The One With Ross' Teeth

"The One With Ross' Teeth" is the eighth episode of the sixth season of Friends, which aired on November 18, 1999. In it, Joey becomes annoyed when his new roommate makes his apartment too girly, Ross gets his teeth whitened but they end up too white, and Rachel learns that Phoebe made out with Ralph Lauren and begins to gossip about it.

Plot[]

Chandler raises concerns with Joey that Janine's contributions to the apartment, such as a framed Anne Geddes photo, are making it too girlish. Joey complains to Janine, but begins to take a different view when he admires the aroma of her potpourri, which he at first assumed was a just a bowl of chips. Soon, Chandler finds that Joey has developed an interest in knitting and flower arranging. Phoebe stops by Rachel's office to make some copies and informs Rachel that she made out with Ralph Lauren in the copy room. Rachel attempts to ingratiate herself with her boss Kim by gossiping about it. However, it turns out that it wasn't really Ralph Lauren Phoebe made out with at all, but instead, Kenny the copy guy.

Monica fixes Ross up with Hillary from work and Ross whitens his teeth for the date until they are unnaturally white. Alarmed, Monica tries to help him find a shirt that might distract from the brightness of his teeth, but nothing works. Ultimately, Ross puts on make-up to lighten his skin as well. Chandler despairs that all his friends seem to be turning into women. Although Rachel tries to correct the gossip from earlier, Kim has already drawn the conclusion that it was actually Rachel who was the one who made out with Ralph Lauren, making her paranoid that Rachel is gunning for her job by sleeping her way to the top. Her suspicions seem confirmed when they share an elevator ride with Ralph Lauren himself and Kim misinterprets their silence for sexual tension. In order to hide his teeth on his date, Ross barely says a word, finding ways to cover his mouth when he does speak. Hilary is impressed by what a good listener Ross seems to be. Unfortunately, when Hillary finally sees Ross' teeth glowing brightly under a black light, she is freaked out. Rachel makes up a story about Ralph Lauren dumping her and Kim forgives her, admitting that she also had an unhappy love affair, with Kenny the copy guy.

After Chandler points out to Joey how womanish he's becoming, Joey one again puts his foot down and insists that Janine remove her feminine touches from the main body of the apartment, although the purpose is defeated when he asks that they be moved into his room.

Cast and Crew[]

Main Cast[]

Jennifer Aniston - Rachel Greene
Courteney Cox Arquette - Monica Geller
Lisa Kudrow - Phoebe Buffay
Matt LeBlanc - Joey Tribbiani
Matthew Perry - Chandler Bing
David Schwimmer - Ross Geller

Supporting Cast[]

Joanna Gleason - Kim
Ralph Lauren - Himself
Elle Macpherson - Janine Lecroix
Missi Pyle - Hillary
James Michael Tyler - Gunther (uncredited)

Crew[]

Directed By:
Gary Halvorson

Written By:
Perry Rein & Gigi McCreery

Trivia[]

This episode is mentioned in the NCIS episode "Escaped", when McGee accidentally over-bleached his teeth. DiNozzo then tells McGee "You don't watch Friends do you? Same thing happened to Ross. You could have learned from our Friends' mistake".
In Central Perk, Chandler mentions he doesn't think his boss likes him much, but in "The One With Chandler's Work Laugh" they seemed to get along pretty well.
- He could have meant another boss higher than Doug.
The Magna Doodle in this episode shows a drawing of a unicorn and hearts.
Ralph Lauren makes his only appearance in the series making two cameos in the elevator with Rachel and Kim.
Janine makes reference to Anne Geddes, an Australian-born photographer who is well-known for her stylized depictions of babies and motherhood. Her books have been published in over fifty countries.
This episode is dedicated to Gail Joseph, a former NBC publicist who had worked on the show as part of the network's comedy division and passed away a few weeks before the airing of this episode. Her niece would later write a piece on the New York Times on how her grief for Joseph's death led to her seeking a meeting with David Schwimmer.
Joey says "I'm a woman" after Chandler asks Joey if he's upset his feelings after saying he's becoming too sensitive. In "The One Where Rachel Finds Out", Joey's date Melanie told him "you're practically a woman."
When Monica tells Chandler he can go to Joey's, Monica uses the same voice she used after meeting Chandler's boss Doug in "The One With Chandler's Work Laugh".
This episode was used as "R is for Ralph Lauren" in the Nick at Nite Friends A-Z Event (January 2023).

Goofs/Continuity[]

When Joey is in the kitchen waiting for Janine to come home so he can talk to her about getting rid of the girly stuff, while holding a football, just as Janine walks into the apartment, the camera can be seen at the right side of the screen.
When Rachel asks Monica if she's setting Ross up with someone (and asks if she's got a wedding dress), Rachel's holding a red coffee mug and takes a sip but in the next shot it's on the coffee table.
When Phoebe thinks Rachel still works at Bloomingdale's, Rachel tells her she has been working at Ralph Lauren for a year. However she got the job at Ralph Lauren in "The One With Rachel's Inadvertent Kiss" which was in March. This episode takes place in November, meaning she had been working for Ralph Lauren 8 months, not a year.
In the coffeehouse, Ross is holding a red folder. When he says "Maybe it's a universal thing," the folder disappears. In the next shot the folder is back, but when the camera angle changes and Ross stands up, the folder is gone again.
When Ross shows his teeth to Monica and Chandler in Central Perk, Chandler keeps changing the position of his legs between shots.
When Rachel gets into the elevator with Kim the first time, she reaches toward the elevator buttons but does not press any of them.
Ross says he has a five year old son but Ben was born at the end of Season 1 meaning he's four years old, not five.

External links[]

Transcript of the episode including the deleted scenes
"The One with Ross' Teeth" at the Internet Movie Database

Episode Navigation[]

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Preceded by "The One Where Phoebe Runs"	Series Six Episodes	Followed by "The One Where Ross Got High"


<< Season 5		Season 6				Season 7 >>
#01	"The One After Vegas"		#10	"The One With The Routine"	#19	"The One With Joey's Fridge"
#02	"The One Where Ross Hugs Rachel"		#11	"The One With The Apothecary Table"	#20	"The One With Mac And C.H.E.E.S.E."
#03	"The One With Ross' Denial"		#12	"The One With The Joke"	#21	"The One Where Ross Meets Elizabeth's Dad"
#04	"The One Where Joey Loses His Insurance"		#13	"The One With Rachel's Sister"	#22	"The One Where Paul's The Man"
#05	"The One With Joey's Porsche"		#14	"The One Where Chandler Can't Cry"	#23	"The One With The Ring"
#06	"The One On The Last Night"		#15	"The One That Could Have Been, Part 1"	#24	"The One With The Proposal, Part 1"
#07	"The One Where Phoebe Runs"		#16	"The One That Could Have Been, Part 2"	#25	"The One With The Proposal, Part 2"
#08	"The One With Ross' Teeth"		#17	"The One With Unagi"
#09	"The One Where Ross Got High"		#18	"The One Where Ross Dates A Student"