Thanksgiving, that gluttonous holiday I love despite its unsavory origins, is tomorrow. My family’s feast will begin probably at around 3 pm. For the first time, I will assist with the cooking, hoping to do enough to ease my father’s workload (and also to get out of helping with the dishes). And tonight on Thanksgiving Eve, I will partake in some of my favorite Thanksgiving-themed entertainment.
As you know, I’m a big fan of sitcoms and television in general, and there are some classic Thanksgiving TV episodes that I enjoy watching in preparation of the holiday.
How I Met Your Mother, “Slapsgiving” – Marshall and Barney’s “You Just Got Slapped” song makes me laugh, as does Orson Bean as Ted’s imagined version of Robin’s slightly older boyfriend. I also enjoy the poignancy of Ted and Robin trying to force a friendship after a breakup, only to find their friendship restored after a few military-language puns. (“General Knowledge,” “Corporal Punishment,” “Colonel Stuck In My Teeth,” and “Major Buzzkill.”) The episode also feels very Thanksgiving-y with four friends sitting on their butts and getting into drama while one person goes nearly mad doing all of the cooking – and of course, Lily gets to relax afterward as her friends do all of the dishes.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, “Pangs” – I actually have a lot of problems with this episode. It’s racist, for one thing, with native appropriation and factual inaccuracies about the Chumash people. Angel returns for a pointless cameo and continues with stalking Buffy, only to set up a crossover Angel episode that still infuriates me. I also don’t like that no one but Anya cares about Xander’s mystical syphilis. However, I do enjoy Spike tied to a chair and being a helpless, annoyed puppy without blood, and Giles calling Americans “you bloody colonials.” I also adore Anya’s description of Thanksgiving: “To commemorate a past event, you kill and eat an animal. It’s a ritual sacrifice, with pie.” Ultimately, I enjoy the attempt to put a supernatural spin on Thanksgiving.
Friends, “The One Where Ross Got High” – Let’s face it, no sitcom did Thanksgiving episodes that Friends did. The show had ten Thanksgiving episodes over its run. Two were boring, three were good, and five were great to amazing. My favorite one, even more than Chandler in a box or the Thanksgiving flashbacks, was the one where Ross got high. No Ross/Rachel breakup drama, no Fat Monica jokes, just Ross trying desperately to hide the fact that he once got high in college, Phoebe having weird sex dreams about Mr. Geller and Jacques Cousteau, Rachel accidentally making a half-English trifle and half-shepherd’s pie, the Geller siblings revealing secrets to each other, and Chandler gets a rare triumphant moment when Mrs. Geller tells him how great he is. This episode also has Joey loving Rachel’s terrible dessert, and Ross crying, “It tastes like feet!”
What about you? What are your favorite pieces of Thanksgiving entertainment?
And happy Slapsgiving!
Articles
Interviews
Novels, Fiction & Silliness
Reviews
In principle I agree with Joey on the trifle: “What’s not to like?” I’ve had mango salsa on chicken and mint jelly on lamb, so I can’t imagine strawberry jam on roast beef would be *that* bad. And while we’re on the subject, I think Joey’s role in that storyline is what makes it great. The “woman cooks inedible food for husband/boyfriend/boss” is a clam, but having Joey genuinely enjoy it — and more importantly, having his enjoyment of it be perfectly in character for him — redeems it.
Roast beef and strawberry jam doesn’t sound bad to me. I think the combination of whipped cream with peas and onions is a little much for me, though.
I agree that the Joey part of the storyline is what makes the episode work. He was the most concerned about the dessert, and he’s the one who enjoys it the most. I also liked that the episode wasn’t making fun of Rachel’s cooking skills or implying that she was terrible with food – she just got the recipe wrong. Pretty understandable mistake.
Pingback: レイバン