Friends: 25 Greatest Episodes

3. The One Where No One's Ready (S3E2)

Friends The One Where No One's Ready
NBC

The Episode

A stressed-out Ross tries to get all the gang ready and out on time for a black tie event at the museum.

Why It's Great

There's a simple joy in getting all of the Friends together in Monica's apartment and letting all sorts of mayhem unfold, and we get an absolute masterclass of that here. Almost the entire episode takes place in Apartment 20, save for the very end, and not once do you ever wish the action would move elsewhere.

Even with just the one setting, the episode has a lot of moving parts. There's Monica leaving the message on Richard's answering machine, Joey and Chandler fighting over a seat, Phoebe getting the hummus, and Ross upsetting Rachel to the point she refuses to get dressed.

Each one is expertly balanced, and mesh together to form something that is laugh-out-loud funny from start to finish. The escalating battle between Joey and Chandler is peak J-Man and Channy, Ross and Rachel's relationship is further developed, and Monica's message and subsequent freakout (along with Phoebe's quick response) is sensational.

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Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.