After almost 20 years, the final eight unreleased episodes of Joey, a spin-off to Friends, have found their way online. There are a lot of great TV shows out there, but few have had the staying power of something like Friends. The 90s sitcom chronicled the lives of a bunch of charming, good-looking New Yorkers in their 20s/30s. It was hilarious, but also filled with light, engaging drama over whether certain characters would get together or not. Friends was a perfect storm that also launched the careers of some incredible actors, such as Jennifer Aniston. Even decades later, the show has remained popular thanks to new generations discovering it on streaming.
The ending of Friends was a pop culture event, one that was watched by over 52 million people in the United States alone. It’s still one of the most-watched finales to a TV series ever. The success of the show meant that NBC wasn’t keen to let this go. This was a juggernaut and there was still milk to be squeezed out of this cow. Alas, a spin-off was born in the form of Joey. The show followed Matt LeBlanc’s beloved character from Friends as he moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. However, the series was short-lived.
Friends Spin-Off, Joey, Gets Final Eight Lost Episodes Released
Joey ran for two seasons from 2004 – early 2006, with the first season doing fairly well ratings-wise. However, Season 2 saw the show’s numbers collapse for a variety of reasons, such as competition with other primetime shows like American Idol. Additionally, Joey wasn’t a hit with fans or critics. It was amusing, but a step down from Friends. Part of the reason for that is because key creatives of the previous show didn’t stick around for this spin-off, and it generally felt like a cash grab. It also lacked the chemistry of the entire ensemble from Friends.
So, Joey was cancelled mid-season and its last eight episodes never aired… until now! The official Friends YouTube channel has surprised everyone by dropping the unreleased episodes of Joey. You can watch the entire 46-episode run of Joey on YouTube right now, including the never-before-seen episodes.
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Given the show wasn’t meant to end with Season 2, you shouldn’t expect any sort of neat conclusion with the final episode, but it does at least provide Friends fans more content that they’ve never seen before. Despite it receiving mixed reviews during its initial run, the comments sections on these videos are filled with people expressing their love for the show.
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