I watched that episode two days ago - I think the whole episode is just an excuse to mention Pottery Barn as much as possible, and any plot device pulled out of thin air will do! One of my least favourite episodes - so much shouting in it - but at least it gets Janine out of the way.

I feel the opposite. I never really liked Ross until around season 5 onwards. I think Ross had a lot of hilarious moments in the later seasons.

I think I prefer crazy messed up Ross to whiny jealous Ross.
I didn't like the way they kept focussing on his three weddings/marraiges though like the one with Rachel counted.
Like when they were moaning about not getting engagement presents - they weren't engaged!
Or when he was going on about how great proposing was - he only did it twice with a long gap in between.
Or when he said about how much he loved being married , he only had one marraige really his marraige to Emily was actually over before to began!

I didn't like the storyline of Ross and Rachel getting married it served no purpose really apart from a few "Dur Ross Three Divorces Dur".

Never quite knew how old they all were. Ross and Chandler, and Monica and Rachel were always the same as each other (despite changing from year-to-year) and Joey's age changed frequently. I think the only constant was that Phoebe was the eldest.

Going slightly off-topic onto something I've probably said before, does anyone else here remember reading spoilers for the final series which said that Ross would propose to Rachel at the end? It doesn't appear to have been widely discussed because I remember the line that Rachel was supposed to respond with, "I'll be better than your third wife", but googling that only brings up a few speculative results. The spoilers all turned out to be true apart from that one part, so I wonder whether it was just made up or cut for some reason. Either way, I was sat expecting that moment and its absence contributed to what I thought was a weak ending!

I can't remember that to be honest but I was good and didnt read spoilers back then maybe thats why.

Few more Ross related gripes well not really gripes ... gripettes if you will:
When Ross's mam gives him the ring to give to Rachel theres no mention of the fact that he once had it to give to Emily. It wasn't like Judy not to get a dig in about that.

The storyline with Ross and Mona and the holiday card was out of character for Ross. Giving her the key then changing the lock was like something Chandler would've done with Janice!
Maybe it was meant to be a case of Ross having learned from past mistakes of rushing in too fast and
not knowing how to deal with going slow.

I always just got the feeling that he wasn't that into Mona - he was always lying to her, forgetting to meet her, etc. I think the point was that he was very distracted by Rachel and his subconscious desire to be with her

Good point
Ross always had form for ditching perfectly nice girls just for a whiff of Rachel!

Just watched one of the repeats on Comedy Central & found a great one..

In the one with Frank Jr, Ross makes a list of 5 female celebrities he would sleep with. He prints of the list, laminates it and then holds it up in front of the gang. If you pause it you can actually read the list, it reads:

1. Uma Thurman
2. Isabella Rossellini
3. Elizabeth Hurley
4. Vanessa Williams
5. Dorothy Hemill

Rachel then takes the list and reads it out to everyone, however when she reads it the list is as follows:

1. Uma Thurman
2. Winona Ryder
3. Elizabeth Hurley
4. Michelle Pfeiffer
5. Dorothy Hemmill

Strangeeeee!!!

So she was on his list all along!!!

Don't think this has been mentioned.

In the final series during Emma's birthday episode, Judy Geller mentions that her mother died very young, but we saw her mother die 'twice' in the first season. She can't have been any younger than 70

Oooh nice one

Not a gripe but I have to share this very unpopular opinion but I detested chandler, found him ridiculously unfunny and I blame matthew perry for it. He was basically playing himself, he over acted constantly, showing off the entire time, and some of his scenes were embarrassing to watch.

I'm preparing myself to get murdered now.

Until he got with Monica, he was the funniest character on the show.

I loved the Chandler/Monica pairing, so much more believable than Rache/Ross.

Chandler was my favourite but there were some very weak moments, esp after he got with Monica, so I can see how people might not like him.

I kind of agree. Having seen him in The West Wing, it's a bit of a shock to see how good Mathew Perry can be, when he's not painfully mugging for a studio audience. Every time you see Chandler running from something - every single time - he has this strange, annoying, look at me expression on his face.

In fairness rachel only met chandler once or twice through ross so the introduction by Monica in the pilot was years later

^ I don't think what was shown in the Pilot matters. The Pilot is not necessarily a series' first episode. It's just to gauge a reaction to the show before further episodes are filmed, so there can be many changes afterwards.

I'm glad that I have a better understanding of what a Pilot episode is these days. I always used to presume that it was just what the first episode of a show was called, for some reason!

Having said all that, I don't think I realised that was a Pilot episode of Friends!

Anyway...

Just watching the one where Phoebe gives birth to the triplets and I hate the rubbish with the Fonzie obsessed Doctor, it's not just stupid but really, really stupid :yawn: it's just the way he comes in say some pregnancy related stuff then says "also I love Fonzie" at the end. If it had been more subtle with things like "as Fonzie would say..." or some Fonzie anecdotes it wouldn't be so bad.

But technically when a pilot is broadcast as the first episode it then becomes the show's first episode. Granted, there will still be many changes, but once it's aired then it's out there.

A pilot is shown to test audiences before the show is even greenlit so the true "pilot" can be altered to shape a first episode before it's even broadcast.

Oh, me too. Why on earth would the Doctor announce his love of Fonzie? It has no bearing on the birth whatsoever.

I agree with what you say about the writing. If they wanted a Fonzie obsessed character they should have written it better.

My gripe with friends was always how mean Rachel was to Ross. Maybe not intentionally mean, but she screwed with his life A LOT. I have to admit to being firmly on Ross's side about being "on a break". lol Or at least to a degree. He did a messed up thing, but her labelling him as a "cheater" wasn't accurate. Did she really think he was some kind of playboy who would mess her about if they got back together? I can totally understand her being upset with him about it, but all the rest was dramatics on her part, imo.
And then she went on a date with Mark...kinda proving Ross's theory that the guy liked Rachel all along.
Then she lumped him with Emily so she could date...I wanna say Joshua? And when they hit it off, got all jealous and went to stop the wedding...which, to her credit, she didn't! But STAYED at the reception to make things all about her.
She always tried to make out she didn't really ever want Ross, but Monica and Chandler's engagement, when they conceived Emma, and when her dad was poorly in hospital are ALL examples of HER coming onto HIM.
Gave some random guy from a bar the number to HIS apartment, right after they had Emma.

...now I'm feeling sad for myself that I know all of these things and harbour all these feelings about them. I need a cup of tea! :P

It didn't matter if Mark fancied Rachel. Ross should have trusted her enough not to sleep with a guy just because that guy is attracted to her.

Ross was jealous, controlling prick who got what he deserved.

Of course it didn't matter, though I'd argue the controlling prick part; it was just him being jealous. BUT I'm not sure he ever accused her of wanting to SLEEP with Mark... I'd say it was more a combination of her being at work so much and therefore having more time with Mark. He was missing her, wanting to see her, and projected all those jealous feelings at Mark.