Review of Friends Series 7, Disc 3

Introduction

Anyone reading this review would do well to familiarise themselves with my original Season 7 Disc one review first, as most of the comments there apply to this disc equally.

If you are investing in a Friends disc, then chances are you know what you are investing in. This American sit-com has been running for seven years now, which means its story of late twenty-somethings struggling through their lives has now degenerated into slightly immature thirty-somethings... I`m still a fan, but the series certainly looks to be running out of steam, and I hope they can continue producing good quality comedy, or bow out gracefully.

Video

Shot in 4:3, this NTSC picture is somewhat blurry and out-of-focus. The colours can be a little too cartoonish, although this is a problem of the set-design and show production as much as anything else.

It`s not all bad news though, generally the picture is still okay, and is better than the VHS copied that are still available. It is difficult to distinguish between the DVD picture, and the highest quality broadcast image. It`s just that being a US comedy, it doesn`t have the quality to begin with.

Audio

The audio on the `A` side of these discs is simply two-channel Dolby Surround, which doesn`t improve on the quality available from either broadcast or VHS - a disappointment when it comes to DVD. However, on the `B` side, containing the `Directors Cut` episodes, the audio is carried in 5.0 Dolby Digital, which actually results in a significant improvement. Vocals are clearer, and the music which pervades Friends so totally has a weight and power previously lacking. Although Friends is never going to stretch your sound set-up, I would say that this new addition to Season seven discs is extremely welcome.

Features

Warner claim that giving you extra footage is a great feature, which makes the disk worth buying even though it now only contains half the content (four episodes, rather than eight on all the other six seasons discs). This is a bare-faced lie. The extra material adds up to a couple of extremely minor scenes, or one-liners. There are web links, and NO other features.

Conclusion

I`ve said it before and I`ll say it again, with Season Seven Friends on DVD, Warner is shooting themselves in the foot. I would love to know the sales on these discs, but I so hope they are lower than the other seasons`. Warner are simply ripping customers off with thise extra footage, which simpy halves the content on each disc. This smacks of profiteering in the face of Friends` popularity, and it stinks.

The picture on this disc is acceptable, given the source material, and the sound is an improvement over other formats, and previous seasons. However, I cannot recommend paying full price for this disc which carries 50% of the substative material of the previous seasons discs.