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Various opinions on F.R.I.E.N.D.S

326 replies

DivorceAdvicePlease123 · 31/10/2021 17:24

I'm clearly a bit bored...

Richard Burke is my perfect man and he and Monica made a much better couple than she and Chandler.

I really couldn't stand Susan. Or Emily.

Ross Geller is the funniest friend and mellowed a lot as he aged.

The Rachel and Joey hook up was totally wrong on all levels. She just wouldn't have gone there.

Kathy cheating on Chandler was pretty unbelievable (in real life both actors protested this, obviously to no avail).

Phoebe was a bit of a bitch who often threw her friends under the bus.

I preferred David the science guy to Mike, he was very funny.

It would have been nice for Joey to have a happier ending, a dream woman or part in a hit show.

Rachel's wardrobe is absolutely incredible.

Monica's Mum is really awful to her.

I hate to say it but Joey is a bit of a loser. Though he was the only one who never got drunk throughout the entire show.

Janice was actually really nice.

I'm sure I have more :-)

OP posts:
RachelHasThoseInBurgundy · 03/11/2021 11:47

I think the reference to “sperm donor” has been given much more weight on this thread than the line actually implied.

They didn’t tell Ross he was just the sperm donor. The line was delivered by susan, in the absence of carol, as a joke playing on Ross’ understandable insecurities. He was asking her if they spoke to the unborn baby about him and she said “yes, but we just refer to you as Bobo the sperm guy”. It was a mean joke but there was no truth in it. And it was the only time it was ever said.

Kanaloa · 03/11/2021 11:50

@ChequerBoard

It makes a huge difference? You said ‘Carol and Susan had been together for quite a while and had agreed Carol would seduce Ross to use as their sperm donor’ and I was responding that I don’t think that’s likely given that Ross finds out Carol’s pregnant very soon after he tells people they’ve split up. I think in the pilot he says they’ve split up and that same episode or the next one finds out she’s pregnant. So it’s obviously not a situation of Carol and Susan being this long running relationship.

PumpkinSpiceGirl · 03/11/2021 12:30

In one of the flashback episodes Ross tells Phoebe that things are going better in their marriage since Carol met a new friend (at the gym?) and you get the impression it was going on for a while before he found out because of the timeline of other things that happen in that flashback - not that timing is a strong point on Friends!

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BorderlineHappy · 03/11/2021 14:59

Im sure the affair started when Ross and Carol had a threesome.
Cause he made a sandwich cause he didnt get any action because Carol and Susan only wanted each other not him.

ChequerBoard · 03/11/2021 15:07

@BorderlineHappy

Im sure the affair started when Ross and Carol had a threesome. Cause he made a sandwich cause he didnt get any action because Carol and Susan only wanted each other not him.

Yes I remember than episode - cringe!

SoniaFouler · 03/11/2021 15:09

@PumpkinSpiceGirl

In one of the flashback episodes Ross tells Phoebe that things are going better in their marriage since Carol met a new friend (at the gym?) and you get the impression it was going on for a while before he found out because of the timeline of other things that happen in that flashback - not that timing is a strong point on Friends!
That wasn’t a flashback episode, that was “the one that could have been”
RachelHasThoseInBurgundy · 03/11/2021 15:11

@BorderlineHappy

Im sure the affair started when Ross and Carol had a threesome. Cause he made a sandwich cause he didnt get any action because Carol and Susan only wanted each other not him.
Was that not in the “way it could have been” episode?
BlusteringBoobies · 03/11/2021 16:02

Yes to the above is correct.

The One that Could Have Been showed what would happen if Ross was still married to Carol and this introduced Susan in the threesome scenario.

Complete fabrication from history and also had Rachel still married to Barry and Chandler as Joeys assistant, and Monica losing her flower to Chandler

OhMyCrump · 03/11/2021 16:38

Carol left Ross and set up home with Susan. At some point after that she went to Ross's apartment and slept with him. Hence using him as their (Carol and Susan's) sperm donor.

I always thought it was Carol leaves Ross for Susan but quickly discovers she is actually pregnant by Ross.

RachelHasThoseInBurgundy · 03/11/2021 16:53

Yes it was a very very quick time between carol leaving Ross and her coming to tell him she was pregnant. I think they either happened the same episode or the one after another. Pilot episode began with everyone comforting Ross in the coffee house because carol had moved her stuff out that day. Then later (I think it’s the next episode) carol comes to the museum and tells him she is pregnant. They were obviously having sex until at least a few weeks before she left. Not sure how long she had been seeing Susan for.

SnowWhitesSM · 03/11/2021 17:23

They weren't having lots of sex. Ross was doing karateA to release his tension.

TangledUp789 · 03/11/2021 17:43

It’s interesting how people always bring up the Richard/Monica and Ross/Elizabeth age gaps, but never Frank and Alice. A 44 year old teacher sleeping with her clearly vulnerable 18 year old student. He even still called her ‘Mrs Knight’. I mean I think their episodes were very funny personally, but if we’re talking grossest age gaps then that’s definitely the worst.

I’d also like to stick up for Ross, who despite his flaws is clearly the sweetest of the Friends:

  • Giving away Carol at her wedding to Susan, after they both treated him like dirt (having an affair, calling him a sperm donor and wanting to give Ben the surname Willick-Bunch)
  • Missing his big TV appearance to take Rachel to the hospital when she injures herself (and keeping it a secret from Rachel so she doesn’t feel bad)
  • Kissing Joey to help him get an acting role
  • Buying Phoebe her first bike when he learns she didn’t have one as a child
  • Selling cookies to try and win the little girl a trip to space camp, after accidentally pushing her down the stairs
RachelHasThoseInBurgundy · 03/11/2021 18:35

Fun fact: the little girl from that episode is the woman who plays Annie in Good girls on Netflix.

NotExactlyOptimistic · 04/11/2021 19:22

Another fun fact: Danny the Yeti (aka the sister shagger) was the groom in Father of the Bride :-)

RachelHasThoseInBurgundy · 04/11/2021 19:24

Yes he was! Brian!

amusedbush · 05/11/2021 19:42

@DivorceAdvicePlease123

I've never watched a single episode of SATC. Hopefully Netflix will pick it up at some point!
They won't - HBO have their own streaming platform in the US so Netflix probably won't get the rights. It's on Sky Boxsets (if that's still what it's called? Blush) if you have that though! It's so terrible and I hate Carrie so much but I can't help rewatching it.

Anyway, back to Friends: I absolutely fucking detest Ross. I was a huge Ross/Rachel shipper as a teenager watching it on E4 but I binged it when it was added to Netflix a couple of Christmases ago and I couldn't believe how much I hated him. I was shocked by how short their relationship actually was and I was physically grinding my teeth watching the episode where he's harassing her and embarrassing her at her work when she told him she was on a deadline. Then the episode after they broke up, when the group needs to make separate plans - Rachel accepts it but he whinges and huffs until they offer to cancel their skiing trip for him. He's the most pathetic, needy, controlling, arrogant piece of shit and I can barely watch it now thanks to him.

HandlebarLadyTash · 05/11/2021 21:31

Joey getting more stupid as the series progressed annoyed me. Actually all the characters becoming more exaggerated as the series progressed annoyed me.
Didnt stop me loving Janice

SoniaFouler · 05/11/2021 21:50

@amusedbush
Then the episode after they broke up, when the group needs to make separate plans - Rachel accepts it but he whinges and huffs until they offer to cancel their skiing trip for him.

HUH? I don’t remember the episode being like that at all Confused From what I remember, Ross arranged plans with the rest of the Friends and when Rachel tried to arrange something for the same night, they awkwardly told her they had made plans with Ross first and she was disappointed. She then invites them to go skiing on another day and says “I’m playing by the rules, because I asked you first” and they accept. None of them cancelled the skiing trip, because later the car breaks down and Carol (who Ross is having dinner with) persuades Ross to drive all that way to them in the snow and ice in her car to rescue them after their car breaks down. When he arrived, the friends (minus Rachel) discuss whether they should invite him to the ski trip after he drove all that way to help them and when Rachel overhears this, she throws the tantrum and says no, of course he can’t.

amusedbush · 05/11/2021 21:53

[quote SoniaFouler]@amusedbush
Then the episode after they broke up, when the group needs to make separate plans - Rachel accepts it but he whinges and huffs until they offer to cancel their skiing trip for him.

HUH? I don’t remember the episode being like that at all Confused From what I remember, Ross arranged plans with the rest of the Friends and when Rachel tried to arrange something for the same night, they awkwardly told her they had made plans with Ross first and she was disappointed. She then invites them to go skiing on another day and says “I’m playing by the rules, because I asked you first” and they accept. None of them cancelled the skiing trip, because later the car breaks down and Carol (who Ross is having dinner with) persuades Ross to drive all that way to them in the snow and ice in her car to rescue them after their car breaks down. When he arrived, the friends (minus Rachel) discuss whether they should invite him to the ski trip after he drove all that way to help them and when Rachel overhears this, she throws the tantrum and says no, of course he can’t.[/quote]
She was disappointed but accepted it. When Ross then invites them over to play darts, they say they're going skiing and he starts whining about "well, okay, if ALL of you HAVE to go away the very first weekend I'm alone... that's fine", really pointedly. A couple of them then offer to stay back with him.

SoniaFouler · 05/11/2021 21:58

@amusedbush
She was disappointed but accepted it. When Ross then invites them over to play darts, they say they're going skiing and he starts whining about "well, okay, if ALL of you HAVE to go away the very first weekend I'm alone... that's fine", really pointedly. A couple of them then offer to stay back with him.

I remember the line when Monica says “I’ll stay, he is my brother” and he says “a PITY stay!?” and then says something like “no, just go”. It wasn’t any more pointedly than Rachel and none of them ended up staying with him anyway… it’s funny how people see the show so differently, I’m beginning to understand why WE WERE ON A BREAK went on for so long and was so divisive Grin

amusedbush · 05/11/2021 22:13

@SoniaFouler

But then he goes and ruins Carol's night as well, eats all of her food and is so busy moaning about himself AND he lies about why he and Rachel broke up to make himself look better.

I guess I'm so anti-Ross I'm interpreting the whole episode as him being a massive dickhead Grin you're right, this could be debated for years to come!

amusedbush · 05/11/2021 22:13

*is so busy moaning about himself he doesn't hear a word she says

3luckystars · 05/11/2021 22:28

They are together for very little of it really.

ReginaaPhalange · 05/11/2021 23:03

I've just watched the episode in question @amusedbush and I agree with you (and I like Ross). He's tried to make out he's the victim, especially by not telling the truth to carol. He does it quite a lot throughout the 10 seasons. Another occurrence which sticks out is when Ross and Monica's parents come for thanksgiving dinner and Monica finds out Ross told them that chandler smoked pot in college when it was Ross. When Monica told Ross to confess, he said "ok, now who shall I say tricked me?". He can never accept he's in the wrong and tried to come off as the innocent party.

amusedbush · 05/11/2021 23:12

@ReginaaPhalange

Yesss that's a great example! He's just so whiny and has a massive victim complex. He thinks the world owes him, which is probably something to do with the fact that his mother treated him like the second coming.