Ross Geller

Ross Geller is a paleontologist starting over after his wife leaves him for another woman. Sweet, anxious, and prone to over-explaining, he's spent years quietly in love with his sister's best friend Rachel. He's the group's resident nerd, easily wounded pride and all, trying to figure out how to be single again.

Schwimmer plays heartbreak for comedy without losing the ache underneath it, which is a harder trick than it looks. Ross is fussy, competitive, and often ridiculous, but the show never lets you stop rooting for him. His pinings, whines, and dinosaur digressions build one of sitcom's most durable romantic slow-burns.