It’s been a decade or two since the hit sitcom “Friends” was airing in real time on TV with new episodes. But, thanks to syndication and streaming, the show has picked up some brand new viewers who are watching the series with naked eyes. Now that’s it’s 2018, obviously, times have changed. “Friends” was a timepiece that existed before we were all hooked on cell phones, before we stalked each other’s social media to stay in touch, and, before a lot of social justice issues were discussed in the media and spotlight. Therefore, many viewers feel as though the show has become “problematic” in today’s society–whereas, in the ’90s, people were absolutely in love with it. BuzzFeed asked their users to share the “Friends” moment they feel is the most problematic, and, some of the responses are pretty eye-opening.
27. katez457a525d1
Why haven’t we made a bigger deal out of how terribly Mrs. Geller treats her daughter?
26. shannonstl
The way everyone treats chandler’s dad.
25. sarahewandell
When Ross is like “I didn’t get the annulment. Don’t tell Rachel, see ya later.”
25. divvyfuddlebucket
When Ross won’t let his son play with a Barbie doll because he’s a boy, and spends an entire day trying to make him play with more “manly” toys.
24. madelinep44f00b9af
I absolutely hated the way that Carol and Susan treated Ross during Carol’s pregnancy with Ben. Often they acted like he was lucky to involved even though he was the father! I felt that Susan just wasn’t very fair to Ross, especially considering she had broken up their marriage. The part i disliked most was when they are discussing names in the pilot ep and Susan is angry that Ross’ name is included in the child’s last names. I loved that the show included a same sex couple in a time that this was not widely accepted on TV and that it pioneered this acceptance, but they could have been nicer to him!
23. samanthad4c4262008
When Monica walks in on Chandler masturbating, and she says she walked in on him “molesting himself.” First of all, it is impossible to molest yourself – the act of molestation is, by definition, sexual assault/abuse. And second, any joke revolving around rape or the perpetuity of rape culture is disgusting.
So many jokes could have been made in this moment, and they chose “molesting himself.” Lazy, ignorant, and gross.
22. shirshat
All the times they made fun of Chandler because they thought he was gay
21. faitha42fdc502d
Series 4 episode 4 ‘The one with all the dancing’ in the episode Joey is helping Mr Treeger learn how to dance. Joey returns after his first lesson and Monica asks “So how goes the dancing” *pause* “gay yet” cue laughter track, and cue me cringing so hard!
20. taras40a71b2e3
Ordering one pizza for the six of them.
19. emerald
When anyone uses the word “girl” as an insult
18. JoHempstead
Ross: “phoebe, you were sure Ben was gonna be a girl.”
Phoebe: “have you seen him throw a ball?”
It enrages me that phoebe would make a comment like that.
17. rosiek456c59c14
I’ve always really wanted to start #justiceforjanice (or actually find out if someone else has already!), because Janice seems in some ways one of the most realistic characters in the show, and Chandler and Monica especially are incredibly rude to her face. I know some comedy has to be amplified for television, however the way they do it is just downright cringey sometimes. Like when they insinuate she should go home and see if she actually would self harm or do something worse when she gets stood up.
Also, I adore Phoebe, however sometimes she is downright rude to her friends and insults them to their faces, about stuff that really could hurt them.
Just to state however, I love Friends and I think that it managed to remain interesting without having massively dramatic story lines, unlike some of the shows that have come out since. Such as Gossip Girl or PLL. I love those shows too, however they had to involve some quite wild themes to bring viewers in.
But yes… #justiceforjanice