8.1/1036 votes#1 - Starting Over
Season 4 Episode 1 - Aired 9/21/1978
Annie's sole surviving relative dumps her into the Lawrences' lap -- where she doesn't feel quite comfortable, at first.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.2/1036 votes
#2 - All For Love
Season 4 Episode 2 - Aired 9/28/1978
Zack tells Buddy that unless she sleeps with him, he will have to satisfy his manly needs with another girl; Doug thinks of buying a flashy sports car.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 7.6/1034 votes
#3 - Changes
Season 4 Episode 3 - Aired 10/12/1978
Nancy is all set to re-marry Jeff; Annie, heretofore known as ""Annie Cooper,"" decides to add ""Lawrence"" to her name; Buddy, ever the traditionalist, is bothered by it all.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 6.5/1051 votes
#4 - Magic
Season 4 Episode 4 - Aired 10/19/1978
Kate, in the hospital for a physical, meets a burned-out former rock star; Annie needs Doug's help to impress her classmates with magic tricks.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 6.9/1041 votes
#5 - Just Friends
Season 4 Episode 5 - Aired 11/9/1978
Willie considers an affair with a married woman he met in a writing class; Nancy, sick of living in a ""fishbowl,"" decides to move out of the guesthouse and into an apartment of her own.
Director: N/A
Writer: Walter Koenig
- 8.3/1040 votes
#6 - Generations
Season 4 Episode 6 - Aired 11/23/1978
The family decides to spend Thanksgiving at Hattie's farm where Kate faces ghosts from the past. Buddy is intrigued by a local boy.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.5/1040 votes
#7 - Expectations
Season 4 Episode 7 - Aired 12/7/1978
Nancy's new boss pressures her to sleep with him; Buddy tries out for the cheerleading squad.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1032 votes
#8 - Gifts
Season 4 Episode 8 - Aired 12/21/1978
Annie, who still misses her parents, can't relate to the Lawrences' holiday cheer, and decides to run away until Christmas is over; Willie runs into his old barber, who is about to close up shop for good.
Director: Philip Leacock
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1044 votes
#9 - The Friend's Affair
Season 4 Episode 9 - Aired 1/4/1979
A colleague and friend of Doug's is cheating on his wife; Annie suspects a next-door neighbor of having murdered his.
Director: Philip Leacock
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1040 votes
#10 - Exits and Entrances
Season 4 Episode 10 - Aired 1/11/1979
After Buddy stars in a high-school play (Shaw's Saint Joan), her interest in acting is strongly encouraged by a friend of Kate's, a professional actress; Annie gets a telemarketing job to pay for a new bike.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1031 votes
#11 - Moment of Truth
Season 4 Episode 11 - Aired 1/18/1979
A man he once helped put in jail threatens Doug; Buddy and Audrey have a fight about who copied from whom on an algebra test.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 7.7/1034 votes
#12 - Malicious Mischief
Season 4 Episode 12 - Aired 1/25/1979
Nancy considers a marriage proposal from Timmy's daycare provider -- until he gets accused of child abuse; Willie falls in love with a cat.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1039 votes
#13 - Sleeping Over
Season 4 Episode 13 - Aired 2/1/1979
Buddy's invitation to a sorority becomes a sore point in her friendship with Audrey when Audrey isn't invited to join. Willie sleeps with Kate's musician friend, leading to a serious mother-son rift over casual sex.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 7.5/1040 votes
#14 - Disco Queen
Season 4 Episode 14 - Aired 2/8/1979
Buddy sneaks into a disco club, with the help of an older acquaintance, and finds it more than she bargained for; Annie has a date with a jock.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 7.8/1039 votes
#15 - The Athlete
Season 4 Episode 15 - Aired 3/1/1979
Buddy, volunteering at a hospital, encounters a star high-school basketball player who is there for a broken leg -- or so he thinks; Annie runs for class president against her nemesis, Emmy Sheldon.
Director: Kim Friedman
Writer: Marshall Herskovitz
- 8.2/1036 votes
#16 - The Competition
Season 4 Episode 16 - Aired 3/8/1979
Buddy learns the price of competition when an overachieving classmate commits suicide after losing a history competition to her. Annie's cookie-selling strategy is a riot.
Director: N/A
Writer: Ron Cowen
- 7.3/1038 votes
#17 - Ballerina
Season 4 Episode 17 - Aired 3/15/1979
Willie has a fling with a ballet dancer; Doug purchases a workout set by mail order.
Director: Marshall Herskovitz, Edward Zwick
Writer: Edward Zwick
- 6.5/1033 votes
#18 - Diversions
Season 4 Episode 18 - Aired 3/22/1979
While studying for the bar exam, Nancy's attention is diverted by a charming and seemingly accident-prone neighbor.
Director: James Broderick
Writer: N/A
- 8.1/1035 votes
#19 - An Apple For the Teacher
Season 4 Episode 19 - Aired 3/30/1979
Kate's teaching career gets off to a rough start, when a student decides to continuously annoy her; Annie borrows Buddy's ""lucky"" ring to help during a spelling bee, and promptly loses it.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.3/1032 votes
#20 - Prelude
Season 4 Episode 20 - Aired 4/20/1979
Buddy has a crush on her swimming instructor, much to Zack's displeasure; Kate is tempted to call an old boyfriend.
Director: Philip Leacock
Writer: N/A
- 7.3/1029 votes
#21 - Going Straight
Season 4 Episode 21 - Aired 5/10/1979
Willie hires Bambi Deering, the stripper he met on his 21st birthday. Doug attempts to save hefty plumber's fees by repairing the household pipes himself.
Director: James Broderick
Writer: Marshall Herskovitz
- 6.6/1022 votes
#22 - From Russia With Love
Season 4 Episode 22 - Aired 5/17/1979
Kate acts as escort to, and highly impresses, a visiting Ukrainian composer; Buddy and Annie play Monopoly to determine who gets Willie's old room.
Director: N/A
Writer: Edward Zwick
The Best Episodes of Family Season 4
Every episode of Family Season 4 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Family Season 4!
The lives of the middle-class Lawrence family in Pasadena, California.
Genre:Drama
Network:ABC
Season 4 Ratings Summary
"Starting Over" is the best rated episode of "Family" season 4. It scored 8.1/10 based on 36 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 9/21/1978. This episode is rated 0.1 points higher than the second-best, "All For Love".