Who doesn’t love quirky, cute Phoebe Buffay? Sure, she’s got a dark side, but she’s the hippy vegetarian of the Friends crew, and her wacky ways are just plain charming, most of the time. However, she uses those colorful clothes and Phoebe-isms to occasionally be manipulative and hypocritical, and everyone else in the gang just kind of… accepts it.
It’s actually pretty impressive how Phoebe has been able to create an image of herself that is so pure and wholesome, given that she is just as shameless as the rest of the crew! For example, take a look at these ten times that Phoebe was mind-blowingly selfish, and just didn’t care.
Took Money Back From A Charity
When Phoebe and Mike were planning their wedding, they definitely had a few ups and downs. They had the money for a big, fancy, wedding, but Pheobe felt bad about spending it all on a party when it could go to better causes. So far, not shameless at all! In fact, this was a lovely impulse - until they gave it all to charity, just to go in and ask for it back. Asking for a refund on a charity donation is the pinnacle of shamelessness, and just sheer bad taste.
Left Her Friends At A Dinner For A Guy
Phoebe can be quite hypocritical at times - and unapologetically so. In one season, Phoebe wants to get the whole gang together for her birthday at a fancy restaurant, but of course, the gang have very little actual respect for plans, so they are all late. In fact, they are so late that Phoebe is moved to a tiny table, and when they do show up, she flips out at them.
She tells them all off for not respecting their plans, for leaving her to sit there all alone, and for ruining her birthday. All of which is fair… until she gets a message from Mike, and just leaves to be with him. So much for respecting plans, huh?
Didn’t Tell Monica She Moved Out
Over the seasons, everyone had lived at Monica’s apartment at least once (even Ross, if you count that summer when he tried to make it as a dancer…), including Phoebe. However, when Phoebe actually decided to move into her own place, she actually moved out without telling her own roommate! She just slowly removed stuff when Monica wasn’t there, and pretended for months. Possibly the most impressive thing about this shameless stunt, though, is that Phoebe could clearly afford to rent two rooms in Manhattan at the same time.
Pretended To Be Joey’s Dead Agent
At least this one was well-intentioned, but still… it’s yet another example of Phoebe lying, rather than just being honest with her friends. When Joey is getting stressed out about not hearing from his agent, Estelle, Phoebe finds out that she actually died. And then, rather than telling him, she calls him (twice!) to pretend to be Estelle to try and make him feel better. It’s not the only time she impersonates someone, either. She pretends to be Ursula to steal the money Ursuala was making in porn, and when she finds a police badge, she pretends to be a cop in order to get her way.
Stole A Cat
We can feel a little sorry for Phoebe in this case, as she honestly believes that the cat that wanders into her guitar case is the reincarnation of her dead mother. It’s a little understandable that she would want to keep the cat nearby, but she literally just decides to steal someone else’s cat. Even more shocking, when Ross finds flyers from the cat’s owners, Phoebe still refuses to give it back, saying that Ross should just support her, because they don’t know the poor people whose cat she stole.
Shamed Rachel For Using A Chain Spa… Where She Worked
More hypocrisy, as Phoebe not only lies to her friends about where she works, but tries to shame them into never going there. After years as an independent masseuse, Phoebe takes a job at a chain spa (because the money is better - it makes sense!).
However, she doesn’t want her friends knowing she ‘sold out’, so when Rachel is given a gift certificate, she shames her into not using it. Except, of course, Rachel goes anyway, and gets Phoebe as her masseuse. Rather than just biting the bullet and confessing at this point, though, Phoebe then puts on a fake accent and tries to pretend that she is someone else!
Dated Her Sister’s Stalker… And Ex-Fiancee
Phoebe may end up with the lovely Mike, but she makes some terrible dating decisions along the way. At one point, she ends up being followed by her sister’s stalker, and instead of cutting him off (or reporting him to the police), she actually starts dating the guy! And then, when her sister gets engaged after lying to her fiance about… pretty much everything, Phoebe does it again. She exposes Ursula’s lies, breaking them up, and then starts dating this guy, too.
Told Her Boyfriend To Tank His Career For Her
This is another instance that is a little bit understandable, but overall, the way that Phoebe treats David is just a little bit shameless. At the start of the show, when the two are first dating, David gets the research opportunity of a lifetime, something that he has been working toward his whole life. However, it would mean going to Minsk and leaving Phoebe - so she tells him not to take it, and to stay in New York with her - which he very nearly does. Then, after David reappears on the scene, she leaves him for Mike literally in front of him, as he is about to propose. Ouch.
Mocks Chandler At His Job
Although Phoebe never seems truly short of cash, she definitely struggles for money and takes a few extra jobs throughout the series. At one point, Chandler actually helps her get a job at his company, working directly for him. It’s a really lovely favor from a friend, so what does Phoebe do? She spends time mocking him to the other employees behind his back, and going out with them without him.
Manipulated Her Way Into Being Maid Of Honor
Finally, we’ve got more of Phoebe lying to get her own way, this time when Monica was getting married. Phoebe and Rachel both want to be her Maid of Honor, and when Rachel points out that she and Monica have been best friends since school, Phoebe knows she has to pull out the big guns to get her way… so she says sadly that she’s never been a Maid of Honor before. It’s enough to convince Rachel, but it’s later revealed that Phoebe was lying, and she’s done this plenty of times! Thankfully, Rachel actually gets the gig in the end, when Phoebe sees how much it means to her, but still.
