Friends vs. Seinfeld

Yes, I believe the title itself is probably causing all sorts of vibrations to rise up in many of you. I'm not afraid to go there.

This is often a topic of discussion around our office here at Crossbridge. To go even further, it is the final question of every job interview we've done as well. "Friends or Seinfeld?" The person immediately feels on the hot seat and the answer they give will inevitably tattoo them for their entire tenure here at CB.

I know, I know...many of you will say "statistics don't lie...just look at the numbers." Yes, the Seinfeld finale was watched by more viewers. But, looking at the overall numbers from season to season, there is a clear winner in terms of viewers.

Seinfeld Stats

Season	Ranking	Viewership
Four (1992–93)	25	12,754,700[35]
Five (1993–94)	3	18,274,800[36]
Six (1994–95)	1	19,652,400[37]
Seven (1995–96)	2	20,330,800[38]
Eight (1996–97)	2	19,885,000[39]
Nine (1997–98)	1	21,266,000

Friends Stats

Season	Timeslot (EDT)	Season Premiere	Season Finale	TV Season	Rank	Viewers (in millions)
1	Thursday 8:30 P.M. (September 22, 1994 - February 23, 1995) Thursday 9:30 P.M.(February 23, 1995 - May 18, 1995)	September 22, 1994	May 18, 1995	1994-1995	#5	24.3
2	Thursday 8:00 P.M. (September 21, 1995 - January 18, 1996) Sunday 10:13 P.M. (January 28, 1996) Thursday 8:00 P.M. (February 1, 1996 - May 16, 1996)	September 21, 1995	May 16, 1996	1995-1996	#2	29.4
3	Thursday 8:00 P.M. (September 19, 1996 - May 17, 2001)	September 19, 1996	May 15, 1997	1996-1997	#3	25.0
4		September 25, 1997	May 7, 1998	1997-1998	#3	24.1
5		September 24, 1998	May 20, 1999	1998-1999	#2	23.5
6		September 23, 1999	May 18, 2000	1999-2000	#4	20.7
7		October 12, 2000	May 17, 2001	2000-2001	#3	20.2
8	Thursday 8:00 P.M. (September 27, 2001 - October 4, 2001) Thursday 8:50 P.M. (October 11, 2001) Thursday 8:00 P.M. (October 18, 2001 - May 16, 2002)	September 27, 2001	May 16, 2002	2001-2002	#1	24.5
9	Thursday 8:00 P.M. (September 26, 2002 - May 15, 2003)	September 26, 2002	May 15, 2003	2002-2003	#2	21.6
10	Thursday 8:00 P.M. (September 25, 2003 - April 29, 2004) Thursday 9:00 P.M. (May 6, 2004)	September 25, 2003	May 6, 2004	2003-2004	#2	22.8

Now then, I know you die hard Seinfeld loyalists are all throwing things at your computer screen right now...but really. Episode after episode I have tried to watch...with nothing more than the occasional "ha" at some mediocre joke. I do keep giving it a shot, but seriously, not funny.

Friends on the other hand...Mel and I have the entire library and we watch the show regularly. Laughing every time as hard as the first time we saw it.

So, I'll open it up to you guys for comments. Are you a Friends or Seinfeld person? Why?

I'll also set up a little poll to the right to add to the fun!