Why It’s Hard to Pick One b/w Friends and Modern Family! Can You?

People often ask themselves, which one is better? FRIENDS or Modern Family? There’s no easy answer to this question. Both tv shows are great in their own way.

First of all, FRIENDS is timeless. It portrays the 90s lifestyle and has a lot of nostalgia for people who were around during that time period.

On the other hand, Modern Family appeals to different audiences with its witty humor and slight resemblance to Gilmore Girls.

There can be no two ways about the fact that Modern Family is a popular, absolutely intelligent, and hilarious show.

It has the perfect mix of sarcasm, fun, values, and respect.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S

One can’t help but notice that it is a lot like the popular show F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S was first aired in 1994 and became a timeless show. The show has been finding an audience of a whole new generation every passing year. It is still watched by millions on various streaming platforms. 

Friends
F.R.I.E.N.D.S

FRIENDS earned an 8.8/10 score on IMDb and received an 82% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. All the seasons of F.R.I.E.N.D.S can be watched here on Netflix.

Modern Family

Modern Family
Modern Family

And there can be no two ways about the fact that Modern Family is also a popular, absolutely intelligent, and hilarious show.

It has the perfect mix of sarcasm, fun, values, and respect.

Modern Family gained slightly higher ratings on 8.4/10 on IMDb and 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. You can watch Modern Family on Diseny+.

Both the shows and their actors have consistently won Emmys and the scriptwriters are supremely talented.

“Friends” make us want to have friends we never had and “Modern Family”, is a crazy family which is so involved in each other’s pains and sorrows.

We have all been fanatics of both shows for the longest time and the younger generation keeps getting introduced and amazed by these spectacular shows.

Have you noticed that there are several resemblances between Friends and Modern Family? Here are a few similarities you might find interesting.

Modern Family and Friends Similarities

So, the ones who have seen both the TV shows Modern Family & FRIENDS and have loved & admired them thoroughly will agree with me when I say that there are an awful lot of similarities between the two amazing sitcoms.

Allow me to prove using Friends and Modern Family references:

# Baby Bump

Remember the time Monica bumped Ben’s head and then covered it with a hat?

Well, the same happened with the modern family when Mitchell bumps Lily’s head in the exact same way.

Neither Ben nor Lily gets affected but the resemblance of this particular act just gets to the eyes!

# Piercings

Rachel’s sister Amy pierces Emma’s ears when she babysits her for a day. Rachel gets extremely mad at her sister for doing so.

Gloria, likewise, pierces Lily’s ears and Mitchell gets super angry at her. Coincidence, much?

# Manny

Rachel hires a male nanny and so does Gloria. Ross and Jay both ask the same question, ‘Is that even a thing?”

Both the males are uncomfortable with the idea of a nanny being a male and they take time to adjust to this fact.

# Brother-Sister Routine

Remember that famous bloopers routine that Ross and Monica do that we all tried to learn at some point?

Well, Mitchell and Claire do something similar in the episode where the topic of figure skating comes up.

Both are ridiculous to the same extent. But hey! Who doesn’t love a good family dance?

# Bicycle Shorts

Claire asks Cameron to change his bicycle shorts as he looks hideous in them, and so does Monica. She asks Chandler to lose them as they both decide to go running when she is trying to help him lose weight.

# Mommy Issues

Claire is a lot like Monica.

They are both neat freaks, control freaks, hover around people and most importantly, they both have issues with their mothers.

Their mothers always ask them to dress better, wear their hair and makeup better, and talk embarrassing stuff about them in front of others.

# No One’s Ready

This one episode where no one is ready is hilarious in both sitcoms.

Ross tried to get everyone ready once he is but everyone is busy with some problem or other of their own.

Meanwhile, in MF, Jay is ready and he gets annoyed as no one else is and waits around for them.

# Minister

Joey is the minister when Chandler and Monica get married and he weds them.

Similarly, when Mitch and Cam decide to get hitched, Phil is the minister.

They both get the authorization from the internet and it’s as uncanny as it gets!

# Claire Dunphy and Monica Geller

Just when we were talking about similarities, the two characters clicked.

Claire Dunphy from Modern Family and Monica Geller from Friends are soul-sisters. The two characters have so much in common.

Claire Dunphy
Claire Dunphy
Monica Geller
Monica Geller

They’re both slightly neurotic, slightly obsessive, slightly OCD, slightly uptight, slightly insecure, and slightly in denial. They also both have a tendency to go a little mental in a crisis. 

We can’t help but love them both. Do you?

# Number of Episodes

Both the sitcoms Modern Family & FRIENDS have 24 episodes in each season. That may seem petty but it can’t be avoided.

There could have been 23 or 25, but no. It had to be 24. Alright, this one’s a bit ridiculous, but you can’t ignore the rest.

Both these shows have accelerated in whatever they do. Their comic timing, natural acting, and facetiousness have everyone rolling on the floors.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S. gave us insights on how to tackle almost every problem that may or may not arise among friends, while Modern Family taught us how to patiently deal with dysfunctional but loving families of our own.

Pack your bags, put the combination of 17 seasons of both shows and you’ve got yourself the most fun vacation ever. You won’t ever be alone once you know them.

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Editorial Team at TerraTale is a group of individuals and experts, who write about their experiences and learnings on a variety of subjects that anyone can connect with and reflect upon.

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