The Reel Rejects - FRIENDS Season 8 Ep 1–6 REVIEW – THIS IS ONE OF THE WILDEST STARTS TO A SEASON – FIRST TIME WATCH

Episode Date: April 13, 2026

WHO IS THE FATHER??? Friends Season 8 Full Episode Reaction Watch Along   / thereelrejects   Gift Someone (Or Yourself) An RR Tee! https://shorturl.at/hekk2 FRIENDS Season 7, Episodes 1 - 6 Reaction:    • FRIENDS 7x1 - 7x6 REACTION – THEY TOTALLY ...   FRIENDS Season 7, Episodes 7 - 12 Reaction:    • FRIENDS 7x7 - 7x12 REACTION – HOLIDAY ARMA...   FRIENDS Season 7, Episodes 13 - 18 Reaction:    • FRIENDS 7x13 - 7x18 REACTION – EVERYONE TU...   FRIENDS Season 7, Episodes 19 - 24 Reaction:    • FRIENDS SEASON 7 FINALE REACTION – THAT EN...   Aaron & Johnald return in a state of newly-marital bliss to give their FRIENDS Season 8 reaction, recap, commentary, breakdown, analysis, and full spoiler review!! Aaron Alexander & John Humphrey react to and review Friends Season 8, Episodes 1–6, kicking off one of the show’s most beloved seasons with major relationship developments, iconic reveals, and classic comedic chaos. Follow Aaron On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therealaaronalexander/?hl=en Intense Suspense by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Support The Channel By Getting Some REEL REJECTS Apparel! https://www.rejectnationshop.com/ Follow Us On Socials:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/  Tik-Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@reelrejects?lang=en Twitter: https://x.com/reelrejects Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ Music Used In Ad:  Hat the Jazz by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Happy Alley by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... POWERED BY @GFUEL Visit https://gfuel.ly/3wD5Ygo and use code REJECTNATION for 20% off select tubs!! Head Editor: https://www.instagram.com/praperhq/?hl=en Co-Editor: Greg Alba Co-Editor: John Humphrey Music In Video: Airport Lounge - Disco Ultralounge by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ask Us A QUESTION On CAMEO: https://www.cameo.com/thereelrejects Follow TheReelRejects On FACEBOOK, TWITTER, & INSTAGRAM:  FB:  https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thereelrejects Follow GREG ON INSTAGRAM & TWITTER: INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/thegregalba/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thegregalba Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Halloween, I said it. Yeah, you did. It was not that hard to guess this title. He did it. But we guessed it no less. Yes. Hells, yeah, we did it. Did a lot of guessing, did a lot of watching, did a lot of friendly activities, you guys.

We just finished up with this block of friends. Episodes 1 through 6 of season 8. Right. You're watching this on Apple or Spotify. Spotify, you're giving it a list, make sure you give us five stars. Fiverr. So you can get good, get friendly. Get friendly.

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watching this on YouTube guess what we got full length watching alongs over on Patreon where you can get the whole enchilada

the full friends experience where you can also see me and John do a different intro of the friends theme song every single episode

we've done it over a hundred times now if not we've done it close to 200 times now so yeah

go get all of those plus Greg and John do exclusives over there you can't get over on YouTube at all.

Juicy exclusies, okay? So yeah, check those out if you're a patron and you go over to our richardnation shop. com, you can get 15% off on all the merchandise. New stuff coming out all of the time. Not to mention, you can also join our conversations after each movie or show reaction. You can send us questions. We'll shout you out. And yeah, we'll have a whole juicy conversation to aid in our review.

and it's a wonderful time all around. So, yeah, without further ado, let's jump into our feelings or thoughts on these first eight episodes, first six episodes of the season. And then we'll get into the questions. Woo. Johnny boy.

A run. How you feeling, dog? I'm feeling, man. I'm feeling good. Yeah. This is a fun block of episodes. Feel it. We're still, you know,

they're still doing some serial things here that, you know, kind of surprised me in little ways and more fun ways. Yeah, I mean, you know, the whole saga of the baby, who's pregnant? Why? When did it happen? Who's the father? This has been a fun little addition to the saga, and I do appreciate the game that Ross is just racking up baby after divorce after baby.

It's very fun. Yeah, I'm curious as to whether Mona will develop into anything. And, you know, again, because there's so much will, they won't they, Ross and Rachel, all this stuff. Like, again, they're good at coming up with these circumstances where I'm like, dang i don't know i don't know where else we're going to stray in the you know remaining seasons of the show but this is an interesting development yeah they are now permanently tied together oh the thing went it's all good yeah it's all good it just means uh yeah we're we're fine until the other card fills up we're we're totally good okay sick um yeah they're permanently tied together so i don't know

what's gonna friggin happen now but it was a really fun episode watching Rachel kind of come to terms or one, her friends finding out two, realizing that she does want this baby, she does want to be a mom. And I thought that was pretty cool. Pretty small, pretty well. Oh my God. This is, sorry, we have the IMDB

page, or the Wikipedia pulled up because that's, you know, it's just a nice way to collect the various plot lines. And I'm seeing here that this would have aired in September of 2001. This would have started this season. So that means, yeah, we got that, you know, dedication to the people of New York at the end of the first episode,

because the 9-11 attacks would have been just a couple weeks ahead of this, which is crazy. And apparently, there's a note here detailing that in the one where Rachel tells, there's a subplot where Chandler and Monica's honeymoon dealing with their honeymoon that was filmed and never aired. It involved Chandler joking about bombs while they board the plane, leading to airport security to take it as a threat and interrogate him and Monica. They were eventually determined not to be a threat.

shortly after being released, Joey calls Monica and pretends her casling in their apartment to cover up the already broken door. When Joey asked about being charged for the damage door, she sarcastically replied, no, I want you to stand there and wait for the entire place to blow up, causing authorities to re-interrogate the couple

following the attacks. The writers felt the humor of the subplot was off-color and quickly replaced it with another story about Chandler and Monica becoming jealous over a newly white couple, which spills over into the next episode, fascinatingly enough, with them. so I guess a good replacement there

apparently you can see these cut scenes on the 2004 DVD from the UK Oh fascinating That shit cray That shit is cray Yeah indeed Wow because yeah I feel like

And you could probably do that subplot again Now that there's some time removed And we're in a post too soon world But at the same time it is bonkers Like as you know I guess that's one of the natural things you would do in an airport sitcom scenarios. Find wacky reasons to make the characters seem dangerous,

even though we know they're not. Yeah. I mean, yeah, this year will be 25 years removed from 9-11. Bongs. Wild. Bongs. But yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

The baby saga. Fricking, the wedding reception, all the cameras and stuff like that. We meet Mona. Then we go on a little bit of a honeymoon. I do like, I don't know where we left off with Greg and what's her name. I guess they're actually friends.

I couldn't tell if this was a fake number scenario or they just caved eventually to get Monica off their asses. Yeah. I'm like, are you just a heavily scheduled couple? Yeah, yeah. So when we got to the second episode real quick, did you think it was Ross?

You said it and I was like that. I could see that. I didn't like come up with the idea that it would be. And I guess I wasn't thinking much about it. But at the same time, if I had sat back and gone, well, I don't think tag would be that important to the show. And two, who else could it be?

The sweater, the thing that threw me off was the sweater, because I was like, Ross would never wear that sweater. Ross doesn't look like you would wear, yeah. But then I was like, okay, well, all right, I guess it is. Ross would wear this sweater without the splotchy, the, like, avat splotchiness. Because she was like, I'll tell the father when we get back. And then it wasn't Joey, so I'm like, okay,

we know that they have a history, so it makes sense it would be Ross. Yeah. And he'd be the only one. They'd be like, we have to wait until after the wedding. So, yeah, I was like, oh, one plus one equals two. Nice. Yeah. You parsed the mystery of the friends.

I did. You have good media literacy. I think it was smart. It was a smart decision for them to do that. I like where they're going so far. Yeah, because then it makes it more than just like a, oh, my God. Yeah, it earns the shock of it by being like, okay, so this is an interesting little entanglement here. And it adds to this whole thing.

The only thing I knew about it. the show going into this. Like, oh, he's like the Ross and Rachel, well, they want they thing. And I was like, well, we've gone through freaking seven seasons of the show now. I'm like, they're really only on once. But now five years later, five seasons later really brings it back around. Yeah. They were on one.

Yeah. Ha ha ha. It's a chance to say that. Goodness gracious. We saw Mr. Trigger again for a second. Gas leak thing was pretty fun. And then, you know, the freaking tape.

The tape. was pretty fun as well got the old ass video camera my dad used to have one of those big old camcores oh big old big old big big big boy yeah you used to be able to use those to like dub tapes

so you know you bring that cassette home from the blockbuster or whatever you know snag a little copy not that it's like great quality obviously you don't have to do that anymore but it's like one of those like oh interesting but yeah the Europe story

I feel like you know I'm glad we don't ever hear it in full, but I still kind of want to hear what the conclusion is. I am definitely interested in because the way that Joey told it is definitely a captivating you know, experience that would create some nice bonding from

the way that he laid it out. 100%. And I really like that as the like joke button of like it's an unrelated thing between Joey and Ross and then Ross tries to tell it to this girl he's going on a date with and then and then it comes back around with

Rachel and And yeah, I was just like, wait a minute. I had to just remind myself the timeline. I was like, wait. Okay, so when you guys had sex, you wouldn't have heard the story yet. So I had to remind myself where in time Joey told Ross the story. And then I was, yeah, but I was like, one, at some point, you should have recognized the story. Yeah.

The repeat of the story. But then again, I guess it was when Rachel said it to him. So, yeah, when we're, and that's what gave him the signal because she was telling the story, which is the sex story. Yeah. That's why he's so confident. Yeah. Yeah, which, you know, because one part of me is like, well, when did you just tell them she told the suck story, but the other part of me is like,

okay, maybe he was trying to save her in some way, not save her, but like trying not to embarrass her, I guess. Yeah, Russell, I feel like he does that sometimes where he's like, I will do my, I'll be a good guy and try and protect you. But if you want to dig this hole, then fine. Yeah. He's that kind of guy. Ted Shaw, my man from freaking Mad Men, pretty sick. He was in this one episode as what's his name. Tim, Tim.

Tim. Justice for Tim. I don't know if we're ever going to see him in the kitchen again, but, you know, neat, just the same. RIP to, yeah, Richard Cox Sr., father of Courtney Cox. Chris Parnell, I'm like, okay, so where are we at? He's probably on SNL now, or getting close to there, so the whole, like, Toby thing, pretty fun. That was a fun little bit. Yeah.

Yeah. He still doesn't know. I was going to say, this is an actual soap opera man or an actual actor. Oh. He was an anti-ampanagan. Those are words. He was in a movie, one of the Antikonda sequels. That's fun.

American film and television actor, best known for his portrayal of muscular military man in the 2004 film Anacondas and the hunt for the blood orchid. That's a rough ronian cheese one, man. Dude. You deserve better. This is... He's got to be in something. Is he still working? He's still working.

He's out here, man. Call her King. Call her last thing he was in. Dude. Car Daddy. He did a lifetime movie called the Christmas High Note. Okay.

I need to see it. I need to hear these notes. Dude, we got Stee. But good for him. And, oh my God. And then Mona came back. It was like a couple episodes before Mona came back.

I was actually surprised. I usually feel like they group that kind of guest appearance into a cluster. But, you know, it was a nice little flourish. Didn't expect that. She seemed very into Ross after he dances all those kids. Cool to see a Halloween episode.

I wish we got maybe a little bit more Halloween, but it was nice to see Ross dressed as a potato as Spudnik. I like Spudnik. I thought it was cool. I think Sputnik was iconic. And we have had Joey as Superman in the past, so now we have had Phoebe's Supergirl expanding the DC universe. We are expanding the DC universe.

one appearance of a costume person at a time. And we also had Sean Penn in this episode. Sean Freakin Penn. Yeah. Being charming and just like a regular guy, which I've never seen him do before. This is the most like low-key, just like affable Sean Penn I've ever seen. Yeah. Except for maybe the trailer for Milk, but I haven't, I got to watch the rest of the movies.

Yeah, I've never seen Milk. But yeah, it was interesting because he was able to play to the tone of Friends while also still being like a very sincere actor of like a the spian as well he wasn't trying to flex or anything but he brought a sense of sincerity in the friend guest role that you're not I guess accustomed to sing yeah he's got like that instantaneously like oh this guy

seems so sweet and endearing I don't hope he comes back and it certainly seemed that way and I felt for Phoebe in that moment I was like dang you guys are hitting it off and Ursula doesn't give two shits about this guy doesn't give a damn no man tragic but hey

get to Chandler to throw the match give Ross, you know, the boost. I feel bad for Chandler. I feel like he should have, I feel like it means more in the long run, you know, if he had won that, you know, against Ross. Yeah, I made him feel good inside,

you know, then he can hold it over him forever. But Ross, he had some things to prove to his lady. Yeah. Some things to prove. Well, guys. How would people give me money on Halloween? Me too. I want money.

Give me money, please, on Halloween. All right, guys, I'll further do. Let's get into our fan questions today. So we will start it off with a one, Nikki Sarisa. Happy Friends Day and welcome to season eight, baby. She can actually say, baby. I just added that.

I can't believe there are only three seasons left. I feel like we just started the journey together last week. I know time flies, Nikki. Question, what is your favorite Halloween costume or most unique that turned heads? I love Ross's Sputnik costume. Oh, man. Favorite Halloween costume I've ever been a witness to? Or that I've ever worn?

I mean, I got a big kick out my sister one year in a hasty sort of like, you know, it's like, oh, she's thinking outside the box and needed to compile something. And she got like a Unitarred and pinned just a bunch of clothes to it and went to the pile of laundry. And I thought that was very charming, very clever. I love that. Um, golly. What about one that you've been? One that I have been.

I mean, as a person, I have, like, I've done some, like, oftentimes when I'm Halloweening. I mean, this past Halloween, uh, my, my homegirl Mallory and I did a couple's costume, which was like, uh, we did secretary, which is pretty sick. Uh, as when it's something, me on my own, like, I'm always, like, last minute, like, shit, let me grab something. And I'll usually just, like, do some kind of crazy face makeup, skeleton, w wiserable. witchy, whatever. So I've often, like, Frankenstein together my own costumes that way. Yeah. I'm trying to think I made, like, a weird, just sort of, like, autumn spirit guy a couple

years ago, just because I was, yeah, just like, I need something, and I'm feeling inspired. I went to a Halloween party once, and I did a version of the governor from Walking Dead, where I covered half my face and, like, latex and made, like, a big burnt-up nasty, like, two-face, like, you know, hand-arm thing. I like guerrilla makeup stuff, but this is another one of those questions where as we sit here, I'll probably come up with a better answer or a more spiritually, you know, like attenuated answer. Okay. I'm trying to think for myself. What have I done?

This past Halloween, me and my lady, we did Cookie Monster and the Cookie. I was a Cookie Monster. She got a dress and put some, like, dark patches on it. So she was like, she was a walking cookie. And that was very cute. another year I was Nick Fury this is years before I had my locks

I was still getting the the shaved head as kids did you know before they start it's like it's the the shaved head to high top to dreadlock pipeline you know and I was back in the shaved head era and yeah I had a pipe

eye patch before I can grow facial hair grew I drew on a goate got the trench coat got the patch it was very fun um we did sin city together once gregg was dwight we straightened his hair i was marv i want to say so i got like the the glow tape on my face and then and then somebody else was hard again uh that was kind of fun um this wasn't hollweem just guys took out as a costume i before i'm reacting to the show now and it was before i knew anything about it my friends and i were going to anime expo and they're like we're going to a group costume but you know

I know you haven't seen the show, but I think you'd be perfect for this character. And I'm like, sure, I'll do this. So I was, I was chopper from one piece. Let's go. And I got this. I made a hat, a big pink hat. So chopper for, for context. He's like, he's like a reindeer who can turn into a man in like other reindeer forms.

So I like, I like put some fur on my chest and like cut the sleeves off a shirt and made his giant hat and wore some maroon pants or some rhone shorts and painted like a little reindeer nose. And it was very fun. It was very cute. It's on my social somewhere if you want to see it. Dude. I got to put it up. I got to put it back on.

I don't know if I fit it anymore, but I'll do it. React to the next block in the cost. I don't think I own the hat anymore. I think it got dismantled. Why? It's bro. It's somewhere in the ether. I don't, yeah, I don't know where it is anymore.

Sad. This was like 10 years ago, but like, no, 10 or 11 years ago. Yeah, man. RAPE, RAPE, my chopper fit. Yeah. My friend, I was at the same Halloween party, I saw a friend of mine dressed as Michael, Mike Myers, Michael Myers, like a Mike, it's like the Austin Powers Mike Myers outfit, but with a Michael Myers like mask and knife. That is pretty funny. We do love a combo, like a cheeky combo costume.

Yes. Ah, man. That's the thing is I got, yeah, next Halloween, I'm being sitting there going like, every time I see a costume where I. like, ah, clever, I'm going to have to write it down now.

But I'll keep on thanking and you guys, what's the most impressive Halloween costume you've ever seen? Leave it in the comments below. I think there's, every now and again,

you'll see somebody who will do the dad thing where it's like they'll dress up as the power loader and they'll put their kid in as like Ripley or something like that. Oh, that's cute.

Or things like that. I love that. God, yeah, we'll think of some more. But those are some good ones. Uh, no.

That's how we do it. Awesome Joe movie reviews. Thanks for chiming in. Happy awesome friends day to you as well. What was your favorite Halloween costume you've worn to a party? Also within season 7, do you think Rachel and Ross got together and conceived a baby? Thanks. Well, it changed that second question.

Well, yes, because they said as much in the second or third episode of season 8. So that was answered. It had to have been in... It had to have been in season seven yet because we learned this at the very end of season seven. So, yeah, it's like somewhere... It was six weeks prior to the wedding. So, yeah.

So season seven episode, like 18-ish. Okay, that makes sense. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, that makes perfect sense. So we got them. We got them. In fact, we got to go back to those episodes now and figure out when,

based on who's on screen, what scenes we're witnessing, what the passage of time is, when we could most love. likely say that it would have happened. Yes. Yeah, we'll have to go back and deep dive. I'm sure somebody has done in the past 25 years.

So let us know if someone's done that, done the work, the legwork on that. Halloween costume worn to a party. You know, we've already just done some Halloween party style. I mean, secretary I were to a party, the governor one I wore to a party. So those ones are pretty good. Yeah. Mine also wore to parties. Yeah.

Heck yeah. But we'll keep on thanking. Keep on thanking. All right. Jules are. I've been waiting for you guys to get to these next friends episode. This racial pregnancy star line is one of my favorites. Just wondering if you guys plan to eventually watch any bloopers, every season has iconic bloopers scenes. It'd be fun to watch you guys react to these. I thought you're going to ask if we plan to have kids. I'm like, that is a wild

transition. That was the way that that moved. Anyway, I would hope so. You know, Greg is behind the scenes has said he thinks we should watch them. So I think it's a likelihood that we will at some point. Yeah, it's come up in conversation. I don't know what the format will be, but I have a feeling that something will happen. Yeah. And I would, yeah, it would be so fun.

I would definitely be down for that. Hondo Percenti. Thank you for a question. Jay. What up, Jay? Roosh Ton. Thank you for chiming in. What is your most favorite Sean Penn movie?

Oh, Lord. You know, I need to see more Sean Penn's. I remember watching once many moons ago, but don't remember anything else about it. I am Sam. I think I watched it like in high school. Dude. And then I recently watched one battle.

He was great in one battle. Literally just won the Oscar for it. He ignored my Dr. Seuss joke. I did. What did you say? I'm sorry. That it's a Dr. Seuss adaptation. Yes.

Sam I am. Sam I am. Please clap. Please clap. Oh, golly. Yeah, he's really good at one battle. Yeah, that's the thing. I've seen a lot.

I've seen Sean Penn in a lot of stuff. And, like, I feel like I still haven't seen, like, the things that you would cite as, like, this is my favorite Sean Penn movie. Yeah. Like, I should see Milk for sure. I have not seen either I Am Sam or Mystic River. I remember Greg doing that. Is that my daughter in there? He would say that a lot.

I haven't seen any of those. And then being John Malkovich, I want to see. I would also like to see that. I'd freaking see. Oh, he's in Carlyto's way. Greg had me, he let me borrow the DVD as a kid. I feel like I've seen more Chris Penn movies. I've not.

Looking at all these movies, I'm like, I haven't seen any of these things. Yeah. So we've got to watch more Sean Penn on this channel. What is the Sean Penn? I'm thinking. I'm thinking of a Sean Penn that isn't here. This is Sean's Pen. It is Sean's Pen.

This is driving me crazy I know that I saw Lickrish Pizza Using that Was it? Was he good in it? He was good in it Did you love the movie I remember I liked the movie Did you go to the store in the

That they built in LA No I didn't Of the liquorish pizza I should have and I did not Isn't 21 grams I never even heard of that one What it what What movie am I thinking of

This is driving me crazy now There's a movie Oh, duh, fast times Fast times, never seen that one either We watched Fast Times in my women and film course In school and we watched it in the campus movie theater And I haven't seen it since that time So it's been a minute, long-ass time

Be pretty fresh watch if I was ever watched again But Spicoli It's hard to beat that And I mean obviously Sean Penn has given much more dramatic Tour de Force performances but like seeing him comedically here and now reminds me that like

the role that put him on the map is like a silly stoner guy and knowing him now you're kind of like I can't even imagine. That's wild. But that's what happened. That's the way it was. Leave us your favorite Sean Penn movies in the box and tell us which ones we should watch.

Tell us. All right. Our final thing we're reading today is actually a trivia fact. The first episode of this season was the first episode broadcast after 9-11. Even though this show is set in New York, it was never directly addressed, but they honored the city with subtle tributes throughout the season, such as Joey wearing New York firefighter t-shirts, New York drawings on the manga doodle on Joey's door, and images of the American flag on different sets such as Central Park and Rachel's office at Ralph Lauren. There was a scene filmed on Monica and Chandler going on their honeymoon, and Chandler makes a joke about bombs in the airport. but this subplot was deleted as the episode was about to air after the events 9-11 i remember

seeing this deleted scene on the DVD box set you got it you got to give us that DVD that is cool so that's fascinating in the friends universe yeah there was no 9-11 well you know i mean there is they just don't ever probably talk about it but like yeah i mean i have to be because there's been so many establishing shots of the twin towers over time yeah but i have to imagine after this they don't show that yeah so i mean yeah canonical it must happen just it must not be which makes sense they wouldn't address it in the show yeah i think that's appropriate i mean it makes me curious yet and now just keep an eye out and see what they do because i you know yeah subconsciously thinking back i'm like oh yeah okay i can kind of see that yeah because something yeah something like that especially when

this was airing as it was super fresh feels like friends at friends the show people go to to escape their problems not to freaking you know harp on them and really you know marinate in the the sadness and tragedy of what happened especially obviously this airing in the 2000s so yeah it makes sense that they didn't address it

directly it's like adjacent our world this is the way yeah I feel like this is the way to do it it's like yeah you put subtle tributes you put you know loving things here and there throughout without needing to be like on a very special episode of you know it's not yeah it's not the purpose of this show to unpack that stuff yeah but uh but

it makes sense why they didn't keep the bomb subploc. Yes, yes, it does. Oh, boy. All righty, guys, would you have kept the bomb subplot? Let us know in the comments below. We love you. We will see you in the next block of friends. And until then, stay friendly.