Joey recently purchased two armchairs and a large-screen TV, leading to a situation where he and his companions find themselves reluctant to leave the comfort of their seats. Meanwhile, Ross and Rachel embark on their inaugural official date, culminating in an intimate evening spent at Ross’s workplace, the museum. Additionally, Monica has entered a romantic relationship with an individual who is 21 years her senior, a friend of her parents.
Did you know?!
• Phoebe demonstrates her waitressing skills with the phrase “Adam & Eve on a raft and wreck ’em!” In diner lingo that means two scrambled eggs on toast.
• First appearance of Tom Selleck as Monica’s older love interest Dr. Richard Burke.
• The set for Richard’s office is the same set they used for Barry’s orthodontist office in the first season the only difference is an ophthalmology chair instead of a dental chair.
• Monica states her age as 27 in this episode. Richard later states that he’s 21 years older than her, making him 48.
• At the museum, when Ross lights up stars for Rachel, the song “Wicked Game” by Chris Isaak is playing. Isaak previously played Rob Donnen in The One After the Superbowl: Part 1 (1996).
• When Richard answers the door, Phoebe says it’s James Bond. Tom Selleck was considered for the role earlier in his career.
• Rachel says she didn’t want to wear her glasses on her first date with Ross. She has never worn eyeglasses on the show.
• This is the episode in which Joey and Chandler acquire the leather armchairs in which they spend most of the series watching TV.
• Closed Captioning was sponsored by Ocean Spray. You can see the subtle tie-in when Ross and Rachel were drinking their juice boxes at the planetarium.
• Monica tells Phoebe that Dr. Richard Burke is “like 20 years older” than her. Later, he says that he is 21 years older than Monica. In real life, Courteney Cox and Tom Selleck are 19 years apart.
• This is the first episode to contain two of the friends’ names in the title
• Phoebe calls Chandler and Joey “lazy boys” for staying in their recliner armchairs. La-Z-Boy is a brand of recliners.
• Dr Burke does not turn on the light on his device and has shut off the room’s lights so there is no way he can accurately see Monica’s conjunctives.
• The cartoon at the end is Beavis and Butt-Head (1993).
• Richard Burke makes the comment that he wanted to be a sheriff. Tom Selleck later plays a sheriff in the Jesse Stone movies.
• Richard says his parents wanted him to be a optometrist. He says he wanted to be a Sheriff. Later in his career Tom Selleck plays a police commissioner in Blue Bloods (2010).
• This episode is included on the 2001 DVD release The Best of Friends Volume 3.
• The lights illuminating Ross and Rachel are definitely not representing any stars but come from disco ball party lights.
• Dr Burke has a beautiful slit lamp on his right and yet he uses his small and inaccurate hand-held light to look at Monica’s eyes.
• Ross would fantasize about the planetarium as the place where he would propose to Rachel. This is revealed in The One in Massapequa (2002).
• In this episode Rachel is laughing while goofing around with Ross. It’s not the only case when Rachel does strange things during kissing – in the last season, when Rachel and Joey are together, she will slap Joey’s hand while he puts it on her leg.
