There are many things that can go wrong on Thanksgiving; the food taking too long, that one uncle who gets too drunk or not having enough pie for everyone. However, no matter how bad it gets television shows are there to remind us things that would really ruin Thanksgiving.
1. Getting locked out
The television show Friends has a knack for ruining Thanksgiving. In season 1 The One Where Underdog Get Away Monica is cooking Thanksgiving dinner under a lot of pressure to please everyone.
During the annual parade, the Underdog balloon breaks free so the gang goes up to the roof to watch it run free, however, neither Monica nor Rachel grab the keys. When they get back they realize they are locked out. Rachel then misses her flight and the dinner is completely burned. Joey also happens to be on a poster for an STD and his family won't let him go home for dinner. All in all, not a great meal.
2. Getting your toe cut off
Chandler Bing claims the title king of bad Thanksgivings, and he has a big claim on that title. In the episode, The One With All The Thanksgivings Monica remembers the time she met Chandler at Thanksgiving but he called her fat.
The next year she wants to get her revenge. She decides she wants to get him naked and laugh at him to embarrass him. Rachel comes up with the idea that she should flirt with him to accomplish this and teaches Monica how to do that. However, Monica cannot do it quite as well and accidentally drops a knife on his foot. She ends up sending him to the hospital because she cut off the tip of his toe.
3. Finding out your parents are divorcing
As Chandler Bing from the show Friends constantly reminds his friends the worst Thanksgiving is the one when his parents tell him they are getting a divorce because his father is gay and is having an affair with the houseboy.
Chandler likes to remind the group his story and says "It's a tradition, like the parade, if the parade decided it was gay, moved out, and abandoned its entire family" (The One With All The Thanksgivings).
4. Losing power and blowing up the oven
In the television series, The Carrie Diaries Carrie Bradshaw wants to have the perfect family Thanksgiving. However, she has no recipes, no cooking skill and an oven that is way too small.
Carrie has to slave over the meal, run around to stop her sister from ruining Thanksgiving, and turns her friend into a mini-cooking slave. After all that the turkey that was shoved into the oven explodes and kills the power in the entire house.
5. Being slapped
In the show How I Met Your Mother Marshall Ericksen won a bet against Barney Stinson, the bet is a slap bet in which Marshall now gets to slap Barney five times. Marshall decides to make Thanksgiving now Slapsgiving.
He taunts Barney the entire day about the impending slap, even creating a countdown to the event. Though Lily initially bans the slap, in the end, she allows Marshall to do it. He slaps Barney on the face and then commemorates the moment in a song.
6. Getting arrested
In Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on Thanksgiving Will takes his Uncle Phil to a place he believes is a massage parlor to help his injured back. It turns out, however, to be a different type of establishment.
After the place is raided the pair gets arrested and put in jail. While sitting in holding Will begins to think about all the food they are missing out on and thus inspiring Phil to take action. Uncle Phil is able to get the two out, but that is not the ideal way to enjoy any part of any day.
Thanksgiving is a national holiday that television shows love to mess with. There are countless other examples of things that ruin Thanksgiving and they are nice, and often funny, reminders to be thankful and happy on Thanksgiving.
No matter what goes wrong in these shows they always manage to find togetherness and happiness in the end. So remember to be thankful this Turkey Day!
