Friends: 10 Most Messed Up Episodes
6. The One With All The Jealousy (S3 E12)
The last two entries on this list have proven just how toxic both Ross and Rachel were for each other, but in season three there was one episode in particular that proved it more than ever, even when they were together.
It is one thing for them to each be jealous when it seemed that the other had moved on from them, but what about when they were in a committed, loving relationship? There was a painful amount of jealousy, and a pitiful amount of trust between them.
From Ross’ side it came when Rachel started working at Bloomingdale’s, and the mere fact that she was working with a male colleague sent him into a spiral of transparent attempts to essentially mark his territory. He sent her flowers, cuddly toys, giant cards, and a barbershop quartet to essentially let Mark know that she was his. Like if he didn’t Rachel would have automatically fallen in love with him.
With Rachel it came after she called Ross out on his jealousy issues. He had booked a playdate for Ben with a stripper he met at a bachelor party and her child. Though Rachel had just berated Ross for his jealousy, she was absolutely no better. After watching an episode like this, it’s easy to lose sight of why everyone rooted for them to end up together.