One of the great strengths of the sitcom “Friends” was that its ensemble cast represented six very familiar categories of people: the geeky one, the prom queen, the control freak, the kooky one, the player and the funny one.
Viewers felt close to the characters because they could see themselves fitting in to one of the six categories.
Even 1o years after the show ended, members of Generation-Y still turn to each other and say, "You're definitely a Rachel," or "That was a Joey moment."
However, do those six social types still work for us now that Generation-Y is growing up? Has the rise of social media and the economic crash changed us into a whole new set of categories? Are our friends still like “Friends”?
Here are the categories that might more accurately represent the “Friends” generation now that we are their age.
The Crafty One
It might be a money-saving scheme or just a sudden, widespread nostalgia for the 50s, but we all know someone who would rather make or bake than buy. We can usually find this person wearing oven gloves, sitting hunched over a sewing machine or on the floor surrounded by glue and sequins.
This person’s instinctive reaction to any special event is working out what he or she can make for the occasion, whether it's a birthday, Bar Mitzvah or game night. This person is also usually the one who uses Instagram the most; it’s a great way to showcase crafty achievements.
If you can't remember the last time you bought milk, but you know you've got vanilla pods and peppermint essence, you might just be the crafty one in your social group.
The Social Media Guru
Also known as the App Master, this member of the social circle is a bizarre combination of anti-social and socialite. This is the friend who always checks you guys in on Foursquare when you meet for drinks and will spend the whole night taking photos of your group.
These photos will end up on the Internet -- filtered, tweaked and tagged -- the next morning before the rest of you even get the chance to reach for the Alka Seltzer.
This friend always knows about the next Apple product release first and has already completed the hardest level on whichever app game is popular this month. This person is always present in group gatherings but is never far from Facebook.
This member of the social group can organize any event with incredible efficiency, but can't go for more than five minutes without checking Twitter.
The Success Story
There's one in every group. Whether a childhood dream, the perfect marriage, the perfect career or even the perfect hairstyle, one friend will have managed to get everything he or she wants years ahead of the rest of you.
Sometimes, the person's worked hard to get there, but more often than not, he or she just seems to have commandeered the group's quota of luck.
This friend is the one who means well, but doesn't really understand why the rest of the group is so down about where they are in life. Some of the group will be jealous, but as a team, it's best to just be proud of the success story. After all, good luck sometimes rubs off on people.
The College Kid
Also referred to as the Peter Pan, this is the friend who refuses to grow up. In college, this was the friend who could get alcohol, get the gang into any gig and always get the party started.
As graduates, the rest of the group will have begrudgingly accepted that it's not okay to get wasted on a Tuesday night anymore, but the college kid could not disagree more.
Usually found trying to turn a quiet catchup into an all-night rave, this person still lives on noodles and garlic bread. Endearing but often frustrating, this friend is often the one about whom everyone secretly worries.
This is the friend whose longest relationship was with a potted plant and the one who will probably still be planning practical jokes when the rest of you are planning families.
The Token Grown-Up
At the opposite end of the spectrum from the college kid, the token grownup is the friend who has truly embraced adult living. This friend will be the only member of your social circle who genuinely knows how to bleed a radiator or fill out a tax return.
This friend will roll his or her eyes and sigh, but will secretly love being the one to whom everyone else turns in a crisis. This friend is organized and a sensible planner who has accepted the hard facts of modern life.
Calmly and conscientiously working his or her way up a straightforward career ladder, the grown-up group member always gets a good night's sleep, five portions of fruit a day and probably has personal business cards. This friend is hopeful that in 10 years' time, the group will have given in to the proper grown-up way of living.
The Chandler
Although many of the “Friends” stereotypes have shifted, this one never goes out of style. There is always one member of your social circle who would rather make a joke than a serious point and who copes with adult life by constantly mocking it.
The Chandler of the group is insecure, prone to sarcasm and not entirely sure what he or she is doing in life. This friend can usually be found complaining about his or her job, a post-college placeholder that never ended.
Not very skilled at relationships and secretly terrified of ending up alone when the rest of the gang is married and settled, this friend is half-skeptic, half-awkward, but secretly, everyone’s favorite.
So, which one are you?
Photo Courtesy: NBC/Friends
