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I saw the first epiosode of Friends ("The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate") and there's a discussion about Ross and Carol splitting up because she's a lesbian. Ross says that he told his parents and they seemed to take it pretty well. Monica then says that she got a call from their mother

Ross: I told mom and dad last night, they seemed to take it pretty well.
Monica: Oh really, so that hysterical phone call I got from a woman at sobbing 3:00 A.M., "I'll never have grandchildren, I'll never have grandchildren." was what? A wrong number?

I was wondering what exactly Ross told his parents - only that he and Carol split up or that she's a lesbian. I figured that "I'll never have grandchildren" was Mrs Geller freaking out because her daughter in law is a lesbian and that would mean she won't get pregnant (by Ross).

But then in the very next episode the Gellers are having dinner and:

Ross: Okay! Okay. (To his parents) Look, I, uh- I realise you guys have been wondering what exactly happened between Carol and me, and, so, well, here's the deal. Carol's a lesbian. She's living with a woman named Susan. She's pregnant with my child, and she and Susan are going to raise the baby.
(Stunned silence ensues.)
Mrs. Geller: (To Monica) And you knew about this?!

and that means she only founds out about the lesbian thing now.

"Friends" have a lot of plot holes so was this yet another one or am I missing something?

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    From the second episode's dialogue, I can only surmise that you're right and he didn't tell them the whole story before (I think I remember his parents are shocked when he says she's a lesbian, so it must be right). But I'm not sure why it's a plot hole; he only says "I told mom and dad", he doesn't say what he told them.
    – Walt
    Dec 29, 2016 at 10:15
  • I am confused by Monica's line about the phonecall and "not having grandchildren". IDK, that specific line about grandchildren seems redundant to me if Ross told his parents only about the split up. They could've left it at "....so that hysterical phone call I got from a woman at sobbing 3:00 A.M....". That would clearly mean Mrs Geller was devasted about the divorce.
    – A.J. Evans
    Dec 29, 2016 at 10:28
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    I'm guessing it's just for comedic effects. It's also a shot at Monica; her mother (as always) doesn't even consider Monica an option there.
    – Walt
    Dec 29, 2016 at 10:49
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    @A.J.Evans Ross getting divorced or Ross getting divorced from a lesbian will have the same impact on the chances of Ross having children and does not mean Ross couldn't have just said he was getting a divorce. I see it as their mother thinking that Ross will never find another woman to marry / have children with and Monica will never find a man fullstop.
    – Cearon O'Flynn
    Jan 19, 2017 at 14:35
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    TBH, I think it's pretty clear "I'll never have grandchildren" refers to the fact that they broke up. There is no indication he actually told them about Carol being a lesbian until the dinner in episode 2. It's not a plot hole.
    – Tom
    Jan 20, 2017 at 23:00

1 Answer 1

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During the phone call we hear about in the pilot, Ross tells his parents about the divorce, not the fact that his ex-wife is lesbian. Ross tells his parents about the fact that Carol is a lesbian in the second episode. During the meal with his parents he gives the explanation as to why they're splitting which he didn't include in the phone call in which he explained that, however not why, he had gotten a divorce.

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