(Editor’s note: Seasons 1 and 2 were reviewed under an earlier editorial standard and format. They’ll be revisited in the Second Look Remastered series, running January – June 2027. Subscribe to Processed Media (it’s free!) so you don’t miss the updates.)
For a Christmas Friends episode, “The One with Phoebe’s Dad” thankfully goes light on the sentimentality, using the holiday and weather as more of a backdrop than anything else. And for a Phoebe episode, there’s a surprising amount of restrain from the writers at embracing her weirdness, giving her a very enjoyable, somber story that begins an important character arc for her over the next two seasons.
This is not to say it’s a perfect episode: the Ross/Rachel squabbling in the background reaches an ugly point, as Rachel’s hurt feelings turn him into a nag, and her into an absolute bitch towards Ross (and Mr. Treeger, their super), insulting them at every turn and just being downright cruel to Mr. Treeger when he asks for a kiss under the mistletoe. Not only is she not funny, but she becomes reprehensible, presenting us with a number of examples why Ross and Rachel would never, ever work as a couple in real life. They’re petty, they hold grudges against each other, and they can’t have a mature conversation about anything, thanks to the need to insert jokes in every argument. There is a brief moment when their interactions ring true – Rachel calls out Ross for not seizing the moment, mentioning that it took him a year to express his feelings to her – but it’s a small bright spot on an otherwise hideously-written moment for an impending relationship we’re supposed to be investing in.
Phoebe’s material was much stronger, one of the only times I can honestly say I wish there were more scenes with her. Her search for her father is one of the best arcs the show ever does (though it won’t completely resolve itself until season 5’s “The One with Joey’s Bag”), and her struggles to actually get out of her grandmother’s taxi and meet him add a very somber tone to the episode. Sure, she’d like to meet her father – but what if he’s still a scumbag? She’s already learned he’s not a tree surgeon in Burma, and realizes that maybe an imaginary father whose face is in a lot of photo frames is better than the potentially terrible person waiting for her behind the door (“I already lost an imaginary father” she tells Joey and Ross, “I don’t want to lose another one”). It displays Phoebe’s internal strength in a way the show’s only shown twice – her magnificent arc in season one’s “The One with the Monkey”, and terribly in this season’s “The One with Phoebe’s Husband”.
Unfortunately, Phoebe, Joey, and Chandler are separated for a large chunk of the episode, and can’t give any life to the ‘hot’ party in Monica’s apartment. I wish there was more done with the ungratefulness of people during the holidays – everybody throwing their cookies back in their face is a funny way to show how broke Rachel and Monica are (despite affording their massive apartment with a balcony), but it doesn’t extend past that, except to remind us how nice and goofy Mr. Treeger is (he loved them). Without the Phoebe story, this would be one of the worst episodes of the season – Ross and Rachel are annoying as hell, and Monica’s basically a non-entity, more of a reactionary character than someone who has anything interesting to say. But in the spirit of Christmas, I’m thankful for what we get with Phoebe – a strong, defining moment for a character normally left floating in the wind.
Other thoughts/observations:
- Joey and Chandler bought Monica condoms for Christmas: “they’re ribbed for your pleasure!”
- Phoebe drops some personally relevant NY town references in her search for her father: I went to Ithaca College (in Ithaca, obviously), and grew up in a town 15 minutes from Oneonta. 607 stand up!
- Joey mentions trying to sleep with his boss’s ex-wife. When the fuck did he get a job?
- Phoebe’s mother drops one of the most terribly-written lines in Friends history: she hands Phoebe a picture of her father, and says “This is the real him.”
- Monica’s ‘big’ joke is a stereotype: she tells Ross that Mr. Treeger “looks like he’s playing baseball,” because her vagina prevents her from knowing what “playing hardball” means.
- Gunther is definitely not wearing pants at the Christmas party (odd, considering how little the characters like him as the show continues).
- It’s ok Ross – everyone wore too much hair gel in the 90’s, including me.
- Look at Fat Naked Ugly Guy’s Christmas balls!
- Up next: Friends gets irresponsible in “The One with Russ”.
Bobby appeared in TOW The Monkey, but he really didn’t do much beyond mention that his grandmother just passed away. Monica, of course, completely ignores him in spite of his clearly understandable depression (except when she wants to rat him for “bringing the party down”).
My biggest problem with the Russ plot is just how trite and unoriginal it is. We’ve seen that kind of plot on just about every TGIF sitcom (Perfect Strangers, etc.). Although I did like that, during the final tag scene (maybe this isn’t on the version you reviewed?), Julie made a cameo and snagged Russ for the keeping.
Ross and Rachel acting like complete jerks with each other is, unfortunately, a running joke that would last throughout the rest of the series (except, of course, for the year they’re together). With the most egregious example being TOW The Videotape (man, did that episode mess up Rachel’s character!).
Just a small sidenote btw: Technically, Estelle made her debut in TOW The Butt. But it was in a deleted scene that only appeared on the DVD version. She doesn’t really do much during the scene other than sign Joey and tell him straight-up that she’s a low-tier talent agent.
Now that I have the DVD’s, I went back and watched it. It’s quite a funny scene, her smoking and eating at the same time and all.