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Season guide

Family Ties: Season 3

23 episodes Premiered Sep 20, 1984 Updated Sep 26, 2026
Previously on Family Ties

Season 3 Lore Primer

Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.

  • ⚡ Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Family Ties Season 2.
  • ⚡ Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
  • ⚡ Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
  • ⚡ Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
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Season 3 Episodes

Episode Guide

🛡️ SPOILER SHIELD

Season 3 Progress Shield

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Binge Efficiency Engine

Season 3: Filler vs. Essential Canon

Filter episodes by narrative weight. Focus on essential mytharc and skip standalone side quests.

17%
83%
Mytharc (4): Crucial lore & season climaxes
Core (19): Character development & subplots
Side Quest (0): Standalone / filler
S3·E1 Mytharc

The Gambler

Sep 20, 1984 · 25 min

Elyse is stricken with gambling fever on a business trip to Atlantic City, and while on a roll with Alex's "foolproof" blackjack system, she's oblivious to her family and job. Exci

S3·E2 Core

Here We Go Again

Sep 27, 1984 · 24 min

The news that their mother is pregnant sends the three Keaton kids into an angry outburst resulting in a family battle. The children react with panic and outrage at the though of h

S3·E3 Core

Little Man on Campus

Oct 4, 1984 · 25 min

Alex is thrilled to be taking a college course taught by one of his personal heroes, Professor Ephraim Bronski, but in his eagerness to impress the teacher he gets off to a bad sta

S3·E4 Core

Love Thy Neighbor

Oct 11, 1984 · 25 min

Little Jennifer is thrilled about a visit from Scott, a former neighborhood pal she hasn't seen in five years, but her happiness at the reunion is shattered when he ignores her in

S3·E5 Core

Keaton and Son

Oct 18, 1984 · 24 min

Alex reluctantly accepts a part-time job with his father at the non-profit station, and his dad is bursting with pride to have him following in his footsteps, but Alex feels his ta

S3·E6 Core

Fabric Smarts

Oct 25, 1984 · 25 min

Mallory's enthusiasm for her part-time job at a boutique causes her school grades to slip even lower than usual and Steven and Elyse agree that she must quit work, but Alex comes u

S3·E7 Core

Hotline Fever

Nov 1, 1984 · 24 min

Alex is teamed with long-time rival James Jarrett and assigned to work at a ""hotline"" crisis center to fulfill a course requirement, and the two end up in a crisis of their own w

S3·E8 Core

4 Rms Ocn Vu

Nov 8, 1984 · 25 min

While Steven and Elyse are away on vacation, the Keaton house becomes a hotel for the weekend after Mallory accidentally crashes her parents' car into a telephone pole and the kids

S3·E9 Core

Best Man

Nov 15, 1984 · 25 min

When his best friend, Doug, meets and falls in love with Eleanor, and decides to marry her, Alex resents the fact that someone has come between their friendship and refuses to be i

S3·E10 Core

Lost Weekend

Nov 22, 1984 · 25 min

Steven and Elyse plan a nostalgic weekend with the kids before the baby arrives, and are crushed to discover that the children are not at all interested in reminiscing about old ti

S3·E11 Core

Don't Kiss Me, I'm Only the Messenger

Nov 29, 1984 · 24 min

Alex plays Cupid to help his shy pal Skippy get together with Jane, the girl of his dreams, but his good intentions goes awry when the girl falls for him instead. When Skippy and

S3·E12 Core

Help Wanted

Dec 6, 1984 · 25 min

Because of Elyse's pregnancy, the family decides to get a housekeeper, so Alex hires the lovely Karen Nicholson, a totally incompetent young lady whom the family immediately adores

S3·E13 Core

Karen II, Alex 0

Dec 13, 1984 · 25 min

Alex's chances or acceptance into a smug college fraternity are dependent upon his having a knockout date for the pledge dance and when the girl cancels he pleads with Karen, the h

S3·E14 Core

Oh Donna

Jan 3, 1985 · 25 min

Alex becomes involved with Donna, a young, unwed expectant mother from Elyse's natural-childbirth class but his interest in her becomes an obsession when he starts planning for her

S3·E15 Mytharc

Auntie Up

Jan 10, 1985 · 25 min

Mallory is crushed when her favorite aunt dies suddenly, but her feelings of sadness turns to anger when family and friends at the funeral seem to be taking Aunt Trudy's death too

S3·E16 Core

Philadelphia Story

Jan 17, 1985 · 25 min

The Keaton family is transported back in time when Alex dreams he is at the Constitutional Convention at 1776, but history is off track. Steven Keaton is Thomas Jefferson and has j

S3·E17 Core

Birth of a Keaton (1)

Jan 24, 1985 · 25 min

To help Steven during pledge week at his TV station, the Keatons reluctantly agree to be a part of the entertainment, but the audience gets an unexpected show when Elyse goes into

S3·E18 Core

Birth of a Keaton (2)

Jan 31, 1985 · 24 min

Still trapped at the television station, Elyse realizes she cannot make it thru the snowstorm to the hospital and prepares to gibe birth in Steven's office. Meanwhile, stuck at hom

S3·E19 Core

Cry Baby

Feb 7, 1985 · 25 min

The Keaton family adjusts to life with the new baby but while everyone caters to the new arrival, Jennifer struggles with jealous feelings about not being the baby of the family an

S3·E20 Core

Don't Know Much About History...

Feb 14, 1985 · 25 min

Alex and his good friend James go into business together as tutors for their fellow students at Leland. However, their competitiveness threatens to undermine their business let alo

S3·E21 Core

Bringing Up Baby

Feb 21, 1985 · 25 min

With two careers, three bickering children and one demanding baby, Steven and Elyse can't seem to find any time for each other. But when they do finally take the time for a quiet e

S3·E22 Mytharc

Cold Storage

Mar 7, 1985 · 25 min

With the rest of the family away for the weekend, Mallory is excited about having the house to herself until she is accidentally locked in the basement with the person she'd least

S3·E23 Mytharc

Remembrances of Things Past

Mar 28, 1985 · 45 min

Steven takes a nostalgic trip to his hometown following the death of his father and, with the support of Elyse and the children, tries to prepare his mother for her new life in a s

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