Top 10 Jack & Karen Moments on Will & Grace

2004 was a rough year for Jack and Karen, considering they lost some of their dearest friends: namely the ones on “Sex and the City,” “Friends,” and “Frasier.” They began searching for new shows, but found only content focusing on fat guys with skinny wives. Eventually they resolve to live their lives and discuss their real life experiences as if they’re television episodes, but discover that their lives are just too boring. Thankfully, they’re graced by a visit from “Frasier”’s Bebe Neuwirth, though they have a hard time differentiating the actress from the character she plays.

As good as Jack and Karen are together, it was a surprisingly fun to see them at odds. When Rosario, Karen’s maid, wants a divorce from her green card marriage to Jack, Karen refuses to reimburse him for his time and effort. Their battle of words remains a series highlight, with both actors’ comedic ability on full display. After a legal battle results in Jack’s defeat, Karen, ever the sadist, rubs this in his face while simultaneously offering help...kind of. It just goes to show that whether they’re on the same side or not, these two are a goldmine of hilarity.

Jack and Karen aren’t known for challenging themselves intellectually, which is why it was a stroke of comic genius to make them do just that. When Jack decides to enroll himself in a gay spelling bee with “gay words and gay contestants,” he enlists Karen to coach him. Neither of them is knowledgeable about how to spell many of these words-or what they even mean-but then again, neither are the judges. Karen’s hilarious attempt to cheat doesn’t work, but Jack manages to pull off a win anyway. It’s a great example of how these two can take a B-story (literally) and still manage to steal the show.

Naturally, almost all of the moments on this list are side-splitters, but this one puts Karen’s more vulnerable side on display while also managing to make us laugh. Jack stays at Karen’s mansion while he’s sick, and discovers a door that Karen expressly forbids him from opening. After finally trapping Karen with an ingenious maneuver, Jack discovers that the room is a nursery, which she made when she thought she was pregnant. She expresses that a part of her wants a child and shows a rare moment of growth when she decides to keep the nursery, rather than turn it into more liquor storage.

Dancing is not one of Karen’s talents, so she enlisted Jack to help her learn before her wedding to Lyle. After teaching her a simple box step, in which you lead with your box, naturally, he puts his own spin on the lesson. The two briefly get sexually aggressive before returning to the foxtrot. Not only is it a wonderful example of Megan Mullally and Sean Hayes’ prowess for physical humor, it’s also a smart way to set up the impact that Karen’s impending nuptials would have on their relationship. But if this list has taught you anything so far, it’s that nothing will come between them.

This episode showed us something that we had never seen before: Karen without alcohol. Combine that with Jack trying to wean himself off of his coffee addiction and tension is bound to arise. In the middle of a wedding, when they discover that they can’t have their respective vices, both begin to freak out and try to attack each other. After each one blocks the other’s attempts at slaps, the battle truly begins. Ultimately, though, they decide that violence isn’t the answer. There are other ways to physically show your affection for someone!

It’s a wonder that it took four seasons before Jack realized he could make magic by pairing up with Karen. He makes this idea literal by inviting her to be his assistant for a new magic act. Karen, of course, is her kooky self, cracking jokes and obsessing over alcohol, which steals the show, and takes attention away from Jack. As you would expect, this doesn’t sit well with him, resulting in a tense second performance and Jack accidentally turning Karen into a rabbit. Okay, so she doesn’t actually turn into a rabbit, but it scares Jack into learning his lesson.

When Jack is strapped for cash, he makes a visit to the ATM. Thing is, his ATM works a little differently than most...because it’s Karen. She’s not gonna give him cash without him doing something for her, and will anyone be surprised that it’s going to have sexual implications? What makes the moment even more adorable is the utter glee on their faces as Jack swipes his card on Karen’s body. Aside from being one of Jack and Karen’s best moments, it’s one of the most iconic moments from the series and highlights the uniquely quirky sense of humor that makes these characters so beloved.

Yet another somber moment, Jack and Karen show off their vocal chops with a moving duet of Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable.” Taking place in the finale of the original series’ run, they share this moment in a time jump many years in the future, after having lived together for over twenty years. It’s an ode to the friendship they had shared for the previous eight seasons, and it was fittingly beautiful way to say goodbye to the pair. Fortunately, it wasn’t goodbye forever, as audiences would reunite with the duo in the series’ revival years later.





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



Helium

“Poker? I Don’t Even Like Her”





Mr. Sandman

“Grace in the Hole”

After the series premiere introduced the titular duo, the second episode brought us this platonic power couple. Jack takes an immediate liking to Karen’s fabulous demeanor and showers her with admittedly strange compliments. Their quirky chemistry sparks instantaneously with the iconic belly touching moment. Karen even knows immediately that Jack is gay! Okay, that might not be too difficult to notice, but nevertheless it’s a wonderful moment, which set off one of television’s funniest duos. It was just a taste of the great things that the two would do together, and as they say, the rest is history.