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Top 10 Classic TV Episodes About Shirts
By ShirtSpace | Mar 26, 2024 | Updated May 30, 2024Everyone has shirts in their closets, so why not share our list of the top ten classic TV episodes about shirts? The majority of humans on this planet can relate to a story about this particular piece of clothing. Another beautiful thing about them is the many different kinds of shirts! Whether it be a comfortable triblend t-shirt, a crisp long-sleeve button-up, or a ruffled pirate shirt — they all have a place on the list. So, what were the criteria for making this roundup? The plot line of the episode storyline had to primarily focus on a shirt or drive the narrative in some way. So here it is, our picks for the top ten classic TV episodes about shirts in modern television broadcast history.
Hero image credit: Proxima Studio
Classic Shirt Moments in Television History
10. “T-Shirt Of The Living Dead” Aqua Teen Hunger Force
2004, Season 3, Episode 11
In this humorous Adult Swim cartoon, the Aqua Teen Hunger Force gang of food-inspired characters visit a museum where they happen upon an exhibit displaying a t-shirt worn by Osiris, the Ancient Egyptian God of the Dead. They learn that legend says this magic t-shirt gave God “the power to know and do anything.” With the help of Meatwad, Master Shake steals the t-shirt from the museum. Meatwad and Frylock wash the tee without Shake’s permission. It shrinks and turns a pink tint because it was washed with a pink Christmas stocking. The t-shirt will only fit Meatwad now (to his delight).
Frylock goes to the mall and leaves Master Shake and Meatwad alone with the magic t-shirt. With the shirt’s magic powers, they summon multiple Easter Bunnies, Santa Claus, and a pair of fire-breathing Easter egg frog monsters that create chaos. When Frylock returns from the mall, he is upset to walk into such mania. The team must later use the power of the magic t-shirt to help an injured Santa Claus deliver gifts to children on Christmas Eve.
9. “The Shirt Off My Back” Reba
2004, Season 3, Episode 16
Country superstar turned family sitcom actress — you can’t help but like Reba in her starring role as herself (minus the famous country singer lifestyle). In the introduction of this classic TV episode about shirts, Reba tells her youngest daughter that she will take her to the mall after she changes out of her gardening clothes. Reba is surprised when her teenage daughters tell her that Reba’s old patched-up button-up denim shirt is cool. Barbra Jean, the incredibly annoying woman who had an affair with Reba’s husband and is now married to him, hears the daughter's comment and offers to buy the shirt right off Reba instantly! When Reba first refuses, Barbra Jean bids higher and higher until Reba agrees at $65 to give up the shirt.
The shirt inspires Barbra Jean to ask Reba to go into business with her, making lookalike denim patchwork tops. Reba declines and permits Barbra Jean to pursue the business endeavor solo. When Barbra Jean hits success, Reba wants in on it, causing conflict between the two women over who has rights to the profits from sales of the shirt design. When they decide to try to work together on the shirt operation, more friction occurs between the women. This eventually blows up and settles, leading to a very rare heart-to-heart between them. Ironically, Reba comforts Barbra Jean over her insecurities in her marriage with Reba’s ex, Brock.
8. “The Wrong Shirt” Blue's Clues
2000, Season 3, Episode 21
If you were a parent, a grandparent, or grew up in the late '90s/early 2000s, it is unlikely that you are not familiar with the green-striped long-sleeve polo shirt that the host of the show, Steve always wears it. In this family-friendly classic TV episode about shirts, Steve is startled to notice that his outfit is a bit off. Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper inform him it is because it is “Opposite Day.” As a result, his pants, normally khaki, are made from green striped fabric (as his shirt usually is), and his polo is colored solid khaki. Steve and his puppy, Blue, play their usual mystery-solving game of “Blue’s Clues” so that he can find out what “opposite” she is thinking of — at which point the opposites switch back to normal — including Steve’s shirt.
7. “If The Shirt Fits” Dog The Bounty Hunter
2006, Season 3, Episode 6
The only reality show to make our classic TV episodes about shirts list, Dog the Bounty Hunter, kept us entertained in the mid-2000s. At the same time, we watched him and his family’s wild careers catching wanted individuals who have not met their bail agreements. In this episode, Beth, Dog’s wife, is out shopping for him. She buys a shirt she likes with an embroidered chicken sewn on the back and makes their daughter promise not to tell him that it is a chicken in hopes that he will believe it is a dragon depicted. When Beth presents her shopping haul of all the shirts, Dog points out that it is not a dragon shown on this tee, but rather, he sees a chicken. Expressing his distaste for Beth’s choices of shirts, he states that he will shop for his clothes from now on and that he “only wears Jesus and Harley-Davidson — nobody else.” Watch the full episode for free now at A&E.com.
6.“Chet’s Shirt” Curb Your Enthusiasm
2002, Season 3, Episode 1
In this classic TV episode about shirts, while visiting a friend who also recently became a widow, the always awkward Larry David and his wife Cheryl are about to make their departure when Larry comments on a shirt that the friend’s late husband is wearing in a framed photograph displayed on a table. He mentions it several times, also asking if she remembers where it was from. After uncomfortably pushing the matter, she finally tells Larry which store. Following, Larry and Cheryl rudely ask the grieving woman about a framed photo she was supposed to provide them. Larry then goes to the store to purchase the shirt he saw his dead friend wear in the photograph.
5. “Mr. Monk Goes to a Fashion Show” Monk
2006, Season 4, Episode 10
Our favorite neurotic and obsessive-compulsive detective is on another case, this time where he is trying to solve a murder that occurred at a fashion show. In this classic TV episode about shirts, Monk visits his “favorite shirt inspector” because he notices a flaw in one of his shirts — alarming him that the shirtmaker is distressed somehow. He is also “down to five shirts” — and Mr. Monk is incredibly particular about his shirts — from the construction, the number he owns, every precise detail. When he approaches her, Inspector #8 is upset and tells him she is worried about her son, who was falsely accused of committing murder. This prompts him to take the case or risk never having a perfect shirt again, a thought he can’t endure.
4. “Return of the Shirt” How I Met Your Mother
2005, Season 1, Episode 4
This is a very early episode in the How I Met Your Mother storyline. If you aren’t familiar with it, the show switches between two periods. In the future, a father tells his children about his younger years and, in turn, paints the story of the past and how he met their mother. This man is named Ted, and we quickly see young Ted excited to rediscover an old button-up printed shirt in his closet that he thought he didn’t like that much but now does. This leads him to think he should give some other things in his life a second chance that he previously dismissed, such as bourbon, movies he didn’t initially like, and women he dated in the past. This inspires Ted to contact an old flame named Natalie, whom he seeks to reconnect with — leading to feelings of déjà vu about their relationship.
3. “The Pool” This Is Us
2016, Season 1, Episode 14
Although this episode switches between a few storylines, a significant component is centered around the storyline of the Pearson family and their day at a local neighborhood swimming pool. The beginning of this classic TV episode about a shirt shows the dad, Jack, entering the kitchen while the mom, Rebecca, feeds the kids breakfast. She says, “You know I hate that shirt,” to which he replies that it “brings him back” and that it’s from a magical land called “Daytona Beach.” He then tells the family his plans for a pool day. Their eight-year-old daughter, Kate, is excited to show off her new Care Bears bikini. Jack knows this and amps her up to wear it out in public.
Rebecca expresses that she is concerned that the popular and thin girls will tease Kate for wearing a bikini despite being overweight. Jack shuts down her concerns and tells Rebecca not to worry about it. Later in the day, just as Rebecca had suspected, the skinny girls wrote a nasty note and gave it to their daughter, crushing Kate. This is where Jack and a t-shirt jump in and save the day! In a heartwarming scene, he can convince Kate that his Daytona Beach, Florida, ringer t-shirt has magic powers — granting the person wearing it the ability to be seen by others in any form the wearer wishes. She puts the shirt on, and her confidence is restored.
2. “The One With The Tiny T-Shirt” Friends
1997, Season 3, Episode 19
Any Friends fan knows the up-and-down saga of the relationship between Ross and Rachel throughout the entire series. During season 3, when Rachel asks Ross to come over, he thinks she may want to reconcile after they recently broke up. But he finds quite the opposite when Rachel instead has a box of his belongings she would like to return so they can begin to “move on.” Ross becomes defensive, saying that not all of his belongings are in the box, pointing out a book he sees sitting nearby that he claims is his and a t-shirt that he knows Rachel likes to sleep in. She objects, saying he doesn’t even like the shirt and is just being petty. To prove her wrong, he puts the shirt on right then and there, revealing that it is too small for him. He storms out, exclaiming that he is leaving while wearing his favorite shirt, making for a classic TV episode about a shirt we will never forget.
1. “The Puffy Shirt” Seinfeld
1993, Season 5, Episode 2
Seinfeld was one of the most popular shows of the 90s, with many iconic episodes remembered by fans — this being one of them. Since Jerry Seinfeld plays himself in this show, in this episode, the famous comedian is set to appear on The Today Show to promote a benefit to clothe homeless people. His good friend Elaine points out that he cannot wear such a flamboyant and expensive-looking shirt for such an occasion without catching flack.
Jerry doesn’t like nor want to wear the shirt, not knowing what he was getting himself into when he agreed to wear it, but promising Kramer’s new girlfriend he would wear it for exposure for her business idea. The problem is that Kramer’s girlfriend is what they call a “low-talker,” meaning that they can’t hear anything she says because she speaks so softly and quietly. This explains why Jerry was so shocked at seeing the shirt resembling a pirate blouse, also known as a poet shirt.
Long Live TV Show Shirts!
We hope this list reminded you of some favorite shows and is an example of how common a shirt can be in our everyday lives. And for those that are media fans in general and enjoy music as well, check out our Spotify Playlist all about t-shirts and blank apparel, titled Spill the Tee. If a few examples of classic TV episodes about shirts have slipped our minds, let us know which major t-shirt TV show plot lines we forgot in the comments below.
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