your fault." "Smelly Cat" continues, "It may not be a bed of roses/ but you're no friend to those with noses". NME critic Beth Cherry believes that the song "educate[s] the world about the plight of olfactorily-challenged felines everywhere." Ciara Knight of Joe considers the song's opening lyrics to be its most iconic. Simon believes "Smelly Cat" explores an inspiring message beyond the odor of a cat about remaining unbothered while being bullied and shunned. Classic FM's Sofia Rizzi agreed that the song "has a deep and meaningful message at its core". Referring to the line "what are they feeding you?", Bustle's Mallory Schlossberg suggested that fans "may never know the answer to that deeply philosophical musical question". The song never reveals how or why the cat smells bad, or what its owners are feeding it. Kudrow confirmed that she never learned what the cat was being fed, although the general consensus is that the cat's diet contributed to its smell. The cat's gender is also never confirmed. Reception and popularity Reviews for "Smelly Cat" have been generally positive. Cosmopolitan writer Jo Sayer reviewed "The One with the Baby on the Bus" as "an awesome episode because it's ... where Smelly Cat is first introduced." Newsweek called the song "legendary". A Medium contributor wrote that the song "has become an undetachable part of Phoebe's persona and her anthem". The Toronto Star's Melody L. Goh hailed "Smelly Cat" as "the best song to ever be played on Friends", while RTÉ.ie declared it one of the series' greatest moments. Greg Gilman of TheWrap described "Smelly Cat" as "delightfully silly". Laura McClellan of Taste of Country deemed "Smelly Cat" "one of Phoebe's greatest quirky coffee house hits". Ilyse Liffreing of Ad Age reviewed one of Phoebe's "Smelly Cat" performances as "One of the most memorable scenes" from the series, which the author believes in turn "solidified Phoebe as their show favorite." The Honolulu Star-Advertiser's Betty Shimabukuro described "Smelly Cat" as "legendary for its tunelessness and total fusion with the Phoebe personality", and suggested that fans seek solace by singing the song following the show's finale. Conversely, Wired writer Travis Reilly described the track as "notoriously awful", while The Washington Post journalist Jennifer Frey dismissed the song's several renditions as "painful". Digital Spy ranked "Smelly Cat" among "12 amazing Phoebe moments". Sammy Nickalls, writing for HelloGiggles, believes "Smelly Cat" "will go down in history