The television show Friends is one of the most widely known sitcoms from the '90s due to its memorable cast and characters, the chemistry of said characters, the overall story, and the humor. The show went on to last for ten seasons and has had an impact on other sitcoms such as How I Met Your Mother since its airing.
While some of the humor used on Friends has not aged well, there are moments in the show that are still funny today, over twenty years later. Here are 10 especially hilarious jokes from the very first season of the show.
When Monica And Rachel Argued About Waitressing Skill-Levels
In "The One with the Stoned Guy," Monica prepared to try out for a head chef position at a new restaurant and she hired a waitress with whom she worked at her current job to waitress for her during her audition. Rachel found out and got offended that Monica did not ask her to help, which proceeded an argument between the two women.
Monica told Rachel that the waitress she hired was a professional to which Rachel replied that she remained an amateur in order to compete in the Waitressing Olympics.
When Monica And Phoebe Were Also Excited
In "The One with George Stephanopoulos," while working at Central Perk, Rachel ran into three of her old friends from Long Island. After finding Rachel actually working, the three women each showed off different aspects of their lives, with one being pregnant, the other engaged, and the third being made partner in her father's firm. All four women scream in excitement at each of the three women's accomplishments.
Meanwhile, Monica and Phoebe watched the entire exchange, weirded out by the women's behavior. Once the four women calmed down, Phoebe told Monica: "Look, I have elbows!" And she and Monica both screamed, mocking the other women's excitement.
The Friends Complimenting Joey's Play
"The One with the Butt" opens with Monica, Ross, Rachel, Chandler, and Phoebe seeing Joey star in a play entitled Freud!. After watching the whole play, the five concluded that the play was terrible. However, they wanted to support Joey.
When Joey asks Monica, Ross, Rachel, and Phoebe what they thought and they gave him answers such as "You were in a play!" Upon Joey asking them again, they gave the same response. Meanwhile, Chandler was chatting up a woman he just met. He returned to the group just after Joey asked the rest of the group about the play, and Chandler told Joey the play was horrible, making the others' attempts to let Joey down easy even funnier.
When Rachel's Dad Didn't Get Metaphors
In the pilot episode, Rachel leaves her fiance at the altar upon figuring out that she didn't actually love him. She later spoke to her dad over the phone about it and tried to explain how she was feeling through a metaphor.
She tells her dad that she feels that all her life she was told she was one thing, using the example of being a shoe. She then told her dad that she "doesn't want to be a shoe," and instead wants to figure herself out, this time using the example of a purse or a hat. Her dad misunderstood and offered to buy her a hat, thinking the hat would get her to marry her fiance.
"Joey Who?"
In "The One with the Birth," the whole friend group went to the hospital so that Ross could be with his ex-wife Carol, who was in labor with their child. While in the waiting room, Joey watched a Knicks game. A pregnant woman named Lydia commented that the Knicks sucked, sparking an argument between the two. When Lydia started having contractions, Joey escorted her to a hospital room so that she could have her baby.
Lydia informed Joey that there was no father in the picture, and Joey ended up staying with her so that they could argue over basketball teams. Before that, she called her mom to tell her she was having the baby and her mom insisted that she call the father. Lydia said that she didn't need the father there because Joey was there with her, followed by the question "What do you mean 'Joey who?'" She then mouthed "Joey who?" so that she could get his last name and better pretend she knew him for longer than she did.
When The Women Had An Existential Crisis
Once again, in "The One with George Stephanopoulos," after Rachel briefly reunited with her old friends, she realized that she did not know what she wanted to do with her life. She expressed these concerns to Monica and Phoebe at their slumber party, who then tried cheering her up but ultimately realized that they also did not have a long-term plan for their lives.
All three women ended up getting drunk on margaritas and lounging on chairs and the floor. Monica then asked Phoebe if she had a plan, to which Phoebe replied that she didn't even have a "Pla."
When Monica Was Overcompetitive And Ross Wasn't Having It
In "The One with All the Poker," the men taught the women to play poker. All six friends became competitive with the women even seeking outside assistance in learning to play in order to beat the men.
Toward the end of the episode, all six friends were playing poker against each other. At one point, Ross got up to go to the bathroom, which he also announced to the group. Monica stopped him, asking if he wants to play poker or go to the bathroom, to which Ross replied he wanted to go to the bathroom.
When Ross Was Freaking Out Over Rachel's Dream
Throughout the first season, Ross became jealous whenever Rachel dated other men. There were a couple of times toward the end of the season in which different characters called him out for his jealousy when he was being especially unreasonable about Rachel and other men.
In "The One with the Ick Factor," Rachel describes a dream she had about herself and Chandler. Due to the nature of the dream, Ross got unreasonably jealous to the point of confronting Chandler about the dream. Chandler sarcastically apologized and followed up by saying that it was Rachel's dream and he had no involvement in it.
When Jack Geller Was Depressed
In "The One Where Nana Died Twice," Joey sneaks a portable tv to Ross and Monica's Nana's funeral. He and other men in attendance, including Ross and Monica's dad Jack, started watching a football game featuring the Giants vs. the Cowboys. While Monica and Judy, her mom, have a tender moment, the men shout in disappointment, implying the Giants lost.
Jack in accompaniment shouts "Now I'm depressed!" and is met by a glare from Judy. He then has to add that he meant he is just more depressed than he already was.
When Joey's Picture Was In An Unfortunate Advert
In "The One Where Underdog Gets Away," Joey chatted up a woman with whom he had previously worked and had randomly run into on the subway. In the background, a poster is revealed with Joey's face and an ad for venereal disease awareness. The woman was put off by this and rejected Joey. This scene is followed by a montage of the post being put up all over town while "Don't Stand so Close to Me" by The Police played.
Toward the end of the episode, Joey returned to the subway and ripped off the section of the poster mentioning V.D. He ran into other poster sections mentioning things such as bladder infections and hemorrhoids until he settled on the bottom of the poster that said: "won three Tony Awards."