30 Friends Thanksgiving Episode Details You Forgot

No other sitcom has captured the fun and dysfunction of Thanksgiving quite like Friends. Each of the show's 10 seasons featured a very special Turkey Day gathering, and no matter how many times you've binged the show, you'll still get a kick out of the floating heads and sisterly slap-fighting when the episodes appear in this year's TV marathon. To celebrate Friends-giving, here's a look back at some of the finer details you might have forgotton from Friends' Thanksgiving Day episodes. And if you're in the mood to watch (again), Friends is now streaming on HBO Max. 

To prepare for his VD PSA shoot, Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc) got all gussied up. We're not talking the blue lipstick incident from those Japanese Ichiban For Men commercials, mind you, but he had on enough rouge and tinted lip balm to match wits with the girls. This was all long before his stints wearing a man bag or trying on women's underwear or even that time he got his eyebrows waxed, so this was really our first brush with the fact that Joey was pretty secure in his masculinity.

Episode: "The One Where Underdog Got Away."

Considering how terrible Monica Geller (Courteney Cox)'s first Thanksgiving meal hosting experience was, it's a wonder she invited anyone over ever again. Not only did Chandler (Matthew Perry) demand his special non-Thanksgiving meal of tomato soup, grilled cheese fixin's and a family-sized bag of Funyuns, but everyone else got ridiculously picky about potatoes and proceeded to guilt trip her into serving up spuds three different ways. Phoebe was all too delighted to have forced her hand in adding peas and carrots because she pretty much skipped away from the kitchen after she was done talking about her dead mother. Poor form, Phoebes.

Episode: "The One Where Underdog Got Away."

When Ross (David Schwimmer) was invited to come talk to his baby-to-be in Carol's belly, it wasn't much fun for anyone involved until little Ben started kicking around at the sound of his dad's singing voice. So, Ross started freeversing and lyrically promised the kid a bagel and a trip to the zoo, and that's when the kid got really excited. The phrase "born New Yorker" doesn't even cover it.

Episode: "The One Where Underdog Gets Away."

After Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) and Ross finally, finally did something about their mutual pining and shared their first kiss -- granted, it was while he was still with Julie, but still -- it's understandable why her friends would want to hear about it. And while Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow)'s reaction was pretty normal, Monica seemed to get unusually hot over the steamy details of how the make-out sesh commenced ... despite the fact that her own brother was one-half of the equation. Yech.

Episode: "The One with the List."

Monica's desperation for a job meant she was more than eager to take a gig designing recipes for a fake-chocolate company, and while the task seemed a bit ridiculous, she approached it in earnest, coming up with the idea for "Mockolate Mousse." When she shared the idea with Phoebe, however, the gal gave her dagger eyes and said it wasn't "very Thanksgiving-y." Clearly, she's never been to the south because yes, chocolate mousse is a staple of the season, pilgrim buckles or none. Get with it, Phoebe!

Episode: "The One with the List."

First of all, who thinks it's appropriate to type up and proceed to PRINT OUT a pro/con list when his buddy just wants some friendly advice about how to navigate the sticky situation of being in love with someone besides his significant other? Then, when the document jammed and only printed when the laptop closed, as printers are known to do sometimes, he's given the opportunity to get them all out of it and fails spectacularly. A guy who once dreamed of being a writer couldn't come up with a short story better than "A Lonely Grey Couch"? Pulease.

Episode: "The One with the List."

After Ross tried his best to make it up to "Rachem" for what was arguably a minor infraction in the grand scheme of things, he decided to infect her radio by having the DJ play a romantic song for her, and she was not feeling it. It only took Rachel about half a second to call in to the host and explain the whole shebang well enough to have Ross' jam turned way off, which proves that even before the internet age, lightning-fast communication was still apparently possible.

Episode: "The One with the List."

Although he'd later claim to know nothing about football as he used the day's celebratory hut-hutting to get out of helping Monica with the cooking (sigh), Chandler was definitely getting into it when he took in a game with Ross and Joey before they hit the field for their own little tag-football fracas.

Episode: "The One with the Football."

All that family drama between Ross and Monica, and for what? A dingy troll doll taped to a two-by-four? No wonder no one else cared.

Episode: "The One with the Football."

Talk about a dirty play. And that was the second set of "boobies" Chandler had seen of his girl friends after he accidentally walked in on Rachel coming out of the shower.

Episode: "The One with the Football."

Although the show would ordinarily go to great -- and sometimes even ridiculous -- lengths to cover up the unsponsored brand names of items in their apartments, Monica somehow broke that rule by wearing a full-on advertisement apron for Bertolli's.

Episode: "The One with Chandler in a Box."

When Joey went to Central Perk looking for Chandler so that they might make up over the whole Kathy cheating on him with his roommate brouhaha, he stopped to ask Gunther (James Michael Tyler) where Chandler was, and his reply was unintentionally so harsh: "I thought you were Chandler?" For a coffee barista, he sure served up some hot tea with that accidental takedown.

Episode: "The One with Chandler in a Box."

To prove she wasn't unsentimental just because she'd exchanged some jewelry Ross had given her before, Rachel whipped out her box of memories from their relationship and revealed that she'd somehow lifted an ancient fossil from the museum after they first consummated their relationship. And when Ross told her what she'd done, she didn't seem to care at all. See, kids, this is why you don't have after-hours dates in the dino department.

Episode: "The One with Chandler in a Box."

Despite Chandler's parents' very, very painful revelation that they were breaking up because his father was no longer attracted to his mother -- her words, "he would rather sleep with the house boy than me" -- "Meester Chandler" was still served up some more turkey by the paramour in question, which ... no wonder he was always so messed up about this holiday.

Episode: "The One with All the Thanksgivings."

Joey sticking his head inside a turkey's rump was hardly the weirdest thing about that situation. Where things really went off the rails is when Monica suggested that she was still planning on carving the thing up for the 20 people she was feeding at her parents' house, despite it being contaminated by all the hair gel and neck sweat.

Episode: "The One with All the Thanksgivings."

SO glad that didn't last.

Episode: "The One with All the Thanksgivings."

Those flashbacks were pretty cruel for everyone, but especially Chandler Bing.

Episode: "The One with All the Thanksgivings."

After overhearing Chandler call her fat, she spent a whole year losing weight until she was paper thin, and when his admiration of her revenge bod wasn't enough, she tried to rub herself with a knife and carrots to look even more attractive. That's ... not how it works.

Episode: "The One with All the Thanksgivings."

Most moms might be concerned that a college kid in their care lost a toe in a cooking accident, but not Judy. She was merely miffed that someone left said severed digit in her kitchen. Brutal, that one.

Episode: "The One with All the Thanksgivings."

After Rachel revealed that her recipe for a traditional English trifle included the beef, onions and peas that might better belong in a shepherd's pie, Ross took to the cookbook to find out why. When it turned out that the pages of two different recipes were stuck together, Joey said one word that cemented the filthiest joke of the whole show by yelling, "Chandler!" You get it.

Episode: "The One Where Ross Got High."

Ross wasn't really trying to get back together with Rachel when the two ended up in the hallway together, but she still turned him down with about as much grace as a freight train, telling him, "It's probably really hard for you to be alone right now ... I mean, you're alone alone." That was saltier than the trifle.

Episode: "The One Where Ross Got High."

All of those years of being mommy and daddy's favorite while little sister got disrespected, and Ross' was a throne built on lies. But "the prince" finally got found out when he had to fess up to smoking "the pot" to his parents. 'Bout time.

Episode: "The One Where Ross Got High."

"Nobody cares about the Dakotas!"

Episode: "The One Where Chandler Doesn't Like Dogs."

Chandler claimed to have been allergic to dogs, and maybe he even though he was, but Phoebe put that theory to rest when she snuck in a dog (which made her a pretty bad houseguest, by the way, especially since she let the thing do number two on the patio).

Episode: "The One Where Chandler Doesn't Like Dogs."

Okay, you probably didn't forget about this one, but anyone who co-founds the "I Hate Rachel Club" and takes responsibility for the rumor about her having a "teeny weeny" earns a mention here. 

Episode: "The One with the Rumor."

'Cause THAT'S WHAT TRIBBIANIS DO.

Episode: "The One with the Rumor."

If we thought Jill Green was a handful, Amy (Christina Applegate) came along to show that when it came to Rachel's sisters, there was no floor on how low they could go. She even broke Monica and Chandler's wedding plate by starting a slapping spat with Rachel for not letting "Emmett" go to her if she and Ross died. Woof.

Episode: "The One with Rachel's Other Sister."

For a guy who'd do almost anything for a sliver of fame (see also: being Al Pacino's butt and that Soapy's speech), it's almost unbelievable that he missed his chance to float around in front of millions as part of the Days of Our Lives float. And yet.

Episode: "The One with Rachel's Other Sister."

The cowboy outfit from Joey's Cabbage Patch doll? Really? Even if that one baby Haley was taken out of the running, it's hard to believe that was the winning look, irrespective of Emma's cute face.

Episode: "The One with the Late Thanksgiving."

Monica didn't want to cook a big Thanksgiving dinner that year, and they had the nerve to show up late? For shame, all of 'em. The vein has spoken.

Episode: "The One with the Late Thanksgiving."