How Michael J. Fox's Finest Hour Made Family Ties' Greatest Episode

[@juliemcgugan1244]

Who also remembers "Sit, Ubu, sit! Good dog! *Bark*"

[@mishmashmedley]

absolutely. It was among all the other great sign-offs. I used to repeat them every episode and annoy my older brother. 😁

[@kellenfurter]

Oop! You beat me.

[@Teacher-Thayse]

Love and miss it!

[@douglasdixon524]

You gotta love Ubu.

[@handsomeDRAC]

Thought the name was Bubu

[@mishmashmedley]

I too remember watching this that night, because I was an avid Night Court fan. And our house loved Family Ties because they were another big(ish) family like ours in Ohio. So when we were all sitting in the living room, me laying on the floor up close, the episode came on and our house got quiet, just like on the set. 12-year old me was stunned and sad. My mom was crying a little, and my dad was clearing his throat with his arms crossed. One of my older brothers was sitting picking at the carpet, and one of my older sisters was crying a bit, too. We didn't talk a whole lot like sitcom families do, but we did talk to each other. And that night, my mom said, "That was a very good television program." and then she looked at me, her youngest, and asked, "Do you understand what happened on that show?" And then we talked about it, all of us (sans my oldest brother and sister, who were busy being in college) and the tv faded into the background noise, as we talked about loss. My dad had somewhat recently lost his mom, who I didn't know that well, but dad talked and helped mom explain to me why the characters acted the way they did. It wasn't like that was my introduction to death as a child (It had been a year since the The Transformers The Movie had killed off lots of my favorite toy characters along with Optimus Prime), but it was the first time all of us were together when something happened, even if it was just on TV. The night wore on, and I laid on the big couch with my dad and I fell asleep like kids do. It was a good night. Thanks for making this video, it's one of _your_ Best Eps.

[@tvsbesteps]

What a wonderful and touching story. Thank you for sharing it. And for your kind words.

[@mishmashmedley]

@@tvsbesteps thank you.

[@1SpicyMeataball]

🫢😐🤨😆🤣

[@mishmashmedley]

@@1SpicyMeataball what's your deal?

[@craigorlikowski2507]

#2 pleeeeeeease!, #1!!

[@richardnguyen6359]

This was the Golden Era of family television sitcoms and I’m just glad I was able to experience it.

[@QueenRenne]

Yes 🥰💯

[@LinkRocks]

And we can experience it again now that there's a 24/7 Family Ties channel online plus the entire series.

[@richardnguyen6359]

@@LinkRocks I watch reruns of it on Tubi!! So cool!

[@LB-gz3ke]

The part of his therapy that i always remember is when he is asked about his father. Alex often mocks how much of an old hippie Steven is during the show. But when the therapist asks if he considers his dad weak, Alex defends him immediately. You can see how much he loves and respects his father.

[@spritezero79]

I love when he said, I wish I was more like my father. 😢

[@anastasiosgkotzamanis5277]

-Alex, do you believe in God? -I dont want to talk about my father.

[@derp8575]

Kids of Liberal fathers usually defend them. It happened to my siblings.

[@bostonrailfan2427]

@@derp8575the old “i don’t agree with what you say but i’ll defend your right to say it” at play…

[@derp8575]

@@bostonrailfan2427 My parents and siblings don't like free speech. They can't even handle a political disagreement.

[@fredtyler8925]

It felt like a Broadway show Michael j Fox is just amazing

[@claytonbouldin9381]

I remembered this when it originally aired. Man, I'm getting old!

[@spikeoramathon]

Ditto, but getting older is the better than the alternative...

[@SirHumphrey498]

yeah me too , we aint teenagers no more

[@TimeVextorX]

I know how you feel I remember when it aired in 87 I was in Junior High.

[@TimeVextorX]

​@@SirHumphrey498Yeah I miss being one a little bit.

[@mcbane89]

I was 7/8 at the time. Never forgot this episode

[@theincrediblemisternobody8724]

I was eight years old when the episode first aired. I said "this wasn't exactly a Family Ties episode" to my dad. "Well, it is exactly your bedtime," he retorted.

[@JimmyDThing]

This comment is gold. I'm still chuckling several minutes later.

[@lifewithlee6298]

Good comeback 😅 from your dad , what did you watch next

[@kaglekoa]

That is such a dad thing to say lol

[@JimmyDThing]

Still making me laugh. Happy father's day to your dad.

[@RogueBoyScout]

that retort is peak Dad... LOL

[@MaximumWarp2099]

I still remember watching this episode when it originally aired. That “Why am I alive??!!” line has stayed with me ever since. It was like a punch in the gut.

[@paradoxical_taco]

Yes! An apt description of that line. This is an episode of TV from the 80s that every so often, I randomly think about, ot was that powerful. And when I think about it, that’s the first part that comes to my mind.

[@kendallrivers1119]

Truly one of the greatest episodes of any television show made! Michael EARNED that freaking emmy that year! I hold it up as the gold standard for doing an episode where a character goes to therapy and goes through a deep analysis of their life and who they are. Only one other show came close to this: Hey Arnold's Helga on The Couch.

[@tvsbesteps]

I agree but would argue “Maude Bares Her Soul” and Bojack’s “Free Churro” are up there as well.

[@kendallrivers1119]

@@tvsbesteps Ah, good picks. I would also say the King of Queens "Shrink Wrap" episode was great stuff as well.

[@tvsbesteps]

Will def check that out thanks!

[@kendallrivers1119]

​@@tvsbestepsanytime 👍

[@tvsbesteps]

Just finished “Shrink Wrap”. Great episode with Ben Stiller playing his father’s father and a nice surprise appearance by Stiller’s Broadway pal William Hurt. Thanks for the rec!

[@imopman]

Micheal J Fox was a brilliant versatile actor who had already done great comedy and drama. He was just starting to hit the most productive time in an actors life when Parkinson’s struck. I miss watching his tremendous talent and wish we could have seen much more of his art.

[@bassboi2001]

I was too young to understand the emotional connection of these sitcoms. Now that I'm 46 years old, I understand and it brings a tear to my eyes 😭😭

[@coachwhitford7315]

Back when TV was still purposeful and wholesome.

[@PincoPallino-zh8wm]

It still is. But our nostalgia makes us blind and we don't want to see what's out there today. There are some great TV shows, mixed it with a lot of garbage of course (though there was garbage back then too, just not as much).

[@coachwhitford7315]

@@PincoPallino-zh8wm lol, nostalgia doesn't make us blind, the majority of what's on is crap so no one bothers to watch TV any longer. That's too bad for any shows you may be referring to, whatever they are.

[@Agent_1701-D]

I remember that episode. It felt like it was straight out of theatre. Very well written and executed.

[@PaperbackWriter92]

It really did, especially Part 2 and I had no idea that the staging in it was actually modeled after a real play-- "Our Town" like the video mentioned. I'm not familiar with "Our Town" as a play but when I had watched "A My Name is Alex" before, the stage play like setup of Part 2 was something that stuck in my memory.

[@MrUndersolo]

I remember this... I was a fan of the show, but I did not expect this...and it made me give Mr. Fox and co. a lot of respect!

[@AndrewKendall71]

I was 16 when this aired. I was stunned and profoundly moved. So so well done, it's hard to imagine it was considered such a risk internally. Brilliant.

[@nancymcmonarch]

In May, 1987 my one and only baby brother was murdered. He was only 23. To this day, I can't hear "What would we do, baby, without us?" and not cry. Love, love, love Michael J. Fox, particularly now that my bright, beautiful Mama's stuck in a baked-potato body with that damned Parkinson's. Life just ain't right sometimes.

[@scottjeune154]

Send my love to your mama

[@nancymcmonarch]

@@scottjeune154 Awww, ain't you precious? 💞💞💞 Will do. Thank you so much.

[@joemasters2270]

Man I remember this episode. This was one of the greatest shows ever.

[@gutenbird]

MJF had so much charisma.

[@richardjohnson9543]

Some people mock the Very Special Episodes, but the truth is that most were very good and modern sitcoms are no longer capable of this

[@vintvarner16]

I love the one with Tom Hanks as the alcoholic uncle

[@Supernautiloid]

This was back when TV was still mostly televised theater, and not the crass foolishness that passes for television now.

[@powerofk]

Right. The problem honestly came when they were overdone (Blossom had so many “Very Special Episodes” that they lost their impact). But Very Special Episodes worked when the writers of a show had an important message they needed to tell, often because of real life happening to the writers.

[@lifewithlee6298]

They stick with you better than a lifetime movie

[@FrenkTheJoy]

I really don't think most of them are good. Most of them handle their subject matter is a really offputting way. I mean remember the very special episode of Silver Spoons (or was it Mr. Belvedere?) where the kid says he has AIDs and the audience busts a gut laughing?

[@mechajay3358]

This episode really showcases Fox's skill as an actor.

[@scottbourret1190]

This aired my senior year of high school in a small rural community. We lost a class friend from a neighboring school at the start of the school year and then lost a classmate right before graduation both due to auto accidents. I recall this episode being very impactful to some of us because to the proximity of events.

[@mishmashmedley]

"impactful" I see what you did there. 😉 (yes, i know it's not funny when people die, but that's part of how we humans deal with things like that, we make jokes to help us get through it)

[@The_Deaf_Aussie]

I was a young boy then... and family ties was the house must see show.,we never missed an episode. And that episode, stunned us. I remember we were all quiet, in deep thoughts for a while before dad said "well.. that one will be hard to beat...." and got up, walked to the tv set, and turned it off...

[@amandagardner565]

your dad sounds like a smart man, he probably also wanted you (and any others watching with you) to THINK about what you saw and not be distracted by whatever else was on TV afterwards. G'day from another Aussie, i never saw this as i was 20 and running around drinking and whatever, i really wish i had seen it then.

[@henrywallacesghost5883]

I was a little kid when this episode aired and even then I understood how strong Fox's performance was in that episode.

[@kurtb8474]

This episode touched me as it did many. Just 7 years before, I lost my best friend to an auto accident. I was deeply crushed. I remember having a kind of hope that he would come knocking at my door telling me it was all a big mistake. That he didn't die.

[@wylierichardson-tu6zs]

that sounds like the 'denial' stage of grief. I am sorry you lost your friend.

[@darkangel_1978]

I can identify with what Goldberg went through. I lost my parents less than 2 weeks apart, both to suicide. He handled his parents deaths better than I did. I pretty much stayed in bed, for 9 months. I only ever got out of bed to eat, shower, or go to the bathroom. I had my husband worried, and my two best friends worried, because I just wanted to sleep the days away. I eventually got help with a therapist, and that helped me immensely.

[@robertlevine2827]

OMMFG. I am stunned that you are even able to write this comment. I'm glad you had the strength to get help and continue with your life. G-d bless.

[@darkangel_1978]

@@robertlevine2827 thank you. Today is the 9th anniversary of my Mom passing. I miss them daily, and I cry if I need to. My therapist was a godsend. She helped me through the toughest times. Also having good family and good friends, helped too. My husband has been my rock through it all, and I am forever grateful. Two years after I lost my parents, I had my daughter, and about 6 years after they passed, I had my son. Those two help keep me going as well.

[@darkangel_1978]

@@robertlevine2827 thank you for that. I'm able to function thanks to therapy, friends, family, and my husband and kids.

[@Nerdlord14]

i was born 92" i didnt grow up with this show.. but i found it years later and this was the first episode(s) i ever saw it hit me hard :(

[@treychilton]

"A little cough, a little sniffle, you walk in and say 'I have malaria give me some hot chocolate" I thought that was one of the funniest lines ever. That and Alex questioning the psychiatrist's intelligence because of where he got his degree.

[@daveassanowicz186]

Still remember the episode from when it first aired. Alex can tell the difference in coins by hearing them drop

[@kyliedadify]

Was it ' Two quarters, three dimes and a nickel".?

[@widmerwonderland]

That was hilarious! I always remembered that part! 😂

[@2099EK]

"The soft squish of a dollar bill."

[@Lex-up6mg]

several moments in Michael j Fox made me cry on that show. Hes so great always and ever

[@HappyBanjo-oc3pc]

A My Name Is Alex is without a doubt the best Family Ties episode ever.

[@jtaldrich]

It's number two - 4 RMS OCN VU is a true comedic masterpiece. There's a kangaroo in my living room is maybe the greatest line ever. But this is true theater that hasn't been duplicated on TV since.

[@brianarbenz1329]

I honestly had not heard about this, and I knew Gary David Goldberg only by name. This was a wonderful and enlightening look at this. Both Gary and Michael are great people!

[@tvsbesteps]

Thanks!

[@lawdogwales5921]

Yeah, I never watched TV in the 80s and never saw this show or this episode. It's nice to learn there was something good on the boob tube.

[@Statsy10]

This definitely hit me hard as a kid. A great moment in TV history.

[@spiritfilledlife79]

I remember at 7 years old watching this and thinking "man, this guy can act!"

[@nickcutrone8743]

I remember watching this episode live and having tears. Every few years I go back and watch this episode and I still cry.

[@fasillimerick7394]

"We can tell you're nervous, so take the night before taping off. Just prepare, and relax". "Oh, and Steven Spielberg will be in the front row".

[@carlosyamara]

I remember this episode like it was yesterday, I still believe it would have worked even better if we had actually met his friend in past episodes. It would have hit so much more if it had been someone we, the audience, also knew.

[@gunkyzip]

yea, that was a pretty big gaping hole in continuity there

[@JamesRobinson-z3c]

I agree, but also in a way feel like if we had a deeper connection with a new friend the episode might’ve been too real for people. And we would be dealing with our own emotions instead of focusing on Alex’s.

[@ystrw]

@@JamesRobinson-z3c That's a very good point. This was about seeing it through his eyes, but also of being on the outside, as his parents and sister were. They knew the kid, but they didn't have the connection; we didn't even know the kid. So we felt his grief, but we also felt the helpless dismay at how hard he was taking it.

[@cisio64123]

This was the one common criticism that some people had with the episode. They felt that if Greg was such a close friend of Alex then he would have been mentioned at least in passing before ..like Alex briefly saying he and Greg are going somewhere. Alex having this close childhood BFF who we had never known about or heard of seemed kind of contrived story telling. The answer to that is that the show was "Family" Ties and about the family. The the kids friends or interactions with others weren't mentioned or shown unless a situation merited it or pertained to the family like neighbor Skippy or their love interests . The family knew Greg as Alex's friend and a part of his life but he wasn't a " Family " friend or a part of the family's lives like Skippy was. This fits with the family knowing Greg but not being as torn up by his loss as Alex would be and why he would not have been mentioned in the show ...until he passed which affected Alex so deeply it then affected the whole family. I do think it's good we didn't know Greg to be attached to him so we experienced Alex's grief ..which is what the episode was about .

[@brianmcg321]

This confused me at the time. I kept thinking “who is this guy”.

[@c.m.8158]

I was eight years old and remember my whole family being in tears during this episode. It was huge! Such a groundbreaking episode for such an amazing show.

[@HistoricLife]

My family where part of the 36 million. The 80s had some amazing episodes of dramady

[@PaperbackWriter92]

I'm 32 so 'Family Ties" was before my time but I'm familiar with it because a cable channel (Antenna TV) in my subscription package airs reruns and it was also released on DVD so I own the fifth season with "A My Name is Alex.". Despite not being able to remember when it originally aired, even I can't deny that it was a stellar episode and Michael J. Fox's acting left me speechless.

[@mollietenpenny4093]

I saw it on Antenna TV too! It's also available on regular antenna TV too. However, the TV signal at my last apartment was terrible so the signal came in a bit glitchy.😅

[@charleskadletc2431]

Family Ties was the bedt program in the 70s. Fox was awesome in the show and an "ACE" ACTOR. He makes everything GOLD.

[@duchess_of_petty9323]

80’s

[@ASmith-jn7kf]

He put his heart into that episode, amazing.

[@ebinrock]

Michael J. Fox is such a great actor, and this is by far his greatest performance IMO.

[@soulgirl66]

I agree!

[@soulgirl66]

I remember watching this. MJF was absolutely BRILLIANT! The whole episode was just wonderful

[@babsywoman4212]

Wow! Beautifull story behind the episode! I remember seeing it as a child.

[@tvsbesteps]

Thanks!

[@ldylkr]

I still remember this episode. It's still one of my favorites. In some ways, it changed me forever.

[@insanitypepper1740]

I remember this episodse. Justine Bateman's acting is actually brilliant during Alex's breakdown scene. She reacts just as a normally bratty sister would when suddenly shocked to see her sibling in actual serious pain.

[@jeremytheloner]

I watched this and recorded it the night it aired, and it's stayed with me ever since. It was broken up into two episodes and heavily edited in syndication, so after I lost that original VHS tape I never saw its TRUE version ever again. Michael J. Fox was outstanding. This was the first video of yours that I've seen, and it was good enough to earn an immediate subscription to your channel. Bravo, sir. 👏👏👏

[@tvsbesteps]

Thank you!

[@AngryMutGuy]

I've seen this episode a few times. Once during Saturday detention it was required that we watch this episode and give a written report about it. Saturday detention sucked but I didn't mind it that day.

[@BeaXRSmith]

I don't remember a lot of Family Ties outside of bits and pieces. This episode I remember vividly. I was fifteen and had just lost three family friends in the previous year. This episode actually helped.

[@davefordavefor]

This is one of the best KZbin videos I have ever seen. Well done. Family Ties is one of the best sitcoms. They obviously had great writing and the cast was perfect. I was fortunate enough to see it when it aired. Now, I may want to watch it again.

[@tvsbesteps]

Thank you! That means a lot!

[@davefordavefor]

@@tvsbesteps you’re welcome.

[@kevinramsey417]

This was a weird episode but it made people stand up and take notice of Michael J. Fox.

[@michaeljordan6008]

I didn’t like it.

[@Captainscentsable44]

​@@michaeljordan6008 a younger me.didnt like it either. But now I get it. Especially with all my problems .and losing so many friends and family

[@davewebbtheauthor]

Before this episode I thought Fox was a really good actor. After this episode I thought he was a great actor.

[@iMisanthrope]

Easily my favorite episode in television history! I managed to record this on VHS and I wore out the tape re-watching it. 🏆🍾

[@lindalochirco2921]

This is one of my favorite episodes. It was so awesome and so powerful so sad. To this day this is my favorite family ties episode.

[@heartofjesusdj]

Ditto

[@Steve-ef5pj]

I vividly remember watching this episode when it first aired. I was amused by it's humor and stunned by it's seriousness. I have watched the episode numerous times since them and I always laugh and always get tears in my eyes. What more can I ask for in one television episode?

[@Simmer4Decades]

What a great idea! Focusing on the extraordinary episodes is genius. This was a powerful one. Thanks!

[@tvsbesteps]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@kpag3030]

This was a great episode. Family Ties had a few emotionally strong episodes. Another good one from Growing Pains is when Matthew Perry’s character died. Tracy Gold really tapped into something real in that one.

[@splatypus-8573]

I had this taped on vhs and watched it many times. Still makes me tear up.

[@NelsonStJames]

The days when television actually took chances, and the suits were smart enough and gutsy enough to go with it.

[@gaspartiznado6418]

I saw this episode. Very heartbreaking, and MJF’s best performance.

[@leonardvicari2857]

I watched the episode when it Aired I was 21 years old a great episode the 80s were a great decade .

[@timcross2510]

If you were 20 in 1980 and trying to get a job while 20 percent interest rates and inflation that was 4 times wages, it was not a great decade. Cocaine and Reagan got us through it

[@samanthakennedy9514]

Real emotions through this one !!! Me being in my 30's just learn how much the Alex finally got how he could learn how to deal with death . even seeing the family in a whole different way

[@317Chris]

This episode really shaped my empathy as a kid. It hit me really hard, (in a good way) just realizing that people with hopes, dreams, plans, can just...end. We don't think about this enough.

[@ermannodifederico7820]

Brilliant performance 👏

[@Robster-1970]

Michael did an amazing job. I remember wanting to BE Alex when I was a teenager. This is a great and informative video. I have always been a huge fan of Michael and I learned things here.

[@tvsbesteps]

Glad you liked it!

[@MrZombiejoe]

“Sit, Ubu, Sit… Good Dog!!!” Never Forget!!!

[@finnmcginn9931]

In Michael J Fox's home country of Canada the episode was named "My Name is Alex, Eh"

[@tvsbesteps]

Ok that’s funny.

[@KariIzumi1]

Bruh 😂

[@cs292]

🇨🇦

[@MichaelWaisJr]

On both the Joey Buttafouco and Andrew Dice Clay networks, the episode was named, “My Name Is Alex- ‘Eeeeeyy!!”

[@TheJasonaut]

Great video! Fox was my idol as a kid, and while I actually don’t remember this episode, I watched a lot of Family Ties and this was a cool trip to the past.

[@tvsbesteps]

Thanks!

[@JasonSmith-vj1de]

Alan Uger won an Emmy for writing for Family ties that year.

[@tvsbesteps]

That’s true!

[@RageTVHTX]

Such a great and memorable episode. I remember watching it in my room the night it aired. Saw it again on PlutoTV Family Ties channel not too long ago and it holds up. Still very moving

[@mollietenpenny4093]

I remember seeing this episode on TV a few months ago. It was halfway through the episode when I saw it. I had been keeping the TV on for background noise but I became invested in the show. The episode really resonated with me since I lost my dad when I was a teenager. My mom didn't really believe that we needed grief counseling so I didn't go to a therapist until I was in my mid-twenties. Sometimes talking to family and friends is good, praying is also good too,but sometimes you need to talk to someone who isn't connected to your family. A therapist can help you find ways to process your grief in a healthy way. A,My Name is Alex was definitely ahead of its time.

[@conscientiousobserver8772]

I remember watching this show and it is this episode that still sticks with me. Bravo!

[@cwstiles85]

This is one of the best videos I've ever seen on KZbin! I've loved this episode of FT forever and you had me in tears at the end! Take a bow!

[@tvsbesteps]

Thanks so much!

[@spritezero79]

As many times as I've seen this episode in 35 plus years, I cry everytime.

[@BrickBuildersMD]

Wow you just gave me such a blast from past, and also made me feel so old😂, I very much remember sitting on living room floor with my whole family watching this episode, my step mom was crying, this episode HIT

[@Joshua_Froschauer]

Bring back this stuff man...the love the fear the hate the humor the existential Crisis and done with sincerity and actual ponderings instead of moral cudgels telling one how to be

[@alisoncanty1894]

I remember watching that episode with my parents. It was so heavy. I was halfway through 6th grade.

[@pablosonic892]

Yeah, it was a really inspired idea. An hour long episode I remember with the first half playing out like a regular 3 Act sitcom structure with usual commercial slot times at Act breaks. Then somewhere at the 30 minute mark when the bottom falls out from the story and Alex has his emotional meltdown and the show immediately goes from easy listening family comedy hour to a Tennessee Williams tragic cautionary tale and morality play. When it comes back from the especially long commercial break, the rest of the show's half hour run time is blocked and choreographed in minimalist stage sets a la 'Our Town' and plays out with ZERO commercials till the end of the episode. I waited to watch your content to see how much I get right from a 40 year (!) ago episode I saw at 16 years old. But, it was truly Fox's finest hour and showed what he was really capable of and his true impressive dramatic chops and range as a performer. At the time, Hollywood industry types were questioning why he stuck around on the series after BTTF made him the biggest star in the world. The answer was Goldberg and Michael J. W something who was the head writer at some point and wrote season 4's two partner The Real Thing where Alex meets the love of both their lives, Ellen (Tracy Poland). This is the two part episodes that blew my teen mind hole and study sitcom and screenplay writing as an obsessive hobby. A, My Name Is Alex clearly was the show's peak at quality and excellence. There was no way you were going to top an existential crisis about life, love, creation, fate, free-will and if God exists. One joke my friends and I still will break out to this day is from this episode. The off camera faceless voice only psychiatrist and Alex's back and forth jostling till the perpetually pompous Alex looks on the Psychiatrist's wall at his framed degree and interrupts the soul searching sessions to incredulously ask, 'Whoa, whoa, wait a second here. You got your medical degree from Grant college?' 'Oh, you've heard of it?' (smugly) 'Yeah. Oh yeah, I've heard of it. My sister Mallory goes there.' 'You can get a fine education there.' 'Oh, I'm sure. Grant College. Where they offer a course on how to open umbrellas.' (a beat) 'I got an A in that!' That last mic drop line from the disembodied psychiatrist always killed us. Still does. Now I gotta go rewatch it. Thanks for doing this and putting it out into the world. Shaa-La-laaaa!

[@tvsbesteps]

Great memory! Thanks for sharing!

[@mlk27743]

The scene goes like this: "Wait a minute... You went to Grant College?" "That's Right!" "Maybe you weren't pretending.... Maybe you don't know anything." "How do you know Grant College?" "My sister Mallory goes there" the other scene "You know what's bothering me... I mean really really bothering me.... some... something I'm having a very difficult time getting past." "What's that!" "I'M PAYING YOU FOR THIS! I'm paying you to sit there and listen to me.... I'm paying a guy from Grant College to sit & listen to my life story & give me advice..... Grant College a school that gives a course on opening umbrella's."

[@darthvirgin7157]

M.A.S.H. broke the mould for a sitcom that goes to exploring such topics. but this FT episode was definitely one of the most memorable.

[@jadall77]

I still think it is cool that he didn't stop filming family ties when he did back to the future he did both at the same time. Them saying Back to the future was almost all filmed at night as they worked around his family ties schedule. He was 18 for real too I think.

[@hharden4969]

I absolutely love this two-part episode! The beauty behind it and Alex’s character really connects well to anyone who watches it, so well done in it’s storytelling🙌🏻Definitely Michael’s finest hour on this show

[@smittysmeee]

This channel is underrated. You do very good work. I feel like I got to know people who were, in a superficial way, a part of my life. It's neat.

[@tvsbesteps]

I appreciate that!

[@spikeoramathon]

this really hit me hard when I saw it at original airing. It was beautiful and poignant and game-changing.

[@jeremiahrose4681]

I have the series and am currently watching it, I have about a season left. Yes, saw this episode and it was as impactful as much as I saw it as a teen when it first aired.

[@CCNutritionist]

This episode aired at about the same time that Northwest flight 255, a big 747, crashed on takeoff in Detroit, killing everyone on board except for a very young girl. It was a huge news story in Detroit and in Windsor where I grew up. I remember watching this episode with my mother and when Alex was exclaiming, "Why am I alive??" my mother was brought to tears and said to me, "That's what that poor little girl is going to go through."

[@hattorihanzo2275]

The girl was in a documentary, Sole Survivor. My grandparents lived on Middlebelt in Garden City yet I have no memories of the crash as a kid.

[@thorinbane]

Funny I don't remember the crash, but I do remember the concord at Windsor airport

[@melaniemills4505]

I was at my parents house when that crash happened. Their house was in the subdivision behind the airport. I heard the impact...I thought it was thunder. My mother saw the fireball reflected in her bedroom mirror...☹️

[@simonssays78]

Sit UBU sit, good dog!

[@MarkLewis...]

I was in awe over that episode. I have suffered and battled MMD my whole life, and up until that Family Ties episode, whenever depression or mental illness was on TV or in the movies, the person was always portrayed as some stupid, crazy, and violent person, or an antisocial hobo. But to have Alex Keaton, an intelligent go-getter, have to deal with trauma, and fail to cope to the point of needing professional help was, admittedly... "a clean, well-lighted and warm, safe place... it was like walking into a hug". And my mother used to sing- "Where is Thumpkin..." to me, before... Well, I too will never feel like that again.

[@crgray1979]

This episode and when Steven have his heart attack are best family ties episode

[@freethebirds3578]

We did not regularly watch Family Ties (or any sitcoms, really) but I remember that episode airing. Alex and his friend singing the Doors is what I remember best.

[@jmodic]

I had forgotten this episode, But after seeing this I remembered. It was one of the most profound things I ever saw.

[@nancyt2848]

I remember this episode well. I am also a big fan of Brian McNamara so I was excited to see it. They did such a great job with telling that story.

[@anadverb5063]

Excellent essay.

[@tvsbesteps]

Thank you!

[@Ruggedystim]

I just seen these and it was still just as good. Btw I wasn't alive when it aired the first time. But I have older brothers and one had a cat named Michael j Fox.... Do I need to say more?

[@vinceventresca6763]

Even when it originally aired, I was not surprised at just how good this episode was. Family Ties was one of those shows that you could just sit back and admire the Writing, it was that good. The cast, too, was perfect. In the seasons prior to this episode, there were many times that Family Ties successfully straddled the line between Comedy and Drama, and doing it so well that I believed the term Sitcom was underselling the show. This “Why?” aspect of this episode haunted me for a long time, most likely due to the fact that I was four years into a deep Depression (I didn’t know it, though; I just figured that I was Useless and deserved my misery) at the point it originally aired. A little over a year later, the fallout from a near-death experience, that included an official Depression Diagnosis, allowed me to get the help I needed. I’ve watched “A, my name is Alex” a number of times over the years, and there’s a part of me that still identifies with Alex’s questions about life and his views of those around him. TV can be so great sometimes, it’s actually breathtaking, and this particular Family Ties is one of those times.

[@ImDBatty1]

What a video to watch on Father's Day, 8 months to the day, almost to the hour, that my father passed... 🥺 In the words of another Micheal J. Fox great role, "this is heavy!" 🥺

[@crgray1979]

Thursday night was must see tv on nbc

[@PeterM8987]

This was my favourite show while growing up in the 1980's.

[@blackphoenix77]

I remember this episode and I remember reading the TV Guide "close up" feature on it before it aired. When it basically turned into a one man play, I was shocked; I'd never seen anything like that on TV at the time. I think about this one a lot: impressive that it has this much staying power with me after all these years.

[@teijaflink2226]

The 80s had so much creativity.

[@lgmnowkondo938]

I never thought this was a particularly good episode...but I think I should reconsider now.

[@puppetsnob]

With theaters closing down left and right, and TV writing not getting a chance to shine, episodes like this need to live on as the top of human creativity.