10 Most Annoying Mistakes You Never Noticed In Friends
If you walked up to someone on the street and asked, “have you heard of the show Friends?” you’ll end up with one of two answers. The first would be “who the hell are you? Leave me alone” and the second, “of course I have. It’s an absolute classic”.
Friends is an entire entertainment staple in itself. While other sitcoms found huge success before it, none of them managed to create a legacy quite like this NBC hit. It’s popular even today, with fans, critics, and avid TV watchers still obsessing over its niche details and trivia. However, while that kind of attention is a blessing, it’s also a curse.
The fans of this show have a keen eye for detail, which has left the iconic series in a bit of a pickle at times. It’s almost impossible for a show to run for ten seasons and not make some mistakes here and there, and eagle-eyed viewers have picked up on some particularly aggravating ones.
It’s easy to place Friends on the Mount Rushmore of comedy TV. But that doesn’t mean it’s free from annoying plot holes and goofs.
10. Monica’s Apartment Changing Numbers
It’s the little details in Friends that keep fans feeling close to it, like noticing a character’s unique wardrobe or spotting things in their homes. That’s what makes this mistake so frustrating, as it’s right there for all to see.
During the first season, the writers noticed that it made no sense for Monica’s apartment to be number 5, seeing as she’s on an upper-level floor and doesn’t have the kind of money to reserve a whole block to herself. Thus, her number was changed from 5 to 20. Chandler and Joey’s was also moved from 4 to 19.
Was this change ever addressed on the show? Of course not. The writers simply replaced the number and went on their merry way without ever bringing it up in dialogue.
Ironically, the high-rise apartment being such a low number would have probably been on this list had it not been changed, so it was a fair enough decision to make. But damn, did they really expect viewers not to notice and just accept it as if nothing happened? This is New York, not the halls of Hogwarts; buildings don’t just change all willy nilly.
9. Wait, When Are Everyone’s Birthdays?
Forgetting a loved one’s birthday can be pretty embarrassing, but not so much for these characters as they don’t seem to have any clue when they popped out of the womb.
There are dates thrown all about the place in this show. For example, Ross was supposedly born in December and on October 18th. Plus, Rachel claims to have been born on May 5th, but in “The One With Chandler’s Dad”, she’s revealed to be an Aquarius, meaning she was born in January/February.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, the writers couldn’t even decide how old they were. Ross remained 29 for three years, Joey (supposedly the youngest) turned 31 before Rachel was 30, and in the episode “The One Where They’re Going To A Party”, Joey claims that all the boys are 29. But, in “The One With The Birth”, Monica says she’s 26, and Joey is 25. So, how is Ross younger than his younger sister?! Buying them birthday cards must have been a nightmare.
You would think that these kinds of details would be seared into the writer’s brains, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
8. Chandler’s Confesses His Love For The First Time Twice
Chandler, the guy so nice, he said I love you twice.
A character saying they love someone for the first time is a big moment for a sitcom romance – as it is for any kind of romance. That’s why the ending of the episode “The One With All The Thanksgivings” was so lovely, as Monica tried to win Chandler’s forgiveness with her iconic turkey head dance, and he accidentally said, “I love you”.
However, they played the same trick again less than ten episodes later. This one came as Chandler blurted out that he loved Monica after he and Phoebe played a game of sexual chicken. Monica then came out, the two shared a moment, and it was deliciously sweet.
As nice as both of these moments were, were fans just expected to forget that Chandler had already said I love you? Or did the writers think the Men In Black would wipe everyone’s minds during that short break between episodes?
The show clearly painted each one as a big moment, so it makes you wonder if the writers even knew, or if the ones that did know didn’t know that the others didn’t know, and, you get the idea.
7. Barry Who?
Everyone loves Rachel’s former fiancé Barry Farber, right? Well, okay, no, not many people love him or even like him; in fact, he kind of sucks. But everyone can at least agree on the fact that he’s called Barry Farber? Think again because that’s not his name in the first episode!
That’s right; Barry was first introduced into the show as Barry Finkle. But the writers must have gotten cold feet (they’ve got that in common with Rachel, it seems), as his surname was switched out. After the first episode, his name would be changed to Farber, and the rest is history.
The reason for this sudden change is a mystery, and the fact that it’s never addressed on the show makes it all the more infuriating. This is the guy who kicked off Rachel’s whole character arc. So why did the writers suddenly decide to give his surname the boot?
Admittedly, Farber is a slightly nicer name (apologies to any Finkle’s reading), but seriously, some consistency would have been nice.
Still, it seems he might not be the only person with surname problems…
6. Rachel Can’t Spell Her Own Name
Is it Green, or is it, Greene? This is the kind of furious debate that would tear the fandom apart in any other show. But, for Friends fans, there’s no such point. This is not because they’re more patient, but because even the show didn’t seem to know/care, so why should they?
Getting the spelling right for your central characters should be a tip-top priority. But, Rachel never got that treatment, as her name flip-flopped in its spelling throughout the series. It alternated between the standard Green and a slightly fancier Greene, leaving fans mystified as they could never get a straight answer on how to spell it.
She was credited as Green, but her Ralph Lauren door sign said Greene, yet on Emma’s first birthday, the cake box said Green, but on the invite to Ross and Emily’s wedding, it’s Greene! It’s enough to give you a headache.
You’d have thought Rachel would have figured out how to spell her own name at some point during her life. Still, at least she didn’t go through with the wedding because Farber (or maybe Finkle) is even tougher to spell.
5. Chandler Doesn’t Cry, Except When He Does!
According to the episode “The One Where Chandler Can’t Cry”, Chandler can’t cry – big shocker there. He’s even likened to a robot thanks to his lack of emotions and inability to shed a tear over Bambi or his hypothetically dead wife. However, although the concept of an emotionless Chandlerbot is pretty hilarious, it’s complete and utter BS.
This one’s not even close to being true, as fans had seen him cry multiple times before this episode even came about. Season four saw him crack open the tear ducts twice, in the episodes “The One With Joey’s Dirty Day” and “The One With The Worst Best Man Ever”. Yet, not but two seasons later, he’s suddenly recast as someone who’s “dead inside”.
Hell, even Phoebe should know this, as in season three, there’s a moment where a story is recounted of her making Chandler “cry like a baby”. So what’s going on here? Did Phoebe lose her memory? The man can cry just fine.
Still, the crying episode is a damn good one, so it’s kind of hard to be too mad at this glaring mistake.
4. The Perfect Wedding Venue Huh?
Is there a better couple in Friends than Chandler and Monica? Sure, Ross and Rachel have the iconic stamp of approval, but at least Monica and Chandler had a non-toxic relationship and actually stayed together the whole time. Their romance was a high point for the show. But, although their wedding was beautiful, something definitely felt off.
In the episode “The One Where Paul’s The Man”, Monica decided to put her name down for a gorgeous museum wedding venue in secret. At first, Chandler seemed terrified after accidentally finding out. However, by the end of the episode, it was revealed that he went and saw the space, loved it, and intended to propose – cue the well-earned waterworks.
It was such a beautiful moment, which makes it all the more frustrating that their actual wedding got downgraded from this stunning museum to a completely different location without ever being mentioned.
What happened to the perfect venue? Wasn’t Monica obsessed with weddings? Why did she suddenly forget that they’d already put their names down for a better locale? They set it up so well, then brushed it under the rug.
3. How Did Chandler And Rachel Not Recognise Each Other?!
Flashback episodes are all well and good, but they make a continuity enthusiast’s blood boil like their body were a kettle. Friends certainly had some great ones, but they brought about some gaping plot holes. Take, for instance, Chandler and Rachel’s past.
Rachel and Chandler were not the closest pairing in the friend group. Although they had some strong chemistry, they mostly felt like friends by association and didn’t have many stories together. That’s probably why the writers forgot that they met for “the first time” on multiple occasions.
Initially, they were “introduced” in the pilot, with Rachel’s wedding day sprint being their first impression of each other. But, later, a flashback episode revealed that they partook in two Thanksgiving dinners together. Alright, you might say that’s possibly easy to forget, but a flashback in season 10 indicated that they even made out once.
So, with all that taken into account, it’s baffling to think that Chandler and Rachel wouldn’t recognise each other. Chandler’s not the kind of guy to forget a girl he’s made out with; no, that’s Joey’s job.
2. How Long Does Pregnancy Last?
If you don’t know that pregnancy lasts roughly nine months, you’d better crack open a textbook and steer clear of anyone looking to get frisky because you might not like the results. Unfortunately, the writers of Friends seemed to have that issue, as they messed up this basic biology not once but twice.
Firstly, in the pilot, it’s implied that Carol coming out had only just happened. However, in “The One With All The Flashbacks” – oh no, not those pesky things again – Carol told Ross that she was gay a whole year before that. So, when did they conceive Ben if he was born at the end of the first season, and she came out a year before the first episode?
Plus, there’s Rachel Green (or Greene, *sigh*). She took a pregnancy test at Monica/Chandler’s wedding in May, but was barely showing by the time Thanksgiving rolled around seven months later. It took the rest of the season for her to finally gave birth, meaning she was pregnant for over a year. Emma must have been living her best life down there.
Someone clearly doesn’t understand how this stuff works.
1. Where The Hell Did Ben Go?
Speaking of Ross’ kids, let’s talk about this poor unfortunate lad.
This is probably one of the most well-known problems with the show, but, boy howdy, does it deserve that reputation. It’s a gripe that even the most die-hard Ross fanatic can’t shake off and shows that the man is not just a bad boyfriend, but a bad dad too.
One of the most important stories in Ross’ journey was his life as a father. The young Ben Geller was his only son from his first marriage with Carol, and he was a sweet presence throughout the show. But then, like a murder mystery, he suddenly vanished in season eight and was barely mentioned again.
Not only was he gone, but the characters spoke as if he’d never existed. The beloved Jack Geller even stated that Emma was his first grandchild, which simply wasn’t true. Unless Jack was openly picking favourites.
Ross might be a loveable guy, but entirely ditching his previous kid to focus on a new one is not a great look. You might even argue that this wasn’t a mistake but a clear decision from the writers. But, somehow, that feels even worse.
