The Universally Hated Friends Storyline Hits So Much Harder After You’re 25
Although even when I watched the show at the age of 18, I sensed that something was wrong with it all, but now I finally get what it was.
Friends is the only show I watched more than ten times, and while there’s a bunch of episodes I skip on every rewatch, I still find it fresh and lovely each time I give the iconic sitcom another try.
However, there are still storylines that make me angry or disappointed. For example, Ross cheating on Rachel with the copy girl. I mean, one angry kiss was absolutely enough to realize that what you are doing is wrong, Ross, there was no need to bring the girl back to your place and go all the way in.
And it doesn't matter how many times I watch the episodes with this story, I will always be sure that Ross was wrong. However, there is one particular storyline that hits so much differently now after several rewatches and after I’ve reached a certain young adult woman age of 28.
The failed relationship of Ross and Emily is arguably the most hated storyline in the series, and the audience shamed Emily all the way for the things she had done on the show.
Emily appeared on the show by chance, but she had a great influence on Ross. It seemed that they were really happy together and genuinely cared for each other. The only thing that bothered her and felt like a problem between them was her jealousy of Rachel. And after the infamous altar scene where Ross mistakenly said Rachel's name instead of Emily's... well, you know the rest.
The point is, a lot of people now say that even though the narrative was totally against Emily (the show even introduced her as this rude girl ready to criticize everything), her every outburst was absolutely foreshadowed given the circumstances she was in.
“Sorry but if the person I was marrying said their ex's name at my wedding, and then I caught them sneaking off on MY honeymoon together, I'd be pretty miffed too,” Redditor Available-Sea-6789 said.
The only thing she did wrong was agreeing to marry Ross, and she did it twice. The first time was when she realized that the girl he had a serious relationship with was still hanging out with him every single day. And the second time was when she went through with the wedding after he said the wrong name.
So Emily was not the villain in this story, and the way she is still treated as one is not fair and needs to change.
