Every November, people across the country gather with loved ones to give thanks and to spend time together. I’m not just referring to Thanksgiving; I’m talking about Friendsgiving. This holiday is a great time to spend with the friends that we treat like family, and no show better embodies this sentiment than Friends.
The popular show may have ended more than ten years ago, but the obsession with Ross, Rachel, Monica, and the whole gang is still going strong. The best episodes to binge watch this month? The many Thanksgiving themed episodes that remind us why this show is such a classic. Here is a definitive ranking of the best turkey-dinner themed Friends episodes:
10. The One Where Chandler Doesn’t Like Dogs
After Pheobe attempts to sneak a dog into Thanksgiving dinner, Chandler reveals his secret hatred for canines. Meanwhile, Ross struggles to remember all 50 states, and Rachel’s work crush comes to dinner.
Funniest moment: As Rachel tries to tell Tag she has feelings for him on the fire escape, he spots his car being stolen. Nothing ruins the mood more than crime on a national holiday.
9. The One with the List
The least Thanksgiving-oriented Thanksgiving episode features a key progression in the Ross and Rachel on-again-off-again saga. After their first kiss ever, Ross is forced to decide between Rachel and his then-girlfriend, Julie. Disaster strikes when Rachel discovers a pro-con list about her that Ross made.
Funniest moment: In attempt to hide the list from Rachel, Chandler pretends it’s his original short story. His description of the gray couch is truly moving.
8. The One Where Underdog Gets Away
In the birth of an incredible tradition, the gang ends up together in New York City for their first Thanksgiving as a group. When they leave the apartment to watch an Underdog float that broke free from the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the friends all end up locked out. Even though the turkey burns and Rachel misses her flight, the episode ends with a happy view of seven friends by the window.
Funniest moment: After modeling for a PSA, Joey accidentally becomes the face of the sexually transmitted disease, VD, and giant signs of his face line the city. That’s a whole new answer to the question, “How you doin’?”
7. The One with the Late Thanksgiving
In the final Thanksgiving episode of the series (cue tears), Monica competes against her self to put on the best Thanksgiving dinner ever. Meanwhile, Rachel and Pheobe enter Emma in a baby beauty pageant, and everyone ends up late to dinner. The happy ending features Monica and Chandler finding out that they’ll be able to adopt a baby from Ohio (insert ‘awww’ here)
Funniest moment: In an attempt to get Monica and Chandler to forgive his late arrival, Joey sticks his head in their doorway, only to get it stuck. Monica is kind enough to use turkey oil to get him loose.
6. The One with Rachel’s Other Sister
Rachel’s older (and meaner) sister, Amy, arrives for a visit and quickly wrecks havoc on the group. Some of Amy’s best burns include calling baby Emma a “lump” and telling Joey he looks better on TV. When she starts an argument about who should be Emma’s guardian, tensions run high.
Funniest moment: The tension between the two sisters explodes into a physical brawl, as Joey looks on with joy. The battle ends when they accidentally break Monica’s good china, and you can literally feel the hostess’s heart stop.
5. The One with the Football
Siblings Monica and Ross are inspired to play a game of touch football like they did when they were kids, but their competitive sides quickly get the better of them.
Funniest moment: Phoebe reminds everyone that she is a force to be reckoned with, flashing her male opponents and distracting them to win the game. That’s a new kind of chest bump.
4. The One Where Ross Got High
The thought of straight-laced, neurotic Ross “smoking a doubie” is funny all by itself. But, when you add the fact that his parents still blame Chandler for it, and they’re all at Thanksgiving dinner together, things get hilarious. Chandler works to win over his girlfriend’s parents, and everyone tries to pretend that Rachel’s homemade dessert isn’t terrible.
Funniest moment: Ross and Monica get in a screaming match where they reveal the other’s wrongdoings to their parents. Highlights include Ross stealing his father’s Playboys, Monica breaking the porch swing, and Ross getting divorced…again.
3. The One with All the Thanksgivings
The Friends all reminisce about their worst Thanksgivings, from the time Joey got his head stuck in a turkey to the moment Monica and Chandler first met when he happened to call her fat. I guess time heals all wounds.
Funniest moment: In brilliant Friends fashion, comedy and sincerity meet when Chandler tells Monica he loves her for the first time. Oh, and she just so happens to have her head in a turkey, and the turkey is wearing a hat…and sunglasses. Who knew poultry could be so romantic?
2. The One with Chandler in a Box
After Chandler gives in to temptation and kisses Joey’s girlfriend, tensions between the roommates are at an all time high. In an attempt to get his best friend to forgive him, Chandler sits in a giant wooden box during Thanksgiving dinner. Meanwhile, Monica brings her ex-boyfriend’s son to dinner as her date.
Funniest moment: Monica and her date attempt to kiss on the roof, only to discover that he kisses like his father. Shudders, ickiness, and hilarity ensue.
1. The One with the Rumor
Monica invites her old high school friend, former loser Will, to Thanksgiving dinner. The twist? He’s now super good looking, and just so happens to be played by Jennifer Aniston’s then-husband, the beautiful Brad Pitt. Things get complicated when Will reveals that he and Ross used to be a part of the “I Hate Rachel Club.”
Funniest moment: Ross accidentally reveals that he made out with the school’s 50 year old librarian, and if you don’t think that’s funny, you can just stare into Brad Pitt’s eyes and spend the rest of the episode grinning.
As you count down the days until your home eating mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, log on to Netflix and watch any (or all) of these incredible episodes. Could you BE any more ready for Thanksgiving?