Friends behaving badly in comedy for Generation X
ASUMMER of sit-com gold continues on Netflix this month with the debut of thirty-something ensemble Friends From College.
The show is based around a group of Harvard graduates who reconnect as they approach their 40s – all hurtling towards their various mid-life crises at break-neck speed.
It’s every bit as binge-worthy as Glow or Girlboss not least because of the stellar cast led by Fred Savage (The Wonder Years) as coke-snorting Max.
It’s nice to see the actor who became synonymous with his childhood Kevin Arnold character get another role so soon after ratings flop The Grinder failed to find its audience.
The comedy also features Keegan-michael Key (Key and Peele) and Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother) as husband and wife Ethan and Lisa.
She wonders whether they should start a family unaware Ethan has been having an affair for the past 20 years or so with his college sweetheart.
Meanwhile, gay publicist Max’s immature behaviour drives his boyfriend Felix (Billy Eichner) up the wall and womaniser Nick (Nat Faxon) spends his time bedding a string of women half his age.
The show, created and written by Nicholas Stoller and Francesca Delbanco, also features cameos from Seth Rogen and Kate Mckinnon.
The opening scene shows Ethan and his former college friend-with-benefits Sam (Annie Parisse) get naked – setting the tone for the entire no-holds-barred series.
Keegan-michael told Newsday: “It seems everybody in television is obsessed with the 18 to 35 demo, to the point where we actually call it ‘the’ demographic as if at age 36 we stop spending money. “Us Generation Xers and Generation Yers have something to say about the world, and we’re going to be running it soon. “It’s a good time to examine where we are, this generation that’s been flying under the radar.
“We still sometimes talk about baby boomers because it’s fascinating to see how hippies are ageing.
“And we’re completely obsessed with Millennials but there are these two ‘half-generations’ in the middle we’re not paying attention to, and this show is an exploration of that.”
There is a darker edge to the show that may take viewers by
surprise but for the most part it does what it says on the tin as they all try to binge-drink their way back to their youth only to discover it’s long gone.
If you’re thinking the last thing you need is another comedy about a bunch of privileged thirty-somethings trying to sort out their love lives, think again.
All eight half-hour episodes of Friends From College will be available to stream on Netflix from Friday.