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Season guide

Family Ties: Season 7

24 episodes Premiered Oct 30, 1988 Updated Sep 26, 2026
Previously on Family Ties

Season 7 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 6.
  • ⚡ 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 7 Episodes

Episode Guide

🛡️ SPOILER SHIELD

Season 7 Progress Shield

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Binge Efficiency Engine

Season 7: Filler vs. Essential Canon

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

13%
88%
Mytharc (3): Crucial lore & season climaxes
Core (21): Character development & subplots
Side Quest (0): Standalone / filler
S7·E1 Mytharc

It Happened One Night

Oct 30, 1988 · 24 min

A family camping trip turns into a comedy of errors. While the Keaton kids and Lauren argue about politics, Steven and Elyse decide it's time to get away from such serious concern

S7·E2 Core

Designing Woman

Nov 6, 1988 · 25 min

Mallory's enthusiasm for her job at a prestigious fashion firm quickly fades when she discovers that her design ideas are being stolen by another employee. Mallory is thrilled wh

S7·E3 Core

Truckers

Nov 13, 1988 · 25 min

Alex feels left out when Andy begins spending less time with him and more time with Nick's streetwise nephew Rocco. While Steven rages about the household bills, Alex worries abou

S7·E4 Core

Beyond Therapy

Nov 27, 1988 · 25 min

In an attempt to get Alex to open up emotionally, Lauren persuades him to join a therapy group. Returning from a date, Alex and Lauren arrive at the Keaton home and finish a fight

S7·E5 Core

Heartstrings (1)

Dec 4, 1988 · 25 min

The Keaton family unites in crisis when Steven suffers a serious heart attack. While Alex and Andy discuss the upcoming Presidential race, Mallory and Jennifer prepare for another

S7·E6 Core

Heartstrings (2)

Dec 11, 1988 · 25 min

While Steven fights for his life in surgery, the family fights to remain optimistic about his condition. When Steven's surgery extends beyond the expected five hours, tension in t

S7·E7 Core

Heartstrings (3)

Dec 18, 1988 · 24 min

Steven battles the physical and psychological aftershocks of his heart surgery. As the hours drag on during Steven's quadruple bypass operation, the Keaton crew grows exhausted in

S7·E8 Core

Basic Training

Jan 1, 1989 · 25 min

Skippy's decision to join the Army soon becomes a losing battle. As the Keaton clan continues to nag Steven about taking it easy in the wake of his heart attack, a very morose Ski

S7·E9 Core

Deja Vu

Jan 8, 1989 · 25 min

Sisterly sparks fly when Jennifer decides to date the younger brother of Mallory's former high school heartthrob. As the Keatons try to persuade Steven that he needs a relaxing ho

S7·E10 Core

Nick's Best Friend

Jan 15, 1989 · 25 min

Nick gets back together with his best childhood friend: his dog Scrapper. When Nick's mother moves into a new apartment complex that doesn't allow animals, he is given custody of

S7·E11 Core

Get Me to the Living Room on Time

Jan 29, 1989 · 25 min

When Andy befriends two senior citizens, Steven decides to make them the focus of his new documentary. After Andy announces that he's invited a couple of friends over, the Keatons

S7·E12 Core

The Job Not Taken

Feb 5, 1989 · 25 min

Alex must choose between friendship and his career after a friend recommends him for a job at a big investment firm. As Steven returns from a shopping spree, Alex eagerly prepares

S7·E13 Core

The Wrecker's Ball

Feb 12, 1989 · 25 min

When the first building Elyse designed faces the wrecking ball, the entire family rallies behind her attempts to block the demolition. Elyse is heartbroken when she learns that he

S7·E14 Core

My Best Friend's Girl

Feb 19, 1989 · 25 min

Lauren gets more than she bargained for when she begins counseling Skippy and he falls in love with her. When Jennifer arrives home with her learner's permit in hand and announces

S7·E15 Core

'Til Her Daddy Takes the T-Bird Away

Feb 26, 1989 · 25 min

Mallory's plans to buy a car are stalled when Steven refuses to co-sign her loan. As Jennifer labors over a play she's writing on the final days of the Nixon presidency, Steven an

S7·E16 Core

Simon Says

Mar 5, 1989 · 24 min

Jennifer is caught in the middle when she begins working with her friend Simon. As Alex recoils at declarations of love from Marla, an 11-year-old newspaper delivery girl who has

S7·E17 Core

All in the Neighborhood (1)

Mar 12, 1989 · 25 min

The Keatons are shocked to realize that racism is alive and well when their black friends move into a house across the street. During dinner with Steven's colleague Gus Thompson a

S7·E18 Core

All in the Neighborhood (2)

Mar 19, 1989 · 25 min

The Keatons rally behind their black friends when the issue of racial discrimination hits home. Surprised and disgusted with their neighbors' racist attitudes, Elyse and Steven ap

S7·E19 Core

They Can't Take That Away From Me (1)

Apr 2, 1989 · 25 min

Alex's relationship with Lauren is tested when he becomes infatuated with a young music student. While Lauren's out of town attending a psychology conference. Alex begins teaching

S7·E20 Core

They Can't Take That Away From Me (2)

Apr 9, 1989 · 25 min

Alex finds himself on an emotional rollercoaster when he's forced to choose between Lauren and Marty. When Lauren returns from her psychology conference, she notices that Alex is

S7·E21 Core

Rain Forests Keep Falling on My Head

Apr 16, 1989 · 25 min

Jennifer becomes obsessed with the environment after she begins studying the earth's ecological evils. As Alex presents Andrew with a pet parakeet, Jennifer arrives home with news

S7·E22 Core

Wrap Around the Clock

Apr 23, 1989 · 49 min

When Andy asks the family to contribute to his time capsule, the Keaton clan recalls some of their best-loved stories. As a homework assignment, Andy has been given the task of cr

S7·E23 Mytharc

Mr. Keaton Takes a Vacation

May 7, 1989 · 25 min

Steven must confront his true feelings about Mallory's boyfriend when Nick moves in with the family for a week. While Elyse struggles to do the family taxes and Steven buries hims

S7·E24 Mytharc

Alex Doesn't Live Here Anymore

May 14, 1989 · 62 min

When Alex lands his dream job in New York, everyone's delighted for him, except Elyse. As Steven helps Andy rehearse for his school play on dental hygiene, Alex bursts into the Ke

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