One of the zanier storylines in Friends inexplicably spoke to a universal truth about love. Remember when Monica walked in on Chandler watching pay-per-view porn in his Tulsa hotel room, and a frantic switch of the channel to a nature documentary led her to think her husband was “getting his jollies to Jaws”? Monica is horrified, but is willing to go with it. Later, back at home, she puts on a toothy shark movie for him, and even offers to thrash around in the bath to turn him on. When he finally figures out the mix-up, Chandler tells his wife that he’s in awe of her “strength and understanding”. “I’m very drunk right now,” she admits.
OK. So I’m not saying I’d put a plunge pool in the living room or try to grow gills for my partner, but I’m certain that watching this episode about 17 times (as I have most Friends episodes), has made me a more accepting girlfriend. And more appreciative when my own weird things aren’t questioned. I accept it, for example, when my boyfriend buys a 15th blue jacket, practically identical to the previous 14. And I like that he doesn’t judge me for the uniquely frenzied way in which I eat mini mozzarella bites. Since Matthew Perry’s death at the weekend, so many of us have reflected on how, through Chandler, he mirrored our own insecurities and anxieties, and how he practically shaped the way that millions of us speak and make each other laugh. He also taught me so much of what I know about love.
