Need something to do over Thanksgiving break? Here’s my ranking of the top 11 (because I couldn’t pick 10) Thanksgiving themed episodes! Warning: there are spoilers!
Grey’s Anatomy: Thanks for the Memories, S2E9
Talk about how it is the epitome of Grey’s: a little medicine with a lot of drama. Burke makes everyone jealous of his cooking skills, and Izzie is his apprentice. Cristina is, of course, on the hunt for liquor and surgeries. George goes hunting with his family and learns how his father is proud of him. Also, there is classic dark and twisty Meredith to balance out this season 2 favorite. I mean, the episode opens with the O’Malley family screaming “Happy Thanksgiving!” so how much more perfect can you get?
New Girl: Parents, S2E8
This episode is an excellent example of a classic Thanksgiving with family issues. It’s also right at the beginning of New Girl when the characters are still getting used to each other and are just starting to develop their personalities. Basically, Jess is trying to “Parent Trap” her parents back together. Her mom and dad are played by the excellent Jamie Lynn Curtis and Rob Reiner. It’s a classic New Girl conundrum.
The West Wing: Shibboleth, S2E8
Ah… the West Wing, a classic political commentary written by the extremely talented Aaron Sorkin. This episode is one for the books because it combines all of the best parts of the show: comedy, drama, and fantastic dialogue. CJ must choose a more photogenic turkey, Toby is fighting against enforced school prayer, and President Bartlett must decide the fate of Christian Chinese refugees. It’s a classic Thanksgiving episode that will remind you to be thankful for what you have.
Gilmore Girls: A Deep Fried Korean Thanksgiving, S3E9
Wow I thoroughly enjoyed re-watching this episode. It is at a prime time in Gilmore Girls. Rory just got together with Jess so there is plenty of new love. But, she is also struggling to get over Dean. Lorelei and Luke are perfectly awkward and teasing each other and human Kirk struggles with cat Kirk… and there is plenty of food and coffee. Be sure to re-watch this episode before you watch the new Netflix revival! *sobbing*
How I Met Your Mother: Slapsgiving Parts I, II, & III (S3E9, S5E9, S9E14)
Anyone who is a HIMYM fan will know about the tradition of Slapsgiving. It all began with a bet that Barney lost to Marshall way back in the beginning of the show. With that bet, Marshall won the right to slap Barney 5 times at any time or place. In these three episodes, Marshall fulfills 3 of those bets. The first two episodes take place on Thanksgiving and watching them back to back also shows how the gang changes over the years. It goes from Ted and Robin struggling over how to be exes to Robin and Barney in a relationship, and the last episode ends with a performance from Boyz II Men which is pretty awesome.
Friends:
Ok so I know this is basic, but this is still my favorite show hands down. So, I decided to pick the top 3 since they have so many Thanksgiving episodes throughout the seasons (which was actually very challenging). Here’s what I finally decided on:
The One with the Football, S3E9
This episode is just so cute. The gang decides to play a game of touch football on Thanksgiving to determine the tiebreaker from the “Geller Cup” in Ross and Monica’s childhood. There’s also some shameless flirting done by Chandler and Joey on a Dutch girl. Plus, the nineties fashion is just too wonderful with the huge white sneakers and sweats.
The One with Chandler in a Box, S4E8
This one is such a classic (and yes, I know I’ve said that a lot, but it’s just so true). It’s right after Chandler kisses Joey’s girlfriend and Joey makes Chandler sit in a box to make up for it during Thanksgiving dinner. Monica also gets ice in her eye so she goes to see Richard’s son, an eye doctor, and ends up flirting with him. This episode starts off with a lot of comedic Friend’s tension and ends with a heartwarming moment to close out the Thanksgiving of season 4.
The One with all of the Thanksgivings, S5E8
Yep. There’s no doubt about it. No matter how many times I watch this episode, it never gets old and I always laugh. It’s all about the throwback scenes to the group’s worst Thanksgivings, particularly with young Monica, Rachel, Chandler, and Ross. The fashion in these scenes are just so fantastic. Also, both Monica and Joey wear turkeys on their head. And, at the end, Chandler just melts my heart into 10,000 pieces so it’s a perfect Friends episode to finish off the countdown.