Friends turned 30 this year, yet its charm hardly fades. Naturally, some people now see it as outdated; even the creators have acknowledged that some jokes based on stereotypes or perceived as homophobic might have been better left out. It's debatable how fair it is to hold the show accountable for these issues in hindsight, though it certainly faced similar criticism during its original run. In fact, a couple of episodes were banned by certain networks not for homophobic content, but rather for including LGBTQ characters and racy sexual themes.
In celebration of the anniversary, Slashfilm revisited this story. One of these episodes is from Season 2, aptly titled "The One with the Lesbian Wedding." In this episode, Ross's ex-girlfriend, Carol, marries her partner, Susan. Although Ross initially doesn’t want to attend, he ultimately convinces Carol to defy her parents and marry her true love. First aired in January 1996, Friends was remarkably progressive with this episode, given that same-sex marriage was still illegal in most U.S. states. While many expected public outcry, Slashfilm notes that only two networks, KJAC in Texas and WLIO in Ohio, ultimately chose to ban it.
The other episode, titled "The One with Free Porn" from Season 4, also speaks for itself. In this episode, Joey and Chandler stumble upon a free porn channel while flipping through TV channels. Overjoyed, they refuse to switch away, fearing they’ll lose access, and obsessively ensure the TV stays on at all costs (a humorous premise given that the internet was already a thing by the late 1990s). Naturally, “certain noises” are heard from the shows playing, short clips pop up, and the two characters discuss pornographic content. This proved too much for Britain’s Channel 4 and E4, which chose to skip "The One with Free Porn" in reruns. On these networks, even the Season 9 episode "The One with Sharks" was edited. In that episode, Chandler is caught watching a porn film by Monica after accidentally switching to a shark documentary just as she enters his hotel room.
