Well, I would be lying if I said I thought the final episode of Friends (The
Last One-Parts I & II-episodes 1017-1018) was the best Friends episode ever,
but it was an excellent way to tie up loose ends and wrap everything up. Of
course the Ross/Rachel storyline was predictible, of course they were going to
get back together; obviously the producers didn't want to disappoint the
millions of fans who wanted a happy ending. Either Ross was flying to Paris
or Rachel was going to stay; the writers chose the latter. But as predictable
as is was, the R&R ending was still well-acted/executed, and very heartwarming,
with great humor ("unless we're on a break"--the very last time that line will
be used.)Great and moving way to show finality of the series without it being too sad. The six of them leaving the empty apartment was touching, and all of them leaving their keys on the counter was great symbolism. The dismantling of the foosball table (the staple of Chandler & Joey's bachelor pad) was a good sense of closure, too. And the new chick and duck brought back great memories of past seasons. That final scene between C & J was very moving. The fact that Gunther finally professed his love for Rachel was yet another great sense of finality.
As for the twins, yes, it seemed a bit contrived, but still very funny; and it seems fitting that Monica and Chandler, who had tried so hard and so long to get just one baby, would end up with two. Anna Faris must feel very privledged to have a major guest role in the monumental final episode of Friends. You could tell that Courteney Cox was just beginning to show her own pregnancy, (playing, ironically, a character who can't get pregnant), because they had her wear loose clothing or black in the finale (as well as the episodes leading up to it). The sight of C&M quietly holding both babies (and trying unsuccessfully to trade them) would make even the most insensitive person say "Awwwww."
The one disappointment was that Phoebe didn't have much more than a supporting role in this episode. (Neither did Joey, until the chick/duck/foosball scene) The most screen time she got was in the cab ride and in the airport chase, and that storyline was still primarily the R&R one. Also, Phoebe singing the lines to musicals seemed more like forced humor than anything else. But hey, you can't have everything in a final episode, you can't squeeze everything in just an hour.
Overall, a very well-done finale, IMHO a perfect way to end a great sitcom, much better than, say, all of the cast ending up in jail, which was the case with Seinfeld. It will go down in history as probably one of the Top-10 Friends episodes of all time. It was certainly one of the most watched (over 52 million people saw it!). Matt Leblanc will have some big shoes to fill with the Joey spinoff next year. Good luck to him.
-Frank