Matthew Perry Couldn’t Be Boxed In

Matthew Perry was so good on Friends that even when he was trapped inside a box, he could steal an entire episode from his just-as-talented co-stars. In season four’s “The One With Chandler in a Box,” one of the best in a long line of Friends Thanksgiving episodes, Perry spends half the episode entirely out of view. After falling in love with Joey’s ex-girlfriend, Chandler has volunteered to stay in a wooden crate for six hours to prove how much he values their friendship. Though Perry, who died unexpectedly Saturday at the age of 54, can only be heard, not seen, for the duration of the ep, he’s able to demonstrate the breadth of his comedic gifts and a mastery of his character, the jokester who wears snarkiness as emotional armor.