"Friends" Explained By Someone Who Has Never Seen It

They're all "friends," but also bone each other a lot?

This is Friends, which first premiered 20 years ago. Only I've never ever watched it. I've seen a lot of GIFs, though, so I'm pretty sure I know what it's about.

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This fountain is from their college days, when they first met. They probably streaked through it, and the couch/fancy lamp symbolizes the fact that they've grown out of college and into adulthood. (Am I close? Probably.)

Now they all live together in NYC!

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Because friends do that, and also for TV purposes.

This is Rachel, she's the STAR of the show and also the fun, drunk friend of the group.

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A lot of people copied her hairstyle in the '90s, because she's THE STAR.

And this is Monica, the REAL star of the show, because she's insanely relatable and actually seems legit cool.

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She says the things that everyone is thinking!

She used to be a little heavier, and she seemed even cooler then. I think we would've been friends.

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She's definitely cooler than Rachel's hair, is all I'm saying.

I want to call this girl "Smelly Cat," but I looked it up and her name is Phoebe. She's a subway singer for a living.

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She has really beautiful long hair and I think she'd actually become really successful in L.A. New York seems to be holding Phoebe back.

These three ~ladies~ live together.

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Phoebe is the responsible one, and has to clean up the messes that Rachel and Monica make.

Then there are these three dudes, and they're roommates too!

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Again, because friends live together and also because this is a TV show.

This is Joey. He's the male STAR of the show and makes women feel extremely uncomfortable, but in a funny way (?).

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I'm not sure what he does for a living. I'm guessing salesman? Anyway, I now watch Joey on another TV show called Episodes, and he's delightful in that.

He's also one of those guys who talks about sex a lot, and never actually gets laid.

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This is one of the main characters, but I don't know his name, so we'll call him Manic Pixie Dream Boy.

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Natalie Portman's character in Garden State was inspired by this very line.

Joey is secretly in love with Manic Pixie Dream Boy.

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He shows it by doling out a lot of surprise hugs and watching him sleep at night. #CoupleOfTheYear

Which is too bad for Joey, because Manic Pixie Dream Boy is actually boning Monica.

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They flirt a lot with their eyes, and probably make the other friends feel weird about it.

This is Mark (?), and he's the friend everyone laughs at because he literally doesn't know how to be a person.

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He's like the Zach Galifianakis of the friend group, and you never know if he's being sincere or just batshit crazy.

So, yeah, a lot of people really fucking love this show.

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Like, it's on TV all the time, and I think that's part of why I never watched it, because it will always be there waiting for me, someday!

And I can see why. I mean, there's a whole running plot about pizza.

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It's basically all they think about, and honestly, I can relate.

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And apparently Friends is not just a fun show about loving pizza. There are also some crying things that happen.

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Rachel and her awesome hair might also be in love with Manic Pixie Dream Boy, because he's the one who breaks everyone's heart.

Also, Mark is constantly embarrassing himself, and that's always good for a laugh.

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Ugh, poor Mark, he'll never find love, but at least we can laugh.

Plus there's this wonderful courtship between Joey and Manic Pixie Dream Boy.

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It's constant and wonderful, and never ever reciprocated, I think.

They even raise a family of ducklings together, which is pretty adorable.

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Through the sheer power of their love! #CoupleOfTheYear

There are some super fun feminist moments too.

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Get it drunk, fun friend!

And Joey lands work as a model, which MIGHT actually, finally get him laid.

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He'll think of Manic Pixie Dream Boy the whole time.

It's a show about the realities of having friends, and the fact that you'll get drunk with them A LOT.

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Kind of like a co-ed SATC before there was an SATC.

But ultimately, it's a show about friendship, and being there for someone through thick and thin.

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Even when that friend is Mark, and you kind of just want him to go away.