#but when we do finally meet them theyre played by a cis woman in drag rather than a cis man in a wig

[biblicalhorror]

Yknow that post that's like "when someone points out the wrong flaws in a character you hate so you're put in the unfortunate position of having to defend them" because that's me with the beloved 00s sitcom Friends

#'its so awkward without the laugh track!' first of all its not even a laugh track #its a live studio audience #google it #thats why the bloopers also have people laughing #secondly like. yeah??? #shockingly the media that was designed around a certain sound element is more awkward and clunky when that element is edited out #'its homophobic/transphobic' this argument ill give a little more grace towards #bc like yeah a lot of the ways that the characters reinforce gender roles/stereotypes on one another is by threat of homophobia #and some of the jokes about chandlers parent are offensive #but it was also literally the first ever show to have a lesbian wedding onscreen in 1996 #(roseanne did an episode on a gay wedding like a month before) #& w all the issues the show has dealing with trans people/drag it was a helluva lot better than almost anything else coming out @the time #for example chandler's trans parent is misgendered by other characters literally constantly #but when we do finally meet them theyre played by a cis woman in drag rather than a cis man in a wig #which yeah isnt perfect but is also much better than most trans representation onscreen at the time #and the character is allowed to be just as complex and sympathetic as any other parent on the show #i would even say moreso than the other parents tbh #'they put monica in a fat suit' yeah thats bad #and especially because of all the demeaning jokes monica is put through even after shes skinny #but the show again also takes the time to explore fat monicas humanity and how shes deserving of love #and explicitly states that her weight/body image issues were explicitly caused by her parents' emotional abuse/neglect #and even if she had stayed fat forever chandler would have still fallen in love with her #bc the show acknowledges that fat monica is not anywhere near deserving of the vitriol she receives from the ppl around her #which again for the time in the 90s/00s was pretty progressive #'theyre all functioning alcoholics' first of all theres an ep where theyre all shocked that the 6 of them went through 2 bottles of wine #and the reason for that is because one character finished one by themselves #secondly point out to me any mainstream sitcom from the last 30 years that doesnt have flagrant alcohol consumption #'they have like 2 black characters in the entire show and poc are treated terribly' #YES!! now we're talking #'ross sucks and ross/rachel is a romanticized depiction of emotional abuse' 10000% agree