A fan-edited Friends video that removes the iconic sitcom’s laugh track shows how incredibly creepy Ross (David Schwimmer) can really be.
An edited Friends video without the laugh track shows Ross’ creepy tendencies. While the iconic ABC sitcom gave everyone ample focus, many of its most hilarious scenes involved David Schwimmer’s nerdy and petty character. It was because of Ross’ tendency to subject himself to humiliating circumstances coupled with Schwimmer’s impeccable comedic timing. One of the most memorable plots involving Ross featured him arguing that “unagi” means the “state of total awareness.”
Almost 30 years since it premiered, there are arguments that Friends didn’t age particularly well, and an edited video from Ruining Media argues that by removing the show’s laugh track. Watch the clip below:
The clip follows Ross as he goes to great lengths to prove his claim about “unagi” to Rachel and Phoebe. Without the laugh track, however, his efforts look incredibly off-putting.
Each member of the Central Perk gang is remembered for their unique qualities. This made the show’s storytelling more engaging as the characters’ respective arcs were also as interesting as their group adventures. Ross, in particular, is billed as the nice guy, primarily because of how he quietly pined for Rachel for years. He was also a hopeless romantic, which gave the impression that he was harmless. In hindsight, however, some of his behavior has become questionable, resulting in many Friends viewers disliking Ross.
This doesn’t mean that Ross was a bad person. He was decent, but he wasn’t exactly the character that Friends romanticized. He had the tendency to be manipulative and vindictive. As someone who worked in academia, he could also be very dense. Schwimmer’s amazing acting and charisma helped distract from his character’s flaws, and now that Friends is easily accessible via re-runs and streaming platforms, viewers can fully see him for who he really was.
The “unagi” storyline is one of the best plots to expose the truth about Ross in Friends. He was hell-bent on proving himself correct that he didn’t care if he looked creepy. Granted that the whole narrative was exaggerated for maximum comedic returns, but it still showed how problematic Ross could be in the sitcom.
