We haven't seen such a big divide since the Brexit vote, tbh
It’s been a good fourteen years since the last episode of Friends aired and fans are still obsessed with the show, with many coming up with their own theories about the band of misfits. One particular theory on Twitter about Monica and Ross has blown the internet wide open, resulting in minds being blown, rapid reassessment of the entire series and – this being the internet – a smattering of healthy debate.
Twitter user Emily Heller posted, ‘Just realized they HAD to make Monica & Ross brother and sister otherwise all the FRIENDS would have stuck with Carol in the divorce’.
Just realized they HAD to make Monica & Ross brother and sister otherwise all the F•R•I•E•N•D•S would have stuck with Carol in the divorce
— Emily Heller (@MrEmilyHeller) May 12, 2018
Although the comedian and podcaster may have just been thinking out loud to her Twitter follower bubble, the tweet quickly picked up speed with over 40,000 likes and 7.1 thousand retweets. Carol was Ross’ ex-wife and easily one of the series’ most likable characters, while Ross had a bit more of a hit or miss reputation.
Another user @mardarins gave the theory legs, when they responded, ‘Phoebe would stick with Monica who would’ve stuck with Carol. Joey would stick with Phoebe, and to be honest, Chandler and Joey were much closer than Ross was with Chandler. Rachel would go with Carol because in this universe, she would’ve met Carol and Susan instead of Ross.’
We’re just casually here rewriting the entire Friends’ universe from Carol’s point of view, rather than Ross’ and we’re kind of into it. So were many on the internet, judging from the mountain of reactions.
Could this be any more true? pic.twitter.com/jPaLec6xaY
— Marie Langley (@mlbookworm) May 12, 2018
— JustaTech (@bluesboi) May 13, 2018
However, a few other users stepped in to attempt to debunk the theory. The fact that Carol was technically in the wrong for cheating on Ross came up a few times and, well, we can’t really argue with that.
Eh, I don't think Carol was their friend. She was the wife & then ex wife of Ross. Joey was Chandler's roommate, & Chandler was Ross' friend. Rachel was Monica's friend & phoebe was Monica's former roommate. They were friends with Carol because she was married to Ross.
— Cestrum Nocturnum (@Cestrumnocturn1) May 13, 2018
• Chandler – Team Ross (went to college with him)
• Phoebe – Team Ross (was sympathetic towards him when he found out in TOW The Flashback)
• Joey – Team Ross (moved in with Chandler after Ross found out in the same episode)— Anshuman Goswami (@AGoswami_1) May 13, 2018
Well technically Chandler wouldn’t have given Monica the time of day if she wasn’t Ross’s sister – same with goes for Rachel only befriending Ross because of Monica. So there isn’t even a base of the group without them being siblings…
— Kenna (@Kennalegit) May 13, 2018
However the best responses to the tweet included the wave of people realising for the first time that people hate Ross, who’s a bit of a problematic person IMHO. However, that hasn’t stopped him from being the UK’s favourite Friends character according to a recent poll…
Ross reading this tweet: pic.twitter.com/xE8lQafzW8
— Tayla (@MySnatchedWig) May 13, 2018
when the internet attacks ross and you realize you’re the only one who likes him pic.twitter.com/tPVMzq5b7W
— April (@ashernisky) May 13, 2018
And then there was this.
#Friends Let me put this to bed for you. They made Ross and Monica brother and sister so that we could have this: pic.twitter.com/Cp5oMd2yER
— Elainer (@elaine_7777) May 13, 2018
With all the Ross hate running wild in the comments, the original user stepped in to say, ‘Truly meant this not as a Ross burn but a Carol compliment’.
This isn’t the first time that Ross has been at the centre of a Friends conspiracy, as a darker Friends fan theory questioned whether or not Ross actually lost custody of his son later on in the series. Yikes.
Love him or hate him, Ross was an integral part of the Friends crew and we never would have gotten peak 90s Jen Aniston without him as a scene partner.
The most controversial thing we want answered though is – were Rachel and Ross really on a break? Thoughts, please.