Greetings,
Sometimes when I make these Top Ten lists, they are easy. Other times, they are harder. Or much harder. Or, as in this case, much, MUCH harder. That's one of the only problems with a really good TV show. It's difficult to pick favorite episodes, because there are a ton of great ones. But I did my best and managed to come up with my top ten episodes of Family Ties.
I doubt that there is anyone who hasn't heard of Family Ties. It was one of the most successful shows of the 80's, and, unless my memory is messing with me, it made up my Thursday nights along with The Cosby Show. I just loved, and still love, watching the goings on of the Keaton family, what with the hippie, Liberal parents, Steven and Elyse, always at odds with their Conservative, Republican son, Alex P. Keaton, who never revealed for what the "P" stood. And let us not forget Mallory, the oft thought dumb but just differently gifted older daughter, and the little sister, Jennifer, who was an enjoyably feisty and precocious youngster. Then, there was Andy, the "Hey, the kids are getting older and the ratings might drop so let's get a baby in here" baby, who got hit with a dose of child character Miracle-Gro in the fifth season and magically became four years old. I just hope they remembered to return the bottle to the set of the soap opera from which they borrowed it.
Of course, outside the family we had some recurring characters. First, there was Erwin "Skippy" Handleman, the Keaton's next door neighbor. His niche was that he was in unrequited love with Mallory, and that he was a nerd, who was also kind of dumb. Okay, that's just not fair. Either make him smart and nerdy or dumb and hot, so he can be ahead of the game on something. And speaking of dumb and hot, let's talk about Mallory's longtime boyfriend, Nick Moore. I kid. He wasn't really dumb. Uneducated, maybe, but not every smart person has pieces of paper to prove it. No, Nick was much like Mallory in the way that he was not traditionally intelligent, but he did have talent, as an artist, who made sculptures . . . out of trash. Look, it was the 80's. Give the guy a break. Plus, as time went on, everyone realized that Nick was actually a very good guy.
Alright, enough with the character studies, let's get to the list. Here are my top ten favorite episodes of Family Ties.
#10. "Citizen Keaton" (Season 6) - When it came to politics on the show, those discussions tended to be saved for Alex and his parents, because there is nothing so entertaining as Republicans and Democrats fighting. This is why I am a Libertarian, so I can sit back and enjoy. But, in this episode, Mallory gets in on the action by running for school president of her college. Despite Alex's feelings about the low quality of her school, which, by the way, gave us some good jokes over the years, he decides to get involved with her campaign. By that, I mean, he made her make some insane promises which could not be kept, but, hey, it's politics. Although, I'm sure that when Skippy asked her to bring back the low-fat chocolate milk with twisty straws, that one may have been fulfilled. I'd say the best part of this episode was the heart to heart conversation between the two siblings who didn't always get along so well. It was a nice way to end.
#9. "Best Man" (Season 3) - So, Alex had this best friend named, Doug, played fantastically by one Mr. Timothy Busfield, who has always proved that, not only do gingers have souls, they can also be the epitome of awesomeness. He made an appearance in the first day of college for Alex episode and again here. In this one, Alex is very upset because Doug has a new girlfriend (the most adorable little thing I've ever seen, by the way), who is taking up all of his time. Things go from bad to worse when the young couple decides to marry. So, will Alex swallow his pride and attend the wedding of his best friend? It's a sitcom. What do you think? Oh, and, hey, what's up, Tate Donovan and Billy Campbell at the poker game! You gotta start somewhere.
#8. "Don't Go Changin'" (Season 4) - One of the best things about the fourth season is that it contained the relationship between Alex and Ellen, who was played by Fox's real-life lady, Tracy Pollan. These two characters were pretty different. Alex was all into politics and economics and money, and Ellen was more into the arts, like poetry and classic films and, in this episode, dance. So, in order to seem more in tune with her passions, Alex decides to join Ellen's ballet class. Need I say more.
#7. "Give Your Uncle Arthur a Kiss" (Season 1) - The 1980's was really the era of the "very special episode", wherein a normally comedic show would take a turn and speak on something a little more serious, like drugs or abuse or whatever. This is one of those. Here, the Keatons are being visited by an old family friend who the kids refer to as Uncle Arthur. Well, as it turns out, he's kind of a perv, and he gets a little inappropriate with Mallory. Of course, he blames it on his divorce and getting older. Please! Whilst I would rather have the funny, I understand that these things need to be addressed, and they did it in a very good and relatable way. I know I may sound sappy here, but this shows that, despite all their differences and conflicts,the members of this family know how to stand by one another.
#6. "Alex Doesn't Live Here Anymore" (Season 7) - So here we have the finale. It takes a lot for me to put any show's final episode on a top ten list, because, to be honest, a lot of them aren't very good. I think some shows just don't know how to properly wrap things up. Well, Family Ties did it very well. In this one, we have Alex preparing to move to New York where he will begin fulfilling his lifelong dream of being rich. I'm certainly not judging him since this is exactly want I want for my own life. Everyone starts saying their goodbyes, which leads to some heartwarming yet funny moments, but it is his mother, Elyse, who is having a very difficult time with his leaving. That is kind of the core plot of the episode, and I must say, the scenes near the end between her and Alex are some of the best I've ever seen on this show. And, yes, this one did make me cry.
#5. "Mr. Wrong" (Season 4) - And so we have the first appearance of who would become Mallory's boyfriend for the next four years, Nick. Though her parents were far from conservative, they certainly did not want Mallory to be dating this guy. I mean, seriously, he had - GASP! - an earring!!! I'm not kidding. That was actually a major factor as to why they didn't like him. Now I don't know if they originally intended for Nick to be a short-lived character on the show, but the audience really liked him, which led him to sticking around to the very end. Boy, am I glad he did!
#4. "The Harder They Fall" (Season 2) - I certainly love it when people who are so staunch in their beliefs completely abandon them for their own personal gain. Such was the case here with the pacifistic Steven and Elyse Keaton. It's Parent/Teacher Night at school and Elyse must go and see Alex's teacher, Mr. Tedesco. Turns out, he's kind of a rude, loudmouth jerk, so naturally, Elyse does what anyone who preaches non-violence would do. She punches him. Like for real. This upsets Alex because he is relying on this teacher for a college recommendation. So, Steven goes to see Mr. Tedesco to smooth things over. It's going well until he starts to insult Elyse, and then Steven also punches him. That kind of upsets Alex, too, so they invite Mr. Tedesco over for dinner, and, oh, the shenanigans. I will say this, though. The actor who played the teacher was a guy named Edward Edwards, and he has since done a lot of acting jobs here and there, but I do not know how he is not a mega star. He was amazing in this episode. I truly have never seen anyone take a fake punch as realistically as this guy. Good job, my friend.
#3. "Mrs. Wrong" (Season 5) - Yes, this does tie in to the episode at number five. As it was mentioned, the Keaton parents are not crazy about Mallory's choice of boyfriend, and in this episode, Mallory is not crazy about her living arrangements. So, because she is 18 and totally an adult, she decides to get engaged to Nick. No one seems to approve of this, so they make an attempt at eloping. Of course. Things go as you might expect throughout this episode, but there is such an overwhelming amount of funny here, I absolutely had to put this on the list. Oh, and awesome performances of those spirituals, Michael Gross. You are a treasure.
#2. "Say Uncle" (Season 2) - Hey, Tom Hanks, welcome back to the show. That's right, the Tom Hanks made some appearances on Family Ties, fresh off of his days on Bosom Buddies. This marks his second one as Elyse's little brother, Uncle Ned. The first time he showed up, he was on the run because he had stolen a ton of money from the company for which he worked. Apparently, Ned was a very intelligent and successful guy who was doing very well at this company, but when he found out there was going to be a merger that would put hundreds of people out of work, he stole the money so that wouldn't happen. Oh, so he's a good criminal. Gotcha! Anyway, he had to go to jail, but after his release, he returns to the Keaton house, hoping for help with a fresh start. Unfortunately, he had also discovered the booze. Yes, this episode is really about Uncle Ned being an alcoholic. Of course, we do get some funny here, but it's a lot about the dramatic. Now, some may say it was overly dramatic, but I think it was just the right amount. And, honestly, though it took Hollywood a lot longer to give Tom Hanks respect as dramatic actor, anyone else could see the spark of that in this episode. Good times, sir.
#1. "Birthday Boy" (Season 2) - Happy birthday, Alex! You're 18, and, much like what your little sister would come to believe, that means you can do whatever you want, right? Not according to your mother, especially if "whatever you want" includes going to a bar in West Virginia. Even though, at this point in time, one could go to a bar and drink at 18. Actually, if my research is correct, this episode aired literally like 6 months before the drinking age became 21. I don't want to say this episode affected that, but if I want to blame anyone for my not being able to get legally drunk on high school graduation night, I will probably blame Family Ties. I kid, and I digress. Naturally, because he is, in fact, 18 and allowed to do whatever he wants, Alex defies his mother and goes anyway. At this point, I must discuss the guest cast. So, Alex goes down there with his friends, Neil and Doug, and they meet up with these three girls, Roxanne, Christy and Buffy (for real), who are so dumb that they buy the idea that these guys are Air Force pilots. But they are hilariously dumb. I mean, Christy's reaction to hearing that Alex will be invading the enemy territory of Canada is priceless. Now his friend Neil is played by John Putch, who made an appearance on my blog in my review of Jaws 3-D. This is an upgrade for him. And then there's Doug played by the one and only Crispin Glover. Oh, he was good here. Very good. Hey, wait a minute. John Putch was in Jaws 3-D with Lea Thompson who was in Back to the Future with both Crispin Glover and, of course, Michael J. Fox. A-ha! It's all connected and now I'm dizzy. Anyway, Alex's mother finds out what he does and drives all the way to West Virginia to maybe embarrass him. I don't know. Now despite the inevitable fight, this episode does end on a tender note between mother and son, because, ultimately, the show is about family. Families do fight, but they do love each other. Good episode and my favorite.
Wow, this list was hard. You know, they don't make good family shows like this anymore. Oh, sure, they make ones that they try to pass off as such, but they really are not. I guess this is why I and many others treasure shows like Family Ties. It's a great thing that they can, in a way, last forever. So, major respect to all involved in the creation of this fine series, and thanks for bringing some much needed joy to my childhood.
Love and full moons,
Becky the Writer
