Rachel breaks Joey's Barcalounger, so they go buy a new one. Chandler thinks he is responsible for breaking the chair while Rachel and Joey are out and replaces it with his own. Ross and Monica go to their parents' home to take their childhood things with them, but Monica discovers most of her stuff was destroyed. Phoebe gets a job as a telephone saleswoman, but finds herself trying to comfort Earl, a suicidal man (played by Jason Alexander).
Tropes:
- Apathetic Citizens: When Phoebe tries to assure him that things can't be that bad, Earl points out he's been openly talking about killing himself and not a single co-worker has so much as looked up from a desk in surprise. He goes another step forward by asking for everyone's attention just so he can outright say he's going to kill himself, and absolutely no one reacts. Phoebe outright calls them jerks.
- Calling the Old Man Out: A milder version than most but Ross does call Jack out on treating Monica as The Un-Favorite. To his credit, Jack does listen and attempts to make it up to Monica at the end of the episode.
- Cigarette of Anxiety: Jack tries to hide from Ross that he smokes, but abandons all pretense when they find Monica's childhood things destroyed.
- Companion Cube: Rosita is the name of Joey's Barcalounger. He's also named the television "Stevie".
- Cool Chair: Rachel buys a chair with a lot of nifty built-in things like loudspeakers. It is meant to replace Joey's broken Barcalounger, but since it apparently got "healed" (actually Chandler replaced the broken one with his own because he thinks he's the one who broke it) while they were out, Rachel gets to keep the new one, making Joey envious. Then he breaks the Barcalounger so he gets to sit in the new chair.
- I Was Never Here: Chandler after thinking he broke Joey's Barcalounger. He says it to the television.
- Intimate Telecommunications: Phoebe mentions that she used to work at a phone line where she had to say "spank" a lot.
- It's Personal: Phoebe is out to prevent Earl from killing himself since her own mother killed herself.
- Mid-Life Crisis Car: Jack's Porsche. He realizes that he looks foolish driving it, so he doesn't mind giving it to Monica.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Jack's reaction to being told that Monica thinks she was loved less than Ross.
- Noodle Incident:
- While reading the listing for the Geller house Ross mentions a certain window in the attic before trailing off. Phoebe immediately wants to know what happened to it but she, and the audience, are left hanging.
- Chandler was banned from a store for repeatedly sitting in a display item.
- Not So Above It All; After thinking he broke Joey's Barcalounger, Chandler insists to "Stevie" that he was never there.
- Parental Favoritism: Jack realizes that he and Judy made Monica feel bad by showing favoritism towards Ross, so to make up for it (and also the loss of her stuff), he decides to give her his Porsche. Ross is beside himself at how unfair that is.
- Shadow Archetype: When Earl describes his Soul-Crushing Desk Job in every depressing detail, Phoebe wonders if she's actually talking to Chandler. Earl is essentially what Chandler would be without his close circle of friends: a lonely, bitter figure worn down by a job he hates.
- Skewed Priorities: Jack used the boxes containing Monica's stuff to protect his Porsche during a flood, leading to them getting destroyed.
- Soul-Crushing Desk Job: Earl works some sort of desk job at an office and laments that nobody there knows him or listens to him shouting that he'll kill himself. After hearing this, Phoebe briefly wonders if she's actually speaking to Chandler.
- Suddenly Shouting: At Earl's office, Phoebe asks for him, but the staffer has no idea who she's talking about.Earl: I'M RIGHT HERE!
- Talking Down the Suicidal: Phoebe talks down an unlucky man who plans on killing himself due to feeling unappreciated and ignored by his co-workers.
