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Season guide

Arrested Development: Season 1

22 episodes Premiered Nov 2, 2003 Updated Jul 20, 2026

Arrested Development is a television series that premiered in 2003. The show centers on the Bluth family, a wealthy group that loses their fortune after the head of the family is imprisoned for shifty accounting practices. Following the incarceration of the patriarch, the family assets are frozen, forcing the relatives to confront the reality of their new financial situation. Accustomed to a life of affluence, the fa

Season overview

Arrested Development is a television series that premiered in 2003. The show centers on the Bluth family, a wealthy group that loses their fortune after the head of the family is imprisoned for shifty accounting practices. Following the incarceration of the patriarch, the family assets are frozen, forcing the relatives to confront the reality of their new financial situation. Accustomed to a life of affluence, the family members struggle to grasp the severity of their circumstances and remain largely clueless about their predicament.

Michael Bluth is the one son who understands the seriousness of the situation. He takes on the responsibility of guiding his eccentric family through this transition, which is referred to as Chapter 11. As the family members face the prospect of needing to find employment to support themselves, Michael attempts to keep them together. The series explores the dynamics of this suddenly penniless family as they navigate their new lives. The program is classified as a comedy and ran from 2003 until 2019. The narrative focuses on the challenges Michael faces while managing his relatives during this period of instability.

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Episodes

S1·E1

Pilot

Nov 2, 2003 · 22 min

Meet the Bluths. In the pilot, Michael decides to take a job in Arizona after being passed over by George Sr. for head of the Bluth Company. George Sr. is jailed, and the family re

S1·E2

Top Banana

Nov 9, 2003 · 23 min

Michael puts George Michael in charge of the Bluth Bannana Stand, and his son subsequently burns down the stand. Elsewhere, Tobias auditions for a commercial, and Lindsay inadverta

S1·E3

Bringing Up Buster

Nov 16, 2003 · 23 min

Michael spends quality time with Buster. George Michael auditions for a school play to get closer to Maeby. Gob breaks up with his girlfriend and has nowhere to go.

S1·E4

Key Decisions

Nov 23, 2003 · 22 min

Gob decides to lock himself in his father's prison for 24 hours to get back in with the alliance, and to spend quality time with his father. Michael takes Gob's girlfriend to an aw

S1·E5

Charity Drive

Nov 30, 2003 · 22 min

Michael and Lindsay try to prove their charitable sides to each other. Gob demands George Michael's respect, and Buster continues avoiding Lucille 2.

S1·E6

Visiting Ours

Dec 7, 2003 · 22 min

Michael sets up an "intimate conjugal visit" for his parents, while it is revealed that George Sr. had an affair with Kitty, his secretary who recently slept with Gob. Tobias and L

S1·E7

In God We Trust

Dec 14, 2003 · 22 min

Michael attempts to fire the family's incompetent, but likeable attorney. George Michael impresses Maeby with a muscle suit for a "Living Classics" pagent. Tobias has a psychologic

S1·E8

My Mother, the Car

Dec 21, 2003 · 22 min

Michael loses his short-term memory, which Lucille uses to her advantage. Gob attempts to use the family yacht before Michael sells it. George Michael and Maeby attempt to see an R

S1·E9

Storming the Castle

Jan 4, 2004 · 22 min

Michael cannot go through with his plan to break up Gob and Marta. A thug magician wants to take Gob's "legs". Maeby wears all leather to get back at her mother, and Lucille decide

S1·E10

Pier Pressure

Jan 11, 2004 · 22 min

Buster realizes that medical marijuana will help cure Lucille 2's vertigo, and pays George Michael to get it for him from Gob. Lindsay sends Maeby to spend a day with Lucille to pu

S1·E11

Public Relations

Jan 25, 2004 · 22 min

When George Michael is a rejected by a private school due to the family's reputation, Michael hires a publicist from his gym who he's been flirting with to change the public perspe

S1·E12

Marta Complex

Feb 8, 2004 · 22 min

When Lucille throws an anniversary party for Tobias and Lindsay on Valentine's Day, Michael gives an impassioned speech about love. This makes Marta realize she has feelings for hi

S1·E13

Beef Consommé

Feb 15, 2004 · 22 min

After learning that Marta has feelings for him, Michael goes to her and they decide to get permission from Gob before taking things to the next level. Meanwhile, Lindsay and Tobias

S1·E14

Shock and Aww

Mar 7, 2004 · 22 min

Michael falls for his George Michael's ethics teacher, whom his son also has a crush on. Meanwhile, Lucille adopts a 14-year old Korean boy, and George Sr.'s "Caged Wisdom" tapes h

S1·E15

Staff Infection

Mar 14, 2004 · 22 min

When Michael discovers his family has been receiving paychecks without working, he forces them all to get jobs within the company. Lindsay questions his management skills, and Tobi

S1·E16

Altar Egos

Mar 17, 2004 · 22 min

Michael attempts to have a one-night stand with an attorney whom he doesn't know is not only blind, but the prosecutor who is trying to put his father in jail. Also, Gob gets marri

S1·E17

Justice Is Blind

Mar 21, 2004 · 22 min

Gob steals a file on the government's case against the Bluth Company that Maggie had given to Michael. Tobias is sent to Maggie's house to get evidence, George Michael tries to pro

S1·E18

Missing Kitty

Mar 28, 2004 · 22 min

Gob attempts to make good on his promise to make the family yacht disappear. Meanwhile, Lindsay and Maeby try to track down Lindsay's grandmother, Tobias seeks George Sr.'s respect

S1·E19

Best Man for the Gob

Apr 4, 2004 · 22 min

George Sr. uses Gob's bachelor party as an opportunity to set up his accountant in a compromising position so that he can blackmail him. Meanwhile, Michael tries to prove he's a f

S1·E20

Whistler's Mother

Apr 11, 2004 · 22 min

Michael deals with numerous requests for some unfrozen money, and chastises Lucille for being too coddling with Buster. Lindsay decides to protest the war to boost her self esteem

S1·E21

Not Without My Daughter

Apr 25, 2004 · 22 min

Michael takes Maeby to work with him on Take Your Daughter to Work Day. After being slighted by Michael, Tobias, George-Michael and Gob all go to the mall to prove that they are ju

S1·E22

Let 'Em Eat Cake

Jun 6, 2004 · 22 min

In the first season finale, George Sr. has a heart attack, and Maeby is jealous when George Michael likes another girl. Meanwhile, Lindsay decides to leave Tobias until a book he w