When NBC's Friends finished its 10-year run on May 6, 2004, it took away a part of fans' hearts. It was more than a TV comedy, one that to this day enjoys a cult status and one that millions resonated with. Friends is TV at its best, and as for the 6 characters, it's almost as if fans have known them for ages. Countless memories, funny instances, and pop culture references were created on Friends.
17 years later, when the gang finally got together, they reprised some of their iconic scenes in the reunion special. At this junction, the right thing to do would be to recall the terrific scenes and moments that the cast reprised/reread for their fans.
The Reclining Chairs
Right off the bat, Joey and Chandler entered their apartment to revisit their Rositas. The real chairs may have been broken into two halves but the chair angels were sure to replace those with all-new Barca loungers in their living room. The La-Z-Boy E-cliner 3000 was finally out of there, hallelujah!
It was only when Matthew Perry and Matt LeBlanc sat in their reclining chairs that their camaraderie shined through. Them taking their seats in their oh-so-typical fashion was a huge assurance that Friends: The Reunion was going to be a stellar episode.
Monica Got Stung By A Jellyfish
Poor Mon! As if getting stung by a jellyfish for the first time around wasn't bad enough, she was made to reread the scene in the reunion special. In "The One With the Jellyfish," Chandler, in Joey's presence, peed on Monica to relieve her from the painful sting. Knowing that theirs was a tight-knit group, there was no way they could have kept it a secret.
Besides, Joey needed to get it out of him, and they were clearly traumatized. And all Monica could say in her defense was, "You-you don't know. I mean, I thought I was gonna pass out from the pain." As they had expected, everyone collectively expressed their disgust about the beach incident.
My Eyes! My Eyes!
When Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, and David Schwimmer reread the scene where Phoebe found out about Monica and Chandler, it seemed like they had effortlessly slipped back into their characters. In "The One Where Everybody Finds Out" Phoebe and Rachel tag along with Ross to inspect Ugly Naked Guy's up-for rent apartment.
While they are there, Ross rushes down to fill out an application, Rachel takes a bathroom break and Phoebe stands alone in the living room (right across the street to Monica's) only to witness Monica and Chandler caress each other. "Chandler and Monica! Chandler and Monica! Oh, my eyes! My eyes," she launches into high-pitched screams before Rachel rushes into the living room to calm her down.
Ross & Rachel's First Kiss
Watching actors Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer reread Ross and Rachel's first kiss was a real tear-jerker. The former co-stars also revealed they "were both crushing hard on each other" during that time in their lives but never actually acted on it. So instead, what they did was channel all those feelings of love and adoration that they had for each other into Ross and Rachel.
As David and Jennifer were rereading their first-kiss scene, fans could tell they regressed to the place where their romance had begun (season 2's "The One Where Ross Finds Out").
Joey's Lunges
In the iconic Friends episode "The One Where No One's Ready," Joey and Chandler bicker over the ownership of a chair in Monica's living room. As Chandler vacates his seat to take a bathroom break, Joey takes his place and it all escalates. Chandler hides Joey's clothes and Joey puts on every single piece of his clothing and then proceeds to do lunges.
"Look at me, I'm Chandler. Could I be wearing any more clothes?" says Joey the moment he enters Monica's to spite his friend. Matt LeBlanc's Joey pulled off the same stunt towards the end of the reunion special. He was one among the models to debut iconic Friends costumes on the ramp. Matt got a standing ovation from his castmates, including "you're so cute" from Jennifer Aniston.
Phoebe's Smelly Cat
When Lisa Kudrow took a seat on the iconic orange couch to sing Smelly Cat, she warned fans not to get too excited. "I should be Phoebe for this," she said before she sang the first verse of the song. Lisa was just warming up when suddenly, Lady Gaga opened the Central Perk door and asked if she could take Smelly Cat for a spin.
Phoebe first came up with Smelly Cat in season 2's "The One With the Baby on the Bus" and interestingly, in the said episode, she shared the couch with a professional singer named Stephanie whom Terry had hired to play.
The Apartment Quiz
The girls won their apartment, fair and square, leaving the guys looking dejected. The quiz officiator, David Schwimmer, had divided the questions into the classic 4 categories - "Fears & Pet Peeves, Ancient History, Literature, and It's All Relative." The quiz questions, however, were different from the previously asked ones.
Furthermore, Lisa Kudrow's Phoebe Buffay, who wasn't among the quiz players in "The One with the Embryos," got her chance to participate in this one. Everybody had the same level of energy, but Matt LeBlanc was particularly glowing with joy.
You Owe Me A Cat
The trivia quiz was a great way to incorporate recurring characters and Friends guest stars into the reunion special. When David Schwimmer played Larry Hankin's (Mr. Heckles) "that's my monkey" dialogue, the girls were to guess whose voice it was. Amid the noise and the guessing, this mystery voice was asked to reveal itself.
Mr. Heckles was the biggest and the most delightful surprise of Friends: The Reunion. He angrily stormed into Monica's apartment to remind the gang they owed him a "cat and a waffle." Way to let go of a grudge, Mr. Heckles.
Ross's Barbershop Quartet
The barbershop quartet from "The One With All the Jealousy" was also a part of the trivia segment. Back then the same people had infamously delivered a "loving" message to Rachel from Ross.
In the reunion special, the girls picked a question from the "Ancient History" category which required them to finish the lyrics (your loyal, loving boyfriend, Ross) to the Ross song. Unfortunately for the girls, they lost this round. It was a hard guess since Rachel wasn't paying attention the first time around, and as for Phoebe and Monica, they weren't present when the barbershop quartet serenaded Rachel at work.
Oh My God!
The reunion special would have been incomplete without Maggie Wheeler's Janice revisiting Chandler Bing. Guest of the James Corden interview segment, Maggie's iconic "oh my god" line made her conspicuous as she appeared from behind. When asked about the origin of Janice, the actress revealed she had to channel the fast-talking New Yorker from within to bring her character to life.
"You know, I got the audition sides across my fax machine and it says fast-talking New Yorker, and I thought, "I know her. I just — she lives in me, that’s it." The iconic Janice laugh was born because Maggie had to keep up with her co-star's comic timing. "Matthew Perry is so funny, and the minute I set eyes on him and he opened his mouth I thought, 'Oh God, I’m gonna lose it, I’m gonna crack up," she added.