TV season
1996-09-16
Episode 1
1996-09-16 • 23 min
Ross reveals a fantasy to Rachel involving a certain "Star Wars" character. Monica suffers from insomnia after her breakup with Richard. And Chandler, back together with Janice, wants Joey to bond with her.
Episode 2
1996-09-26 • 23 min
In a race against the clock, a stressed Ross tries to get the gang dressed and ready for a black-tie benefit at the museum while Joey and Chandler clash over personal belongings and personal space.
Episode 3
1996-10-03 • 23 min
Phoebe dates a man who thinks he's stalking her twin sister. Ross and Rachel give Chandler "boyfriend" lessons. Monica decides the best way to get over Richard is to keep herself busy, so she uses her free time to make jam and considers insemination via a sperm bank.
Episode 4
1996-10-10 • 23 min
Phoebe poses as Joey's agent and has some success in getting him auditions. Ross panics when he sees his son with a Barbie doll. Chandler is advancing in his relationship with Janice and, realizing that he has a fear of commitment, goes to the girls for advice.
Episode 5
1996-10-17 • 23 min
Phoebe's half-brother visits, but they have trouble bonding. Joey attempts to build an entertainment center. Ross is challenged to name the five celebrities he'd like to sleep with most.
Episode 6
1996-10-31 • 23 min
When Janice asks the gang if any of them have ever slept together, the friends flash back to a time three years before.
Episode 7
1996-11-07 • 23 min
Monica buys a new bed from Janice's soon-to-be-ex-husband, "The Mattress King", but the wrong one is delivered. Rachel's attempts to have her father and Ross bond fail, until she stops trying. Joey gets a job teaching a soap opera acting class.
Episode 8
1996-11-14 • 23 min
When Phoebe believes she's killed the ugly naked guy across the street from Rachel and Monica, Joey constructs a long poking device. Joey and Monica catch Janice kissing her ex-husband; Chandler confronts Janice.
Episode 9
1996-11-21 • 23 min
Emotions become the feast of the day when the gang plays a game of touch football on Thanksgiving. Joey and Chandler argue over who gets to date a model while Ross and Monica argue over winning in a case of sibling rivalry.
Episode 10
1996-12-12 • 23 min
Rachel makes a rash decision after Gunther tells her she needs to be retrained. Phoebe tries to help Joey when he gets a job selling Christmas trees. And Ross accidentally breaks a girl's leg and tries to make it up to her.
Episode 11
1997-01-09 • 23 min
Ross is suspicious about Rachel's possible job offer from a good-looking stranger. And a drunken Chandler fools around with one of Joey's sisters, but he can't remember which one.
Episode 12
1997-01-16 • 23 min
Ross becomes increasingly jealous of Rachel's new colleague, Mark, and spies on her. Monica hooks up with a co-worker, who writes her a poem with a hidden meaning. One of Joey's numerous lies on his resume is exposed when he takes part in a Broadway musical.
Episode 13
1997-01-30 • 23 min
Monica's willpower is tested when she runs into Richard at the video store. Rachel agrees to read The Shining if Joey reads Little Women. Phoebe's athletic date has a problem with short shorts.
Episode 14
1997-02-06 • 23 min
Phoebe is reunited with her former singing partner who thinks "Smelly Cat" has hit potential; Chandler dates a woman with a prosthetic leg who also has some history with Joey. Meanwhile, Ross goes to a fashion seminar with Rachel, so she won't go with Mark, but falls asleep in the middle of it.
Episode 15
1997-02-13 • 23 min
Wanting more time to focus on her new job, Rachel suggests that she and Ross take a break from their relationship. Ross later seeks solace at a party. Phoebe dates a diplomat who needs an interpreter to communicate with her. Chandler and Joey ponder a ménage a trois with a woman who seems hot for both of them.
Episode 16
1997-02-20 • 24 min
Ross tries to prevent Rachel from learning his disturbing secret. She finds out anyway and they go back to her apartment to have a fight. The other four friends are trapped in Monica's bedroom, forced to listen in.
Episode 17
1997-03-06 • 23 min
Ross and Rachel compete to spend time with their other friends. When a lonely Ross is excluded from Rachel's ski trip with her pals, he visits Carol. On the way to the cabin, they run out of gas. Meanwhile, Chandler starts smoking again.
Episode 18
1997-03-13 • 23 min
Monica receives a tip from an admirer worth a small fortune then goes out with the guy. A hypnosis tape intended to assist Chandler to stop smoking has a rather strange side effect. Phoebe is upset when her 18-year-old half-brother, Frank Jr., makes a surprise announcement that he is getting married - to a woman more than twice his age.
Episode 19
1997-03-27 • 23 min
Rachel goes on her first date after splitting from Ross... and it's with Mark, her former colleague. Joey is cast in a play and develops a crush on his costar. Monica continues to date Pete, even though she is still not attracted to him.
Episode 20
1997-04-10 • 23 min
Monica inherits a beautiful dollhouse that is too elaborate to play with, so Phoebe makes her own. Joey thinks he's found his true love, and Rachel's boss dates Chandler, placing her in a dangerous situation.
Episode 21
1997-04-17 • 23 min
Monica considers a dream job as head chef in Pete's new restaurant, but Phoebe fears there is more to the deal. Ross makes a sacrifice to help Rachel, who may have a broken rib. Meanwhile, Joey buys Chandler an unusual pet.
Episode 22
1997-04-24 • 23 min
When Rachel finds out that Ross is bringing a date to the premiere of Joey's big play, she finds one of her own. Ross alone concludes that her date is insane. Poor Phoebe is on hold for days with a company she needs to talk to before her phone warranty expires. Meanwhile, Joey's play gets terrible reviews, but his co-star provides some comfort.
Episode 23
1997-05-01 • 23 min
Afflicted with a mysterious skin condition on his butt that doctors cannot identify the cause of, Ross seeks advice from Phoebe's herbalist. Phoebe finds herself in a dilemma when she cannot choose between two guys. Monica can't decide about Pete when she thinks he is going to propose.
Episode 24
1997-05-08 • 23 min
To Monica's horror, Pete wants to be the Ultimate Fighting Champion. Chandler has a problem when his new boss is slaphappy. Phoebe sets Ross up on a date with a woman who used to be bald. The group overhears a scandalous conversation at Central Perk.
Episode 25
1997-05-15 • 23 min
Phoebe invites everyone to stay at her massage client's beach house for the weekend. In search of her father, Phoebe meets someone who knows details about her family. Rachel expresses her jealousy of Ross' uninhibited girlfriend and Joey nags the friends into agreeing to play strip poker with unintended results. Chandler wonders why Monica doesn't think he's serious after asking if she would ever date him.
