I’m writing this walkthrough on Sunday October 29, 2023. It was just yesterday that we all found out that Matthew Perry, who played Chandler Bing on “Friends” died at the age of 54. I’m 57 so all of the friends are in my general age range and that makes me really feel his passing. I’ve reached that age when it’s fairly common for people to die. Perry was the first of the six friends to do so. Now I’m going to write my first walkthrough after one of the six has gone.
I’m up to Season 7 Episode 4 “The One with Rachel’s Assistant.” It first aired on October 26, 2000. Let me check my calendar to see what I was doing on that day. I worked at Marvel Comics that day. I also went to the comic shop and then bought a video game at Electronics Boutique in the Nanuet Mall. I find that a little strange since I don’t think I often went to the comic shop and commuted into Marvel on the same day. It was a long commute after all. Either way I watched “Friends” live on that Thursday night. It also says that my website (jaredosborn.com) went live that day for the first time.
Let’s start the show. It starts with all six friends in Monica and Chandler’s apartment and they are watching Joey on his new show “Mac and Cheese.” It wasn’t a good show and they all have to figure out how to deal with that while Joey is suddenly on a call with his mother. No one wants to tell him how terrible it was. Phoebe comes up with the funniest bit. I finding myself a little sad as I watch Chandler. Here comes the theme song. The song is a little extra poignant this time.
Now it’s a coffee shop scene. Joey and Rachel have battling stories. Rachel is getting a promotion and Joey is going back on “Days of Our Lives” and they have a good news battle over it.
That was a quick scene and we cut to Rachel at work interviewing for her new assistant (hence the title of the episode. Of course she’s not very professional about it. In walks the hunky Tag. The guy with no experience but he sure is cute! It’s a gender swap of a classic sitcom gag.
And we’re off to Central Perk. It starts with Chandler and a quick “Only the friends sit on the couch” gag. Monica tells Chandler that she is keeping a secret from him and he demands total honesty because they’re getting married. Chandler tells her a long held secret about her brother Ross while she gives up gossip on people he neither knows nor cares about. He’s been tricked! Zounds!
Time moves on and we get a new scene with Rachel entering Chandler’s apartment and asking him about her assistant conundrum. She really wants to hire the hunk! Phoebe is there too and gives her the right advice. Yet Phoebe keeps the photo of him she’s shown because he’s so hunky.
Joey goes into the “Days of Our Lives” office and they ask him to audition for the role of the twin brother of the guy he used to play on the show. Not him! He’s too big for auditions! He blows it as he acts like a big shot and walk out.
Here comes Tag with a plant for Rachel. She blurts out that she is hiring him and then she has to. That was a short and awkward scene.
Next Chandler comes home to his apartment and there is a callback to the embarrassing Ross story. So of course Ross has to walk in. Ross eventually figures out that his secret is secret no more and is annoyed. Ross then tells a Chandler secret. A funny scene over all.
Next we get Phoebe, Joey, and Rachel in Joey’s place. Rachel doesn’t want to tell them that she hired the hunk and Joey gets a phone call telling him “Mac and Cheese” has been cancelled. In the morning he had two shows and in the evening he has none! Zounds again!
Meanwhile back at Chandler and Monica’s secrets are still being spilled. It all gets out of hand. The old “No one can be totally honest” bit.
Back with Joey he’s all upset at having no shows. A very quick scene!
Tag is on the job! He’s practicing answering the phone. Phoebe is there too and discovers that Rachel, “Hired herself a little treat.” Love that line and its delivery. She tells Rachel that she can’t get involved with him. Of course Rachel wants to!
The scenes are coming fast and furious in this one as Joey is back at the “Days” office and has to eat crow. He begs and gets an audition. But he doesn’t get the part. Instead they bring back is old character “I’m back, baby!”
Ross, Monica, and Chandler have moved to Central Perk and are uncomfortably busting on each other about their secrets. (I paused the episode on Chandler to write this and got a little melancholy.) The jokes fly. Chandler and Monica call off the total honesty.
Now we get a credits scene at Rachel’s office. Tag got asked out twice by guys during the day. Since Rachel wants to bang him that’s what she told another interested lady in the office. Tag says he wants to ask out Phoebe but then Rachel tells him that Phoebe is gay. End scene. Nice little goofy wrap up.
Let me check and see what was cut out of the episode for syndication. One joke was cut out of Ross’s secret. A joke about a plant in Rachel’s office was cut. Another Tag joke with Rachel wanting to hug him was cut. A quick joke between Phoebe and Joey was cut. A second “mac and Cheese” joke between them was cut too. Not much was cut out of this one but I’d still rather have them in there. That’s why I watch the old DVD versions of the show.
I’d rate this episode four out of five stars. That means I like it a little bit better than the average show. That could be my sadness at Matthew Perry dying so let’s see what I rated it back in 2010. I gave it four stars back then too.
It was fun watching the show and writing this but now I think I’m going to spend some time contemplating my own mortality. Later.