Every “Friends” Thanksgiving Episode, Ranked
Could there be a better show to marathon on Thanksgiving than “Friends?”
“Friends” is a classic show to watch on turkey day, since each season had an episode devoted to the holiday. It doesn’t hurt that it’s a crowd-pleasing watch for the whole family, too.
This year, the viewing experience will be especially poignant, since Matthew Perry, who played Chandler, died at age 54 on Oct. 28.
All of his former co-stars paid tribute to him on Instagram, with Jennifer Aniston writing an especially heartfelt remembrance: “I talk to you every day… sometimes I can almost hear you saying ‘could you BE any crazier?’” she wrote. “Rest little brother. You always made my day.”
In classic Joey-and-Chandler fashion, Matt LeBlanc cracked a joke in his tribute, writing, “I guess you’re keeping the 20 bucks you owe me.”
Whether you want to pay tribute to Perry, or you just want to enjoy a “Friends”-filled holiday, here’s a ranking of the ultimate “Friends” Thanksgiving episodes.
Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry and Courteney Cox on “Friends.”
Ross (David Schwimmer) and his list in “The One With the List.”
10. “The One With the List“
This Season 2 episode aired shortly in the series’ timeline after Ross (David Schwimmer) and Rachel (Aniston) had their first kiss. In it, Ross makes a “pros and cons” list about pursuing the relationship — and things go unsurprisingly sideways when she finds it. It’s a fun episode, and gives a reminder that Ross and Rachel’s epic roller coaster of a romance was a cornerstone of the series. But, though there’s a Thanksgiving-themed subplot with Monica (Courteney Cox), this episode feels more “Ross and Rachel”-centric. There are better episodes about the holiday.
David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry and Jennifer Aniston in “The One With The Late Thanksgiving.”
9. “The One With the Late Thanksgiving”
In this Season 10 episode, Monica and Chandler try to get out of hosting Thanksgiving, Phoebe manipulates them into hosting it anyway and they get annoyed when the others are all late — leading Monica to lock everyone out. It’s another good episode, but not the most memorable among the Thanksgiving-themed ones, and doesn’t have a colorful guest star.
8. “The One With Rachel’s Other Sister”
In this Season 9 episode, Rachel’s sister (Christina Applegate) comes to dinner and offends everyone. Chandler (Perry) wants Monica to use their wedding china for the meal, but Monica refuses. Meanwhile, Joey realizes that he was supposed to be at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) helps him come up with an outlandish excuse for missing it.
7. “The One Where Ross Got High”
In this Season 6 episode, Monica is keeping her relationship with Chandler a secret from her parents, who, it turns out, disapprove of him for smoking pot in college, though in fact Ross was the culprit. So, Monica and Chandler try to convince Ross to fess up. Rachel also has a classic cooking disaster — relatable.
6. “The One With the Rumor”
In this Season 8 episode, Aniston’s then-husband, Brad Pitt, appears as a guest star. He plays Will, an old friend of Ross’ who comes to Thanksgiving, and turns out to hold a grudge against Rachel. He’s even created an “I Hate Rachel” club. Joey also puts on Phoebe’s maternity pants. It’s a classic episode, and Pitt is hilarious in it. But, the stunt casting of Pitt does steal the show from the core group (plus, the gag that Will hates Rachel is predicated on Pitt and Aniston being a real-life power couple at the time — without that context, the joke’s not as funny).