Happy Ending was a very underrated sitcom that followed the lives of a close-knit group of friends living in Chicago after one of their main couples had a messy breakup. The show was absolutely hilarious, with lots of running gags and silly made-up words and phrases, as well as intense rituals and traditions among the group.
There were many phenomenal episodes Happy Endingthe best of which played with silliness, intensity, and the group's penchant for codependency and strange group rituals. The show was at its funniest when it embraced its weirdness and moved away from the traditional sitcom format and into its silliness. Here are the top 10 episodes of Happy Ending.
Happy Ending
- Publication date
- April 13, 2011
- Main genre
- comedy
- seasons
- 3
10 “The Kerkovich Way”
Season 2 Episode 17
2nd season of Happy Ending was one of the best sitcom seasons ever, with some of the show's craziest episodes and wildest plots. Its seventeenth episode, “The Kerkovich Way,” came right after Dave Rose (Zachary Knighton) and Alex Kerkovich (Elisha Cuthbert) slept together for the first time since their breakup in the show's pilot. Instead of falling into sitcom clichés, the episode hilariously saw Alex and Jane Kerkovich-Williams (Eliza Coupe) try to trick Dave into thinking it never happened.
“The Kerkovich Way” was great for another surprising and funny look at the history of the Kerkovich family, as well as how Jane was an expert at fooling Dave and the clueless Brad Williams (Damon Wayans Jr.). Also, Penny Hart (Casey Wilson) and Max Blum (Adam Pally) compete in a really fun and weird scavenger hunt. The antics and unique schemes in this episode really made it great.
9 “The Redemption of Shershow”
Season 1 Episode 13
Every season finale of Happy Ending saw the group attend a wedding, and the season 1 finale, “The Shershow Redemption” started that tradition. When the least likely to get married guy they knew, Shershow, got married, everyone had wedding related issues. Penny spiraled into not getting married yet, while Jane and Brad learned their marriage wasn't legitimate, and Alex was called insane.
This episode was really fun, because it was always great to see the group of friends put themselves in social situations so we could see how funny and weird their behavior was. Also, Derek (Stephen Guarino) stole the show as Penny's fake boyfriend, who was basically just Danny Zuko from fat. Amazingly, the wedding ended up happening, despite the group's accidental interference.
8 “The Butterfly Effect”
Season 2 Episode 15
Between the intense traditions and rules of the group that the nucleus Happy Ending group of friends I had, it was a made up party called Spring Smackdown. Season 2, Episode 15, “The Butterfly Effect Effect” featured this holiday season, as Max, Penny, Dave, and Alex eagerly await Brad and Jane's annual fight.
This episode was fun, watching all the friends try to manipulate Brad and Jane into fighting for their own selfish reasons, while Brad and Jane even gave in and faked a fight just for their friends. Plus, it ended up being their real fight over who left the patio door open, which made it especially funny. The ABC show was always at its best when it played with the group dynamic and their story together, and “The Butterfly Effect Effect” did that very well.
7 “The Incident”
Season 3 Episode 16
The Kerkovich sisters were truly one of the greatest sitcom sibling pairs of all time. Jane and Alex were fun and precise siblings who could go from being completely in sync to having a rivalry. In season 3, episode 16, “The Incident”, Max started watching Jane and Alex's hair salon, where he learned everything the two had been saying about each other in the 'back over the years.
Of course, Max couldn't keep this secret for long, leading to an all-out war between Jane and Alex that hadn't happened since “the incident” in their childhood. It was so much fun to see the classic sitcom sibling rivalry between Jane and Alex when they were at war again. Also, the resolution to the Serbian dance that their grandmother made them do was absolutely hilarious, especially with how quickly Jane and Alex recovered right after.
6 “The Maxsacre of Saint Valentine”
Season 2 Episode 13
Happy Ending always did holiday episodes well, with a fun twist. In Season 2, Episode 13, “The St. Valentine's Day Maxssacre,” the entire group ended up in Max's limo for the night. Of course, nothing went as planned, with Brad on painkillers from the dentist, Penny trying to spend the night with a date she wanted to leave, and Max avoiding her ex-boyfriend, Grant.
This episode was fun because of the shenanigans that were held together by the structure of the limo ride. Also, there was a very sweet plot where Max realized she still had feelings for Grant and won him back.Happy Ending It always had a lot of comedy in the characters' failed romantic adventures, so it was lovely to see one of them win in that department.
5 “No-Ho-Ho”
Season 3 Episode 7
The best holiday episode of Happy Ending it came with a huge revelation, that Jane had been lying about her birthday for decades. Season 3 Episode 7 “No-Ho-Ho” was a sitcom Christmas episode with a fun twist. When the group learned the truth about Jane's birthday, they agreed that they would all celebrate Christmas that year and dedicate the whole day to it.
This episode was fun, showing everyone Christmas retreat, and everyone was tested with bits of the holiday. From Max's egg tank to Alex's intensity for opening presents, it was all very funny and silly. Plus, it was a rare look into Jane's emotional state as she struggled to feel like an afterthought on her own birthday.
4 “Big White Lies”
Season 2 Episode 20
For a group of people so codependent and intensely devoted to each other, it was always so much fun to see them interact with people outside of their group. Season 2, Episode 20, “Big White Lies” saw the group get embroiled in a pile of lies, where they ended up throwing a fake baby shower just so Penny could avoid having tea with a woman who didn't he liked
This episode was really fun, with Daphne (It's always sunny in Philadelphia Mary Elizabeth Ellis) being so intense and sincere that Penny continued to lie to avoid her constant questions. Also, the way the group worked out a little problem with such big lies was funny, with some of the lies being that Jane was pregnant and Dave was dying.
3 “Party of Six”
Season 2 Episode 18
Season 2, Episode 18, “Party of Six” tackled the age-old problem of trying to find a place to eat with a very particular group of people. Of course, this episode came with the collective group reveal that Penny's birthday was cursed. Although the group tries to prove otherwise, they end up having to leave several restaurants, and with Penny facing continued personal bad luck.
The episode also saw the return of Jackie, who Dave had briefly dated in the show's pilot to make Alex jealous. It was fun having Jackie around for another one of Penny's birthdays, especially with the group so worried she was going to put something in the food. Also, despite the curse, the friends worked hard to make the night special for Penny.
2 Cocktails and dreams
Season 2 Episode 16
Season 2, Episode 16, “Cocktails & Dreams” was Happy Ending at its funniest. Dave began to find success when he started serving drinks at Steak Me Home Tonight, only to have a horrible side effect: every time one of the friends drank the cocktails, they had sex dreams with Dave. This led to some absolutely hilarious moments, with Brad and Jane waking up in the middle of the night, each having separate sex dreams about Dave.
Also, Penny was the funniest here, struggling to complete a fast she told Alex she'd stick to, and hilariously getting caught cheating when her food fell out of the fan. This episode also had some amazing jokes, with Penny's speech about her morning trip to Au Bon Pan, Brad complaining about Jane waking him up in the night, and Alex mixing his cereal with his rat poison.
1 “The Married Prankster”
Season 3 Episode 12
Happy Ending was at its best when the group was at its weirdest and most intense, and Season 3, Episode 11, “The Marry Prankster” really tapped into that. After a bad prank where the friends made Max think he had won the lottery, Max vowed to get revenge on all of them, even poor and innocent Pete. This was phenomenal, with Max heavily pranking everyone, leading to Alex pretending to freak out and make a joke, and Penny to believe that Pete's proposal was Max's prank.
The episode culminated in Max's ultimate prank, where he blew up his limo and faked his own death. Max destroying his only source of income just because of a prank was amazing, as were the group's collective reactions to the pranks. Even Dave, who couldn't be reached and was always one step ahead, fell for Max's fake death. Was Happy Ending at its sharpest and funniest, with the group bantering to the max.
