Could I Be Wearing Any More Clothes?
the dress was green | season three, episode two
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Hiii, hello! How are you? I’m currently very much in Love Island land. I have so much to say about it and nowhere to say it. Sad. (Chelley forcing me to be on Huda’s side on something is crazy work)
ANYWAY.
I’m not gonna lie, I’ve been waiting to write about this episode. Not only is it one of my favorites,1 it’s arguably one of the most notable, due in part to it being the series’ first bottle episode. (& the best, in my opinion)
Bottle episodes are essentially one-off episodes of a show that utilize as few sets and characters as possible.2 This is usually done in order to save production costs, which was Kevin S. Bright’s reasoning for the episode’s creation. Portrayed in real time- adding a play-like structure- the episode centers around Ross attempting to gather everyone to leave for a museum gala, but he’s the only who is ready. And they only have 22 minutes!
Listen, I’m not a Ross apologist by any means, but I’d be stressed too.
Get out of my chair, dillhole.
We have to start with this, no? Chandler and Joey fighting over the chair. The physical comedy of these two is what makes it so great- even if that meant a broken shoulder for Matt LeBlanc.3
Joey’s ensemble of everything Chandler owns (that is so not the opposite of taking someone’s underwear) was actually one big costume for which Debra McGuire says:
Building that costume was amazing. What we did was, take all these pieces from his iconic wardrobe and cut them so they were flapped and looked like they were layer, upon layer, upon layer.4
It even had a Velcro opening in the back so it could be easily slipped on and off.
Monica’s landline voicemail situation wouldn’t happen today,
which adds a layer of nostalgia to an otherwise embarrassing scene, especially when you add in Phoebe’s ‘She must have that Caller ID thing. You should get that’ comment.
In any case, the accidental setting the voicemail as the outgoing message makes me cringe for her but it was also hilarious.
And everything’s okay because she’s wearing red.
I’m supporting Christmas.
Phoebe’s conflict comes in the form of a stain on her dress. (What gets out hummus, what gets out hummus?) Pre-stain, the dress is a simple, pastel number that lets her daisy necklace be the focus.
AND THE SHOES. I love her shoes.
Post-stain, she digs out a Christmas bow from Rachel’s stash, and it becomes an impromptu political statement. (What are you supporting? Duh!! Christmas!!) How does she make it work??
In the end, best dressed does have to go to Rachel for her mint green dress.
After spending most of the episode figuring out what to wear, (which, Rachel, as a fashion girlie I would expect you to have that decided beforehand!! But I digress) she finally lands on the dress.
It’s a simple, minimalist piece with a slit hitting above the knee- with a matching jacket to top it off. Dare I say this is one of her best looks…. ever? Maybe that’s tea but I stand by it.
If you were on instagram last year, you may remember the discourse surrounding the real color of the dress when HBO Max decided to stream the show in 4K and shared the difference in tones. It was on track to become another blue/black dress phenomenon, but the queen herself confirmed that the original color is, in fact, mint.
I personally think that if a technology messes with original coloring/ quality that much, maybe we don’t do it? BUT WHAT DO I KNOW, I’m still waiting for Blockbuster to come back.
Favorite Quote(s)
“Yep, it's fat. I drank fat!” -Joey
“The cushions are the essence of the chair!” -Chandler
stay hot & weird,
kaeleen <3
Take a shot every time I say that in a post
The Dawson’s Creek episode Castaways, where Joey & Pacey get locked inside a K-Mart, is another bottle fave. JUST GOOD TV. Also, Joey & Pacey for life. That is all.
Mint green was a big colour at the time.😁 I kinda love the idea of the Chandler’s clothes jacket, where you add your own old clothes over time.
A top 5 episode