The Friends Book Tag
Ross: Seems harmless, but problematic – Name a book you had problems with
(I don’t think Ross was problematic, I just think he was a complete wuss and manboy who needed to be beaten up a couple of times to toughen him up.)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I can’t even write how much Harry annoyed me by the end of the series. If he had died, I would have been happy.
Monica: neat and tidy – Name a book/series that ends satisfyingly
The Gods Return by David Drake. I started my review with “A VERY satisfying ending”. Can’t ask much more than that, right?
Chandler: funny and relatable – Name a firm fave
Han Solo’s Revenge by Brian Daley. Before the Star Wars Expanded Universe, there were standalone stories about some of the characters. Solo had his own trilogy. I read it in middle school or highschool and liked it so much that later in life I tracked down the hardcovers for the trilogy and paid a premium for them. The almost completely orange cover is what I actually remember most about the library paperback I read all those years ago.
Phoebe: reliable and friendly – An author you always rely on
Neal Asher. Period. Even when a character is barfing and pooping in WAY MORE DETAIL than I ever wanted, I can rely on him for an action packed story that grabs me and won’t let go.
Rachel: she grows on you over time – Name a book/series that’s grown on you over time
The Monster Hunter International series by Larry Correia. I enjoyed the first book but ripped into it pretty good in the review. And now, I am actively looking forward to the next book, book 9.
Joey: looks good on the outside – A book whose cover is better than its contents
Department 19. The cover looked awesome with all the guns, knives, helmets and weapons. Inside was a morass of teen stupidity and the purest drivel that I’ve read in a long time. The author should stick a turkey on their head in penance!
Bonus Friend
Gunther: always there, always ignored – A book you’ve had on your TBR forever
(I had to go look up who Gunther even was! I guess he was the coffee shop owner? Definitely forgettable.)
A Study in Brimstone, the first in the Warlock Holmes series. I’ve been waiting for the series to finish up, but the author seems to be acting like a jackass so I’m not sure when I’ll ever get to this. I WANT to get to it though.
Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road 
I can’t believe that someone watched Friends and their takeaway was that Monica was ‘neat and tidy’ . Is that as deep as that show got?
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Well, when I watched it it was about as deep as a fruit bowl, so… yes?
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Totally agree about Ross. Is Warlock Holmes a relative of Sherlock?
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Warlock is a parody on the Sherlock franchise. Sadly, it’s been a couple of years since the 5th book came out so I am wondering if the author just abandoned the idea.
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I never read any of the Harry Potter books, but among people I know who did they all said the last book was the worst and some of them never even finished it. Maybe she was written out.
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I really enjoyed the first 3 books. Harry was a great little hero in those books. Then in each successive book he became more and more like a modern teenager and it wasn’t very enjoyable 😦
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I’ve watched Friends all of 5 times, and that to see what all the fuss was about. I would not describe Phoebe primarily as reliable. More like the only interesting character in a cast of boring ones. I’m sure there’s a book in a series like that. 😆 Btw, I hated Harry from the first book. The trope of the super special unique little misunderstood orphan rubs me the wrong way.
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I watched the whole show when it went on prime, for pretty much the same reason as you 😀
After I was done,, I had to scratch my head at its popularity.
I have no problem with the super special unique orphan trope. I just don’t like when they grow up into whiny angsty teenagers, hahahahaa 😀
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After your declaration about Harry Potter, you should watch your back against the hordes of angry fans pursuing you! 😀 😀 😀
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Eh, I got all the armor after I 2starred Sanderson’s first Stormlight Archive book and put it on devilreads and amazon 😀
Oh, THAT was a firestorm, hahahahaaa.
I would welcome some fire on the HP book. One of the reasons I try to bring these old reviews to light 🙂
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I haven’t ever read Harry Potter (*gasp*), but when my wife did she felt exactly the same way as you by the time she finished the last book.
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At this stage in life, I probably would have dnf’d the 4th book and let the series go.
It was sad to see the trajectory because Harry could have been a Great Chosen One 😦
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Oh I remember those Daley Star Wars books. I think I only ever had the first one but the whole Stars End thing sounded so cool when I was younger.
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I enjoyed them. Not sure what I’d think of them today though 😀
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Yeah wonder how they’d hold up…
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I suspect it would hinge on whether one still enjoyed the vapid and shallow circumstances the show was based on. Just like me and the Bill & Ted movies. Masterpieces, all of’em! 😀
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The Warlock Holmes books really do look and sound awesome. I hope you get the chance to try them out sooner rather than later (or never) hahaha
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I figure if the author hasn’t released something by next year I’ll start the series and let the chips fall where they may.
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I enjoyed the first 3 HP books (mainly the third), the 4th was okay, and from the 5th on I just wanted Harry to die…. Especially when I reread the books a few years ago. I was very happy to have Stephen Fry helping me through them then.
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Once I finished the series, I was never tempted to re-read them. Rowling really turned Harry into a jerk and I hated that. He started out as a pretty good kid and I had hoped he would stay that way.
Fry seems to have narrated a LOT of books. That must be his thing now.
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Yeah! He was such a bumhole. Especially when he almost killed Draco and then got barely punished for it because he is Special… and then still dared to complain about it. Angsty teenagers in general annoy me, but he was even worse than most.
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Friends tag? I had to triple-check to make sure I was at the right site…never imagined I’d see something related to the show here 😉
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😀
This is what happens when I get a hold of a list of 100 tag posts.
And if it gets you to comment, it is totally worth it! 🙂
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Actually, never watched Friends 😉 Still, the tag is quite fun. 100% agree on Asher 😀
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I wonder what you’d think of it now. Personally, I don’t know what all the fuss was about.
As for Asher, I sure hope that Jack Four was a one-off in regards to the bodily functions. That was really pushing the limits for me…
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Saw your comment about Friends being as deep as a fruit bowl, lol! Have to agree there. I watched it in the 90s like everyone else, and enjoyed it but I never saw the hype and certainly don’t understand its resurgence in popularity. In terms of what really resonated and passed the test of time, I preferred Frasier. I can still watch that today and the laughs are still just as good and certain episodes still make me tear up.
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Good ol’ Frasier. Ahhhh, that was a fantastic show!
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Haha yeah I don’t think Ross was problematic, just a bit annoying (and s good example of why you wouldn’t actually want to be in this friend group)
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For me, he was too passive. For someone so tall and not-skinny (he wasn’t ripped but he was no skinny minny!) he acted like a 98lb weakling…
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Ross steadily grew in a cringe-worthy character (so much so that I began muting his scenes when things were going off the rails) and Monica’s slowly evolved almost into a overly obsessive shrew. Honestly the Gellers are the only characters on the show that regressed while everyone else grew into better “people”.
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Did you watch this as it came out or later on after it was all released?
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As it came out and later in reruns.
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The boy who lived should have died 🤣
Completely agree
Instead he lived off the sacrifices of others and he wasn’t even that good at the spells and stuff unlike Hermione Granger 😅 (I was shocked when I watched the movie too learn how atrociously I had been (mis)pronouncing the name 🙈
~B
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Ohh man, the pronunciations were all over the place in my head. I don’t think I was very consistent 😀
Yeah, I did not like where Rowling took Potter. He started out good but it was a downward spiral as far as I was concerned.
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