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The Worst Episodes of Family

Every episode of Family ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of Family!

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The lives of the middle-class Lawrence family in Pasadena, California.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
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    Family Season 3 Episode 16 - Lifeline
    6.3/10(41 votes)

    #1 - Lifeline

    S3:E16

    Nancy plays hot-line operator when her classmate attempts suicide, to get back at her married boyfriend for breaking up her; Buddy baby-sits a whiny kid.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. Family Season 4 Episode 4 - Magic
    6.4/10(58 votes)

    #2 - Magic

    S4:E4

    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:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. Family Season 3 Episode 14 - Echoes of Love
    6.5/10(37 votes)

    #3 - Echoes of Love

    S3:E14

    Willie can't stop reminiscing about Lizzy, so he hooks up with her former roommate; Audrey is depressed because her parents are splitting up, and angry that Doug is representing her mother in the divorce.

    Director:James Sheldon
    Writer:David Jacobs

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  4. Family Season 4 Episode 18 - Diversions
    6.5/10(39 votes)

    #4 - Diversions

    S4:E18

    While studying for the bar exam, Nancy's attention is diverted by a charming and seemingly accident-prone neighbor.

    Director:James Broderick
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. Family Season 4 Episode 5 - Just Friends
    6.7/10(47 votes)

    #5 - Just Friends

    S4:E5

    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:Unknown
    Writer:Walter Koenig

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  6. Family Season 3 Episode 18 - Crossing Over
    6.8/10(42 votes)

    #6 - Crossing Over

    S3:E18

    Willie has an appointment with a big-shot film producer, on the eve of his 21st birthday; then, he and Doug make friends with a stripper.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:David Jacobs

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  7. Family Season 4 Episode 22 - From Russia With Love
    6.8/10(27 votes)

    #7 - From Russia With Love

    S4:E22

    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:Unknown
    Writer:Edward Zwick

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  8. Family Season 2 Episode 16 - A Safe House
    6.9/10(57 votes)

    #8 - A Safe House

    S2:E16

    A former friend of Willie's, now an outlaw, gives him a call; Buddy thinks she has a great scoop for the school paper.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Marshall Herskovitz

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  9. Family Season 4 Episode 21 - Going Straight
    6.9/10(35 votes)

    #9 - Going Straight

    S4:E21

    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

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  10. Family Season 5 Episode 7 - Play on Love
    6.9/10(39 votes)

    #10 - Play on Love

    S5:E7

    Willie finds the director of his play more interesting than Rachel; Buddy insists on buying an old sports car, over Doug's objections.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. Family Season 4 Episode 17 - Ballerina
    7.0/10(44 votes)

    #11 - Ballerina

    S4:E17

    Willie has a fling with a ballet dancer; Doug purchases a workout set by mail order.

    Directors:Edward Zwick, Marshall Herskovitz
    Writer:Edward Zwick

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  12. Family Season 2 Episode 21 - . . . More Things in Heaven and Earth
    7.1/10(45 votes)

    #12 - . . . More Things in Heaven and Earth

    S2:E21

    Kate is shaken by what a supposed psychic says about her long-missing aunt; Nancy lands a prestigious legal assignment, and suspects her looks are the reason.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. Family Season 3 Episode 2 - Acts of Love (2)
    7.1/10(47 votes)

    #13 - Acts of Love (2)

    S3:E2

    Lizzy dies, but not before Willie convinces her to marry him first.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:David Jacobs

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  14. Family Season 3 Episode 7 - The Little Brother
    7.1/10(50 votes)

    #14 - The Little Brother

    S3:E7

    Willie fails to understand a black thing; Buddy develops an interest in genealogy.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. Family Season 3 Episode 1 - Acts of Love (1)
    7.2/10(50 votes)

    #15 - Acts of Love (1)

    S3:E1

    While Nancy and Buddy prepare for their parents' 25th wedding-anniversary party, Willie meets, and falls in love with, a physics student named Lizzy -- who, as he soon finds out, has radiation sickness.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:David Jacobs

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  16. Family Season 3 Episode 17 - . . . And Baby Makes Three
    7.3/10(51 votes)

    #16 - . . . And Baby Makes Three

    S3:E17

    Nancy and Jeff aren't sure whether to get back together; Buddy is disgusted that Audrey has fallen for the cheap ploys of the school Casanova.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. Family Season 4 Episode 14 - Disco Queen
    7.3/10(46 votes)

    #17 - Disco Queen

    S4:E14

    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:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. Family Season 5 Episode 9 - Such a Fine Line
    7.3/10(41 votes)

    #18 - Such a Fine Line

    S5:E9

    A schoolboy has a crush on Kate; Jeff, now an in-over-his-head rock manager, blows into town with his band.

    Director:James Broderick
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. Family Season 2 Episode 12 - Lovers and Strangers
    7.4/10(58 votes)

    #19 - Lovers and Strangers

    S2:E12

    Willie gets cradle-robbed by a visiting movie director, and takes it much too seriously; Doug gets a dog as a birthday present.

    Director:Ralph Senensky
    Writer:Leonora Thuna

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  20. Family Season 2 Episode 18 - Taking Chances (1)
    7.4/10(49 votes)

    #20 - Taking Chances (1)

    S2:E18

    When Doug loses his sight after getting hit by a car, opinions are divided as to whether he should undergo an operation that could either restore it, or kill him; in the meantime, Willie has second thoughts about having quit his job.

    Director:Glenn Jordan
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. Family Season 3 Episode 9 - A Tale Out of Season
    7.4/10(47 votes)

    #21 - A Tale Out of Season

    S3:E9

    Doug's colleague and protégé turns out to be a child-beater; Nancy finds a puppy; Buddy finally gets into the Thanksgiving spirit.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. Family Season 2 Episode 19 - Taking Chances (2)
    7.5/10(51 votes)

    #22 - Taking Chances (2)

    S2:E19

    After spending an eternity as a blind man whose youngest daughter despises him, Doug finally musters up the courage to have the operation -- and, of course, all's well.

    Director:Glenn Jordan
    Writer:Unknown

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  23. Family Season 2 Episode 22 - An Endangered Species
    7.5/10(42 votes)

    #23 - An Endangered Species

    S2:E22

    A recently-divorced friend wants to hang out with Kate; Nancy gets upset when a classmate asks to use her place for an affair with a married man.

    Director:Peter Werner
    Writer:Oliver Hailey

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  24. Family Season 3 Episode 15 - See Saw
    7.5/10(33 votes)

    #24 - See Saw

    S3:E15

    Kate volunteers to help a moody (and arithmetic-obsessed) young patient at the Braille institute; Willie works on installing Timmy's new bed; Buddy leaves for a week-end of skiing with T.J. and his parents.

    Director:Philip Leacock
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. Family Season 3 Episode 19 - The Covenant
    7.5/10(44 votes)

    #25 - The Covenant

    S3:E19

    Medical crises abound in the family when James reveals to Doug that he must soon undergo exploratory surgery, and Nancy begins to miscarry Jeff's baby.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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Worst Episodes Summary

"Lifeline" is the worst rated episode of "Family". It scored 6.3/10 based on 41 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 1/31/1978. This episode scored 0.1 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Magic".