myself crying on the elliptical or bursting out laughing in the middle of the gym. I found some episodes to be better than others, but overall, I found this incredible group of friends that cared for each other more than anything in the world. That's something you don’t find just anywhere. Wish me luck with Season 10; I'm sure I'll be crying during the finale.
