Friendsis one of the most influential TV shows of all time, and as such, it had many copycats, but this sitcom that stuck around for seven seasons is the best one. Created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman,Friendsdebuted on NBC in 1994 and broke many records throughout its 10-season run, earning a place in TV history. Despite having a very simple premise,Friendswas a huge success, becoming part of pop culture, and its popularity continues thanks to its arrival in the world of streaming.
Set in New York City,Friendsfollowed a group of six young adults as they did their best to navigate adulthoodand balance their personal, social, and professional lives.Friendscontinues to be one of the most influential TV shows ever, and, as expected, it got a lot of copycats, some more successful than others, and some were very obviously inspired by it. However, there’s oneFriendscopycat that truly succeeded without being a direct copy of it, and it’s the best one to date.
New Girl Was One Of Many Sitcoms That Were Heavily Inspired By Friends
New Girl Aired From 2011 To 2018
In 2011,New Girlarrived on Fox. Created by Elizabeth Meriwether,New Girltook the audience to Los Angeles to meet Jess Day (Zooey Deschanel), a bubbly and clumsy teacher. After catching her boyfriend cheating on her,Jess moved to a loft with three strangers she found on the internet. These strangers were Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.), Schmidt (Max Greenfield), and Nick (Jake Johnson), with whom Jess ended up bonding, becoming one strange but very fun and supportive family.New Girl’s success allowed it to stay for seven seasons, ending in 2018.
Coach was replaced by Winston (Lamorne Morris) in season 1’s second episode, but Coach briefly returned toNew Girlin season 3.
While it might not seem like it at first,New Girlis part of the long list ofsitcoms that were heavily inspired byFriends. The concept of a girl moving in with roommates and the show following closely their adaptation and bonding processes is very much likeFriends, especially in its first season, where Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) moved in with Monica (Courteney Cox). The core four (sometimes five, if Coach is around) being the focus ofNew Girlis just like with the group of six inFriends, and the shows also have their tone in common, successfully mixing comedy with more serious moments.
New Girl Eventually Found Its Own Identity, And It Barely Resembled Friends
New Girl Successfully Separated Itself From Friends
What helpedNew Girlsucceed and not be stuck under the shadow ofFriendswas finding its own identity. Surely, on the surface,New Girlcontinued usingFriends’ basic premise of following a group of friends, in this case also roommates, and the many ups and downs in all areas of their lives, but the rest was different.New Girlhad better-developed characters thanFriends, and it often took its storylines outside the core group’s dynamic and the loft, and its comedy style was different.
New Girlhad variety in its tone, stories, and characters, which is one of the most criticized things aboutFriends, and it was a lot more consistent with its timeline and backstories.The main characters onNew Girlworked well together regardless of how they were paired, which was due to how well-developed the characters were on their own, as well as the chemistry between the actors.New GirlandFriendsare only similar in terms of premise, asNew Girlsuccessfully avoided being a carbon copy of it by improving on some ofFriends’ weaknesses and ultimately becoming its own thing.
New Girl’s Characters Helped Set It Apart From All The Other Friends Copycats
Jess & Company Were Different But Still Funny
A large part of what helpedNew Girlsucceed and separate itself fromFriendsand other copycats was its characters. As fun as the main group ofFriendsis, the truth is that most of them were horrible people, and they did a lot of questionable things, not just to others but to each other.The characters inNew Girlweren’t perfect, nor were they role models, but they were definitely better people, even with all their flaws.
All the main characters inNew Girlalso went through character development in seven seasons, and by the time season 7 arrived, they were very different from what they were like in season 1.The characters inFriends, on the other hand, were mostly stuck for the entire show, with characters like Ross not changing much or at all, and others like Joey changing for the worse. Despite following the same archetypes, Jess and company were more likable, relatable, and better developed, which madeNew Girlsucceed as a show heavily inspired byFriends.
