And so we've come full circle in this wild adventure... The same old story we've seen a million times. Boy meets girl, boy pines after girl, girl finds out, boy gets new Asian girlfriend, girl pines after boy, boy finds out, boy dumps Asian girlfriend, Asian girlfriend falls in love with boy's lookalike, boy writes list about girl, girl watches old high school prom video, boy gets girl, boy does girl in museum, girl gets new job, boy gets jealous, girl gets angry, boy gets a copy girl, girl wants boy back again, girl finds out about copy girl, boy looses girl again. Talk about your predictable relationships. If this brief synopsis doesn't whet your curiosity, the entire story is here for your perusal.

September 22th, 1994 -- Ep101 -- The One Where Monica Gets a New Roommate
Ross, who's ex-wife has just left him for another woman, and Rachel, who has just ditched her fiancee at the altar, meet again for the first time since high school. The fire of passion ignites inside Ross, who tells Rachel that he had a huge crush on her in high school. He then casually mentions asking Rachel out sometime. She seems excited.

September 29th, 1994 -- Ep102 -- The One With the Sonogram at the End
Ross' ex-wife tells him that she's pregnant with his child. Ross helps Rachel sweep up Central Perk after closing time. Lamenting about each others' current romantic situations, Rachel lays her head on Ross' hand. Needless to say, Ross doesn't mind.

October 6th, 1994 -- Ep103 -- The One With the Thumb
Rachel pokes fun at the way Ross over-pronounces every word. Ross gives her a dirty look. The tension mounts.

October 20th, 1994 -- Ep105 -- The One With the East German Launry Detergent
Ross and Rachel do their laundry together at the local laundromat. Ross helps Rachel to discover a bit of independence, and she is so pleased with his help that she gives him a kiss. Stunned, Ross runs into the door of a washing machine. Afterwards, Rachel lovingly applies an icepack.

November 3th, 1994 -- Ep107-- The One With the Blackout
During a blackout, Joey encourages Ross to tell Rachel how he feels about her. Meeting her out on the infamous balcony, he begins to ask her out when a stray cat jumps on him from behind. The moment ruined, Rachel goes off to find the owner of the cat and meets a handsome Italian man, Paolo. She brings him back to the apartment, where Ross tells him to stay out of the way. When the lights come back on, Ross sees Rachel making out with the damn crapweasel. A definite low point in the relationship.

November 10th, 1994 -- Ep108 -- The One Where Nana Dies Twice
At his grandmother's funeral, Ross takes one too many pain pills and gets a bit woozy. He tells all his friends how much he loves them, and then secretly confides in Rachel 'I love you the most.' Rachel, thinking its just the drugs talking, playfully replies 'Do you know who I love the most? You!' Ross, upset with the misunderstading, wails 'You don't get it!' and passes out in her lap.

December 15th, 1994 -- Ep110 -- The One With the Monkey
Rachel confides to the group that by their second date, Paolo had already named both of her breasts. When she asks if she said too much, Ross dejectedly replies 'Just a smidge.'

January 5th, 1995 -- Ep111 -- The One With Mrs Bing
Chandler's mom comes to visit, and the group goes to dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Rachel arrives late with Paolo, saying that they 'just lost track of time.' Ross starts downing tequila shots, and ends up kissing Chandler's mom.

January 12th, 1995 -- Ep112 -- The One With the Dozen Lasagnas
Paolo goes to Phoebe for a massage and makes a pass at her. Finally seeing the light, Rachel breaks up with him. Ross goes out to the infamous balcony to comfort her, and tells her she deserves someone who knows what they have when they have her. They embrace. Rachel then tells Ross that she is swearing off guys for a while. Ross tries to convince her otherwise to no avail.

February 9th, 1995 -- Ep114 -- The One With the Candy Hearts
Depressed about the Rachel ordeal, Ross asks a good- looking woman from his building out on a date, while Rachel and the other girls have a 'boyfriend bonfire.' Ross runs into his lesbian ex-wife during his date, where he tries to patch things up with her. It's a no-go, since she is a lesbian. Rachel makes a date with one of the firemen who helps put out their out-of- control bonfire, not knowing that he's married.

March 2th, 1995 -- Ep118 -- The One With All the Poker
The whole crew has a poker game together. In the first game, Rachel gets upset that the guys get such a kick out taking their money. Ross tells Rachel that once the cards are dealt, he ceases to be a 'nice guy.' Rachel tells the other girls she thought he was being a jerk. In a subsequent poker game, Rachel refuses to show her cards to Ross after he folds, causing him to get angry. During the next hand, Rachel gets a phone call telling her that she has been turned down for the job offer she wanted. Ross, noticing her obvious sadness, intentionally folds the winning hand to let Rachel have the pot.

March 9th, 1995 -- Ep119 -- The One Where the Monkey Gets Away
Ross and Rachel have dinner together alone, where she tells him that she wants to be with someone. Ross, about to bear his soul, is interrupted by the other four friends returning home from a movie. The next day, Rachel accidentally lets Ross' monkey loose in the apartment while looking after him. She then unwittingly calls Animal Control, not knowing that the monkey is an illegal animal. Ross is furious with Rachel, but every- thing turns out OK. Alone once again, Ross pours wine for the two of them and dims the lights. Rachel puts her hand on his leg. Ross begins to tell her how he feels, when Rachel's ex-fiancee walks through the door and tells her that he still loves her. Ross proclaims: 'We have got to start locking that door!'

April 6th, 1995 -- Ep120 -- The One With the evil Orthodontist
Ross storms out of Monica's apartment after hearing about Rachel's fling with the man she left at the altar.

May 4th, 1995 -- Ep123 -- The One With the Birth
Rachel has erotic dreams about Chandler and Joey, leading Ross to get extremely jealous. While she is asleep on Monica's couch, he gets up to leave and covers her up, when she moans 'Oooooohhhhhh Ross!' Overjoyed that she is dreaming of him, Ross begins to dance on the table and falls into her lap. She wakes up, confused about the situation. She puts her hand on his chest, and he tells her 'I'm here.' Then his beeper goes off, as his ex-wife goes into labor.

May 18th, 1995 -- Ep124 -- The One Where Rachel Finds Out
Chandler tells Ross move on and forget about Rachel. Ross goes to China on a business trip, leaving a present behind for Chandler to give to Rachel for her birthday. When she opens it, she finds that it is an expensive brooch like the one her grandmother had when she was little. She says she can't believe that he did this for her, at which point Chandler lets it slip that Ross is in love with her. Rachel rushes to the airport to talk to him, but barely misses him. A few days later, while having drinks with another guy on the infamous balcony, Rachel begins daydreaming about Ross. On the day his flight arrives, she runs to meet him with a bouquet of flowers... when he gets off the plane with another woman.

September 21th, 1995 -- Ep201 -- The One With Ross's New Girlfriend
Ross tells Chandler he never would have gone for it with the new woman--Julie--if Chandler hadn't told him to get over Rachel. Rachel, upset about the turn of events, sleeps with Paolo again. Joey tells Rachel that she needs to tell Ross how she feels. She meets him out on the infamous balcony, where Ross tells her how much he hates Paolo and that she needs to be with someone that makes her feel good--like Julie does for him. Rachel, speechless, decides not to tell Ross how she feels.

September 28th, 1995 -- Ep202 -- The One With the Breast Milk
Monica goes shopping with Julie, and Rachel gets jealous. Monica tells Rachel that if she gave Julie a chance, she would like her. Rachel and Julie talk, and Julie asks Rachel if she'd like to see a movie some time. Rachel says that would be great. Julie then leaves, and Rachel mutters, 'What a manipulative bitch.'

October 12th, 1995 -- Ep204 -- The One With Phoebe's Husband
Ross asks Rachel how long she has been in a relationship before having sex. Rachel deduces that Ross hasn't done it yet with Julie, and tells him that he should wait. Ross takes Joey's advice instead, who tells him to do it as soon as possible. The gang hangs out at Ross' apartment, where Rachel tries to stall the two so they won't have sex. On her way out, Rachel tells Ross that if it were her, she would want him to slowly kiss her, and then look in her eyes as if something amazing were about to happen. Ross seems entranced. The two get close, as if about to kiss, and then Ross says 'Thanks, Rach. Goodnight,' and shuts the door.

November 9th, 1995 -- Ep207 -- The One Where Ross Finds Out
Rachel hears that Ross and Julie are going to buy a cat together and gets worried their relationship is getting too serious. She goes out on a date and gets toasted, and can't talk about anything but Ross. Her date convinces her to call him and tell him how she feels. She calls him from the restaurant and leaves a message on his machine. The next morning, he comes by her apartment and checks his answering machine from there. Rachel remembers the message she left and tries to stop him from hearing it, embarrassed. But he does. They start to talk, but he has to leave with Julie. Later that night, Ross shows up at Central Perk and gets upset with Rachel for disclosing her feelings because he is unhappy with Julie now. The two argue in what has got to be one of the best scenes that has ever been on television. He leaves, and she locks the doors and begins to cry. Just when we think the episode is over, he comes back, and they share one of the most long-awaited kisses in television history. Talk about your good days.

November 16th, 1995 -- Ep208 -- The One With the List
Ross, forced to choose between Rachel and Julie, takes Chandler's advice and makes a list of the negative sides of both women to help him decide. He decides to break up with Julie for Rachel, and at first everything seems great until Rachel sees the list on Chandler's computer. She is so enraged by seeing her negative points on his list that she wants nothing to do with him. He tries to make it up to her by requesting U2's 'With or Without You' for her on the radio, but she calls the radio back and tells them to stop playing it. Talk about your bad days.

December 14th, 1995 -- Ep209 -- The One With Phoebe's Dad
Sensing that Rachel is still upset with him about the infamous list, Ross convinces her that she'll feel better if she makes a list of his faults. She tells him that he is obsessive, gutless, whiney, and that he uses too much gel in his hair. Ross is taken aback, but it looks like the wounds are healing between these two young lovers. However, Ross may have made a bad decision buying Rachel a Slinky for Christmas. Nevertheless, it looks like the most-watched romance in television is on the verge of a major breakthrough!

January 4th, 1996 -- Ep210 -- The One With Russ
Rachel tells the group that she no longer has any feelings whatsoever for Ross. She then introduces them to her new date, Russ, who looks and acts much like Ross... however, Rachel fails to notice the similarities. When it finally becomes clear to her that Russ and Ross have more in common than just their names, she promptly dumps him. Russ then falls in love with Ross' ex-girlfriend, Julie.

February 1th, 1996 -- Ep214 -- The One With the Prom Video
Rachel tells Ross that they will never be a 'thing,' and that he had to accept it. After spending the rest of the day in emotional hell, Ross returns to Monica's apartment to find the entire gang watching an old video tape of Monica and Rachel's senior prom. In the video, Rachel's date has stood her up and Monica's father talks Ross into asking Rachel to the prom. Ross puts on his father's tux, and is just about to ask Rachel to the dance when her date shows up, and she leaves with him. Rachel is so touched by what she sees in the video that her feelings for Ross come rushing back in a huge torrent, and she walks up to him and kisses him full on the mouth, signalling the beginning of a new era in her life... The Age of Ross.

February 8th, 1996 -- Ep215 -- The One Where Ross and Rachel... You know
Ross and Rachel. Together. Finally. Having planned to go to a romantic dinner and then come back to Rachel's apartment for... dessert, Ross ends up having to straighten some business at the museum he works at, and Rachel tags along. Unfortunately, his business takes longer than he had expected. Fortunately, they end up hitting it in the astrology exhibit at the museum. They wake in the morning to see a group of young kids on a field trip who are, needless to say, shocked by the two naked people in the exhibit. Be that as it may, it doesn't change the fact that Ross and Rachel are now officially more than just 'friends.'

February 15th, 1996 -- Ep216 -- The One Where Joey Moves Out
Rachel and Phoebe decide to get tattoos, but Rachel finds out that Ross doesn't think they are very appealing. Rachel accompanies Phoebe to the tattoo parlor, and expresses her second thoughts. Phoebe (apparently in an act of insane jealousy over Rachel's relationship) asks Rachel 'Is this how this relationship is going to work? Ross equals boss?' Not wanting to look like a wimp, Rachel proceeds to get a small heart tattooed on her hip. She is extremely upset when she finds out that Phoebe chickened out at the last minute. Ross walks in on Rachel as she is proudly displaying the tattoo to Monica and her new boyfriend, and is upset that Rachel got the tattoo. After staring at it intensely, though, Ross realizes how sexy it is and he and Rachel spend the next few hours in Rachel's bedroom. Talking, I'm sure. :)

February 22th, 1996 -- Ep217 -- The One Where Eddie Moves In
Rachel becomes mildly upset with Ross for acting childish around Monica. However, the two look as close as ever... all is well in paradise.

March 21th, 1996 -- Ep218 -- The One Where Dr Ramoray Dies
Ross and Rachel finally sit down and have a serious heart-to-heart talk about Rachel's feelings for Paolo. The conversation ends well when Rachel beats Monica in rock-paper-scissors in order to obtain the last condom in the apartment.

March 28th, 1996 -- Ep219 -- The One Where Eddie Won't Go
Rachel reads a self-empowerment book that refers to men as 'lightning-bearers' and urges women to stop letting males steal their wind. Ross comes to take her to a movie, and she begins to feel that he is oppressing her. 'How can you expect me to grow if you won't let me blow?' she asks. To which an aroused Ross replies, 'You know I don't have a problem with that.' Book or no book, things are going just fine for America's hottest couple. Stay tuned!

April 4th, 1996 -- Ep220 -- The One Where Old Yeller Dies
Rachel becomes nervous when Ross slips up and tells her that he has planned out the rest of their lives together (Ross, didn't anyone ever tell you that women don't like that stuff?) This leads to an argument where Rachel tells him that she doesn't want anyone planning her life for her, and Ross telling her that he is the type of guy who is not going to stop planning to spend the rest of his life with the woman he truly loves. This momentous conversation ends with Ross and Rachel exchanging those three little words that mean so much.

April 25th, 1996 -- Ep221 -- The One With the Bullies
Very little to report this week, folks. Ross and Chandler encounter two middle-aged bullies at the coffeehouse, leading Ross to get an affectionate hug from Rachel after he tells her the story.

May 2th, 1996 -- Ep222 -- The One With Two Parties
Rachel's birthday party turns into mayhem when her newly-separated mother and father both show up. Feeling down about the breakup, Rachel turns to Chandler for advice, who in turn turns her over to Ross for comfort.

May 9th, 1996 -- Ep223 -- The One With the Chicken Pox
Rachel tells Ross that she likes men in uniform, so Ross goes and gets a sailors uniform just like Ryan's.

May 16th, 1996 -- Ep224 -- The One With Barry and Mindy's Wedding
Ross accompanies Rachel to Barry and Mindy's wedding... Barry, of course, being the man that she left at the altar waaaaayyy back in the pilot episode. Barry, still hurting from her rapid exit from their ceremony, pokes fun at her during his speech. Ross stands up for her at first, but Rachel decides that she needs to stick up for herself and tells him off at his own wedding. We sure have come a long way... I remember when Rachel couldn't even protect her own laundry cart.

September 19th, 1996 -- Ep301 -- The One With the Princess
Rachel convinces Ross to reveal his deepest sexual fantasy to her... a fantasy which she later reveals to Phoebe. See, it seems that Ross--along with every other male in the free world--has this little hang-up about Princess Leia in her slave outfit from Return of the Jedi. Well, Ross decides to share his secret with Chandler and in return Chandler tells Ross that he some- times pictures his mother while he's having sex. Ross is shocked and disgusted, but when Rachel finally shows up in the gold bikini, Ross can't seem to get his mother out of his mind. Ohhh Ross... you're letting the hottest babe in New York slip away. The final days of the Age of Ross are not far away.

September 26th, 1996 -- Ep302 -- The One Where No-one's Ready
In a hurry to get the whole gang ready for a museum benefit, Ross blows up at Rachel due to her inability to get dressed on time. Humiliated and angry, Rachel decides not to go to the benefit. But Ross' nice-guy mentality proves to win out here when he chooses to drink a disgusting glass of meat fat in order to show her how much he wants her to be there. Of course, Rachel stops him before he can quaff the concoction, and the two end up going together happily ever after... Rachel sans underwear, no less.

October 3th, 1996 -- Ep303 -- The One With the Jam
Ross and Rachel give Chandler some friendly advice to help him out with his relationship with Janice, and Ross privately teaches Chandler the hug-and-roll maneuver to avoid cuddling after sex. When Chandler tries the move on Janice, however, she falls off the bed. The next day, Janice lets it slip to Rachel that Ross taught Chandler the move. Rachel is upset with Ross because she had thought of them as "cuddly sleepers."

October 10th, 1996 -- Ep304 -- The One With the Metaphorical Tunnel
Rachel becomes moderately annoyed with Ross' unwillingness to accept the fact that his son is playing with a Barbie doll rather than a more masculine doll. Luckily, the week's major revelation--that Ross used to dress up as a girl when he was younger--does not become disclosed to Rachel.

October 17th, 1996 -- Ep305 -- The One With Frank Jr.
Ross and Rachel trade lists of the five celebrities who they would be allowed to cheat on each other for. Rachel's list includes Parker Stevenson, Sting, Daniel Day Lewis (?), John F. Kennedy, Jr., and Chris O'Donnell. Ross gives plenty of though to his list, finally deciding on Uma Thurman, Wynona Ryder, Elizabeth Hurley, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Dorothy Hammill (to which Rachel notes, "You do realize that she only spins like that on ice?") One of Ross' original inclusions, Isabella Rossalini, coincidentally happens to show up at Central Perk after Ross has laminated his ist. Rachel doesn't believe him when he tells her that had he not taken her off the list, he would go up and flirt with her. Rachel allows him to use her as an alternate, and he is quickly shot down by Rossalini. He then runs into the waiting arms of Rachel (who, ironically enough, happens to have made two spots on my list of five.)

October 31th, 1996 -- Ep306 -- The One With the Flashback
We learn that prior to Ross and Rachel's hot love affair, Ross nearly had sex with Phoebe on the pool table of the closed-down bar where Central Perk now stands. We also learn that Rachel at one time fantasized about making it with Chandler in the very same pool room before her subsequent wedding and the abandonment thereof.

November 7th, 1996 -- Ep307 -- The One With the Racecar bed
Ross has dinner with Rachel and her father, much to his chagrin. Rachel's dad shorts the waiter on the tip, and Ross swiftly adds another $20 to the tab. When Rachel's dad goes back to get a copy of the receipt, however, he notes the extra $20 and thinks that Ross is trying to imply that he's cheap. Rachel's dad tears up the check and leaves Ross to foot the entire bill. Rachel begs Ross to give it another chance at getting along with Dr. Green, because she already has a mother and a father who have to be kept separate and she doesn't want Ross to have to do the same. The three of them have brunch at Rachel's apartment, and Ross and Dr. Green realize that they do have one thing in common: nagging Rachel. Rachel is a little peeved that Ross has to resort to picking on her in order to break the ice with her father.

November 14th, 1996 -- Ep308 -- The One With the Giant Poking Device
Ross becomes reluctant to leave his son Ben with Rachel for the day when he has to go to the museum for urgent dinosaur business. Monica assures him that she'll be there the whole time, further accentuating Ross' lack of trust in his girlfriend. While watching Ben, Monica accidentally bangs his head against the ceiling and gives him a hefty bruise. When Ross gets home, he is quick to lecture Rachel on how careful she has to be when watching babies. Defending herself, Rachel points out that Monica was the one responsible for the bump and Ross capitalizes on Monica's guilt.

November 21th, 1996 -- Ep309 -- The One With the Football
The six go out to play a friendly game of football, which turns into an intense competition between siblings Ross and Monica. Ross' competitivity leads him to trade away Rachel, who is shocked and saddened by the fact that she was traded away by her own boyfriend. Bad move, Ross. Anyway, Rachel gives him his comeuppance when she catches the game-winning pass, even though she neglects to actually bring the ball into the end zone. The football game ends in a draw, but the real loser is Ross... trading away the woman you love, even in a friendly football game, is a bad idea.

December 12th, 1996 -- Ep310 -- The One Where Rachel Quits
Chandler and Joey convince Rachel to quit her waitressing job at Central Perk after two and a half years of screwing up orders. Unwittingly, Chandler and Joey have set in motion a chain of events that will ultimately lead to the destruction of the most heralded union in all of television history. But don't blame them, they know not what they do.

January 9th, 1997 -- Ep311 -- The One Where Chandler Can't Remember Which Sister
Mark... or as I like to call him, Paolo Number Two... makes his slimy entrance into Rachel's life. While she's sulking over her job prospects, Mark offers her his card and tells her that he may be able to get her an opening at Bloomingdale's. Rachel is very excited, but Ross instantly suspects that Mark wants an opening of his own: "Sounds like Mark something wants to have some sex!" Ross becomes jealous, and Rachel becomes a bit ticked off at his possessiveness. Monica tells Ross to trust her and grow up, but Ross can't shake the feeling that Mark something-or-other is going to serve as a major impediment to his happiness. And in a way, he's right.

January 23th, 1997 -- Ep312 -- The One With all the Jealousy
Rachel starts her new job with Mark at Bloomingdale's. Threatened, Ross sends her a vast array of love tokens, including a musical bug and a huge picture of himself with the caption "I Love You This Much." A thoroughly disgusting display of overaffection if I ever saw one. He then sends a barbershop quartet to her office to sing about how much he loves and supports her. Upset by his obvious marking of territory, Rachel tells Ross that if two people love each other as much as they do, there should be no reason for jealousy. These very words come back to haunt her when Ross makes a playdate with a single stripper mom. Rachel tries to hide her jealousy, but Ross sees through it, casually remarking "I love you too" when he notices how uncomfortable she is letting him go on this playdate. Rachel plants a remarkable kiss on him before he leaves, leading Chandler to add, "Way to go. You've just turned him on and sent him off to a stripper."

January 30th, 1997 -- Ep313 -- The One Where Monica and Richard are Friends
Ross becomes a bit agitated that Rachel has been working late. Rachel appeases him by agreeing that for every night he is asleep before she gets home, she'll wake him up in a way "that has proved very popular in the past." Ahhh, sexual favors. The core of every meaningful relationship.

February 6th, 1997 -- Ep314 -- The One With Phoebe's Ex-Partner
The foundations of Ross and Rachel's love are crumbling fast. Nearly their one-year anniversary, and yet time is running short. This week, Ross' jealousy resurfaces tenfold when he refuses to accept the fact that Rachel and Mark are just friends. Ross sees no reason for Rachel to be hanging out with Mark, since he had quit Bloomingdale's. Rachel, simply trying to form a life for herself that doesn't include Chandler, Joey, Monica, Phoebe, and Ross, attempts in vain to convince Ross that her and Mark are going to attend an innocent fashion lecture. Ross opts to go with her to the lecture himself, during which he promptly falls asleep. After they get home from the lecture, the two argue about who's profession is the least exciting. Rachel calmly tries once again to make it clear to Ross that she wants to have her own life as well as a life shared with him, a perfectly understandable request. Ross pretends to validate her feelings, but a glimpse at the camera while they embrace reveals that he doesn't want to let Rachel have her own life for fear that he won't be included in it. The die is cast, the trap is sprung... and the once burning fires of the Ross/Rachel relationship are reduced to dying embers. Sadly, this special friendship is doomed to failure.

February 13th, 1997 -- Ep315 -- The One Where Ross and Rachel Take a Break
On their first anniversary, Rachel is confronted with a crisis at her new fashion consultant job. Ross can't believe he's being stood up on his anniversary, so he brings a picnic to Rachel's work to try and have a romantic dinner. Rachel flies off the handle with him, and later that evening becomes angry at him again for not apologizing. Ross says that he's not about to apologize for wanting to spend his anniversary with his girlfriend. Trapped between her boyfriend at finally having a job that she cares about and is good at, Rachel offhandedly remarks that maybe the two of them should take a break. Dejected, Ross goes to a bar where he runs into Chloe, the hot Xerox girl that Chandler and Joey have been lusting after for months. Mark calls Rachel and sees she's upset, so he invites himself over and tries to cheer her up. Chandler and Joey tell Ross to call Rachel and try to smooth things out, and Ross overhears Mark's voice at Rachel's apartment. Intensely hurt, he slams the phone down and winds up locked in a meaningless kiss with Chloe to the tune of U2's 'With or Without You.' Meanwhile, Rachel is desperately trying to get in touch with Ross.

February 20th, 1997 -- Ep316 -- The One The Morning After
And so it ends. Gunther finds out that Ross slept with Chloe, divulges the information to Rachel, who cannot deal with the reality that the one man she had thought would never do anything to hurt her has slept with someone else. Ross defends himself by saying that he thought their relationship was dead, a technicality that Rachel will not let him slip out of. In one of TV's most heartfelt moments this year, Ross gets down on his knees in hopes that their love can be salvaged, but Rachel has been wounded too deeply. Can these two continue to be friends after their relationship is over? I guess now's the time to spout the classic cliche, "tune in next week." Don't you dare leave the house on Thursday nights ever again.

March 6th, 1997 -- Ep317 -- The One Without the Ski Trip
Still aching over their recent break-up, Ross and Rachel begin to vie for the companionship of Joey, Chandler, Monica, and Phoebe. Rachel decides to spurn Ross by inviting the four of them on a weekend-long ski trip, with Ross getting shafted on the invite. Ross refuses to let any of the four feel bad about leaving him home alone in New York, however, and passes the time by hanging out with his lesbian ex-wife Carol. Phoebe's grandmother's cab runs out of gas at a rest stop on the highway, and the four are forced to call Ross to bail them out. When Ross shows up at the rest stop, a shouting match ensues between Ross and Rachel, leading Chandler to nervously suck down cigarettes and do Shelley Winters impressions. Phoebe pleads with them to act civil towards one another or risk the unthinkable: the six might stop hanging out together. They agree, but Rachel is still vehemently opposed to the idea of Ross tagging along on the ski trip. Ross offers to let them go alone without making them feel guilty, a noble move on his part which elicits a reluctant "thank you" from Rachel.

March 13th, 1997 -- Ep318 -- The One With the Hypnosis Tape
Realizing that they can't continue to argue with each other without alienating the other four, Ross and Rachel seem to contend themselves with the silent treatment. Ross lets Rachel know how he feels, however, by sticking his hand into her coffee when she tells him she had wanted it without cinnamon. Other than this minor encounter, our two former lovebirds maintain a relatively safe distance from one another this week.

March 27th, 1997 -- Ep319 -- The One With the Tiny T-Shirt
Rachel gives Ross everything back of his. When Ross collects his stuff though, he's obviously hurt but tries to hide it by asking for EVERYTHING back he owns. Like that t-shirt that Rachel sleeps in. Rachel thinks Ross is a petty man because he knows how much she loves that shirt. It doesn't even fit him (And it really didn't!). Later though, Ross sees Rachel and Mark going out for a date and he spends three hours staring through the peephole at Chandler & Joey's apartment waiting for them to return. They do and go inside. Let's just leave it at that! Although it doesn't go further than a kiss.

April 10th, 1997 -- Ep320 -- The One With the Dollhouse
Nothing to report this week as Ross and Rachel don't have anything to argue about. That's generally only why they talk to each other these days!

April 17th, 1997 -- Ep321 -- The One With a Chick and a Duck
Ok, here goes: Monica crashes into Rachel whilst she is learning how to roller-skate and Rachel is hurt. Ross has to go on the Discovery Channel but Rachel has to go to a dinner at her boss' house the same night. So, Ross volunteers to help her get ready. He's terrible though and puts so much make up on her that it looks like she's got two black eyes. Eventually, Ross decides that's it and tells Rachel that she's got to go to hospital. He goes with her and misses his TV appearance. When they return Ross tells Rachel about it and she's beyond touched. The two just stare at each other for awhile until Ross leaves.

24th April, 1997 -- Ep322 -- The One With the Screamer
Both Ross and Rachel bring dates to Joey's play but Rachel's date Tommy, has a secret. When Ross and Tommy got to sit down, a couple are sat in their seats. Tommy screams at them. WHAT ARE YOU A MORON ,HUH? Ross then spends the entire night waiting for him to scream again but he doesn't. He tells the gang next day at the coffeehouse but no-one believes him. But as he's walking out, he almost spills HOT coffee on Tommy. When Tommy's shouting at him, Ross tries to attract the attention of the others but he's unsuccessful. Later, though, when Tommy screams at Chandler and Joey's chick and duck, everyone hears him and he leaves saying to Rachel, "I guess we're not going out anymore then."

May 1st, 1997 -- Ep323 -- The One With Ross's Thing
Another not-much-happening-week but Rachel does walk into Chandler and Joey's apartment to find Ross showing this 'thing' he's got on his butt to Chandler & Joey.

May 8th, 1997 -- Ep324 -- The One With the Ultimate Fighting Champion
Phoebe asks Rachel if it's OK to set Ross up with a date. Rachel says yes when she learns that the girl (Bonnie) is bald. She can't wait to see what happens. As it turns out though, Bonnie has hair, and she's gorgeous. "You said she was bald!" Rachel complains to Phoebe. Phoebe defends herself by saying that she said she WAS bald when Rachel first met her (At Phoebe's birthday party, TOW Two Parts). Ross and Bonnie hit it off and Rachel is jealous, but she later admits that she was the one who ended their relationship.

May 15th, 1997 -- Ep325 -- The One at the Beach
The gang go to the beach because Phoebe found this lady who knew her mom. Rachel chases Ross round the room trying to paint his toe-nails and later Monica says that they're totally flirting with each other. That is, until Bonnie shows up. Ross and Bonnie end up having such a noisy night together that Chandler swears that sea-turtles came upto the house. Rachel convinces Bonnie to shave her head and Ross does not like the fact that Rchel told her to do it. This leads to a conversation where Rachel reveals she still loves him and the show ends with Ross in the hallway between the two doors. He goes in the one on his right.

September 25th, 1997 -- Ep401 -- The One With the Jellyfish
Ross ends up going in Rachel's door and they kiss for a bit until Ross goes to break up with Bonnie. Rachel in the meantime writes him a letter. 18 pages, front and back! Ross falls asleep reading it and agrees to the term quoted at the end oblivious to what it is. They get back together util Ross finds out what it says on the letter. He regrets agreeing to it! When they're in bed again for the first time (not doing anything) Rachel pushes Ross too far and he screams, "WE WERE ON A BREAK!!" Ross ends up storming out and that's the end of it.

October 2nd, 1997 -- Ep402 -- The One With the Cat
Ross and Rachel are really tense after the break-up. Again. Anyway, Chip Matthews calls to ask Monica out. When Rachel sees that he called, she automatically assumes that he called for her. Ross confirmes this. But when Rachel calls and finds out that he wanted to ask Monica out, she's embarrassed, and Ross is happy. They also still pick on each other about the letter and stuff. Then Phoebe become convinced that her mother's spirit is in a cat. Ross thinks that it's not true, and Rachel says that it could happen just to spite Ross. Ross tells her that she's not gonna suck him into this again. As he leaves she calls out to him, "Jurassic Park could happen." He just leaves. When they find that Phoebe's cat already has an owner, no one wants to tell her, so Ross does. Phoebe asks him to apologize to her, and he does, then Rachel wants him to apologize to Phoebe's mom (the cat). He does.

October 9th, 1997 -- Ep403 -- The One With the 'Cuffs
Chandler is once again going out with Rachel's boss, Joanna, which disruptes Rachel's life. Chandler promises to break up with her, but then Rachel finds him handcuffed to a chair in Joanna's office (sans pants). Chandler begs her to free him, but she refuses because she doesn't want Joanna to find out she's been in her office. Then, if Chandler will stay in cuffed until Joanna comes back, Rachel promises to be very generous when she tells Monica and Phoebe what she saw on Chandler. Chandler agrees. Then Rachel finds Joanna handcuffed to her chair in just her slip. As Rachel unlocks her, Joanna asks, "Tell your friend Chandler that we're definitely broken up this time." Ross didn't really have any plot this go around.

October 16th, 1997 -- Ep404 -- The One With the Ballroom Dancing
When Mr. Treeger makes Rachel cry, Joey has to teach him ballroom dancing to keep him from evicting the girls because their lease is illegal. And Chandler tries to quit his gym, with Ross's help, but they find that they can't resist Maria. So Chandler stays at the gym, and Ross gets a membership. Then they try to close their accounts at the bank . . . So this week there wasn't much on the Rachel/Ross relationship. Except when Ross said that he was joining a gym and Rachel started to laugh.

October 30th, 1997 -- Ep405 -- The One With Joey's New Girlfriend
Ross tries to get Rachel's attention by "accidently" throwing the number this girl gave him in Rachel's lap. Then Rachel give the paper to Phoebe to use for a tissue. Ross keeps gushing about his dates with Amanda. Then Rachel comes in with her new boyfriend, college guy Josh. Ross keeps making fun of Rachel for going out with such a young guy. Then, when Ross goes to Amanda's, he finds out that she thinks of him as a babysitter, and he watches her kids as she goes out on a date. Then Rachel realizes that Josh is stealing from her. When R & R find out about the other's situation, they laugh at each other. And make sarcastic comments. And flip each other off with Ross's special gesture.

November 6th, 1997 -- Ep406 -- The One With the Dirty Girl
Ross is dating the Cherly , the "most beautiful girl in the world!" But she's also the messiest. He can't stand how messy her room is, so he breaks up with her. Rachel's only plotline was that she finished a crossword puzzle all by herself. Chandler and Joey are getting the big air time with their storyline, so R & R are on the back burner at the moment.

November 13th, 1997 -- Ep407 -- The One Where Chandler Crosses the Line
Ross has to debut his "sound." When he debuts it . . . it sucks. Rachel tells him, "You should definitely play that in public!" and after he runs out, she comments, "I can't believe I ever let him touch me with those fingers." And when Ross plays his music in Central Perk, he basically chases everyone away with it. And he decides to stop playing because Phoebe loves the music and thinks that if she tries to sing after Ross, she'll be laughed off the stage.

November 20th, 1997 -- Ep408 -- The One With Chandler in a Box
Ross finds out that Rachel exchanges every gift she gets. Ross keeps bugging and pushing Rachel about it until she gets up and leaves the table. She comes back with a shoebox which contains momentos of her relationship with Ross. Opening it, she says, "This is a movie stub from our first date! This is an eggshell from the first time you made me breakfast in bed! (Holds up a bone) This is from the museum from the first time we . . . were together. Okay, maybe I exchange gifts sometimes, but I keep the things that matter!" Ross feels guilty and apologizes. It looks like our favorite couple may be heading toward smoother waters. And maybe reconciliation if we're lucky.

December 11th, 1997 -- Ep409 -- The One Where They're Gonna PARTY!
Nothing much on R & R this week. I don't think they mentioned each other and I don't think they were in a scene together. But Ross, Chandler, and Joey tried to party hard, but it didn't succeed that well. And Rachel almost made assistant buyer, but Joanna died before she could send in the paperwork.

Decmber 18th, 1997 -- Ep410 -- The One With The Girl From Poughkeepsie
Ross meets this great girl on a train, but she lives in Poughkeepsie, which is two hours away. He tries it for a little while, but can't keep it up. And then he meets someone who isn't very much fun, but she lives right uptown. Then Ross sleeps through his stop to Poughkeepsie, and meets a woman who lives in Montreal. Rachel mentions to Chandler that she just wants to have a fling with someone. Well, Chandler tells that to many guys at work, and they all suck up to Chandler to get him to set them up with Rachel. Chandler picks one, and it works out, and Rachel thinks that he may make a great boyfriend. But then she finds out that Chandler told him she just wanted a fling, and she realizes that he's going to get the wrong idea. Then Chandler tells the guy that she wants a relationship, and the guy bails. "You should never be allowed to talk to people!" she tells him. So Ross and Rachel are dating other people, and they're not really interacting with each other.

January 8th, 1998 -- Ep411 -- The One With Phoebe's Uterus
Chandler is worried because he hasn't had sex with Kathy yet. When Monica and Rachel ask why, he spins a yarn about how he likes to talk. When Ross says he's lying, Rachel comments that he's just not mature enough to handle talking and no sex. Then Chandler says that Ross is right. Rachel glares at Ross and flips him off with Ross's gesture from an earlier episode. So there's still some tension there.

January 15th, 1998 -- Ep412 -- The One With the Embryos
The girls and the guys get into the apartment competition with Ross making up the questions. As you know the girls lose their apartment, and there was no real development between R & R. And, while I have your attention, I just gotta say, I can't believe the guys took their apartment! I so would of stopped being their friends!

January 29th, 1998 -- Ep413 -- The One With Rachel's Crush
Rachel is now in personal shopping, and this guy, Josh, a recent divorcee, come in. He's gorgeous, and Rachel falls head over heels. While she's gushing over him, Ross reminds her that he's there, but she doesn't care. But he hasn't asked her out yet. And when Chandler finds out that Kathy is sleeping with someone else, he attempts to justify her actions by saying that they were fighting at the time. Rachel says, " just because you guys had a fight, it does not justify her sleeping with someone," to which Ross replies, "Well, if-if she thought they were on a break . . ." which earns him a glare from everyone. Ross still doesn't like to think of Rachel with another guy, so it looks like there may be hope.

February 5th, 1998 -- Ep414 -- The One With Joey's Dirty Day
Rachel's still in love with Josh. But her boss asks her to take out her neice from London to the opera, and Rachel says yes. But then Josh invites her to a night club that night, and she accepts. She gets Ross to take the neice, Emily, out. When Emily gets there, Rachel tells her that she won't be going. Emily assumes that Rachel means Emily won't be going either, she explodes, yelling about the lousy day she's had, and leaves. Rachel catches up with her (no, don't do that, Rachel! You have no idea what you're doing to your relationship with Ross!!), and Emily heads to the opera with Ross. Well, Emily and Ross get along well, and they head to Vermont for the weekend. Rachel didn't get to see Josh at the opening, and when she hears that Ross took off to Vermont with Emily, she get majorly jealous. Then, when Ross gets back, he tells her he's glad they can be happy for each other. They then play hit each other, though Rachel is hitting kind of hard. Allright, this is more like it. Rachel gets jealous, now all she has to do is break up Ross and Emily sometime and take back her man. Easy enough.

February 26th, 1998 -- Ep415 -- The One With all the Rugby
Ross wants to play rugby to impress Emily. Despite a few smart-ass comments from Rachel, he tries it, and at first is beat up, but then he gets into it. He manages to do pretty well.

March 5th, 1998 -- Ep416 -- The One With the Fake Party
Rachel has to have a party to invite Joshua to so she can get to know him better. So she throws a going away party for Emily on her last night in town, when Ross has big plans for it. But Emily loves the party, so they stay. And Rachel tries everything to get Joshua to kiss her, from her lucky dress to spin the bottle. But Josh has to go. And Ross has missed out on all of his plans for Emily. In the hall, Ross is thinking about ending it with Emily becuase she's gone all of the time. But Rachel convinces him to give it another try. I don't know about this. This episode kind of shows that R&R are moving into the friend zone, which we don't really want. Or it could be that Rachel wants Ross to be happy, and she realizes that he is with Emily.

This page was written by Chris Thompson

And that's where we stand so far... stay tuned to Friends and this page for developments!

If anyone feels like updating this page for me I would be very grateful.