Friendsis one of my favorite TV shows, butas much as I still enjoy it, there are some episodes I always skip when rewatching.Friendsearned a place in TV history and as one ofthe best TV shows of all timethanks to its humor, performances, and the different topics it addressed, some of which were controversial when those episodes aired. Thanks to some behind-the-scenes achievements,Friendsalso became one of the most influential TV shows of all time, and while many things about it haven’t aged well, it’s still one of the most rewatchable sitcoms.
Friendssaw Monica (Courteney Cox), Chandler (Matthew Perry), Joey (Matt LeBlanc), Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow), Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), and Ross (David Schwimmer) going through a lot in their personal and professional lives, though the show tended to focus a lot onRoss and Rachel’s relationship. Still, the show had a good balance when it came to sharing the spotlight among the six characters.Friendsis full of fun momentsas well as some emotional ones, and it’s fun to see the group go through different relatable situations, but some episodes are absolutely skippable, for different reasons.
9The One Where Nana Dies Twice
Friends Season 1, Episode 8
The first season ofFriendsisn’t the best, but it gets a pass precisely for being the first season. Still, that doesn’t mean there aren’t skippable episodes in it, and at the top of the list would be “The One Where Nana Dies Twice.” In it, Chandler learns that the people at his job think he’s gay, and Monica and Ross’ grandmother dies. The rest of the episode follows the group as they attend the funeral, where some wannabe-funny situations happen, such as Ross falling into an open grave and being given painkillers that make him talk too much.
According to IMDb, the best episode ofFriendsis “The One Where Everybody Finds Out”.
The episode adds nothing to the characters(which is notable given that it’s the first season), is pretty boring, and the Chandler storyline doesn’t work anymore (and I honestly doubt it ever did). There’s nothing memorable in this episode or that has an impact on the rest of the season, so skipping it doesn’t really mess with the watching experience.
8The One Where Rachel Quits
Friends Season 3, Episode 10
The nextFriendsepisode that can be skipped is found in season 3. “The One Where Rachel Quits” sees Joey working as a tree-seller during the Christmas season, Phoebe not standing seeing Christmas trees being cut down and sold,Ross accidentally breaking the leg of a girl from the buildingand having to help her sell cookies to go to Space Camp, and Rachel quitting her job at Central Perk. Rachel is tired of being a waitress, and at the end of the episode, she gets a job at Fortunata Fashions, where she has to make coffee for her boss.
The Ross storyline is so forced to be “cute” that it doesn’t feel fitting with the rest of the episode.
Although this is the beginning of Rachel’s journey in the world of fashion, the Ross storyline is so forced to be “cute” that it doesn’t feel fitting with the rest of the episode, whilePhoebe’s storyline with the Christmas trees is too weird even for her. Truly, the only important thing in this episode is that Rachel quits her job at Central Perk, but that’s clear in the next episode.
7The One Without The Ski Trip
Friends Season 3, Episode 17
Friendsseason 3 has another episode I skip, and that’s “The One Without The Ski Trip.” Set afterRoss and Rachel’s infamous “break”, it sees the group splitting their time between spending time with Ross and spending time with Rachel. The latter invites them to her sister’s cabin for a ski trip, but on their way there, the car runs out of gas, and they have to call Ross for help. In the end, they are able to continue their trip, but Ross’ car battery dies, leaving him stranded.
The episodes after the Ross and Rachel “break” are a bit weird to watch, but this episode, in particular, feels too weird. The group’s efforts to find a way to get back into the car and find gas aren’t funny, and Ross messing with Carol’s romantic plans with Susan is uncomfortable to watch. Like other episodes on this list,this one doesn’t add anything to the characters or the show.
6The One With The Cat
Friends Season 4, Episode 2
“The One With The Cat” isn’t even an episode that the showrunners like, but they agreed to it due to creator Marta Kaufman’s grief. This is the episode where Chandler and Joey’s apartment is robbed, Monica goes out with her high school crush (who is still very immature), andPhoebe comes across a cat she’s convinced is her mother’s reincarnation. The latter makes Ross uncomfortable, and even though the rest tell him to let her be, he insists on making his opinion heard.
While the Chandler and Joey storyline is fun and Monica’s storyline with Chip is ok, what makes this episode skippable is Phoebe’s, but not because of her. Given all the trauma from her childhood and teenage years, and her unique personality, Phoebe was obviously going to have a different way of dealing with grief, such as bonding with a cat she believed carried her mother’s soul.It’s Ross’ intolerance and rudeness about it that makes this episode one that is better to skip.
5The One With The Fake Party
Friends Season 4, Episode 16
The main characters ofFriendshave some cringy storylines, and Rachel’s worst is the one with Joshua (Tate Donovan), which reaches one of its peaks in “The One With The Fake Party.”Rachel goes to lengths to get Joshua’s attention and affection, despite him saying he’s not ready for a relationship yet after his divorce. Still, Rachel uses Ross’ girlfriend, Emily, as an excuse to get closer to Joshua. Rachel throws a last-minute farewell party for Emily, which ruins Ross’ plans for a romantic evening with her.
What’s so hard to watch about this episode is Rachel’s desperate attemptsto get Joshua’s attention, which peak with her putting on her high school cheerleading uniform because it always brought her luck. Rachel hurts her lip during a cheerleading number and later tries to take her bra out of her sleeve in front of Joshua. Although it surprisingly ends well for her, watching Rachel reduce herself to all that is painful to watch.
4The One With The Yeti
Friends Season 5, Episode 6
“The One With The Yeti” takes place afterRoss and Emily’s disastrous wedding, and follows Emily’s ridiculous demands to Ross to save their marriage, which lead Ross to sell all his furniture because Emily doesn’t want furniture that Rachel sat on and to prepare to move to an apartment sublet from Emily’s cousin. Meanwhile, at the building where Monica and Chandler live,Monica and Rachel come across their new Yeti-looking neighbor, Danny, in the storage room, whom they fog with a bug bomb. When the girls apologize to him, he simply says “ok”, which they don’t take well.
Danny is one of the blandest characters in Friends, who, luckily, isn’t around for long.
After the neighbor shaves, Rachel finds him attractive, and following another misunderstanding, they go out for pizza. Danny is one of the blandest characters inFriends, who, luckily, isn’t around for long, butthe whole Yeti and storage room thing is boring and a bit cringy. The only important thing in this episode is Ross and Emily finally deciding to divorce, but that’s understood in the following episodes.
3The One Where They’re Up All Night
Friends Season 7, Episode 12
“The One Where They’re Up All Night” isn’t cringy or boring, but it’s clearly a filler episodeand doesn’t have any impact on the characters’ stories and subsequent episodes. In it, the group (plus Tag) is on the roof looking for a comet, but after hours of nothing, everyone except Joey and Ross leaves. Joey and Ross accidentally lock themselves on the roof and have to find a way to escape, while Phoebe can’t sleep because her fire alarm keeps going off.
Meanwhile, Chandler and Monica keep each other awake to talk and then have sex, and Rachel and Tag return to their office because one of them forgot to mail some papers. The episode’s title is pretty straightforward, and while it’s an entertaining episode, it can be skipped without a problem.
2The One In Barbados
Friends Season 9, Episodes 23 & 24
I will count the Barbados episodes as one because they are the same story split into two (and they are equally skippable). The group travels to Barbados for Ross’ conference, and what makes these episodes worth skipping is thatthey’re the official beginning of the controversialRachel and Joey relationship. The one important thing in these episodes is that Mike and Phoebe get back together, but things like Ross and Charlie running away from annoying colleagues and the table tennis match feel a bit off.
1The One After Joey And Rachel Kiss
Friends Season 10, Episode 1
The episode after the ones in Barbados is also skippable for the same reason… and a couple more. Rachel and Joey fail to tell Ross about them, but he walks in on them while they kiss, which makes it worse – however, Ross is now with Joey’s ex, Charlie, who broke up with him in Barbados, so he isn’t really a victim here. Meanwhile, Mike tells Phoebe he has a girlfriend he has to break up with, and due to miscommunication, Phoebe and Mike’s girlfriend end up meeting at his apartment.
The conversation between Phoebe and Mike’s girlfriend is awkward and feels off, which adds to the episode’s awkwardness. Of course, Joey and Rachel are the main reason why this episode is one I tend to skip when rewatchingFriends, but the episode in general isn’t one worth watching more than once.
