Smelly cat, smelly cat, what are they feeding you? Smelly cat, smelly cat, it’s not your fault!
On January 1, 2014 a gift was given to all who have a Netlfix account (or have stolen their friends’ passwords), when Netflix released all 10 seasons of Friends for streaming. For four beautiful years, fans have been able to put off any and every responsibility, whether it be a school project or work commitment, in order to binge watch every episode for the millionth time. Netflix is the only place fans can find every episode in order and where they can watch their favorite episodes on a loop every day. This resulted in a surge of people signing up for an account on the streaming service, which I’m sure made Netflix a ton of money. Friends is definitely one of the most popular shows on Netflix and is a huge draw for many paying customers. These are only a few of the reasons why I’m surprised the powers at be at Netflix thought they could get away with silently get away with putting an expiration date in the description of the show. As my friend pointed out, first they only make Harry Potter available in France and Belgium, now they’re getting rid of Friends. Not cool Netflix, NOT COOL!! It is listed to be taken off the streaming service on January 1, 2019, so the New Year will in fact not begin all that great.
Netflix has, in recent years, been taking shows and movies off of their service at the start of every month and replacing it with newer titles or stuff they think audiences will enjoy more. I have never liked that they do this, but I have never felt more personally attacked than when I read this news this morning. The show has morphed into more than just a television show and has become a lifestyle and a source of inspiration and laughter for many. In my friend group, we cannot have a single conversation without quoting Friends at least 20 times. We just spent two hours together playing a Friends themed version of Trivial Pursuit and then followed that by watching Friends. It is safe to say that it is something we have bonded over and being a fan of the show has now become a part of our identities. If anyone is wondering, I am the Phoebe of the group and we are currently searching for a Rachel and Ross. I mean, I understand that we can continue to bond over the show by playing the game and constantly quoting the show without it being on Netflix, but it’s just the principle of the thing. Twitter users are already up in arms about the decision and have not shied away from posting their thoughts on the removal of Friends. It’s long been a rumor that the removal of all these popular shows is due to Netflix’s plans to rid the site of all their hosted contact and make it a space solely devoted to their original content. I hate this plan and let me tell you why.
Although this is the newest sorrow Netflix has brought into my life, it is not my only bone to pick with the company. I am a huge fan of many of the original content produced by Netflix. There are some serious geniuses writing for these shows and I am 100 percent here for it. My issue with these shows is that I should not have to wait two years for the new season of Stranger Things. How much extra work could there possibly be in order to create the two year gap between seasons? I was excited for season three the first year I was left waiting for it and now I’m tired and the anticipation has kind of wore off. I watched it too long ago to even care about what is going to happen next. I mean I’ll definitely watch it when it is released but two years is too long! I feel the same way about Game of Thrones, like the wait for that has been excruciating and extremely cruel. I still haven’t watched the final season of House of Cards because I forgot everything that happened in season 5 because I had to wait so long for the last season to be released. If they can find a way to speed up the process and not make fans wait a decade between each 10 episode season that can be watched in a day, then I’ll totally get on board for this only original content plan. If not, then I’m not on board, because we need something to fill in the gaps, such as I don’t know, Friends perhaps.
If Friends does have to go though, as a fan I know I can get through it and hang on until the series eventually ends up on Hulu. Fans of The Office, don’t feel so smug, your day will come and you will know this pain.
By the way, I’m still waiting for the third season of The Crown as well.
This would’ve been AWFUL. So glad they changed their minds!!!
I agree! Friends is definitely the best show on Netflix.