Tag Archives: Friends

10 TV Couples That Are My Relationship Goals

Posted in Choice Picks, TV by

There are many relationships on TV but only few are chosen… by me to someday emulate.  Many are fraught with drama and while those are fun to watch, I hope to someday have one that is more like the following:

10.  Monica and Chandler (Friends) – These two were my first OTP (internet speak for “One True Pairing”).  Shmoss and Shmachel, I only cared about Monica and Chanandler Bong.  I like that his amount of dorky is the perfect match to her amount of crazy.

monica and chandler

9.  Bob and Linda Belcher (Bob’s Burgers) – The Belchers are not only a relationship goal but a family goal.  Someday I hope to raise a similar band of weirdos.  Bob and Linda stick together and accept each other’s eccentricities amidst all the chaos.

http://olliepestos.tumblr.com/post/127119616890

8.  Jim Halpert and Pam Beasley (The Office) – Speaking of chaos, in a different bunch of weirdos, these two found each other.  They might have had a few (infuriating) bumps along the way to find each other but they did it.  I always loved that their relationship felt real.  They initially bonded over shared jokes and stayed together through hard work. Continue reading →

Sweet Streams: Friends

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by

friends-milkshakes-netflixHave you heard of this quaint little show?  It’s kind of under the radar, but I really think you should give it a shot.

Friends is the first show I remember actively watching. I’d tune in every week or, if that wasn’t possible, get my neighbor to record that week’s episode on an old VHS tape.  If you have ever read this blog or know me at all, then you know that this was the beginning of a beautiful friendship between TV and myself.  And as they say, you always remember your first.

Like I’m sure a lot of you, I have been taking advantage of Netflix’s recent addition of the show’s 10 seasons to binge my old fav and it really is like hanging out with an old friend. But only if that friend ended up being a lot more dirty than you remember them being, to the point of calling your mom and asking why she let you hang out with said friend, to which your mother may respond that you didn’t understand any of their dirty jokes anyway. However, I’m fairly certain it is this humor (that went over 8-year old Ellen’s head) that is causing me to enjoy it more this time around because I get the jokes!  And these friends are some dirty birdies!  Am I the only person who didn’t realize how much this show was about sex?  Why did I love it so much if I didn’t understand what was going on?  How I’d love to remember what I thought they were talking about when discussing things like erogenous zones.

Besides the flip phones, Rachel haircuts, and clothes that I tried to mimic in middle school, this show totally holds up.  Perhaps I am enjoying it more now because I am the same age as the gang circa season 3.  Give me a moment.  I have to stop and let that sink in, I mean, Ross had already been married.  Just the first marriage, but still.  Or maybe I am just enjoying the nostalgia factor, but either way I’m finding it very enjoyable.

So let Friends be there for you, like it’s been there before.

– Ellen

Get With the Program: Marry Me

Posted in Get with the Program by

marry-me-nbc-hed-2014During Fall Premiere season, sometime you have to step back and objectively evaluate each show based on their respective merits. I said sometimes you have to do that. I can’t. Tried, but can’t.

Which brings me to NBC’s new sitcom Marry Me. Now, my approval of this show was pretty much written in the stars. Firstly, it’s produced by David Caspe (if reading that name does not make you observe a moment of silence for our funny, fallen friend Happy Endings, there is a good chance you are a monster, or possibly have a life). Then there is the dazzling combined on-screen talents of Casey Wilson and Ken Marino, easily two of television’s funniest staples. Wilson and Marino play a couple in a long-term, quasi-committed relationship that gets turned on it’s head when Jake (Marino) proposes. I know, not exactly high concept, but some of the best sitcoms of all time have been based on even less (Cheers, Friends, Scrubs).

The supporting cast is none too shabby either, Tim Meadows, John Gemberling, and Sarah Wright being the most notable. marry-me-hed-01-2014One of the really impressive things about Marry Me is how it tricked us into thinking we’re watching a show about two attractive leads with occasional appearances from a supportive role, when really this is an ensemble. There are a lot of great characters here, and I have a feeling they are going to get the screen time they deserve. Assuming that this show doesn’t get chopped like another David Caspe gem I could mention. Yeah, ABC, still bitter.

-Whitney

Grade A, Choice Picks: TV Proposals

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I feel I am safe in shouting this from the rooftops now because it has been a week, but BEN AND LESLIE ARE GETTING MARRIED!  I couldn’t be happier for these two crazy kids.  Yeah, I know, they’re fictional but that doesn’t hinder my excitement for the most adorable couple on TV.

Their perfect proposal got me thinking about other TV proposals which got me thinking about making a list.  I have compiled 5 of my favorite with the following disclaimers: Ben and Leslie may very well top this list but it’s too fresh to tell for sure, so I excluded it here.  Also, these are only from the shows that I watch, so there are going to be blind spots that I missed.

5) Michael and Holly – The Office: In their mad dash to give Michael Scott an epic send-off, the Office crew brought Holly back to make sweetly dorky music with Michael again.  This was great because it got everyone involved and showed everyone’s attachment to Michael despite all of his buffoonery in the past.  And let’s not forget, it was sweetly romantic.  The simulated rain, the candles, the first place they fell in love, and any proposal that happens in Yoda voice is A-OK in my book.

4) Turk and Carla – Scrubs:  This proposal is greatly aided by it’s simplicity and Old 97’s “Question”.  Turk kept asking and asking and Carla kept refusing to give an answer, until she calls Turk and tells him to ask again.  Turk comes running, they meet in a park, and we just watch as they finally get their moment.  Then, because this is still Scrubs, J.D. comes in running around with sparklers.  Love it.  And “Question” was playing in my car for a good couple months after this one.

3)  Charlie and The Waitress – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: That sweet guy who has been mooning over you at the coffee shop for years writes a musical so that he will finally have his moment to tell you how he really feels and propose marriage. Sounds kind of sweet, right?  Well, the musical has a pedophile troll, a princess who wants little, baby boys, and penetration from behind.  Not all proposals are perfect and it may not be a huge surprise that The Waitress turned down Charlie, but this one is still up there for me.

2) Jim and Pam – The Office: I was Team Jim and Pam from the very beginning (mainly because I had been Team UK Tim and Dawn and I knew what was coming).  I cheered when they finally kissed and I wept when Jim moved away and started dating Ann Perkins.  With all their ups and downs, their sweet proposal in the rain at the gas station that was halfway between them was perfect.  And I’m starting to realize that Michael Schur and Co. should plan all of life’s proposals.

1) Monica and Chandler – Friends:  I know I’m not alone, but I loved Friends.  Like, LOVED it.  My love of this proposal is only increased by the fact that Chandler was my favorite guy and Monica was my favorite girl.  This just seems to be TV doing a proposal right.  Just when it seems that everything has gone to hell in a hand basket, you open the door to find a room full of candles.  I love how neither of them can get through what they want to say without crying, because that will probably be me.  I’m a weeper.  Let’s move past it.

Honorable mentions:  Matt and Julie on Friday Night Lights, Homer and Marge on The Simpsons, Will and Emma on Glee

What do you think?  Did I miss your favorite?  Because in researching this, I realized that there haven’t been as many as you would think.

-Ellen

 

Get with the Program: How I Met Your Mother!

Posted in Get with the Program, TV by

Let’s play Guess that Show! Ready? Ok, I’m thinking of a show about a group of friends living in New York City. They live together, laugh together, cry together, date and even marry each other. It’s really one of your classic ensemble sitcoms that defined comedy for a new generation. Think you know the answer? Oh, sorry folks, if you guessed NBC’s Friends then you need to put down your walkman, hang up your toll-free call to Miss Cleo, and allow me to drag you into the 21st century. ‘Cause these days, it’s all about How I Met Your Mother.

The premise is simple enough: an older version of love-obsessed Ted Mosby (voiced by Bob Saget) narrates the story of how he met the mother of his children. But like I mentioned before, this show is about a group of friends. So really HIMYM isn’t so much about a single event, as it is about how the group’s many exploits lead up to the much anticipated moment when Ted meets the as yet unrevealed baby mama.

I could go on about the writing, pacing, acting, blah, blah, blah, but the truth is what makes the show work is that it’s based around five awesome, hilarious characters. There’s Robin (Colbie Smulders), the teen-pop-sensation-turned-news-anchor who actually dated Ted early in the series. Here is the music video of “Let Go to the Mall”, the smash single released by her Canadian pop start alter-ego Robin Sparkles.

Then there’s Marshall and Lily (Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan), the most co-dependent TV couple ever.

Barney (Neil Patrick Harris), who is probably my favorite character on the show. This clip speaks for itself.

There’s a pretty good chance that season 8 will be the last for Ted and the gang, so if you haven’t jumped on the HIMYM train, this might be your last chance. Do yourself a favor and tune in for the season premiere tonight on CBS. It’s going to be legend…wait for it…DARY!

-Whitney

Get with the Program: Watch Happy Endings!

Posted in Get with the Program, TV by

Airs: Tuesdays at 9/8c starting October 23rd on ABC

TV show equation:  Happy Endings = New Girl flavor+   premise of Friends x rapid fire references of Psych + Arrested Development‘s self-referential humor – Emmy Awards (don’t ask me why, though)

I can’t judge anyone who isn’t watching Happy Endings too harshly because I, myself, just started watching it this past summer.  Did I watch both seasons at an alarming rate? Yes.  Why? Because this show is hilarious.

If you are anything like me, I know what you’re thinking. “Oh, great.  Another show about six friends living together in the city.  Real original.”  The reality that we have to face as TV consumers is that this formula gets used all the time because it works. Case in point: Happy Endings.

This is another example of a show where the initial plot begins to matter less and less, but here it is anyway:  When Alex (Elisha Cuthbert) left Dave (Zachary Knighton) at the altar to run off with a man in roller blades (of all things), their group of friends were worried that nothing would be the same.  Luckily for these crazies, they are all just loco enough to make it work.  This original premise becomes less important mainly due to stand-out performances from the other four friends in the group.  Brad (Damon Wayans Jr.) and Jane (Eliza Coupe) are nuts enough to be entertaining, while still remaining believable as a couple.  Adam Pally is fantastic as Max, their gay friend who is different than any other gay character portrayed on TV.  The approach to his character is both refreshing and makes for better comedy, in my opinion.  Then there is Penny (Casey Wilson).  The show itself makes reference to how she is the stereotypical rom-com heroine, always trying make things happen for herself, but perpetually winding up in kooky hijinks.

When I recently tried to recommend Happy Endings to a friend, she said she had already written it off because it seemed too “sitcom-y”.  While they do find themselves in sitcom situations, the difference is that this brood often makes reference to the fact that they are sitcom characters.  Take for example the following situation, when Penny is explaining that her boyfriend broke up with her for saying her catchphrase, “a-mah-zing” too many times.

“He said he hates when I say a-mah-zing, but I’ve barely said that at all this season… it’s more of a summer word” — Penny

It was great because I, as a viewer, had noticed that she hadn’t said her signature “a-mah-zing” in quite a while.  It’s instances like this that open up this sort of communication with the fans and makes the show that much more enjoyable to watch.  It reminds me of a more accessible-to-the-masses version of Arrested Development‘s self-referential humor (perhaps because AD directors Anthony and Joe Russo serve as executive producers).

Whatever there formula is, it’s working for me and I think it would work for you, too, if you gave it a shot.

I leave you with one of my favorite bits where Max is teaching Penny how to be a hipster:

– Ellen