Top 10 Friendship Moments on New Girl

Jess is usually a happy-go-lucky kind of woman, but after her boyfriend, Paul, breaks up with her at a Christmas party, Jess is understandably upset. In an attempt to cheer her up, Nick skips his flight home for the holidays and drives the gang to Candy Cane Lane, a street illuminated with lights and decorations. Unfortunately, they arrive too late and miss the spectacle. So, in a grand gesture, the gang knocks on doors and yells at all the neighborhood people to turn on their lights, all in an effort to bring a smile to Jess’s face.

All friends fight, but when Jess and Cece get into it over a purse, they enter uncharted territory, and every fight they never had over the last 20 years come out all at once. What starts out as passive aggression doled out in cryptic emojis turns into aggressive aggression in the form of a hilarious brawl. In the hospital, these two besties of course make up. People usually grow apart as they grow up, but Jess and Cece are just as close as they’ve always been. 20 Years down the road and they are still each other’s favorite people.

With Jess away on jury duty, Cece promises to take care of her boys. So when Winston is convinced his girlfriend, KC, is cheating on him, Cece comes to his rescue. Well, at least she tries. Her flawed plan to make her jealous has the opposite effect, and causes her to break up with him. But, you know, it’s the thought that counts, right? The unexpected friendship between these two is one of the show’s most heartwarming, especially when Cece goes along with Winston’s second plan, this time with revenge on his mind. Admittedly, telling KC that Winston died might have been going a little too far, but that’s just what friends do.

Schmidt’s dad may have been disappointing, but his mom is pretty awesome. After his dad left, Schmidt’s mom cheered him up by writing him letters from his hero, the Batman himself, Michael Keaton. In college, Nick took up the mantle, and emailed Schmidt as Keaton whenever he was feeling down. Nick thought he had retired as Keaton, but when things get rough with Cece, Winston convinces him that it’s time to bring Keaton back. While it could have been devastating that Nick lied to him for years, and his hero never actually wrote to him, it’s even more touching that it was his best friend helping him through all those tough times all along.

Saying goodbye to friends is never easy. So when Coach is ready to move to New York with his girlfriend, he implements a “clean break” philosophy. As one might imagine, the gang doesn’t take it too well that Coach doesn’t want to bring anything to remember them by. Winston in particular is hurt when Coach doesn't want to take a crepe pan that the two bought together. But in the end, Coach can't make the clean break he had planned, and Winston catches him taking mementos of his time at the loft, including the crepe pan and the two share a hilarious and emotional goodbye.

Nick and Schmidt have always had an interesting friendship. Schmidt’s sensitivity usually balances Nick’s curmudgeonly behavior, but every now and then, they clash. For example, when Schmidt buys Nick a cookie just because he was thinking about him, and Nick has no idea how to respond to the intimate gesture. After enduring the silent treatment from Schmidt, Nick tries to make it up to him with a similar gesture, but Schmidt does not take it well. Nick breaks down emotionally about how he doesn't deserve Schmidt's love. Mediated by Winston, the two confess how much they mean to each other, defying dated conventions of male friendship.

The union of these two beloved characters was a long time coming. But when Schmidt ends up spending his entire wedding day trapped on a plane, it seemed like they might have to wait a little bit longer. Though Schmidt made the most of his time, he was, understandably, crestfallen at missing his own wedding. So you can imagine his amazement when he finally gets home, and sees that everyone waited up for him and is ready to see him and Cece married in a small, intimate wedding in the loft. They just couldn’t wait another second.

Nick was all ready to move in with Caroline in spite of all his friends’ warnings that he is making a mistake. After a dramatic Nick freak-out resulting in one last hurrah in the desert, they all accept Nick’s decision, and decide to let him go. They even bring in a new roommate to replace him. But just as it seems Nick is gone from the loft for good, he returns with a special message for the gang from his old mixtape from high school, and they celebrate with a goofy dance party. Nick isn’t going anywhere. Sorry, Neil.

Nick and Jess have been through a lot together. They’ve fallen in love, gotten together and broken up, but the best part of their relationship has always been their unwavering friendship. A symbol of this relationship is Nick’s zombie book, which he has been writing forever. Jess believed in Nick even when he didn’t believe in himself. What used to be “Z Is For Zombie” turned into “The Pepperwood Chronicles,” which included a character inspired by Jess. When he finally finishes the book, he dedicates it to Jess to remind her just how much she means to him, and how grateful he is to have had her along on his journey.





Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:



The Gang Pays for Nick’s Ultrasound

“Injured”





Equals

“TinFinity”



Wedding Dress Shopping/Bridesman

“Bob & Carol & Nick & Schmidt”

After weeks of crying over her ex, the guys encourage Jess to stand up to him. With the entire gang as back up, and inspiration from Winston’s pre-game mix, Jess storms his place. When Spencer refuses to give her back her stuff, the guys come to her defense. Jess gives an impassioned speech about how much she loves them. Spencer learned the hard way what happens when you mess with Jess... This moment is emblematic of exactly why this gang is so awesome. They love each other, they stand up for each other, and they are not afraid to look like total idiots for each other.