With Stephen and Elyse away for the weekend, Alex hosts a wild party and worries over Mallory going off with one of his womanizing friends. Elyse tries to rein in Stephen's competitive streak.
Jennifer finds herself at the mercy of peer pressure when she is teased for being friends with a boy. But having invited both boys and girls to her birthday party, she has to decide how to deal with the problem.
Steven's father arrives for a visit, resulting in the two clashing as always. When his father reveals an important piece of news, Steven begins to question their whole relationship.
It's Thanksgiving at the Keatons', but the turkey dinner might have to wait when Steven and Elyse head to an anti-nuclear weapons rally and get arrested - infuriating the kids as well as Elyse's parents.
Alex becomes frustrated by his job as a clerk at a struggling neighborhood grocery, and leaves for a better-paying job at a larger store - but he begins to question where he felt more appreciated and fulfilled.
After burglars rob their house, Steven and Elyse try to reconcile their pacifism with their safety concerns as they invest in a gun to protect their home.
When a snowstorm ruins their Christmas skiing plans, the Keatons are stuck at home reminiscing about the circumstances in which each of the kids was born.
Hoping to be invited to join a popular sorority, Mallory convinces Alex to go out with an influential member who likes him; in turn, Alex must persuade Mallory to go out with Skippy to cancel out a lost wager.
Elyse's brother Ned shows up unexpectedly, and displays odd caution about anyone knowing where he is. After he admits ending his highly promising business career in New York, the Keatons are concerned about who might be hot on his tail.
Elyse faces the agonizing choice between helping her brother Ned remain a fugitive or turning him in, and Alex also wonders how to deal with the situation. With the family increasingly involved, Ned considers his options with the FBI.
Alex trades stock on paper for a school project. He tries to persuade his parents to cash in on his promising investment tips, but they decline. Frustrated, he impersonates his father to use their account. Things go well, until they don't.
Mallory has a crush on Jeff, her French tutor, but his shyness prompts him to go to Alex for advice on asking her out. Alex's advice revolves around Jeff imitating his own personality - which, understandably, doesn't excite Mallory at all.
Alex volunteers to be a big brother to a Vietnamese refugee, but then lets the boy down when his schedule becomes too demanding, adding to concerns that he's trying to turn the boy into a copy of himself.
Elyse tries to help her friend Suzanne through a rough patch by hiring her on as her assistant, but comes to regret it when Suzanne forgets her place and takes over Elyse's business.
With their parents out for the night, Alex and Mallory argue over who has to stay to watch Jennifer, leading Alex to take her to a poker game with his friends. But after Jennifer quietly takes off, Alex panics.
Alex reluctantly preps Mallory for a high school television quiz show when he can't find anyone else to fill an empty spot on his team - but when the cameras are on, he's the one who freezes up.
