Turkey Day TV: Ranking the Best Thanksgiving Episodes

Ah, Thanksgiving Break. A time for carb-loading with distant relatives, reconnecting with (read as: awkwardly running into) high school acquaintances, and, most importantly, marathoning endless hours of television with your cat/hamster/beta fish.  To make binge-watching more festive for you and your family pet, our staff has ranked favorite Thanksgiving-themed television episodes.

8. “Thanksgiving”

Show: New Girl

Season: 1

Episode: 6

Although New Girl produces a Thanksgiving-themed episode every year, “Thanksgiving” remains the original and, arguably, best.  In this half-hour, Jess (Zooey Deschanel) talks the guys into hosting a Friendsgiving dinner in hopes of inviting her work crush, Paul (Justin Long), to join the festivities.  Unfortunately for her (but fortunately for viewers), her plan gets derailed as the roommates struggle to cook the turkey. 

7. “Blair Waldorf Must Pie”

Show: Gossip Girl

Season: 1

Episode: 9

This flashback episode from the teen drama’s first season has it all: fabulous Thanksgiving fashion, parental romance drama, and Serena (Blake Lively) drunkenly wandering through the Lower East Side at noon.  This hour’s only fallacy is its lack of Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick), which has significantly lowered its ranking.

6. “Talking Turkey”

Show: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

Season: 1

Episode: 12

This episode is a story all about how Will’s mom, Vy (Vernee Watson-Johnson), comes to town and criticizes Vivan’s (Janet Hubert) parenting before apologizing.  In other words, “Talking Turkey” tells the tale of pretty much every Thanksgiving dinner ever.  Plus, hilarity ensues as Hilary (Karyn Parsons), Will (Will Smith), and Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro) help cook dinner and fail miserably.  

Note: Please excuse the anachronistic GIF from season six, but it was too good not to use.

5. “Slapsgiving”

Show: How I Met Your Mother

Season: 3

Episode: 9

This episode serves as the culmination of one of the sitcom’s longest running jokes: Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) and Marshall’s (Jason Segel) slap bet.  The Ted (Josh Radnor) and Robin (Cobie Smulders) drama brings down this episode’s ranking, but the return of power-hungry Lily (Alyson Hannigan) as Slap Bet Commissioner ensures its fifth place slot. 

4. “The Homecoming”

Show: The OC

Season: 1

Episode: 11

Before there was Gossip Girl, there was The O.C., Josh Schwartz’s OG powerhouse teen drama.  This episode adopts a farcical, Neil Simon-esque tone as Seth (Adam Brody) attempts to haphazardly woo Anna (Samaire Armstrong) and Summer (Rachel Bilson) under the same roof.  Meanwhile, Ryan (Benjamin McKenzie) and Marissa (Mischa Barton) travel to his elusive hometown of Chino (read as: #sexualtension).  Plus, all four seasons of the cult drama now stream on CW Seed, making this Thanksgiving favorite easily accessible.

3. “A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving”

Show: Gilmore Girls

Season: 3

Episode: 9

What are they if not world champion eaters? This cult classic episode follows mother-daughter duo Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and Rory (Alexis Bledel) as they cram four years worth of Thanksgiving dinners into a single day and still manage to save room for extra rolls.  Plus, if you’re a Jess (Milo Ventimiglia) fan, this episode takes place at the start of his and Rory’s short-lived relationship, making it a must watch.

2. “The One with All the Thanksgivings”

Show: Friends

Season: 5

Episode: 8

This pick may seem controversial when Friends’ season eight Thanksgiving episode, “The One with the Rumor” (aka: “The One with Brad and Jen on Screen Together Pre-Brangelina”), exists.  But, there’s a reason that that GIF of Monica (Courtney Cox) with the turkey on her head has an Internet presence in 2015.  Showcasing the friends’ worst Thanksgivings, this flashback episode takes place during the sitcom’s #glorydays when Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Monica secretly date and features a whole array of bad hairstyles and 80s outfit choices.  

1. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

Was there any doubt that this old school special would come in first place? It may not technically qualify as a television show, but this program has remained a favorite amongst kids and adults alike since its original 1973 airing.

• barnard feature
• feature
• television
• thanksgiving