Friends (TV Series) The One with the Sharks (2002) User Reviews

Monica thinks Chandler is interested by sharks and I'm not interested by that storyline

[SLionsCricketreviews · 7/10 · 10 February 2017]

It is odd that an episode based on Chandler's supposed arousal of sharks is not better than what it is and it mostly comes down to the underwhelming screenplay here. Aside from the final dialogue exchange between Chandler and Monica (lines like "Let me be a part of this" that capture the absurdity of the premise), this is a really nothing story.

Joey's story with the girl is serviceable without really offering any sort of comedic or dramatic peak. The problem with his character at this point in the show is that he is neither particularly funny (bar certain rare exceptions) nor a dramatically interesting character and so this storyline, as harmless and tolerable a viewing as it is, does not excel.

Neither does the Phoebe plot and the idea that it is ridiculous for someone in their early thirties not having been in a serious relationship doesn't strike me as pathetic as it seems to strike Phoebe. Ross more than makes up for it, almost as per usual, with some terrific moments (the exchanges with Rudd's Mike are magnificent) and David Schwimmer absolutely shines yet again. The real underrated talent of this show.

Very decent episode that would be quite forgettable without the Ross/Phoebe storyline.

The One with the Sharks

[ComedyFan2010 · 7/10 · 6 September 2011]

While I liked th Phoebe story I was kind of upset they made her this way. Why couldn't she be happy with her life? Why do all women of the show have to be desperate for a long term relationship? It would be nice if Phoebe stayed the way Joey is: happy with her life, not trying to lock herself in a relationship

But other than that it was a good story. David Schwimmer made me laugh a lot especially with his Vicrum message.

I also liked how Joey gets into the girls apartment, realizes that he has been there before and tries to remember why. I especially love him with the cactus. Great facial expression and narration

The story with shark porn on the other hand was just stupid.

Friends Jumps The Shark

[vincentviolet-65071 · 8/10 · 25 March 2023]

I don't mind saying I'm a Friendoholic. I have always loved the show and I don't care who knows it. I've been mocked many time for this by people who say they don't like the show, but those bozos don't know what they are missing. I've seen every episode many times and I can say for sure that this is the episode where Friends jumped the shark. Pun intended. I'm not saying it is even a bad episode or that the show was done after, I just think this is a memorable episode in the sense that the idea is SOOOOO bad that I can't believe they did this. Monica walks in on Chandler waxing his carrot and he quickly changes the channel to a shark attack so Monica thinks he has a shark fetish and tries to roll with it. It is just so unbelievably stupid that I actually quite like it. I'm just amazed that one of the top rated comedy shows at the time ended up doing something so dumb. The Joey storyline and Phoebe and Ross stories are good enough. I have nothing against the episode, it is just kind of a weird one.

The One Where Chandler Watches Shark Porn...

[taylorkingston · 10/10 · 4 April 2015]

I love this episode. It's so funny. I found it interesting for Chandler to be living in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but it works.

In this episode, Monica surprise visits Chandler in Tulsa, and finds him "getting happy" to sharks. She assumes that he gets turned on by shark porn, which worries her. But because she's a loving and supportive wife, she tells him that she can learn to live with it. But it turns out that he was watching regular porn, and changed the channel because he didn't want Monica to know that he was watching it. Meanwhile, Ross makes Phoebe realize that she's never had a long-term relationship before and Joey is picked up by a woman who he swears he gone out with before. She doesn't convince him, her apartment does. It turns out that he had dated her roommate, which leads to very funny moments.

Overall, I give this episode a 10 out of 10.

Chandler supposed interest for Sharks

[Lady_Targaryen · 7/10 · 4 March 2009]

Ross and Phoebe talk about Phoebe's relationship with Mike, and Ross let Phoebe stay insecure and crying, since he told her that she never had a serious relationship with anyone and that she doesn't care to anything. He tried to tell her that he envy her lifestyle, but it turns out to look quite the opposite to Phoebe, making her have a terrible date with Mike.

Ross feels responsible for that and talks to Mike to see if he can help the situation, but he tells Mike that Phoebe never had a serious relationship and makes thing even worst. (And Phoebe even more angry with him)

Joey meets a girl in Central Perk and has success in asking her to a date. Everything goes well, until Joey go to the girl's house: there, he is almost sure that he already had sex with her,since he remembers her apartment.

Monica decides to go to Tulsa to make Chandler a surprise. When she arrives and opens Chandler's apartment's door, she sees Chandler touching himself. When she sees the TV, there is a shark program on air, and she stays convicted that he masturbates watching Shark porn.

Overall i liked this episode but..

[TheTibmeister · 7/10 · 30 July 2022]

There's one thing that drives me crazy every time see it. It is a really big continuity error. When Ross visits Phoebe in her apartment she is wearing a necklace with a black pendant. And in between their lines the pendant moves. First it's on the left then the right left again then middle and keeps swapping left and right more times. It is a small thing i know but now i've seen it i can't un-see it. A lot of people have mentioned the napkin/corn dog but the necklace gets me every time.

Lack of good ideas

[puzgolac · 3/10 · 1 August 2023]

It is not the first time that this show has demonstrated a severe lack of good ideas and has, instead, gone for something completely ridiculous, because someone thought that ridiculous equals funny. And so we get the stupid shark story from this episode. The idea is so dumb that it really makes you wonder how something like that could ever get the green light in an established show. Of course, sitcoms are never completely realistic, but whenever there is such a ridiculous plot line, so far removed from the real world, it can never be funny, even with the best of writing. And the writing in this one is far from the best.

Phoebe's story is weak, unfunny and uninteresting, but compared to the shark plot it is Oscar worthy.

Joey's story is the only one that is okay, but overall, this is one of the episodes that clearly show the decline of quality in the later seasons of Friends.

A weak episode

[studioAT · 2/10 · 4 August 2017]

This episode isn't great unfortunately, with two of the plots not really working in my opinion.

I didn't like the Phoebe story line as the fact she'd never had a serious relationship seemed blown out of proportion, and although David Schwimmer gives a good performance, Ross is annoying here.

The Chandler/Monica story line is so weak it doesn't even warrant me talking about it. A low moment in the history of the show.

The Joey story line is the only real saving grace, and that's nothing more than a standard sitcom plot.

Jennifer Aniston must've been filming something else at the same time as this as she barely features. To be honest she was best out of a weak episode.

A few funny moments, but otherwise unbelievable.

[imjermin-66976 · 3/10 · 27 August 2018]

I like the Phoebe subplot, but Joey's and Chandler and Monica's is dumb. Monica witnesses Chandler jump up shouting, "do not disturb!" when she surprises him in Tulsa, as he's watching porn. She sees sharks on the screen thinking he's into shark porn? How dumb is that. It was completely obvious he changed the channel because he thought the hotel staff was coming in. With Joey, he dates a girl, goes to her apartment, and notices he's been there before. He thinks he's had sex with this girl in her apartment before, and not once does the thought go through his mind that she could have a roommate. I know they made Joey dumber throughout the series, but this is just ridiculous. Especially Monica.

Weird Fantasies

[vivianla · 30 December 2020]

Phoebe is emotional after Ross tells her she has never been in a long-term relationship. She tells Mike she has never gone out with someone for more than a month and never had any anniversaries.

Chandler goes to Tulsa, Oklahoma and Monica comes to surprise him. While watching pay-per-view porn he masturbates and then Monica comes in. He quickly switches to another channel that is showing sharks and Monica misunderstands to believe he is into sharks.

Joey meets a girl in the cafe and goes to her apartment. He recognizes the apartment and wonders how the girl cannot remember him because he should be memorable in bed. Her roommate comes in and that was the girl he had sex with. Phoebe tells him he is in his thirties and goes from meaningless relationship to meaningless relationship. He says yeah I love my life.

Phoebe gets worse and worse

[jmsfan · 2/10 · 7 August 2021]

I don't know why the writers had Phoebe get more angry and more of a bully as the series went on. Yes, I know she spent a lot of time in her tween/teen years on the street and her "mother" killed herself, but the more Phoebe was with her friends on the show, she was fairly kind. Yeah, she had strange quirks but if you watch the earlier seasons, she was really sweet and fit in more.

Here, in this episode, when Ross interferes with Phoebe's potential relationship with new interest Mike, Phoebe loses her cool and shouts, "I swear to Lucifer!" What? Why did they have her invoke the devil's name? She never said she was a devil-worshipper or anything like that. She would talk about the "voices in her head" or living in past lives, but I always thought that was because she was just a bit off, not a Satanist. This line seems so out of place and just meant to shock. I never heard anyone (even Phoebe) say anything like this on the show before or after, so what was up with that?

Other than that, it was a serviceable episode. Joey not knowing that he had dated another girl who lived in the same apartment---c'mon, Joey remembers all the girls he's dated or slept with. Oh, well, no biggie. And Monica thinking Chandler was into shark "porn"---I thought that was the only funny thing in this episode. It was just dumb enough to save this episode but just by a bit.

An okay episode but Phoebe's swearing to the devil left a bad taste that made it really hard to like the episode.