Some sitcoms come and go, while others become ingrained as foundational elements of pop culture that will never fully leave the public consciousness, and such is the case with Friends. Friends ran for ten seasons and produced over a staggering 230 episodes. The sitcom was at the peak of popularity during its original run in the 1990s, but its continued popularity on streaming platforms like Netflix and HBO Max speaks to its current value.

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Friends is comfort food for most of its audience, and the sitcom’s characters have a lot to do with their love for the show. David Schwimmer’s Ross Gellar experiences some of the most changes out of any of the characters in Friends, which can sometimes push him into tragic circumstances or transform him into a villain.

10 Felt Bad For Him: His Wife Leaves Him For Carol & Treats Him Like A Joke

Friends The One With The Lesbian Wedding Carol Susan

Friends is certainly at its clumsiest during its first season, and there’s an extra amount of focus that’s applied to Ross’ messy life, both in terms of his impending fatherhood status and the fresh divorce that he continues to process. Ross’ wife, Susan, leaves him for Carol, but the two develop a toxicity where they take all of their anger out on Ross. Furthermore, the nature of Ross’ divorce grows into a running joke with his friends, and it’s just kicking the character while he’s down.

9 He Was The Bad Guy: He Didn't Get His Marriage To Rachel Annulled

TV Friends Ross Rachel Vegas Wedding

Friends continually teases a reconciliation between Ross and Rachel, and most of the time, it’s easy to root for them to get back together. A messy night in Las Vegas results in a spontaneous wedding between the two of them, which Ross promises to get annulled due to the circumstances behind it. It’s actually really vile that Ross lies to Rachel about getting the annulment under the assumption that he’ll be able to reconcile things so that she’ll want to remain married. It’s a major violation that’s totally selfish on Ross’ part.

8 Felt Bad For Him: Phoebe Mugged Him During His Youth

TV Friends Phoebe Reveals She Mugged Ross

Any time a sitcom runs for an extended period of time, there’s the risk of certain storylines contradicting previous character details or just not making sense. Later on in Friends’ run, it’s revealed that Phoebe and Ross met during their childhood, albeit under grim circumstances. Phoebe’s tough childhood has been well established in Friends, but it apparently included an altercation where she mugged Ross.

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This event is played for laughs, but it’s a traumatic thing for a child to experience and something that definitely shaped Ross’ perception of the world.

7 He Was The Bad Guy: He Dated One Of His Students

TV Friends Ross Dates Elizabeth Stevens Student

The characters in Friends go through some interesting career shifts, and Ross spends a good deal of time as a respected professor with a PhD. Ross’ efforts are often played for comedic effect, but during season six he engages in a relationship with one of his students, Elizabeth Stevens. To be fair, Ross exhibits reservations about pursuing this relationship, but he still does so, and it lasts for several episodes. He never properly addresses the skewed power dynamics that are in play, and instead, it’s just used as a source of humor regarding Ross’ age in comparison to Elizabeth.

6 Felt Bad For Him: How He Finds Out About Chandler & Monica's Relationship

TV Friends Ross Sees Chandler And Monica Together

One of the most stable and endearing relationships in Friends is the romance that grows between Chandler and Monica. This relationship initially happens under unexpected circumstances, but it develops into something that’s genuinely sweet. Due to the nature of their romance, Chandler and Monica at first keep their business a secret until more of their friends progressively find out. Ross is the last one to learn about this, and he doesn’t get to be told in a respectful manner. In fact, he inadvertently witnesses his sister and Chandler together in their apartment, which he can’t understand in the moment.

5 He Was The Bad Guy: His Handling Of The Mark Situation

TV Friends Ross Rachel Mark

Friends allows Ross and Rachel to enjoy some happiness in their relationship, but it’s not long until problems begin to present themselves that never fully disappear. Ross is at his worst when he grows dangerously jealous of Rachel’s relationship with her co-worker, Mark.

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There is nothing going on there (although Mark is interested), but Ross’ inability to trust Rachel is just so unbecoming and something he’s never been able to recover from. Ross has reasons for his confidence and trust issues, but this is still going too far.

4 Felt Bad For Him: He Has To Watch Rachel Date Joey

Rachel and Joey kiss in front of Ross in Friends

Friends is mostly consistent throughout its ten seasons, but the final years begin to exhibit some fatigue in the form of spontaneous romances that attempt to add fresh life into the sitcom. This leads to an awkward romance between Rachel and Joey that never really feels natural. This experience is very difficult for Ross, and he has to really grow as a person as he watches Rachel and Joey interact in this capacity. The fact that this romance becomes short-lived makes it more painful for Ross and something that sticks with him once his relationship with Rachel resumes.

3 He Was The Bad Guy: He Kissed Joey's Girlfriend, Charlie

TV Friends Charlie Ross Romance Guilt

Friends doesn’t shy away from the drama between its inner circle. The gang usually has each other’s backs, but they still commit their share of indiscretions. Aisha Tyler does an extended guest-starring run on the series as Charlie, Joey’s brilliant girlfriend. Joey is intimidated by Charlie’s intelligence and how she has more in common with Ross, but there’s still a tender romance there. Ross crosses a line when he kisses Charlie while she’s still with Joey. Ross being interested in Charlie isn’t a problem, but he should talk to Joey about it rather than just act.

2 Felt Bad For Him: Rachel Vilifies Him After Their Break-Up & Doesn't Take Equal Responsibility

TV Friends - Rachel and Ross sitting at the table together

One of the biggest events in the entirety of Friends is the messy break-up that happens between Ross and Rachel and the complexity of their “being on a break” situation. Ross is continually treated like the enemy through all of this, even though there’s validity to his side of the story. Ross exhibits maturity and restraint while Rachel humiliates him in the aftermath. Her extensive apology that she wants him to sign is a perfect example of the imbalance of responsibility between them and how poorly this break-up is handled.

1 He Was The Bad Guy: He Said Another Woman's Name During His Wedding With Emily

Ross Says Rachels Name at his wedding in Friends

Friends really leans into the idea that Ross is going to marry Emily and that he might even move away to London to be with her. Emily is frequently depicted as problematic due to how controlling she is over Ross and her insecurity over his lingering relationship with Rachel. It turns out that Emily is justified in her suspicions because Ross accidentally says the name of his ex during his wedding vows with Emily. It’s a thrilling moment for Ross and Rachel fans, but it’s such an awful way for Ross and Emily’s relationship to end. It breaks her.

NEXT: Friends: Every Main Character's Age At The Start Of The Series