This Thanksgiving season, it’s a necessity to pay some respect to the iconic episodes that are Friends Thanksgivings. As a lover of the show, each episode, of course, has its comedy and drama, but there’s something about the Thanksgiving episodes that makes the holiday even more special. Each year, I always pregame that Thursday dinner with a rewatch of every Friends Thanksgiving episode. So, here’s a list of each must-watch episode to get you in the mood for food!
1. “The One Where Underdog Gets Away” (Season 1)
Of course, the first Friends Thanksgiving is gonna be the one that sets the stage for all of the others. The Geller siblings, Monica and Ross, have their first Thanksgiving without their parents, instead throwing their own “Friendsgiving” in Monica’s apartment. Then, the Underdog balloon at the Thanksgiving Day Parade flies away, so naturally, the whole group goes on the balcony to watch for it, locking themselves out of the apartment. The episode ends with the original meal being ruined from the delay, so it’s a night of homemade cheese sandwiches for dinner. It’s a feel-good ending, as the group doesn’t need the fancy meal; they just need each other, which is what the holiday is all about.
2. “The One With the List” (Season 2)
A Thanksgiving episode filled with drama, this episode is the one where Rachel finds the pros-and-cons list Ross made about her (with the help of Joey and Chandler) after kissing her the night before. Monica, on the other hand, is asked to produce multiple Thanksgiving dish recipes using a chocolate substitute called “Mockolate” that nobody would want to eat on their Thanksgiving plate.
3. “The One With the Football” (Season 3)
This episode is iconic in its own right as the group teams up between themselves to play a Thanksgiving afternoon game of football in the park, reliving that sibling rivalry Monica and Ross had when they were younger. We see Monica’s intensely competitive side during this episode, and Phoebe, who’s just happy to be involved in the game. Personally, I think this episode is also iconic just for Rachel’s outfit for the game, with her pigtail braids and backward baseball hat.
4. “The One With Chandler in a Box” (Season 4)
For the majority of this episode, Chandler is indeed inside of a box, thanks to Joey, who made him get in after he broke “bro-code” and kissed Joey’s ex. Of course, Chandler’s comedic timing doesn’t fail, even with him being enclosed in a wooden box, and he makes some great jokes throughout the episode. We also see Monica fall for her ex-boyfriend’s son, who’s the on-call eye doctor she called after injuring herself, and the group drawing for Secret Santa, but nobody wanting Rachel since she returns every gift.
5. “The One With All the Thanksgivings” (Season 5)
A beloved Thanksgiving episode that starts with the group sharing what they’re thankful for, which turns into flashbacks of past Thanksgiving experiences. We see a variety of past holiday memories and the extremely different looks of all of the friends in the past. The biggest part of the episode is Monica going too far to get revenge on Chandler for calling her overweight back in the day by cutting off his toe accidentally. To apologize, Monica puts her head inside the Thanksgiving turkey, and Chandler lets it slip that he loves her! Of course, Joey also had his head stuck inside a Thanksgiving turkey in his past holiday experiences.
6. “The One Where Ross Got High” (Season 6)
Otherwise known as the Thanksgiving episode where Rachel makes her infamous trifle of lady fingers, jam, beef sauteed with peas and onions, and sliced bananas. Not many moments in Friends will beat this one, with Joey actually enjoying the dessert and Chandler claiming a bird grabbed his plate on the balcony. This episode also features Phoebe forming a quick crush on Monica and Ross’ dad, Joey whining the whole time about wishing he could be at Thanksgiving with a group of “dancer girls,” and Ross having to finally tell his parents the truth about how he blamed Chandler for his college actions.
7. “The One Where Chandler Doesn’t Like Dogs” (Season 7)
This is a Thanksgiving episode that emulates that feeling of what the holiday is really like, as everyone has their own little side quest. Basically, Rachel invites her work assistant, Tag, to dinner, and contemplates making a move on him the whole time. Chandler challenges the group to name all of the 50 states, and Ross refuses to eat his plate of dinner until he wins. Then there’s Phoebe, who’s been secretly hiding a dog in Monica and Chandler’s apartment, and when it’s revealed, Chandler admits that he is very much not a dog person.
8. “The One With the Rumor” (Season 8)
“The One With Brad Pitt” could be an alternate episode title! Monica invites over an old high school friend, Will, played by Pitt, who she doesn’t know still holds a hatred for Rachel, but everyone is too busy focusing on how attractive he is. We find out that Will and Ross had their own private club dedicated to hating Rachel, and they started rumors about her that she now finds out the origins of. It’s also revealed that Rachel started a rumor that Ross kissed one of the school’s librarians. Then there’s Joey, who claims he can eat a whole Thanksgiving turkey by himself, and he can.
9. “The One With Rachel’s Other Sister” (Season 9)
Another classic Thanksgiving theme at play: familial fighting. Rachel’s obnoxious younger sister invites herself to Monica’s for Thanksgiving dinner, and spends the whole evening bickering and insulting everyone at the table. This starts a big argument over who would get custody of Rachel and Ross’ daughter, and Rachel’s sister is not very happy about the answer. Joey is also supposed to be on a float at the Thanksgiving Day Parade, but completely forgets, and Monica fights with Chandler about how she doesn’t want to use her wedding china for the dinner.
10. “The One With the Late Thanksgiving” (Season 10)
This is the last Thanksgiving episode of the series, and it’s a good one. Everyone asks Monica to host the dinner after she doesn’t want to, but then Rachel, Phoebe, Joey, and Ross all arrive very late to dinner. Rachel and Phoebe enter Rachel’s daughter in a beauty pageant, and Ross and Joey attend a hockey game. In retaliation, Monica and Chandler lock the group out of their apartment and refuse to have dinner altogether since they didn’t show up on time. Joey then, of course, gets his head stuck in the door of the apartment, and Monica uses turkey grease to loosen it. It’s all fun and games with the drama until Monica gets the news that she and Chandler are going to be parents, and then the group forgets the drama and celebrates together.