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Thread: Sorry, Friends...I'll always love you, but you're dated.

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    Prehistoric Bitchslapper Sarahfeena's avatar
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    Default Sorry, Friends...I'll always love you, but you're dated.

    I watched a few episodes in reruns recently, and was surprised how dated it seems. Of course, the clothes are part of it, but I can't put my finger on why it seems worse than other shows of it's era (like Seinfeld). Maybe because it lent so many catch phrases to the 90s parlance? Not sure, but it's like stepping in a time machine.

    Chandler, could you BE any more annoying?
    Last edited by Sarahfeena; 07 May 2012 at 05:49 PM.

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    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    There more now you are, the more then you'll be.


    (As a counterpoint, I couldn't stand it when it first aired, and now I can watch it, at least its early-middle episodes, partially I think because it's a time capsule.)

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    The Queen Zuul's avatar
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    I'm pretty sure I watched entire seasons of that show. I know when I was in college and rooming with my cousin I watched it, because she was obsessed with the show and desperately wanted Ross and Rachel to get together.

    And yet aside from the characters' names and a few small things like the song "Smelly Cat", I can't remember any specifics. It's just this vague "hey, that was on during my teens/young adulthood" awareness.
    So now they are just dirt-covered English people in fur pelts with credit cards.

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    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    By the way Seinfeld always seemed dated to me, even when it was first on.

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    Oliphaunt Rube E. Tewesday's avatar
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    My wife and I used to watch Friends over and over, especially when we were in Nunavut. It was like having our own bunch of friends to hang out with. We could quote every line of every episode.

    Then, the last couple of seasons were horrible, and between one thing and another, we never watch it now. I don't know if it seems dated, or if we just finally were satisfied, but it doesn't seem particularly tempting anymore.

    Instead, my wife, the kid and I watch The Big Bang Theory over and over.

    Is that progress?

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    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    No, it is not.

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    Elen síla lumenn' omentielvo What Exit?'s avatar
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    Quote Originally posted by Rube E. Tewesday View post
    My wife and I used to watch Friends over and over, especially when we were in Nunavut. It was like having our own bunch of friends to hang out with. We could quote every line of every episode.

    Then, the last couple of seasons were horrible, and between one thing and another, we never watch it now. I don't know if it seems dated, or if we just finally were satisfied, but it doesn't seem particularly tempting anymore.

    Instead, my wife, the kid and I watch The Big Bang Theory over and over.

    Is that progress?
    Love The Big Bang Theory, never ever liked Friends though. I am tough on sitcoms though. I know BBT is not a truly great sitcom but the humor works so well for me that I love it anyway. Friends was just fairly mindless to me like most sitcoms. I never liked it.

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    The Queen Zuul's avatar
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    I love BBT, but I kind of view it as a live action cartoon. I don't expect much of it other than making me laugh and it tends to do that pretty well. I suspect that in a few years my memory of it will be as fuzzy as my memory of Friends, though.
    So now they are just dirt-covered English people in fur pelts with credit cards.

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    Elen síla lumenn' omentielvo What Exit?'s avatar
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    Quote Originally posted by Zuul View post
    I love BBT, but I kind of view it as a live action cartoon. I don't expect much of it other than making me laugh and it tends to do that pretty well. I suspect that in a few years my memory of it will be as fuzzy as my memory of Friends, though.
    That is a good summary but the geekery and science wins a lot of points with me. Rare to get those in a cartoon.

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    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    BBT makes me want to shoot the television.

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    The Queen Zuul's avatar
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    Quote Originally posted by What Exit? View post
    Rare to get those in a cartoon.
    Have you ever watched Futurama?

    ETA: The Futurama Theorem.
    So now they are just dirt-covered English people in fur pelts with credit cards.

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    Member Elendil's Heir's avatar
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    I watched both Friends and Frasier religiously when they were on, Seinfeld not quite as much, but enjoyed them all. Of the three, Seinfeld seems the most dated now, but I've seen each now and then over the past few years, and still like 'em. I watch BBT but don't like it nearly as much as any of those three.

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    Prehistoric Bitchslapper Sarahfeena's avatar
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    Friends definitely fell apart the last few seasons, what with Rachel's baby and Chandler and Monica getting together. I get that once the characters are in their early 30s, they need to move on from what they were doing in their early 20s, but it wasn't good for the show. They should have taken half a season for everyone to have a reason to move on (getting married, moving to LA, whatever...) and had one last episode where they all move out of their apartments, and it's over. No major life changes that have to be dealt with on the show. I think that would have worked much better.

    I like BBT a lot...I don't think as a show it's the quality of Friends or Seinfeld, but it's fun, and Jim Parsons truly is hilarious.

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    Administrator CatInASuit's avatar
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    It's always wierd going back and watching old long running shows. The equivalent in the UK would be re-watching Only Fools and Horses, which has been on forever. UI usually find that if the script is good enough, it doesn't matter what era you are watching, but if half the script is based off the, then current time, then it always begins to lose emphasis over time.

    Shows like Cheers and M.A.S.H are still great. Friends, not so.
    In the land of the blind, the one-arm man is king.

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    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    Only Fools And Horses holds up better than most shows of its era despite some questionable dialogue. I have started watching M.A.S.H and it probably varies the most in quality of any show that I've ever chosen to watch regularly. At its best it was better than any other sit-com past or present but it has plenty of C or D grade episodes.

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    Elen síla lumenn' omentielvo What Exit?'s avatar
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    Quote Originally posted by Zuul View post
    Quote Originally posted by What Exit? View post
    Rare to get those in a cartoon.
    Have you ever watched Futurama?

    ETA: The Futurama Theorem.
    Absoluty, I like Futurama better than any other cartoon save classic Bugs Bunny and maybe Animaniacs.


    As to some sitcoms hold up and others don't. MASH does pretty well as does All in the Family. Dick Van Dyke show (which is older then me) is the only old quality sitcom that really holds up but Get Smart is still funny in it's over the top parody and the old Burns and Allen show impresses me. Even Lucy & the Honeymooners are pretty tired though I was never a big fan of the Honeymooners.

    Guilty pleasure, in small doses Hogan's Heroes still works for me. Adams family, Bewitched & the Nanny and the Professor too.

    That Girl, McKales Navy, all the other 50s & 60s family sitcom, Andy Taylor & etc are terrible.

    From the 70s are some of the best ever.
    Barney Miller
    WKRP
    Taxi
    Even Soap
    Surprisingly the Mary Tyler Moore show is still pretty good, especially the early years when Rhoda was on and Mary was still really pretty.

    Early Cheers is good but later Cheers not so much.
    I would like to see if Night Court held up.

    Seinfeld does little for me now and same with RoseAnn

    I really love Scrubs & Community and love the fact neither follow sitcom standards.

  17. #17
    Oliphaunt
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    I adore Community, but I do wonder how it will look a decade down the line.

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    Oliphaunt Rube E. Tewesday's avatar
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    I keep hearing Community is good, but I can't watch it. Its jackass fans like those on the AV Club just turn me off too much.

  19. #19
    Oliphaunt
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    Asshole fans on the internet ruin everything.

  20. #20
    Oliphaunt Rube E. Tewesday's avatar
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    Oh, by the way, did anyone else see the title of this thread and think Sarah was dumping us?

  21. #21
    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    Yep Rube. That's why I opened the thread. Then for a second I thought it was about all the things people liked but are dated.

  22. #22
    The Queen Zuul's avatar
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    Quote Originally posted by Rube E. Tewesday View post
    Oh, by the way, did anyone else see the title of this thread and think Sarah was dumping us?
    My heart stopped for a second and I thought, "Sarah! No! "
    So now they are just dirt-covered English people in fur pelts with credit cards.

  23. #23
    Elen síla lumenn' omentielvo What Exit?'s avatar
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    Quote Originally posted by Rube E. Tewesday View post
    I keep hearing Community is good, but I can't watch it. Its jackass fans like those on the AV Club just turn me off too much.
    The only forums I read at this point is here and the Dope. I have barely even seen Giraffe for a long time. So that is never an issue for me I guess. But Community is a niche show, has a small little fanatical following like Arrested Development had but I find Community really funny at times and Arrested Development just made me cringe for some reason. Also one oddity, I started watching Chuck the year it went on and it came really close to cancellation like Community but a fan campaign save it. Then it came close to being axed again and SUBWAY stepped in and directly sponsored it. Well when Community came back from hiatus guess who stepped in to directly sponsor the show. Apparently SUBWAY is willing to save the shows I watch with my kids that need saving. Cool!

    Quote Originally posted by Rube E. Tewesday View post
    Oh, by the way, did anyone else see the title of this thread and think Sarah was dumping us?
    Me too.

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