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When “Friends’' premiered in the fall of 1994, I was in my 20s living in a city with a roommate. We were young and unattached. Just like the characters on the show. Sometimes on Thursdays, my roommate and I would grab drinks after work, but because this was an era before DVRs existed, we always made sure we got home in time to watch new episodes. The opening credits spoke to our lives: “Your job’s a joke, you’re broke, your love life’s DOA.” Yes, we thought, that’s us!
A season or two later, the initial thrill had worn off. The show’s six leads had become glamorous stars with little connection to the struggling 20-year-olds they were playing on TV, and I distinctly remember thinking: That’s not us. Not at all. It’s irrational to feel betrayed by actors whose circumstances have vastly improved beyond that of their characters, but all the same, it left me with ambivalent feelings about the show, which ultimately ran for 10 seasons. So that’s my disclaimer.