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Original poster

Worst plot hole in Friends

366 replies

AlbertaWildRose · 18/04/2023 20:13

I was home sick today, and having nothing to do this popped into my head and I can't get it out until I share it! The One With Chandler in a Box, where Monica injures her eye and has to go to the eye doctor. She and Rachel are gushing over how cute the on-call doctor is, only to find out that it is Richard's son. Really?! She honestly had no idea what her ex-boyfriend's son looked like? Granted she hadn't seen him in-person for a while, but Richard really had no photos of his kids in his apartment? That just seems too far fetched to me.

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IrritableVowel · 20/04/2023 07:55

Oh a bigger thing... obviously to allow for season finales... but everything happens on same date/weekend

Chandler and Monica got together at Ross and Emily's wedding

When they go to Vegas it is their anniversary, Ross marries Rachel... nobody mentions that this time last year it was your wedding to Emily.

Kanaloa · 20/04/2023 08:35

Chickenwing2 · 20/04/2023 07:31

I noticed last night, Ross is upset that its the anniversary of him and Carol first sleeping together (his first time.) Monica says "oh i was hoping you wouldn't notice" - why would Monica know this date?

Then in the next episode Monica is on a double date with Joey and she says to Joeys date "wow, my brother didnt even tell me when he lost his virginity"

He obv did as you knew that date the previous episode!

To be honest, Monica and Ross shared WAY too much for a brother and sister. Plus there are a few scenes where they are posed together like boyfriend and girlfriend rather than brother and sister.

ShinyPikachu · 20/04/2023 08:58

Justleaveitblankthen · 20/04/2023 07:46

Phoebe having a twin.

There are huge stories when she is reconnecting with her birth family that she is never even referred to.

I can't tell you how much I hated the Twin story.
It was boring, lame and pointless and I refuse to watch any of those episodes 😂

Ursula was actually on TV before Phoebe, then Phoebe created as her twin sister. Ursula was a character in "Mad About You", a waitress in the same restaurant they went to in Friends where the characters first saw her and mistook her for Phoebe. There are characters from "Mad About You" who appear in a later episode of Friends and mistake Phoebe for Ursula too.

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Beezknees · 20/04/2023 09:09

Justleaveitblankthen · 20/04/2023 07:46

Phoebe having a twin.

There are huge stories when she is reconnecting with her birth family that she is never even referred to.

I can't tell you how much I hated the Twin story.
It was boring, lame and pointless and I refuse to watch any of those episodes 😂

To be fair I think the reason they did that was because Lisa Kudrow was already playing Ursula on another show.

midnightblue12 · 20/04/2023 09:18

Bognog · 18/04/2023 20:25

Joey and Chandler talk about watching Die Hard but then Bruce Willis pops up as Ross's girlfriends Dad

Hahahaha I never realised this before but that's a good one 🙈

sashh · 20/04/2023 09:39

Merryoldgoat · 19/04/2023 12:54

@Comedycook

When Erica gives birth the doctors are aware - it’s part of the ‘dumb Erica’ narrative as she supposedly misinterpreted two heartbeats referring to her and baby rather than one baby.

Breech can be a surprise if baby has an unstable lie. I had an unstable lie and it was only picked up because I had growth scans owing to baby measuring very big. From 38 weeks he went from ceph, breech, ceph, breech and finally ceph when I went in at 39 weeks.

I felt the bugger ever time he did it - he was nearly 10lb.

Yep, I was breech so the GP (this would be in hospital these days) did a manual turn or whatever, basically he turned me upside down, as my mum was walking home she felt me 'flip'.

This happened 3 times and they decided to just deal with it when she went into labour.

Except the day before I did my own flip and I was delivered normally.

I was also 10Lb.

whynotwhatknot · 20/04/2023 12:07

rachel was literally being checked every hour though in the labour ward and they still didnt notice the baby was breech

PyongyangKipperbang · 21/04/2023 00:18

Yeah the breech thing bugged me too. With the amount of scans and checks US women get in PG (well, those with insurance) at least the fact that the baby wasnt always presenting head down would have been picked up and kept an eye upon. Any half decent midwife/obstretician would have picked up on that in labour.

SargentSagittarius · 21/04/2023 00:30

I dunno, some of the stuff people on here are complaining about just doesn’t bother me.

If they spent all episode looking after Emma and checking the monitor it would not only completely get in the way of the story, but it would be unbelievably dull to watch. The writers know this.

The breeched baby, I mean it’s just to create a little drama. We all know it wouldn’t really be like that in real life.

It’s just called suspending your disbelief in order to enjoy a work of fiction.

There are other plots holes that are more annoying.

And again, for those late to the party: Bruce Willis playing a character on the show that is not himself is not a plot hole!

BalloonSlayer · 21/04/2023 06:28

The ursula thing is my favourite trick question - " who was the first character in Friends to be cast?"

BalloonSlayer · 21/04/2023 06:32

My biggest plothole is Monica wearing Emily's wedding dress for days. Monica is obsessed with cleanliness and a nice person - it would be totally out of character for her to wear someone's wedding dress and get it sweaty and dirty behind their back. It's a horrible thing to do.

Beezknees · 21/04/2023 06:49

BalloonSlayer · 21/04/2023 06:32

My biggest plothole is Monica wearing Emily's wedding dress for days. Monica is obsessed with cleanliness and a nice person - it would be totally out of character for her to wear someone's wedding dress and get it sweaty and dirty behind their back. It's a horrible thing to do.

Yes and it bugged me how it fitted her perfectly! Monica and Emily had different body types, Monica was very very slim.

ReasonsToBeCheerfull · 21/04/2023 12:23

My biggest plothole is Monica wearing Emily's wedding dress for days.

what episodes/series is this from? what was the context? I don't remember this at all...

xogossipgirlxo · 21/04/2023 12:48

ReasonsToBeCheerfull · 21/04/2023 12:23

My biggest plothole is Monica wearing Emily's wedding dress for days.

what episodes/series is this from? what was the context? I don't remember this at all...

"The One with All the Wedding Dresses" in season 4

MadisonAvenue · 21/04/2023 12:53

ReasonsToBeCheerfull · 21/04/2023 12:23

My biggest plothole is Monica wearing Emily's wedding dress for days.

what episodes/series is this from? what was the context? I don't remember this at all...

Its called The One With All The Wedding Dresses.
Emily found a dress she liked but it was only available in NY (she was in London) so Monica picked it up for her and tried it on in the shop.
She was later seen wearing it at home, Phoebe then turned up wearing one and by the end Rachel was in a wedding dress too.

ReasonsToBeCheerfull · 21/04/2023 13:57

thanks - yes I remember - I didn't realise she was wearing it for days I though it was just a try on.

ReasonsToBeCheerfull · 21/04/2023 14:04

another one occurred to me after reading another thread about Richard/Monica -- Richard making and keeping porn tapes of women. Just didn't ring true or fit with is supposed Mr Perfect persona.

KillingMeDeftly · 21/04/2023 14:33

No, that was a bit grim and I couldn't imagine him doing it.

I also didn't like it when they dumbed down Rachel when she and Joey liked each other. Both laughing at "homo erectus" - Rachel never would've done that before!

Beezknees · 21/04/2023 14:48

KillingMeDeftly · 21/04/2023 14:33

No, that was a bit grim and I couldn't imagine him doing it.

I also didn't like it when they dumbed down Rachel when she and Joey liked each other. Both laughing at "homo erectus" - Rachel never would've done that before!

Yeah, Rachel wasn't particularly intellectual but she never had that kind of immature humour. I think they were trying to push the Joey/Rachel angle there and trying to show how well suited they were.

xogossipgirlxo · 21/04/2023 14:57

ReasonsToBeCheerfull · 21/04/2023 13:57

thanks - yes I remember - I didn't realise she was wearing it for days I though it was just a try on.

I thought so too. It was never said in the episode she was wearing it for days.

xogossipgirlxo · 21/04/2023 15:00

KillingMeDeftly · 21/04/2023 14:33

No, that was a bit grim and I couldn't imagine him doing it.

I also didn't like it when they dumbed down Rachel when she and Joey liked each other. Both laughing at "homo erectus" - Rachel never would've done that before!

Ugh, I hated it. They just tried to make her more stupid so she would be a good fit for Joey. I think she was fine for Ross intelectually, they were just different and had different interest. Also, I hate how stupid Joey has become with each season. For example when he was learning French. Or drinking gallon of milk at the end of it.

FixMyEyebrows · 21/04/2023 15:08

IrritableVowel · 20/04/2023 07:24

Smaller contradictions bug me more than the bigger holes...

As mentioned, Chandler couldn't smile for photos, yet was fine posing on his wedding day.

Ditto being afraid of dogs, but elsewhere (when he couldn't cry) saying if he had a talking puppy he'd be rich.

When Rachel was dating Joshua, she asked Monica to help pick which nightie to wear, Monica said picking other people's sex clothes freaked her out. Years later she asked Phoebe to help her pick... seems unlikely.

When Monica doesn't realise the eye doc is Richard's son, Rachel says ge is so cute she could jam the pencil in her eye. Later Rachel is totally squeamish about eyes and has to be pinned down to get her drops.

Not a contradiction, but bugs me...When Susan says she is going to London and Emily announces she will show her around and take her to a show... it just feels so odd.
Emily is obvs not a MNter

I probably have more...

I hated how she said Joshua. 'Josh-wa'

Kanaloa · 21/04/2023 15:20

KillingMeDeftly · 21/04/2023 14:33

No, that was a bit grim and I couldn't imagine him doing it.

I also didn't like it when they dumbed down Rachel when she and Joey liked each other. Both laughing at "homo erectus" - Rachel never would've done that before!

To be fair I don’t think the Joey from the first couple of series would have been so goofy/stupid as he is laters. The characters change their personalities constantly to suit whatever plot is going on at that time.

xogossipgirlxo · 21/04/2023 15:31

Kanaloa · 21/04/2023 15:20

To be fair I don’t think the Joey from the first couple of series would have been so goofy/stupid as he is laters. The characters change their personalities constantly to suit whatever plot is going on at that time.

Show quote history

Apparently Joey was supposed to be cool guy, but then they decided to change him into dumb guy. Sometimes too much.

BalloonSlayer · 21/04/2023 15:45

She kept putting the dress on day after day, vowing to stop but being unable to. She was doing the housework wearing it. Phoebe found out and joined in. Then Rachel did too. It is definitely over a couple of days. Phoebe went out to buy hers but of course Rachel already had one from episode 1.