Episode 21 - TOW The Ball
29 March 2012
Synopsis: Joey and Ross throw a ball back and forth for hours. Gary asks Phoebe to move in with him and Rachel buys a show cat.
The Good: Chandler being a dropper is funny and the odd visual joke with the ball and the cat is decent.
The Bad: But this is a very poor, thoughtless episode. We’ve basically spent the last few episodes getting to know Gary and then he shoots a bird so Phoebe dumps him. Where in real life is there anything resembling that story? Gary has been portrayed as a sweet guy who loves Phoebe. Are the writers saying he wouldn’t have begged her to forgive him and promised not to kill more birds if she stayed? Why is he killing them anyway? What kind of cop uses his gun at home? It is a cheap, lazy move by the writers who couldn’t think of a decent way to write him out of the show. There is also a line from Phoebe trying to cover up her criminal past from him. But when they first met he says he read her rap sheet – more lazy writing. Chandler’s pathetic conversation with Gary doesn’t ring true at all. Just because he is afraid of commitment doesn’t mean he expects others to be and there is no way he would be “convinced” by Gary’s love for Phoebe to not be scared himself. And then Phoebe shouts at him for being “good for nothing” which is pretty offensive and un-friendlike. Rachel’s cat plot has no point either and the writers have no ideas at all, going to Gunther for the stupid solution. This is one of the most “filler” episodes I can remember seeing. Both side plots are instantly forgettable and the main one is thoughtless and beyond stupid.
Best Line: (Ro) “When they found the remains of the Mesozoic mastodon they discovered what appeared to be the remains of a Palaeozoic amphibian in its jaws. How did it get there?”
(J) “Maybe this should be more of a quiet game.”
Best Friend: Rachel
Feedback
Add your comments on this episode below. They may be included in the weekly podcasts.
|
)