The One with Monica's Thunder
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"The One with Monica's Thunder" is the first episode of season 7 of the sitcom Friends.
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Friends season seven |
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Episodes:
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First aired: October 12, 2000
[edit] Plot
The episode begins with the gang celebrating Monica and Chandler's engagement. Wanting to celebrate 'her' night properly, Monica suggests that everyone dress up so that they can go to The Plaza for champagne. Joey announces that he can't stay out too late as he has a commercial audition in the morning in which he will be playing the part of a nineteen year old. He becomes upset when the others tell him he doesn't look nineteen.
While everyone is getting ready, Monica and Chandler try to make love but Chandler can't hold up an erection. Going across the hall to Joey and Rachel's apartment, Chandler relates what has just happened to Joey, but he is busy with his own problems, trying to dress and talk like a ninteen year old by wearing Chandler's boxer shorts pulled up, his jeans slung low, and using phrases like 'S'up', and 'That's whack'.
Meanwhile, Phoebe is trying to convince Monica to let her sing at the wedding. Monica, worried that they will never be ready in time, finally tells her that if she stops singing and gets ready, she will let her play. As Monica opens the door, she is shocked to see Rachel and Ross kissing in the hallway. Flustered, she apologises by saying, 'I'm sorry, I seem to have opened the door to the past', and quickly slams it shut. Ross and Rachel follow her inside but Monica accuses them of 'stealing her thunder' by deciding to get back together on Monica's big night. Rachel is quick to announce they weren't planning on getting back together and that it was a one-time thing. Monica is almost pacified by the idea that no one else saw them kissing until Phoebe over-hears the conversation and, excited, starts to ask if this means they are getting back together and if she can sing at their wedding.
As Rachel tries to smooth things over, saying it was only once and it didn't mean anything, Joey and Chandler walk in. Joey misconstrues Rachel's meaning and accuses everyone of making fun of Chandler's bedroom problem. When Phoebe corrects him, Joey is happy for Ross and Rachel and Monica becomes furious. Shouting at Rachel, she states that this is typical of her and that she, Rachel, can't stand for anyone else to be in the spotlight. She compares it to her Sweet Sixteenth birthday party, where Rachel took all the attention away from Monica by making out with her cousin, after which, nobody could talk about anything else. Rachel tries to patch things up again, but Monica tells her that she doesn't want to talk to anyone, especially Rachel.
Chandler follows Monica into the bedroom and calms her down, telling her the engagement night isn't the be-all and end-all of the marriage and they still have a lot to look forward to, such as the wedding and the honeymoon. As they kiss, Chandler gets an erection, but they are quickly interrupted by Phoebe. She was still ecstatic about singing at the wedding until Joey told her that people will say anything to shut them up -- such as: 'You look nineteen' -- and then take it away, as Chandler did to him. She asks for a down-payment to sing at the wedding as insurance and becomes furious when they say no.
Just as Monica and Chandler begin to kiss again, Rachel knocks on the door, demanding to know what Monica meant with her 'especially you' comment. They erupt into an even bigger argument and Rachel storms out, telling Ross to come with her so they can have sex. Ross, excited, follows to Rachel's room, but she tells him they aren't really going to do it, she just wants Monica to think they are. 'So everybody wins,' Ross quips glumly.
When they hear Monica knocking on the door, Rachel tries to act as if she and Ross were in the middle of something, but Ross refuses to play along. Rachel finally admits to Monica that she never wanted to steal her thunder, but seeing her and Chandler get engaged made her feel sad and lonely, and she turned to Ross for sex to feel better about herself. The girls make up and Ross tries to reclaim some dignity by telling Rachel firmly that it's not a good idea for them to spend the night together, although it's quite clear that Rachel wasn't going to anyway.
As Monica and Chandler finally retreat to the bedroom, Phoebe starts singing outside their room, refusing to leave until she gets her deposit. Chandler finally comes out with a dollar for her, hoping she'll leave, but she begins to sing again, hoping to perform the ceremony too. Eventually, Chandler takes the guitar off her and Phoebe leaves, deciding to 'pound on him in the morning'.
[edit] Trivia
The opening of one season is filmed several months after the end of the previous season. As a result, it can be seen that Rachel's hair is several inches shorter than at the end of Season 6, even though Season 7 begins where Season 6 left off.
