Friends is stacked from head to toe with great moments, storylines and characters that put a smile on our face, but few personas are quite as complex as Chandler Bing's.
We consider him to be the most consistently entertaining presence in the Friends universe, and as fans around the world continue to discover this beloved show, we thought it'd be a good time to address a few lingering concerns that we have about Chandler Bing.
Some think he's a bit too much and others feel like hr's not actually that entertaining, but we'll always hold a special place in our heart for Mr. Bing.
Dislike Of Dogs
When Phoebe secretly brings home a dog to live with herself, Chandler and Monica, it quickly becomes clear that Chandler isn’t a fan – before he declares that he hates dogs.
However, on a few separate occasions during the show’s run, such as when Phoebe shows off the pug she receives from her mother, Chandler doesn’t appear to care all too much.
It’s a small inconsistency in the eyes of many, and understandably so, but we just want to know a bit more about it and the thought process behind the storyline.
Lack Of Laughter From Friends
The audience laughter is probably all that many of us need to validate what we already know: Chandler is a really funny guy.
In the show itself, though, his fellow pals don’t laugh at his jokes all too often. In the context of what’s happening, they probably need to be ready to fire back with the next line, but we wonder whether they all actually found him funny, or just considered him to be a little bit annoying.
We’re probably reading too much into it, but such is the nature of television.
Attraction To Janice
There are a lot of things we understand about Chandler Bing, but one thing we can’t quite grasp is his relationship with Janice.
The two go back and forth throughout the show’s run, with Janice popping up every now and then to remind Chandler of their past relations.
The only problem was that we didn’t really get all too much of a vibe from them in terms of chemistry. She had a funny voice and he was clearly irritated by her presence, but we never really got what attracted him to her.
The Rachel Kiss
In the final season of Friends, one of the biggest revelations is that Chandler and Rachel actually kissed during Chandler’s days in college.
While the fact that it happened was shocking enough, many fans feel like this news would’ve been revealed a whole lot sooner than it actually was. Sure, they might have forgotten it ever took place, but Chandler was clearly well aware of it – and he’s never been known as someone that was particularly good at keeping a secret.
Because of how close all six of them were, it just felt wrong.
Not Liking Bracelet Buddies
When Joey starts to earn a little bit of money and decides to buy a bracelet for Chandler, before getting one himself, you’d think that Chandler would be really pleased by the gesture.
Instead, he hates it and doesn’t really seem to understand why everyone thinks he’s being so unreasonable.
This whole episode paints Chandler in the kind of negative light that isn’t all too beneficial for the legacy of his character, especially when you consider just how close the two were from the first season through to the very last episode.
Why He Can’t Smile For Pictures
Chandler has a wonderful smile and we all saw that from the moment he was introduced to the Friends audience.
When he and Monica are preparing for their wedding, though, things fall apart when Chandler is unable to pose for a standard photo.
Call us cynical, but we’re not sure that we believe he wouldn’t be able to smile for a photograph that was quite so important.
The fact that Joey stepped in to save the day was also pretty silly, but such is the weird, unpredictable nature of sitcoms.
Not Particularly Respected
Chandler Bing is one of the smartest members of the inner Friends circle, and he also has one of the best paying jobs. Then, when he decides that he’s had enough, he moves into a whole new industry and builds himself up before once again picking up a successful job.
Yet through all of this, none of the other core members of the gang respect his opinion all too much. Perhaps that’s because he doesn’t give great advice, as we’ve come to learn from Monica, but he should still be positioned as something more than just the class clown.
Nobody Notices His Various Looks
Matthew Perry went through a whole lot of changes during his time on the show, and that fact is reflected in his many physical changes from Season 1 all the way through to Season 10.
One of the reasons why was due to some issues Perry had in his own personal life, which makes the purpose behind not bringing it up understandable, but his appearance at times was so drastically different from year to year that it’s surprising not to see a mention or two.
Aside from him growing the mustache out to look like Richard, they don’t even talk about it.
Not Being A Sports Fan
In the latter stages of the show, hints and jokes are made that appear to indicate Chandler isn’t a big fan of sports – or typical ‘macho’ activities in general. One such example of this comes when Monica encourages Chandler to get ESPN.
That seems to fly in the face of the early seasons in which Chandler is seen going to a Rangers game, and is also incredibly interested in attempting to acquire Knicks season tickets alongside Joey.
Fans can stretch what they believe to a certain extent, but this didn’t sit well.
Inability To Cry
In another odd act of inconsistency from the writers, a storyline was developed once Monica and Chandler were together that indicated he didn’t really cry all too much.
Alas, we can think of many instances during the whole ten seasons in which Chandler is shown to be quite an emotional guy. He tends to wear his heart on his sleeve more often than not, so perhaps this is just an act he’s putting on in an attempt to impress Monica.
Either way, we’d like you to embrace your emotions, Mr. Bing.