Friends: 10 Most Heartbreaking Episodes
8. The One Where Rachel Finds Out (S1, Ep 24)
Throughout the entirety of season one, we were rooting for Ross and Rachel. It was the basis of the early episodes of the show and we all knew they fitted so well together. The writers being the writers though, decided to pull their love story out throughout the whole debut season, and then tear a knife through our hearts in a finale full of emotional turmoil.
We're made to watch as we go through Rachel's initial shock at finding out about Ross's feelings, the joy of realising she has feelings for him too, the frustration as she changes her mind so as not to jeopardise her friendship with him, the joy of realising she has feelings for him (again), and her final conclusion that they just might belong together, as she heads to meet him at the airport.
Then finally, just when we thought it could all go right for them, we see Ross get off the plane with another woman, the closing credits appear, and the fans were left for nearly a year waiting to see how it would all pan out.
It's a rollercoaster of an episode but rightly stands as one of the classics.