What's fun about a feel-good sitcom with an ensemble cast? It's like finding a new group of friends. What's more, all the characters balance each other out, and there's someone in there that everyone can relate to.
This is part of the reason why the Friends ran for ten successful seasons, and why How I Met Your Father, the reboot of the renowned show How I Met Your Mother starring Hillary Duff, got off to an excellent start with its first season this year. And the similarities between the two series don't stop there— the characters from each show also share a remarkable number of quirks and characteristics too.
Charlie & Joey Tribbiani
Although both series are comedies by nature, some characters are more light-hearted than others. For the most part, Joey (Matt LeBlanc) and Charlie (Tom Ainsley) fall on the funnier side of the spectrum.
Their happy-go-lucky antics make for some of the best laughs of either series. Both share a lack of social awareness that leaves them hilariously clueless most of the time. Joey and Charlie are incredibly lovable characters because they are deeply kind and will often go the extra mile for their friends. Plus, they will probably both go down as some of the best roommates of all time. With How I Met Your Father now renewed for a season 2, fans will likely be able to see more parallels between the two characters forming.
Ellen & Phoebe Buffay
These quirky characters are hard to tie down. Ellen (Tien Tran) and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) have their head in the clouds most of the time, which leads them to have some of the funniest lines of their respective series.
Phoebe is known for having odd jobs throughout Friends, from a masseuse to an actress. In HIMYF, Ellen is often poked fun at for having worked on a produce farm because it's such a bizarre job for a New Yorker. They are also known for being two of the nicest characters ever.
Sid & Chandler Bing
Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Sid (Suraj Sharma) are always making self-deprecating jokes that reflect a deep cynicism. Even still, they seem to realize that the one thing that matters in life is building a family with the women that they love.
While Chandler and Monica take several seasons to fall for one another, Sid proposes to his girlfriend in the pilot episode of HIMYF. It would be interesting to see if Chandler might have matured more quickly if he had Monica by his side to guide him earlier on in the show. Sid might have some of his priorities straight, but he still has quite a bit of growing up to do at the close of the first season.
Sophie & Monica Gellar
Sophie is driven by a deep ambition to become a world-famous photographer, while Monica is driven by a similar aspiration to become a globally renowned chef. They both become consumed by relationships and at times feel a little out of touch with love and dating.
Both Sophie and Monica are incredibly optimistic despite being somewhat unlucky. They inevitably fall in love with one of their friends. While Sophie and Jesse haven't quite ended up together yet, the show has only just begun. Perhaps if the reboot of HIMYM had not repeated the same mistakes as the original, it would have taken a cue from Friends and delayed this friends-to-lovers arc a bit longer.
Jesse & Ross Gellar
Jesse (Chris Lowell) and Ross (David Schwimmer) are both a counterpart of the most timeless of romantic comedy tropes— a will-they/won't they. These romances are sparked very early on in each show and will likely carry HIMYF throughout as it did Friends.
Ross and Rachel are one of the most iconic TV couples of all time, but they took a little while to really get going. There is hope that the waxing and waning of Jesse's relationship with Sophie will have a similar pay-off. Moreover, from what the viewers have seen from Jesse so far, he does appear to have a strong sibling-like relationship with Ellen that many fans feel is quite similar to that of Ross and Monica's on Friends. Going forward, it would be interesting to get more insight into Ellen and Jesse's childhood and see if there are any great stories to be told there too.
Valentina & Rachel Green
Valentina (Francia Raisa) and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) are two women in the fashion world that are known for making impulsive decisions, especially when it comes to love. The pilot of Friends finds Rachel as a runaway bride, while in the pilot of HIMYF Valentina brings a British boyfriend back to New York to live with her after a fashion week fling.
Despite their expensive tastes and somewhat irrational decision-making, both Valentina and Rachel are ambitious, and they want it all. And unlike their best friend, they are confident powerhouses, assured that they are going to get it.