Thanksgiving is less than a week away, which means preparation is officially underway for many people hosting their families with a big turkey dinner. The grocery shopping, cleaning, and cooking will most likely consume the days ahead, but luckily, we have a slew of Thanksgiving-themed TV show episodes to help make the chaos a little more enjoyable.

Whether you put them on in the background while you’re making the Turkey Day stuffing or wind down on the couch with Ross, Dwight, Serena, and Kitty (just some of our favorite TV show characters that will be mentioned), these shows will get you in the holiday spirit, or at least, make you thankful your day won’t be as dramatic as the Geller’s.

Read on for a list of the most memorable Thanksgiving TV show episodes, all streaming and available for your viewing pleasure.

How I Met Your Mother (S3, E9)

If you’ve heard of “Slapsgiving,” you might not be aware that it originated in the third season of How I Met Your Mother. The term refers to characters Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) and Marshall’s (Jason Segel) silly game “slap bet,” in which one person slaps the other if they say something incorrectly.

This makes for an interesting Thanksgiving when Barney spends the day fearing when Marshall will deliver his third slap, which he’s been saving for a surprise sneak attack. The episode also creates confusion for Ted (Josh Radnor) and Robin (Cobie Smulders), who share an intimate night on Thanksgiving Eve, complicating their friendship.

Parenthood (S2, E10)

 

Parenthood might be the most relatable family show on this list, especially the Thanksgiving episode, which shows each of the Bravermans going through their own challenges while gathering for the holiday.

Eldest sibling, Adam (Peter Krause), battles between responsibilities in his career and family, while his sister Julia (Erika Christensen) is determined to show off her domestic side and bake pies for dessert. Meanwhile, the youngest Braverman sibling, Crosby (Dax Shepard), tries his hardest to impress his mother-in-law, and there’s some tension with a new guest at the table.

The Office (S7, E9)

While there’s not exactly a Thanksgiving episode of The Office per se, one episode in particular stands out to fans as it gives the same autumn vibes. In Season 7 of the comedic series, Dwight, played by Rainn Wilson, hilariously recreates a childhood memory of a “Hay Place,” a hay bail maze in the Dunder Mifflin parking lot.

Despite Thanksgiving not being the central theme of the episode, fans have categorized it as a Turkey Day watch, and it has become a staple for the series, offering plenty of laughs with Dwight naming himself the “Hay Place King,” causing problems between him and his office fling, Angela (Angela Kinsey).

Friends (S8, E9)

This entire list could be filled with Friends Thanksgiving episodes, as they’ve each been memorable in their own way. However, there’s one that fans have raved about not only for its humor but its major guest star appearance — Brad Pitt.

In Season 8 of the NBC series, Ross’s (David Schwimmer) old friend, played by Pitt, joins the group for dinner, but things turn uncomfortable when it is discovered that he despises Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), who did him wrong in high school. Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) also bring the funny when they hysterically pretend to understand football to get out of helping in the kitchen.

Gossip Girl (S1, E9)

Gossip Girl is another show with too many Thanksgiving-themed classics to choose from, but the first seasons might take the cake (or pie). The episode is titled “Blair Waldorf Must Pie!” which follows Blair (Leighton Meester) as she grapples with her father’s absence for Thanksgiving and eats her feelings with pie.

Fans also learn about Lily (Kelly Rutherford) and Rufus’s (Matthew Settle) past love story and more about Serena’s (Blake Lively) wild ways in flashbacks, all before dessert hits the table.

Everybody Loves Raymond (S8, E9)

Everybody Loves Raymond has been off the air since 2005, but the show’s comedic genius lives on through streaming platforms, including this gem of an episode. One of the sitcom’s numerous Thanksgiving episodes, titled “The Bird,” is one for the books, as it details some laugh-out-loud moments when the Barone family travel to Thanksgiving to spend the day with Robert’s (Brad Garrett) soon-to-be in-laws, played by Fred Willard and Georgia Engel.

However, the gathering proves disastrous when a bird crashes into the window, and the family clashes over how to handle the mishap. The families end up coming together for dinner, completely forgetting about the ordeal, which makes the storyline even funnier to watch.

Modern Family (S6, E8)

Modern Family fanatics probably remember Season 6’s Thanksgiving episode, which documents a major shakeup with the characters’ ordinary Turkey Day plans after Phil (Ty Burrell) and Luke (Nolan Gould) take the reigns.

Despite getting the workload off her shoulders, Claire (Julie Bowen) isn’t confident in the guys’ cooking abilities, so she prepares a backup turkey. Meanwhile, a third turkey enters the kitchen, hence the episode’s title, “Three Turkeys,” drawing even more laughs.

That 70s Show (S1, E9)

Thanksgiving at the Foreman’s during Season 1 of That 70s Show was another barrel of laughs as Kitty (Debra Jo Rupp) puts out quite the spread for her family and their guests, which includes her eldest daughter Laurie’s (Lisa Robin Kelly) very attractive friend Kate, played by Jenny Maguire.

Kate’s presence makes it difficult for Kitty’s teenage son, Eric (Topher Grace), to control himself, which raises eyebrows for his crush, Donna (Laura Prepon). More silly exchanges happen between Foreman patriarch Red (Kurtwood Smith) and Donna’s dad Bob (Don Stark), making this episode worthy for the list.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (S1, E12)

The year is 1990 in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Will’s (Will Smith) mother, played by Vernee Watson, has come to visit, but the kids aren’t happy about her putting them to work on Thanksgiving. It’s then that she finds out that the children don’t do chores around the house, frustrating her to no end.

Will’s mom then forces Will, Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro), Hilary (Karyn Parsons), and Ashley (Tatyana Ali) to cook their Thanksgiving meal, which not-so-surprisingly doesn’t go as smoothly as they’d hoped.

Fresh off the Boat (S2, E8)

Fresh off the Boat‘s Huangs are hosting Thanksgiving dinner; at least, that’s what they discovered when Jessica (Constance Wu) got the call from her mother at 5:30 a.m. that morning. She and Louis (Randall Park) then strive to outdo Jessica’s sister, Connie (Susan Park), who previously hosted the gathering, and it becomes all hands on deck.

However, like many other sitcoms on this list, things don’t go according to plan, and the family scrambles to put dinner on the table and deliver the perfect evening. Don’t worry. They pull it off in the end, but it’s a hysterical time to watch the hiccups along the way.