Ranking The Worst Episodes Of 'Friends'
- Kayla Caldwell
- Aug 26, 2022
- 8 min read
Counting down the worst episodes of Friends. We all have our favorites, but which are the episodes you choose to skip when you’re watching the series over? Perhaps you're Team Geller-Greene and can’t stand "The One with the List," or would rather turn off the TV than watch "The One Where Ross and Rachel Take a Break."
Below I've compiled the Friends worst episodes, such as "The One with the Invitation." Is "The One Where Chandler Can’t Remember Which Sister" the worst Friends episode? Make your voice heard.
There are 10 seasons to choose from, so plenty of fodder when it comes to the worst Friends episodes. These are arranged in the order in which they were ranked by hundreds of voters on Ranker.
1. "The One With Ross And Monica's Cousin"
Ross becomes infatuated with his own cousin (Denise Richards). The running joke is supposed to be that she is so beautiful, that Chandler, Phoebe, and even Ross are attracted to her. The problem is that incest... just isn't funny.
Meanwhile, Phoebe and Rachel realize they've completely forgotten to plan Monica's wedding shower, so they have to rush to make it happen. To make this episode even stranger, Joey is up for a big movie role, but it requires him to be "physically not Jewish." Monica tries to help him out by creating a faux, let's just say, "turtleneck" for his nether regions to disastrous effect.
Most uncomfortable moment: Ross goes in for the kiss, and when his cousin recoils, demanding to know what he is doing, he says, "I haven't had sex in a very long time."
Season: 7 Episode Number: 19
2. "The One With The Sharks"
None of the episodes featuring Chandler in Tulsa are really anything to write home about. However, this one is particularly ridiculous. Monica surprises Chandler at his hotel, where he had been watching an adult film. In an effort to hide what he'd been doing, Chandler quickly changed the channel to what ended up being a shark attack series.
So, naturally, Monica assumes Chandler has a thing for sharks. It's an incredibly goofy subplot, but it does show how ride or die Monica is, as she later tries to surprise him with what she thinks is his big turn on: sharks.
Most uncomfortable moment: Ross makes Phoebe emotional after pointing out that she's never had a serious relationship, right before Mike is supposed to come over for a date. He tries to fix the situation by making up an ex named Vikram, but it just makes everything worse.
Season: 9 Episode Number: 4
3. "The One Where Joey Tells Rachel"
Friends has always been about Ross and Rachel. Their love story is the saga that brings most of the drama and excitement to the show. Joey is the single ladies' man. So it's just out of left field to have Joey falling for Rachel, especially while she's pregnant with Ross's child.
It brings unnecessary tension between Ross and Joey, and Rachel and Joey. This is the episode where Joey first confesses his love for her, and they both end up in tears.
Most uncomfortable moment: Rachel's reaction to Joey confessing his love to her feels authentic, and therefore, painfully awkward and sad.
Season: 8 Episode Number: 16
4. "The One With Mac And C.H.E.E.S.E."
This is not only a clips show, but it introduces Joey's ridiculous show, Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E., with C.H.E.E.S.E. standing for Computerized Humanoid Electronically Enhanced Secret Enforcer.
Chandler gets interrupted while writing down information about Joey's important audition. So the episode mostly revolves around other clips of the friends making mistakes. Season six is really strong for the most part, so this blip really stands out.
Most uncomfortable moment: When Joey complains about how lame the robot is, not realizing he was talking to the operator and creator.
Season: 6 Episode Number: 20
5. "The One With The Invitation"
This is one of the dreaded clips episodes. Ross is getting married, and has to decide if he is going to invite Rachel to his wedding. While it's nice to get a look at Ross and Rachel's relationship over the years, since this is just a clips episode, it doesn't really contribute anything new.
It's also sad for Ross and Rachel fans, since you see everything falling apart. If you're watching the series back for a second or third (or fourth!) time, it's easily one of the more skippable episodes.
Most uncomfortable moment: When Emily is surprised Ross wants to invite Rachel, because she'd never want an ex at her wedding.
Season: 4 Episode Number: 21
6. "The One With Christmas In Tulsa"
This is another of the famous Friends clips shows. This one is particularly bad, because the framing for it is that Chandler is stuck in Tulsa on Christmas, missing his friends and wife back home. Selma Blair guest stars as a former pageant girl, who, unhappy in her own relationship, decides Christmas is the best time to make a pass at her married boss.
Meanwhile, at home in New York, Monica is convinced that Chandler is going to cheat on her. However, the silver lining here is that the come on encouraged Chandler to finally quit his job and return home to his friends.
Most uncomfortable moment: After Monica finds out Chandler is alone in the office with "the second prettiest girl in Oklahoma," her tone immediately changes, and she hangs up as quickly as possible.
Season: 9 Episode Number: 10
7. "The One With The Joke"
This episode has its funny moments. Phoebe says she'd rather date Rachel than Monica, because Monica is so high-maintenance. It's adorable, later on in the episode when Chandler says it's okay that Monica is high-maintenance, because he likes "maintaining her."
However, the majority of the episode is taken over by Ross and Chandler fighting over a joke that got published in Playboy. Each insist they wrote the joke, and neither will give in. Not only do we never even hear the joke in its entirety, but Monica eventually calls it offensive. So then they both claim they didn't write it.
Most uncomfortable moment: Joey, the new waiter at Central Perk, tries to take orders from his friends, and the entire cafe, by pretending he's doing so because he's going up to the counter anyway.
Season: 6 Episode Number: 12
8. "The One Where No One Proposes"
This is another hiccup on the road to Ross and Rachel's happiness. They were so close to starting to date again, following the birth of their daughter. However, when Ross realizes that Rachel had said yes to Joey, he is too upset to move forward with her romantically.
It's a devastating episode for Rachel in particular, because she sees how close she was to happiness, and that she ruined it by acting impulsively because she was scared of being alone.
Most uncomfortable moment: When Ross finally realizes that Rachel thought Joey had proposed... and she said yes.
Season: 9 Episode Number: 1
9. "The One with the Cake"
The biggest sin of "The One With The Cake" is really just being boring. Rachel wants to plan the absolute perfect first birthday party for Emma. However, things go awry when she realizes that instead of a bunny cake with her daughter's face on it, the bakery had made a mistake, and given her a much more adult confectionary.
As she and Ross drive to the bakery to rectify the situation, the rest of the friends try to figure out how to get out of staying at the party.
Most uncomfortable moment: Rachel cries in the car after realizing everyone but Monica and Chandler have left the party, and it is too late to get to the bakery for a new cake.
Season: 10 Episode Number: 4
10. "The One Where Chandler Gets Caught"
This is another of the oft criticized clips episodes. Phoebe and Rachel think Chandler is cheating on Monica after they see him with an unfamiliar blonde woman. They go as far as to tell Monica, before it's revealed that the blonde woman is actually their realtor.
They've decided to move outside of the city, since they have a baby on the way, and the rest of their friends are not okay with it. This is the last of the six clips episodes of the series, and marks the beginning of the end of Friends.
Most uncomfortable moment: It pales in comparison to some others on this list - but when Chandler pulls a Michael Scott, saying he and Monica didn't get the house, only to reveal after the other friends leave that in reality, their bid had been accepted. They were moving to the suburbs.
Season: 10 Episode Number: 10
11. "The One With The Vows"
This is another clips episode, looking back over the highlights of Monica and Chandler's relationship, since neither of them can think of what to write in their wedding vows.
"The One with the Vows" is mostly flashbacks, and is actually the lowest-rated episode in the series, with only 15.65 million viewers. That's a lot, of course, but for reference, the premiere of the seventh season had 25.54 million viewers.
Most uncomfortable moment: Thankfully, there's not much cringe going on, as it's a fairly sweet episode.
Season: 7 Episode Number: 21
This episode earned a spot on the list because it is so obviously not politically correct. Admittedly, I have found this episode funny before, but watching it now, it's over the top in its portrayal of Joey's Italian heritage. His sisters are all stereotypes who want to either kiss or punch Chandler.
Meanwhile, this episode brings Mark (Steven Eckholdt) into the fold. He's entertaining at first, and it's funny to hear Rachel vent about her job problems while Monica wears a padded bra and serves food at a kitschy themed diner. However, the jealousy he brings out in Ross, and all of the fights that revolve around him eventually get pretty tedious.
Most uncomfortable moment: Joey's entire family is gathered around Chandler, and one of his sisters says that Chandler was trying to make out with her because he "thought I was Mary Angela."
Season: 3 Episode Number: 11
13. "The One With The List"
This episode should've been triumphant. Ross and Rachel finally kissed. Ross broke up with Julie for Rachel! However, just when it seems like everything has finally worked out, Rachel notices the pros and cons list Chandler typed up for Ross. It's heartbreaking, and erases all of the joy from the previous episode.
The two can't communicate with each other and it ends with Ross in the rain, and the song he requested for Rachel turned off because the DJ deemed what Ross had done as "pretty appalling." It's easy to skip, simply because it's such a bummer.
Most uncomfortable moment: When Rachel grabs the list and about all of her flaws.
Season: 2 Episode Number: 8
14. "The One Where Ross And Rachel Take A Break"
The silver lining of this episode is Phoebe, Monica, Joey, and Chandler, who are trapped in Monica's room after Ross and Rachel's most dramatic fight breaks out. Monica and Phoebe have the guys try waxing their legs with supposed miracle product "Waxene!" to disastrous - and hilarious - effect.
However, the rest of the episode is about whether or not Ross cheated on Rachel with his fling with the copy girl. Rachel believes yes, and the two break up, seemingly for good. It's a difficult pill to swallow for Ross and Rachel shippers.
Most uncomfortable moment: When Rachel asks Ross how Chloe (Angela Featherstone) was, and he says, "different." Chandler's response to Ross's answer is funny, but the moment overall is painful and sad.
Season: 3 Episode Number: 15
15. "The One Where Rachel Has A Baby"
There are silver linings to this two-parter, which features Rachel going into labor, and dealing with the painful waiting in this hospital to deliver her baby. Janice (Maggie Wheeler) makes an appearance, to Chandler's dismay. Monica and Chandler decide they want to have a baby... and get it on in the hospital.
The cringeworthy part comes in the second half of the episode, when Ross's grandmother's ring falls out of his pocket, and Joey picks it up, leading Rachel to believe he had proposed to her. It only gets worse when Rachel says yes, leading to a host of problems between her, Joey, and Ross, and setting their relationship back another year.
Most uncomfortable moment: When Rachel says, "yes."
Season: 8 Episode Number: 24
This was originally published on Ranker.com.
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