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"The One With the Girl from Poughkeepsie" is the fourth Christmas episode of the NBC sitcom Friends, aired as the tenth episode of show's fourth season (though it is actually the season's twelfth episode in production order).

Synopsis[]

Although it's almost Christmas, not everyone is in a really festive mood, and Rachel, Ross, and Monica, in particular, face some tough times ahead of the holidays.

Following her highly negative review which earned her the head-chef job at Allesandro's, Monica is being tormented by her colleagues. Even if no amount of burned chef jackets and "Quit Bitch"-signed hats is enough to make Monica quit, the attitude she receives from fellow chefs and waiters almost pushes her off the edge. She takes Chandler's advice and hires Joey as a waiter for the sole purpose of firing him in front of the others, but when Joey finds himself with a handful of tips he forgets the deal he and Monica have. Only when he truly sees the degree of abuse Monica is being forced to endure (which almost makes her resign) that he sticks to his part and plays the arrogant employee. Monica quickly takes advantage of this and fires Joey in front of everyone, which Joey seems to take a little harder than he expected. This is enough for Monica to acquire control over her colleagues who realize they could get fired too.

Rachel hates to be single around the festive season, and is more willing than usual to have a fling with someone rather than something serious. Chandler knows of a couple of guys at work who might do the trick for her, which he uses in his favor to obtain free stuff from them. After picking her preferred guy, Patrick, Rachel starts to believe in something more than a fling between her and him, but when she learns that Chandler told Patrick how all she wants is a fling, she's furious with him. Chandler tries to rectify his mistake, but telling Patrick that Rachel might be interested in a serious relationship with him is another mistake which leads to Rachel being dumped before Christmas. Angry that she's all alone again, Chandler consoles her on how he never lied once about her to his colleagues, which makes Rachel appreciate their friendship more.

Ross meets an amazing girl from Poughkeepsie on the train, whom he finds really beautiful, smart and funny. All that is keeping him from this girl is the considerable distance between him and her. Things are different with another girl from uptown - she's really close and easy to reach, but isn't smart, not funny and a bigot. Managing time between the two girls is too much for him, and he ends up exhausted from dating both of them. He breaks up with the girl from uptown, and doesn't even manage to talk to the girl from Poughkeepsie as he falls asleep on the train. He only wakes up in Montreal, next to a beautiful blonde woman who asks him out for coffee. Just as things might head in a new, exciting direction, he learns that the woman is from Nova Scotia.

Phoebe finds it hard to write a special holiday song about all of her friends because of the lack of good rhyming words, but it only takes some of her more fertile imagination to solve the problem. She sings the song at the end of the episode.

Cast[]

Actor/actress Character
Jennifer Aniston Rachel Green
Courteney Cox Monica Geller
Lisa Kudrow Phoebe Buffay
Matt Le Blanc Joey Tribbiani
Matthew Perry Chandler Bing
David Schwimmer Doctor Ross Geller
Fred Stoller Waiter
James Tyler Gunther
Jamie Kaler Mike
Micheal DiMaggio Drew
Shannon Brown Woman on Train
Amy Smallman Kitchen Worker
Yasemin Baytok Poughkeepsie Woman
Vic Helford Train Conductor

See also[]

External links[]

Warner Bros.
Movies
Warner Bros. Pictures Christmas in ConnecticutGremlinsLethal WeaponNational Lampoon's Christmas VacationBatman ReturnsJack FrostThe Polar ExpressKiss Kiss Bang BangFred Claus
New Line Cinema The Long Kiss GoodnightElfThe Nativity StoryFour ChristmasesA Very Harold & Kumar 3D ChristmasThe Conjuring 2Collateral BeautyShazam!8-Bit Christmas
Blue Ribbon Content A Christmas Story 2A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish
Warner Bros. Television National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island AdventureThe Year Without a Santa ClausChristmas on the Square
Live-action television episodes
Friends and Joey "The One With the Monkey" • "The One With Phoebe's Dad" • "The One Where Rachel Quits" • "The One With the Girl from Poughkeepsie" • "The One With the Inappropriate Sister" • "The One With the Routine" • "The One With All the Candy" • "The One With the Holiday Armadillo" • "The One With Monica's Boots" • "The One with Ross's Step Forward" • "The One With the Creepy Holiday Card" • "The One With Christmas in Tulsa" • "Joey and the Plot Twist" • "Joey and the Christmas Party"
DC Comics "Season's Greedings" • "Home is Where the Hurt Is" • "Twas the Night Before Mxymas" • "Lexmas" • "Gemini" • "Year's End" • "Three Ghosts"
Other shows "A Semi-Merry Christmas" • "Mel, the Magi" • "Mel's Christmas Carol" • "'Tis the Season to Be Jealous" • "A Christmas Story" (Growing Pains) • "The Kid" • "It's Not Easy Being Green" • "A Christmas Story" (Just the Ten of Us) • "Santa Goes Downtown" • "Let It Snow" • "The Night Court Before Christmas" • "Santa on the Lam" • "Have Yourself a Merry Winslow Christmas" • "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Urkel" • "Christmas is Where the Heart is" • "Miracle on Elm Street" • "Fa La La La Laagghh!" • "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" • "Deck the Malls" • "The Christmas Show" • "The Man Who Canceled Christmas" • "Christmas Day-Ja Vu" • "A Country Christmas" • "The Gift" • "A Miracle Happens Here" • "Homeless for the Holidays" • "Do You See What I See" • "The Miracle Worker" • "How the Finch Stole Christmas" • "The Greatest of Gifts" • "I'll Be Home For Christmas" • "Hindsight" • "Twas the Night" • "All About Christmas Eve" • "City of Mercy" • "Meet the Cuban Parents" • "Christmas Punch" • "A Clear and Presentless Danger" • "George is Being Elfish and Christ-Misses His Family" • "Santa's Secret Stuff" • "A Very Supernatural Christmas" • "The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis" • "The Maternal Congruence" • "The Santa Simulation" • "The Cooper Extraction" • "The Clean Room Infiltration" • "Christmas" (The Middle) • "A Simple Christmas" • "A Christmas Gift" • "Christmas Help" • "The Christmas Tree" • "The Christmas Wall" • "Not So Silent Night" • "A Very Marry Christmas" • "The Christmas Miracle" • "It's Beginning to Stink a Lot Like Christmas" • "Jolly Red Elf" • "The World Ain't Over 'Till It's Over" • "Santa's Village of the Damned" • "Walnuts and Demerol" • "Warning, It's Dirty" • "One False Move, Zimbabwe!" • "Give Santa a Tail-Hole" • "On Vodka, On Soda, On Blender, On Mixer" • "Family, Bublé, Deep-Fried Turkey" • "Home for Christmas" • "Jingle Bell Glock" • "The Walk-Out" • "Yule Never Know" • "Merry Ex-Mas" • "A Very Carrie Christmas" • "Veronica's Christmas Song" • "Veronica's Secret Santa" • "An Echolls Family Christmas" • "One Angry Veronica"
Animated productions
Looney Tunes and related shows The Shanty Where Santy Claus LivesBedtime for SnifflesGift WrappedBugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales • "It's a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special" • "'Twas the Day Before Christmas" • "Jingle Boo" • "The Great Wakkorotti: The Holiday Concert" • "A Christmas Plotz" • "Little Drummer Warners" • "No Time for Christmas" • "A Pinky and the Brain Christmas" • "It Happened One Night Before Christmas" • "In Arms Way" • "The Twelve Days of Christmas" • Christmas Eve with Yakko, Wakko & Dot • "Noel" • "The Christmas Tree" • "The Banks of the Delaware River" • "Feather Christmas" • "Yule Be Sorry" • "Christmas in July" • Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas • "A Christmas Carol" • "Tis the Seasoning" • "Winter Blunderland" • "The Legend of Burrito Monday" • Bugs Bunny's 24-Carrot Holiday Special • "Looneyburg Lights" • "How the Brain Thieved Christmas" • "Santamaniacs"
DC Comics "Christmas With the Joker" • "Holiday Knights" • "Frozen Out" • "Comfort and Joy" • "Storybook Holiday" • "Invasion of the Secret Santas!" • "Second Christmas" • "The True Meaning of Christmas" • "Halloween v Christmas" • "Teen Titans Save Christmas" • "Party Animal" • "Beast Boy on a Shelf" / "Christmas Crusaders" • "A Holiday Story"
Hanna-Barbera co-productions "A Dickens of a Christmas" • A Scooby-Doo! Christmas • "Ho Ho Horrors" • Tom and Jerry: A Nutcracker TaleScooby-Doo! Haunted HolidaysTom and Jerry: Santa's Little Helpers • "The Plight Before Christmas" • "Scary Christmas" • "Scroogey Doo" • "It's a Wacky Life" • "Dashing Thru the Snow" • "Signed, Sealed and Wacky" • "The Spirit of Frostnos" • Tom and Jerry: Snowman's Land
Other cartoons "Yuletide and Redtide" • A Cool Like That Christmas • "Santa Mask" • The Polar Express • "The Match Before Xmas" • A Miser Brothers' Christmas • "Da Grinchy Code / Duck" • "FROST / Undercover Claus" • "Fantastic Four Christmases / Red and White Collar" • Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas • "Christmas in Oz" • "Top of the Naughty List" • "Mandora Saves Christmas" • Beebo Saves Christmas
Albums
Have Yourself a Looney Tunes ChristmasA Hip-Hopera ChristmasMerry Christmas: Animaniacs & Looney TunesThe Looney Tunes Kwazy ChristmasA Looney Tunes Sing-A-Long Christmas
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