As something of an archivist, the issue of lost media is always a concern. Following the removal of Girlfriends from Netflix, I’ve been concerned about the show becoming lost media. That fear, however, has been eliminated, as all eight seasons of the show are now streaming for free on Pluto TV. That’s right, Joan, Toni, Lynn, Maya and the rest of the crew have officially found a new home. Starring Tracee Ellis Ross, Golden Brooks, Jill Marie Jones and Persia White, the sitcom first premiered in 2000 and focused on the lives of four Black women going through the motions of life and everything that comes with it (relationships, divorces, friendship battles, career growth and the whole nine yards). 

RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: The Cast of Paramount+ Hits ‘Average Joe’ Breaks Down Season 2’s High-Stakes Return

Created by Mara Brock-Ali, Girlfriends was a UPN exclusive at the time of its release in September 2000, and it aired for its first six seasons until May 8, 2006. From there, it moved to The CW, where it aired for two more seasons until its abrupt ending (which I’m still upset about to this day) in February 2008. Throughout the time of its airing, the series received a number of awards, including a BET Award in 2005 for “Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series,” and four NAACP awards between the years 2005 and 2009. 

Why ‘Girlfriends’ Remains an Unmatched Cultural Touchstone

In 2019, Ross, Brooks, Jones and White reunited for a very special episode of Ross’s hit television show, Black-ish, for the episode “Feminisn’t,” which explored the differences that appear in black and white communities when it comes to feminism. Also included in the episode were different callbacks to Girlfriends, including a shot that referenced the show’s theme song and opening sequence. At the time, Ross told Entertainment Weekly, “We’ve all been having this idea forever! How to do it? When to do it? What the right way is to do it? All those kinds of things. We’ve been through lots of incarnations of conversations. Do we do a movie? Can we get the funding?”

And while Ross’s recent comments indicate that there may be some bumps in the road as far as an official reunion, you never know what can happen in the future. In the meantime, all eight seasons are available to binge-watch on Pluto TV.

Featured Photo: CW

RELATED: Y2K Fast Food Nostalgia: The Story Behind SpongeBob SquarePants’ Debut 2001 Burger King Kids Meal