Random Character On 'Friends' Is a Really Bad Friend (18 items)

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  (#1) When Everyone Shows Up Late To Phoebe's Birthday Dinner

  In episode 5 of Season 9 - "The One With Phoebe’s Birthday Dinner" - Phoebe decides to lavishly celebrate her birthday with dinner at a fancy restaurant. Her beau may have to work, but her friends had all agreed to join her. Joey is the only one who shows up on time and the two sit for so long that they're asked to move to a smaller table. Both other couples are caught up in separate arguments over children and plans, that they cease to acknowledge they're letting one of their best friends down on her special day. After waiting even longer for her other friends to show, Phoebe ends up having to leave the dinner without eating or celebrating to find happiness in a calmer setting away from her pals.

  Monica, Chandler, Rachel, and Ross all let themselves be too self-absorbed in their own issues to set aside time to help another friend have a great night.
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  (#7) When Rachel Goes To England With The Intention Of Ruining Ross' Wedding

  Their status as dysfunctional, on-again, off-again love interests aside, Ross and Rachel were friends first. Even so, they never seem to support the others’ relationships. 

  For the majority of Season 4, the characters focus on moving on; Rachel moves in on Joshua and Ross falls for Emily. As soon as Ross decides to get married, Rachel decides she’s not done with him yet. 

  Instead of seeing Ross’s obvious happiness, and supporting it, Rachel’s initial reaction is selfish. She immediately makes up an excuse not to go to London and attend the wedding. Then, she decides she’s going to go to London and tell him she’s still in love with him - which will essentially ruin the entire wedding. Thankfully, when she finally arrives in London, she decides not to tell Ross how she feels and let's him follow his heart instead. But that doesn't dismiss the 10-plus hours of travel she made with poor intentions.
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  (#18) When Monica And Chandler Make Joey Hide Their Relationship 

  Let’s face it, Monica and Chandler are the couple we never saw coming - with Ross and Rachel at the forefront. In all of the excitement over their budding romance after London, it's easy to miss what their secret romance did to Joey.

  When Joey puts the pieces together, Monica and Chandler force him into secrecy, which put the gentle-hearted Joey through the ringer. By keeping it to himself, Joey had to take the blame for Chandler’s underwear being at Monica’s by saying “I’m Joey. Yeah, I'm disgusting, I take my underwear off in other people's homes.” While Joey's actions may have been those of friendship, Chandler and Monica should not have put him through that for their own gain.
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  (#9) When Phoebe Keeps Joey From Earning Money By Destroying Christmas Trees

  Being a struggling actor isn’t all red carpets and private jets - Joey doesn’t live the high life in Friends. In Season 3, episode 10, "The One Where Rachel Quits," Joey gets a job selling Christmas trees around the holiday season. Gotta pay the bills, right? One day, Phoebe visits him while he is on the job and becomes disgusted by the fact that the old trees, that don’t sell, get thrown in the chipper. This leads her to obnoxiously and repeatedly promote the sale of these dead trees that actively cuts into the cash Joey is able to make. He evens begs her to stop: "Phoebs, you gotta stop doing this. I'm working on commission here!"

  Preaching the importance of Mother Nature is one thing but embarking on a self-righteous crusade in a friend’s place of work is another; is she indifferent to the fact that Joey has bills to pay? In the end, the gang gives in to Phoebe's selfish behavior and buys her all of the dead trees. So much for Joey’s commendable pursuit of coin.
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  (#11) When Joey Attempts To Sabotage Another Actor

  In Season 3 in "The One With The Race Car Bed," Joey gets a job teaching soap acting to aspiring thespians. Having been Dr. Drake Ramoray on Days of our Lives, Joey is able to educate his students on the essentials: smell the fart acting and the appropriate implementation of tweezers and long division. Joey really seems to enjoy the job until one of his students starts auditioning for the same part he's up for. That student reads lines with Joey and he’s incredible, so much so that Joey can’t compete. Instead of being a good friend and mentor, Joey gives him absolutely horrible advice knowing the student will listen to him, and he ultimately doesn't get the job, leaving the position up for grabs.
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  (#10) When The Other Friends Laugh At ‘Fat Monica’ In Her Prom Dress

  In retrospect, Friends’ whole “fat-shaming Monica” gag hasn’t aged well. Not only does everyone make fun of her for those retroactive gains - including her future husband - but the show acts as if skinny Monica is somehow better than “Fat Monica.” Monica’s weight and a subsequent eating disorder are clearly traumatic issues for the character. 

  The first and perhaps the crown champion of fat-shaming moments comes in the 14th episode of Season 2 - "The One With The Prom Video." In it, Monica finds a home video of her and Rachel getting ready for their senior prom. When “Fat Monica” comes on screen, Joey exclaims, “some girl ate Monica!” The group is quickly in hysterics, except for Monica, who just tells them to stop laughing.  

  The whole home-video plot point seems to exist to bring Ross and Rachel together over his past chivalry. What fades into the background is the story of a teenage girl, who most likely was teased throughout high school, just trying to feel pretty on prom night.

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