Rachel with Ross, Friends bid bye

At the show’s end, Rachel, played by Jennifer Aniston, decides at the 11th hour to stay in New York with Ross, David Schwimmer’s character, rather than fly to Paris, binding the star-crossed lovers together at last as the curtain came down on American television’s top-rated comedy.

Her change of heart comes after a comically frantic race to the airport, where Ross desperately begs her to stay, only for Rachel to rebuff him and board the plane. An anguished Ross goes home to find a confessional message on his answering machine from Rachel, who unexpectedly appears in his doorway to announce, ‘‘I got off the plane.’’ The two kiss, embrace and pledge never to leave each other again.

The off-and-on romance between Rachel and Ross had remained one of the show’s underpinnings since the start and rivalled some of the most storied love affairs in prime-time history, ranking with Sam and Diane from Cheers and George Clooney and Julianna Margulies on ER.

Tying up another loose thread, the surrogate mother for the show’s other central couple, Monica and Chandler (who wed at the start of season eight) surprised the expectant adopting parents by giving birth to twins — a boy and a girl.

The finale concludes with moving men clearing out Monica’s apartment as she and Chandler get ready to head for their new house in the suburbs.

The final episode, expected to draw some 40 million to 50 million viewers, commanded sold-out, Super Bowl-sized advertising rates averaging $2 million for each 30-second commercial, a sitcom record. — Reuters