Friends-Series 6 Box Set (1999)

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    Friends has had an interesting release history in Australia. Initially released as single discs, 3 discs per season for almost all seasons, it was then re-released as Box Sets (containing the exact same DVDs as the single releases). Along the way, we've also seen a few NTSC best-of collection compilations, and now the releases of Seasons 1 - 3 as Collector's Editions. There is certainly no dearth of material for Friends fans!

    Anyhow, we concern ourselves today with the re-release of Season 6 of Friends as a box set. These are the exact same discs as previously released individually, but here they are packaged in an attractive gatefold style package with a slip cover. There is no additional booklet, nor any additional supplemental materials to be found, so this collection will best be suited to those who don't already own the 3 individual releases that made up Season 6 and who want to own it in one neat, compact package.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Friends-Series 6-Volume 1-Episodes 1-8 (1999)

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General		Extras
Category	Comedy	DVD-ROM Extras-Web Links
Rating
Year Of Production	1999
Running Time	167:27 (Case: 176)
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Sided	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	2,4	Directed By	Kevin S. Bright Gail Mancuso Gary Halvorson David Schwimmer
Studio Distributor	Warner Home Video	Starring	Jennifer Aniston Courtney Cox-Arquette Lisa Kudrow Matt LeBlanc Matthew Perry David Schwimmer
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	$29.95	Music	Michael Skloff

    With the previously reviewed series of Friends, I was pleased to see that Warner Home Video had made some enhancements to the slip cover compared with previous offerings.Unfortunately, my first impression of Series 6 of Friends was of a poor quality photo image on all three slip covers. Luckily for viewers, this reduced cover quality is only limited to the product packing and does not affect the transfer. Now, about the show . . .

    Friends is an American sitcom revolving around the lives of 6 close mates. It centres on the quirky habits of each character and is primarily filmed within the confines of their three apartments. Please see Michael's earlier review of Friends Series 1 - Volume 1 if you would like to read some background information on the main characters of the show.

    The episodes present on Side A of this disc are;

The One After Vegas (21:06) - A hung-over Ross and Rachel join the gang for breakfast in the hotel and are shocked to discover that they are husband and wife. Meanwhile, Joey convinces Phoebe to drive back to New York with him in a cab.

The One Where Ross Hugs Rachel (20:54) - When Monica and Chandler tell Rachel that they are moving in together, she mistakenly believes that this means all three of them will now be flatmates. Phoebe discovers that Ross has not annulled his marriage to Rachel.

The One With Ross's Denial (20:55) - Monica and Chandler argue about what they will do with Rachel's room after she has moved out. Ross offers the homeless Rachel his spare room and Joey decides that his new roommate should be a beautiful woman.

The One Where Joey Loses His Insurance (20:54) - Just as Joey discovers that his health insurance has lapsed due to a lack of work, he gets a hernia whilst lifting weights. Phoebe plans to make the most of her last days on Earth when her clairvoyant tells her she is going to die.

    The episodes present on Side B of the disc are;

The One With Joey's Porsche (20:57) - After discovering that she is still married to Ross, Rachel tries to convince a judge to annul the marriage on the basis of Ross's mental instability. Meanwhile, Joey finds a set of keys to a Porsche parked outside Central Perk and tries to impress passing girls, pretending the car is his.

The One On The Last Night (20:58) - Whilst packing up Rachel's belongings, the girls reminisce about their time spent as roommates. Next door, Chandler and Joey spend their final night together playing "cups".

The One Where Phoebe Runs (20:56) - Rachel regrets asking Phoebe to jog with her when she attracts unwanted attention with her gangly and uncoordinated jogging style. The guys get very excited about Joey's sexy new roommate (guest star Elle Macpherson).

The One With Ross's Teeth (20:47) - Rachel spreads a rumour at work that her boss, fashion designer Ralph Lauren, made a romantic pass at Phoebe in the photo copy room. Ross is so excited about his date with Monica's colleague that he decides to improve his appearance by bleaching his teeth.

Video

    The video transfers across all 8 episodes were of a similar quality and appearance. The episode entitled The One With Joey's Porsche contained the most problems and the examples below are from that show.

    The transfer is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and is therefore not 16x9 enhanced.

    Although this transfer is not of reference quality, it is generally of a higher grade than that afforded Series 4 of Friends. There is still room for improvement in future episodes.

    The transfer is as clear as you would expect to see for a TV series, but is not a crisp sharp image. Shadow detail is acceptable but most scenes are in bright lighting conditions making any possible problems less apparent. There is no detectable low level noise.

    The colours were bright and clear at all times throughout all 8 episodes. There were no irregularities with the colour rendition.

    There were minor MPEG artefacts seen, and as with the previous Series it is most apparent on the hallway and apartment walls than in any other areas. Aliasing, when it occurs, is quite subtle and less noticeable than in previous episodes. Examples can be seen at 12:30 and 18:49. The scene from 11:00 to 11:09 had some camera shudder and at times Joey's face went out of focus. The loss of focus recurs at 12:09 briefly and is not seen in any other episode.

    There is a good collection of subtitles to choose from, and the English subtitles that I checked appeared close to the spoken word but were not exact. The font size is quite small, most likely to fit some of the long lines on screen at the same time.

    This DVD is presented as a double-sided single-layered DVD and therefore there is no layer change. Instead, you have to leave your chair for a moment and flip the disc manually to see the other four episodes. Yet again, this disc continues the tradition of poor Friends disc labelling. I would like to see the Side A/B information printed more clearly on the disc.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    Up until this Series of Friends, English Dolby Digital 2.0 has been the only available soundtrack. Even though the packaging makes no mention of additional soundtracks, there is a French Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack included on this disc as well as the English soundtrack.

    The dialogue was clear and easy to understand at all times. I detected no hiss during any of the episodes. There were no audio sync problems like the one that showed up on the previously reviewed Series 4 Episodes 9-16 disc. The canned laughter and clap track were mixed slightly too loudly on Side A but Side B was at the appropriate level.

    The theme and background score was provided by Michael Skloff, and has not changed since the very first Episode of Friends.

    The rears were used for the "canned laughter" and were merely a reproduction of the sound from the front speakers at a slightly lesser volume level.

    The subwoofer was not used by the soundtrack at all.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

DVD-ROM

    When the disc is loaded into a DVD-ROM, DVD Friendly is loaded. Two extra menus are available that link to the "Friends Website" and the "Friends Events" site which is really the main Warner Brothers Events site for all of their products.

    These episodes of Friends have quite a few good laughs and make for some nice, light entertainment. The One Where Joey Loses His Insurance particularly had me in fits of laughter. The guest appearance of Elle Macpherson was also a nice bonus.

    As I have said numerous times before, I personally like watching Friends on DVD where it is not interrupted by commercials - I think you get more laughs that way.

    With the exception of The One With Joey's Porsche episode, the video appears to be improving with each Series.

    The audio is fine - and this time they have mixed the laugh track slightly into the surrounds.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Friends-Series 6-Volume 2-Episodes 9-16 (1999)

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General		Extras
Category	Comedy	DVD-ROM Extras-Web Links
Rating
Year Of Production	1999
Running Time	168:12 (Case: 176)
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Sided	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	2,4	Directed By	Kevin S. Bright Gary Halvorson Michael Lembeck
Studio Distributor	Warner Home Video	Starring	Jennifer Aniston Courtney Cox-Arquette Lisa Kudrow Matt LeBlanc Matthew Perry David Schwimmer
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	$29.95	Music	Michael Skloff

    Friends is an American sitcom revolving around the lives of 6 close mates. It centres on the quirky habits of each character and is primarily filmed within the confines of their three apartments. Please see Michael's earlier review of Friends Series 1 - Volume 1 if you would like to read some background information on the main characters of the show.

The episodes present on Side A of the disc are;

The One Where Ross Got High (21:36) - When Monica invites the gang and her parents over for Thanksgiving dinner, Chandler freaks out when he discovers they don't know that he's living with their daughter. Meanwhile, Rachel tests her culinary skills by cooking a repulsive desert.

The One With The Routine (20:55) - Janine (Elle Macpherson) gets a job dancing on Dick Clark's New Years Eve special and invites Joey, Monica and Ross to the advance taping. Joey has special plans for the happy hour.

The One With the Apothecary Table (20:59) - After finally making a successful move on Janine, Joey is upset by her snobby attitude towards the rest of the gang. Meanwhile, Rachel tries to convince Phoebe that her cute apothecary table is a priceless antique.

The One With The Joke (20:55) - Ross and Chandler argue about who originated a joke that Ross successfully submitted to Playboy magazine. Monica forces Phoebe to choose between herself and Rachel to determine which of them would make the better girlfriend.

The episodes present on Side B of the disc are;

The One With Rachel's Sister (20:56) - When sister Jill comes to stay, Rachel is worried by the romantic sparks that seem to be flying between her and Ross. Joey, the new coffee house waiter, tries to score dates with every cute girl by offering them free food. Monica tries to lure Chandler into bed with her even though she is sick with the flu.

The One Where Chandler Can't Cry (21:00) - A jealous Rachel forces Ross to cancel his dinner date with her sister Jill. Meanwhile Phoebe discovers that she is being mistaken for a porn star. Monica and Joey are concerned when they discover that Chandler hasn't been able to cry about anything since he was a child.

The One That Could Have Been (41:51) - A Special Double Length Episode where the gang ponders about what might have been if . . .

• Ross had stayed with his lesbian wife Carol
• a married Rachel had fallen for Joey who had never lost his job as Dr Drake Ramoray from Days of our Lives
• a chubby Monica was obsessed with losing her virginity
• Chandler a struggling writer had to stoop as low as to become Joey's assistant
• and Phoebe had become a corporate stockbroker (with a weak heart)

Video

    The video transfers across all 8 episodes were of a similar quality and appearance. The double length episode has not been spliced together so you will need to sit through not only the Friends introductory song but also the end credits twice. It would be nice to see some more editing done before the transfer to DVD on these double length episode discs.

    The transfer is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1 and is therefore not 16x9 enhanced.

    Although this transfer is not of reference quality, it is generally of a higher grade than Series 4, but there is still room for improvement.

    The transfer is as clear as you would expect to see from a TV show. Shadow detail is acceptable but most scenes are in bright lighting conditions making any possible problems less apparent. There is no detectable low level noise.

    The colours were bright and clear at all times throughout all 8 episodes. There were no irregularities with the colour rendition of the transfer. The episode The One With The Joke contains good examples of the rich colour in people's clothing at 5:01, 6:20 and 13:20.

    There were minor MPEG artefacts seen and as with the previous Series it is most apparent on the hallway and apartment walls than in any other areas. The aliasing when it does occur is quite subtle and less noticeable than in previous episodes. An example can be seen at 5:02 in The One With The Routine. In The One With The Apothecary Table and The One With The Joke at 17:22 and 3:21 respectively is what at first impression looks like aliasing. Closer inspection reveals that it is in fact a rotating fan seen in one of the windows. Mild film artefacts were noticed at 7:55 in The One That Could Have Been (Part 1).

    There is a good collection of subtitles to choose from, and the English subtitles that I checked appeared close to the spoken word but were not exact. The font size is quite small, most likely to fit some of the long lines on screen at the same time.

    This DVD is presented as a double-sided single-layered DVD and therefore there is no layer change. Instead, you have to leave your chair for a moment and flip the disc manually to see the other four episodes. Yet again, this disc continues the tradition of poor Friends disc labelling. I would like to see the Side A/B information printed more clearly on the disc.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    Up until this Series of Friends, English Dolby Digital 2.0 has been the only available soundtrack. Even though the packaging makes no mention of additional soundtracks, there is a French Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack on this disc as well as the English soundtrack. This was also true for the previous disc in the series and I expect it may well be a regular feature from now on.

    The dialogue was clear and easy to understand at all times and I detected no hiss during any of the episodes. The previous disc from this Series had different sound levels on Side A compared with Side B. This set of episodes did not have the same issue and both sides seemed even in playback sound levels.

    The theme and background score was provided by Michael Skloff. The short little sound ditties played between scenes match the show well.

    The rears were used for the "canned laughter" and were merely a reproduction of the sound from the front speakers at a slightly lesser volume level.

    The subwoofer was not used by the soundtrack at all.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu has had an overhaul since Series 5. Like the show it is in Full Screen and was easy to navigate. If you manually select a particular episode from the menu you are returned back to the menu after it has finished playing. If on the other hand you select the "Play" option on the menu then all 4 episodes are played on each side.

DVD-ROM

    When the disc is loaded into a DVD-ROM, DVD Friendly is loaded. Two extra menus are available that link to the "Friends Website" and the "Friends Events" site which is really the main Warner Brothers Events site for all of their products.

    As always, these episodes of Friends contain quite a few good laughs and make for some nice, light entertainment. Elle Macpherson is also back again on this disc and the presence of Rachel's little sister also helped to break up the usual group which was a nice change.

    As I have said numerous times before, I personally like watching Friends on DVD where it is not interrupted by commercials - I think you get more laughs that way.

    The audio as good as can be expected for Dolby Digital 2.0.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

Friends-Series 6-Volume 3-Episodes 17-24 (2000)

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General		Extras
Category	Comedy	DVD-ROM Extras-Web Links
Rating
Year Of Production	2000
Running Time	188:54 (Case: 176)
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Sided	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	2,4	Directed By	Gary Halvorson Ben Weiss Kevin S. Bright Michael Lembeck
Studio Distributor	Warner Home Video	Starring	Jennifer Aniston Courtney Cox-Arquette Lisa Kudrow Matt LeBlanc Matthew Perry David Schwimmer Bruce Willis
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	$29.95	Music	Michael Skloff

    Friends is an American sitcom revolving around the lives of 6 close mates. It centres on the quirky habits of each character and is primarily filmed within the confines of their three apartments. Please see Michael's earlier review of Friends Series 1 - Volume 1 if you would like to read some background information on the main characters of the show.

The episodes present on Side A of the disc are;

The One With Unagi (20:55) - Chandler and Monica decide to give each other home-made anniversary gifts. He presents Monica with a gift that was made by Janet. Meanwhile, Joey hires a look-a-like fellow actor to pose as his identical twin so that he can participate in a medical experiment and get $2,000 cash.

The One Where Ross Dates A Student (20:55) - Ross begins playing around with one of his attractive students. After a fire partially burns their apartment, Rachel asks for Joey's help to prove to Phoebe that it was not started by her curling iron.

The One With Joey's Fridge (20:40) - When Rachel needs a date for a fashionable charity event, Monica and Phoebe compete to see who can find the most eligible escort for her. Ross obsesses over his new girlfriend's plans to spend spring break with her college buddies on a Florida beach and Joey tries to con the Friends into buying him a new fridge.

The One With Mac and Cheese (21:02) - Joey is very excited when he finds out that he is short-listed to star in a TV series as a detective who solves crime with the help of his robot partner. Chandler forgets to write down a message about the new audition time and Joey might lose the part as a result. This sparks off many memorable flashbacks.

The episodes present on Side B of the disc are;

The One Where Ross Meets Elisabeth's Dad (21:09) - Ross dreads meeting Paul (Bruce Willis), the disapproving father of his college girlfriend so he asks the gang along to "talk him up". Elsewhere, Joey's enthusiasm about his TV role proves disastrous.

The One Where Paul's The Man (21:05) - Despite Paul's threats of having Ross fired for dating his student daughter, Ross and Elizabeth secretly head off to her family's log cabin. Unfortunately, Paul and Rachel have the same idea which makes for some funny and tense moments. Chandler freaks when he finds out that Monica has booked a museum for the wedding.

The One With The Ring (21:09) - After finally deciding that he wants to spend the rest of his life with Monica, Chandler asks Phoebe to help him choose a ring. Elsewhere, Rachel regrets having delved deep into Paul's past, prompting him to gush with tortured memories.

The One That Could Have Been (21:01 & 20:58) Special double-length finale - The big event has arrived and Chandler arranges to take Monica to her favourite restaurant. Just before he pops the question, Richard (Tom Selleck) shows up and spoils the plans. The next day, Richard tells Monica that he still loves her. What will Monica do?

Video

    The transfer is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and is therefore not 16x9 enhanced.

    Although this transfer is not of reference quality, there has been a gradual improvement since Series 4. Nonetheless, there is still room for further enhancement to be done with future episodes.

    The transfer is as clear as you would expect to see from a TV show. Shadow detail is acceptable but most scenes are in bright lighting conditions making any possible problems less apparent. There is no detectable low level noise.

    The colours were bright and clear at all times throughout all episodes. One good example of the rich colour can be seen at 3:55 in The One With Unagi. There were no irregularities with the colour rendition of this transfer, either.

    There were minor MPEG artefacts and as with the previous Series it is most apparent on the hallway and apartment walls than in any other areas. Phoebe's shirt in The One That Could Have Been (Part 2) did contain what looked like aliasing around the collar edge and along her hand from 4:30 to 5:30. In other areas, the aliasing when it does occur is quite subtle and less noticeable than in previous episodes - an example can be seen at 3:44 in The One Where Ross Dates A Student. This disc contains fewer film artefacts and for a change there are no sections that really stood out as exceptionally bad, or good for that matter.

    As usual for Friends, there is a good collection of subtitles to choose from, and the English subtitles that I checked appeared close to the spoken word but were not exact. The font size is quite small, most likely to fit some of the long lines on screen at the same time.

    This DVD is presented as a double-sided single-layered DVD and therefore there is no layer change. Instead, you have to leave your chair for a moment and flip the disc manually to see the other four episodes. Yet again, this disc continues the tradition of poor Friends disc labelling. I would like to see the Side A/B information printed more clearly on the disc.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    Previously, English Dolby Digital 2.0 was the only available soundtrack. Even though the packaging makes no mention of additional soundtracks, a French Dolby Digital 2.0 dub is also included in this collection of episodes. This was also true for the previous two discs in the series.

    The dialogue was clear and easy to understand at all times and I detected no hiss during any of the episodes. The first 9 episodes from this Series had different sound levels on Side A versus Side B. This set of episodes did not have the same problem and both sides seemed even in playback sound levels.

    The theme and background score was provided by Michael Skloff. The short little sound ditties played between scenes match the show well.

    The rears were used for the laughter and were merely a reproduction of the sound from the front speakers at a slightly lesser volume level.

    The subwoofer was not used by the soundtrack at all.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu has had an overhaul since Series 5. Like the show, it is in Full Screen. It is easy to navigate. If you manually select a particular episode from the menu you are returned back to the menu after it has finished playing. If on the other hand you select the "Play" option on the menu then all 4 episodes are played on each side.

DVD-ROM

    When the disc is loaded into a DVD-ROM, DVD Friendly is loaded. Two extra menus are available that link to the "Friends Website" and the "Friends Events" site which is really the main Warner Brothers Events site for all of their products.

    I could not find any reference to an equivalent Region 1 version of this DVD. The only ones that I saw reference to were "Best Of" collection discs.

    As always, these episodes of Friends contain quite a few good laughs and make for some nice, light entertainment. Bruce Willis was excellent as Elizabeth's dad and had Ross on the run on more than the odd occasion.

    As I have said numerous times before, I personally like watching Friends on DVD where it is not interrupted by commercials - I think you get more laughs that way.

    The audio as good as can be expected for Dolby Digital 2.0.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall