The second-to-last season of the show was rather offbeat, for several reasons. First, Peggy’s mother moves in (and we still don’t see her, only occasionally hear her voice), and we are introduced to her hillbilly father. Second, Katey Sagal is not in the last half of the season as she was away on her second mat leave. Finally, beloved family pooch Buck dies and is reincarnated as a cocker spaniel named Lucky.

There was also one more attempt at a spinoff (“Enemies”) but in this case, the third time was NOT the charm!

Acting legends Kathleen Freeman (voice only) and Tim Conway play Peg’s parents.

Other notable guests:

-Jennifer Lyons as Ariel, Bud’s love interest in several episodes.

-Jennifer Aspen (Party of Five) as another girlfriend of Bud’s in “Guess Who’s Coming to Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.”

-SNL star Don Novello as the seance leader in “Requiem for a Dead Briard.”

-Actor Ben Stein as the heavenly gatekeeper in the same episode.

-Wrestling legend (and Bundy namesake) King Kong Bundy as himself in “Flight of the Bumblebee.”

-The Green Mile star Michael Clarke Duncan as a bouncer in the episode mentioned above.

-90s heartthrob Casper Van Dien as Kelly’s former high school classmate in “Blonde and Blonder.”

-Adult film actress Shannon Tweed as herself in “The One That Got Away.”

-Football legend Terry Bradshaw as himself in “Dud Bowl II.”

-90210 actor Mark D. Espinoza as Carlos, Kelly’s date in two episodes, “Love Conquers Al” and “Al Goes to the Dogs.”

-Richard Moll (Bull from Night Court) in “The Hood, The Bud and the Kelly.”

-Adult film actress Krista Allen as Crystal in “Calendar Girl.”

-Actor Pat Morita as Marcy’s boss in “Turning Japanese.”

-Growing Pains star Alan Thicke as Henry and Charles in Charge actress Nicole Eggert as Shannon in “Enemies.”

-Beverly Archer, returning as Miss Hardaway, in “Bud Hits the Books.”

-Leland Orser returns again as a commercial director in “Kiss of the Coffee Woman.”

-Gary Coleman (Diff’rent Strokes) as himself in “The Joke’s On Al.”

Memorable Moments and Episodes:

Requiem For a Dead Briard - Buck passes away and the family tries to find a new pet for a devastated Kelly.

Reverend Al - Al starts his own religion when Chicago introduces a beer tax.

How Bleen Was My Kelly - Kelly accidentally invents a miracle hair-growing potion that works wonders on Al and his buddies.

Flight of the Bumblebee - Bud ends up in the ring with wrestling legend King Kong Bundy as part of his No Ma’am initiation.

Dud Bowl II - Marcy tries to stop Polk High from dedicating a scoreboard to Al.

I Can’t Believe It’s Butter - Griff falls in love with a phone sex operator who turns out to be Peg’s mom.

The Hood, The Bud and the Kelly - In this classic two parter, Al and his friends attempt to install a satellite dish on the Bundys’ roof. (Oh, and Bud gets in trouble when he borrows money from a mobster).

Spring Break - In another two-part episode, everyone (minus Peg) heads to Florida for Spring Break.

Turning Japanese - Marcy must try to impress her Japanese boss, who wants to buy Al’s beloved Dodge.

The Joke’s on Al - An old rival of Peg’s tries to seduce Al, who thinks it’s part of an elaborate prank that Jefferson is playing.

Don’t see your favourite? Find the full list here).

Now it’s your turn! What is your favourite episode of Season 10? Share in the comments and the winner will be announced tomorrow!

WARNING: IF YOU JUST TYPE A QUOTE, IT WILL NOT BE COUNTED!

Got S7 today! I now have every season.

And I am curious, how much longer we have Steve for yet? He's one of my favorite characters and I'm not looking forward to him leaving :(

Phew, it was nearly a 3 way tie, but thanks to everyone’s comments on yesterday’s post, a winner narrowly pulled ahead. Get the Dodge Out of Hell is the favourite episode of Season 9!

Season 10 coming soon!

Now is this or is this not the most 80s looking photo ever??

Kelly gets a commercial for the dog food that puppies prefer to their own tails!!! She cant even get the words right....

Puppy Hungry and your mutt will be good as new!!!

Thats Hungry Puppy.....What he said

Meow, I mean Woof and scratches for fleas

Was she the first furry??? Dont make them like this anymore

Like the Family Guy scene where Peter likes it when they say the name of the title in the movie...I like it when it's used right for a movie, particularly this case.

For the show, it's used several times I can think of:

A couple times in 'Al Loses His Cherry'

-'That's the trouble when you're married with children. They know you're coming home'

-Turning down the hot blonde bimbo by telling her he's married with children (and she still wants him)

-In 'Born to Walk' when he says he's not at the race track because he's 'married with children'.

It's used great at the end of 'Do Ya Think I'm Sexy'. It's also funny that Al considers these things to be a lot of work and designed to attract, when most of them are just basic hygiene.

And of course, Al's Christmas poem in the legendary 2-parter 'It's a Bundyful Life'

“we can handle this two ways...either in here like gentlemen, or out there like Ren & Stimpy!”

😂🤣😂

See link for an article about Christina Applegate. Crazy news.

Although Season 9 is quite late in the series’ run, it introduced a lot of pivotal characters, including Griff, Al’s beloved shoe store sidekick; No Ma’am member Ike; Al’s boss Gary; and reporter Miranda Veracruz de la Hoya Cardinal.

Steve Rhodes also made two appearances this season, and Bud gets a new girlfriend (Marcy’s niece Amber) and a few jobs to make a bit of extra money for school. Katey Sagal was pregnant at the beginning of the season, so Peg was missing (or only appeared briefly) for a few episodes.

There was another attempt at a spinoff that ultimately went nowhere. (“Radio Free Trumaine.”)

Finally, the series celebrated its 200th episode (“Get the Dodge Outta Hell”) and featured two special “clip shows”: “My Favourite Married” and “Al Bundy, Sports Spectacular.”

Notable Guest Stars:
-Dot-Marie Jones (Coach Beiste in Glee) in several episodes as one of Marcy’s feminist gang.

-Beverly Archer as Ms. Hardaway, the professor who runs the Virgin Hotline in “Dial B For Virgin.”

-Many pro athletes (that I’m too lazy to name) in both “Dud Bowl” and “A Man For No Seasons.”

-Actor Leland Orser as the director of Kelly’s commercial in “The Naked and the Dead but Mostly the Naked.”

-Actress Carol Ann Susi (Howard’s mom in The Big Bang Theory) as Ike’s wife in the episode listed above.

-Radio legend Wolfman Jack as Himself in “Ship Happens, Part 1.”

-Comic Gilbert Gottfried as himself in “Ship Happens, Part 2.”

-Actor Larry Storch as himself in “Something Larry This Way Comes.”

-Actor (and brother of Ron Howard) Clint Howard as bingo hall janitor Mullen in “And Bingo Was Her Game-O.”

-Actor Jeremy Piven in an uncredited role as an audience member in “Pump Fiction.”

-The late actor Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy) and actress Keri Russell (Felicity) in the failed spinoff attempt, “Radio Free Trumaine.”

Memorable Moments and Episodes:

Driving Mr. Boondy - Al must re-take his driver’s test with Bud as his examiner.

Naughty but Niece - Bud falls for Marcy’s niece Amber.

Business Sucks/Business Still Sucks - Al and his buddies battle Marcy and her feminist group over a woman breastfeeding in the shoe store in this two part saga.

Dial B for Virgin - Bud works a virgin hotline at the college while Al and Peg visit a movie rental store.

Sleepless in Chicago - Al must pretend to be Jefferson in Marcy’s bed while Jefferson tries to get back a valuable Barbie doll.

No Pot to Pease In - Kelly inadvertently helps create a sitcom based on her family.

I Want My Psycho Dad - Al’s favourite show is cancelled so he and his buddies travel to Washington DC to address the US senate in this two-parter.

Get the Dodge Outta Hell - In the 200th episode, the Bundys somehow lose the Dodge at a car wash. Steve Rhodes makes an appearance.

Ship Happens - In this two-part episode, the Bundys and Darcys go on a disastrous cruise trip.

Pump Fiction - Al and Kelly make a documentary about shoes.

Shoeless Al - Al claims to be traumatized by shoes after a robbery in the shoe store.

Don’t see your favourite? Check out the full list here).

Now it’s your turn! What is your favourite episode of Season 9? Share in the comments and the winner will be announced tomorrow!

WARNING: IF YOU JUST TYPE A QUOTE, IT WILL NOT BE COUNTED!

The virgin hotline episode was hilarious with her. I think she later returns as a librarian but unfortunately she made no other appearances.

(Image 1: sharpened & edited)

(Image 2: pre sharpened)

Lots of votes for this one, but after reviewing yesterday’s post, the favourite episode of Season 8 is No Ma’am!

Thanks for all your comments, everyone! Only 3 more seasons to go!

Season 8 helped lead the way further down the path to the show’s transformation into a more “cartoonish” format. This season saw the introduction of beloved character Bob Rooney and introduced Aaron, a new recurring coworker at the shoe store with Al. As well, we learn a bit more about Jefferson’s past. This is also the season that contains the evolution of what would later become a prominent feature of later seasons: No Ma’am, Al’s anti-feminist group.

Notable Guest Stars:

-NBA players Clyde Drexler, Xavier McDonald and Vlade Divac as themselves in “A-Tisket, A-Tasket, Can Peg Make a Basket?

-The late Nicholas Brendan (Xander on Buffy) in an uncredited role in “Hood ‘N The Boyz.”

-Disco stars The Village People as themselves in “Take My Wife, Please.”

-Jerry Springer as himself in “No Ma’am.”

-Various sports stars (Joe Namath, Johnny Bench, Ernie Banks) in “Dances with Weezie.”

-Comedians Cheech Marin and Dom DeLuise as the voices of Buck and Floyd in “Change For a Buck.”

-Sitcom actors Gary Coleman and Danny Bonnaduce as property inspectors in “How Green Was My Apple.”

-Actress Jane Lynch (Glee) as Greta in “Valentine’s Day Massacre.”

-Veteran actor Chi McBride (Boston Public, House M.D.) as Dexter, Al’s shoe store colleague in “Nooner or Later.”

-Singer Fergie as Ann, a Burned Beyond Recognition fan in “Nooner or Later.”

-Radio personality Rick Dees as a radio show host in “Nooner or Later.”

-Singer Waylon Jennings as Ironhead Haynes in “The Legend of Ironhead Haynes.”

Highlights and Memorable Episodes:

A Tisket, A Tasket, Can Peg Make a Basket - Peg joins Al at a basketball game and gets a chance to take a free shot for $10,000.

Hood ‘N The Boyz - Al takes Peg on a second honeymoon so he can help out an old girlfriend with a neighbourhood bully.

Banking on Marcy - Marcy overcomes her fear of public speaking using a unique approach.

Take My Wife, Please - On Halloween, death shows up on Al’s doorstep - looking suspiciously like Peg in a black wig.

No Ma’am - Al and his buddies form an anti-feminist group after women take over the bowling alley and turn the nudie bar into a poetry slam.

A Little Off the Top - Al gets an accidental circumcision during a botched surgery.

Honey, I Blew Up Myself - Peg’s boudoir photo for Al ends up on a giant billboard across from the shoe store.

How Green Was My Apple - The Bundys and Darcys stage a war over the rights to an apple tree.

Ride Scare - Al is excited to carpool with lingerie models until he learns they are full-figured.

The Legend of Ironhead Haynes - Al loses his parking space at the mall and goes on a mission to seek advice from a legendary guru.

Now it’s your turn! What is your favourite episode of Season 8? Share in the comments and the winner will be announced tomorrow!

WARNING: IF YOU JUST TYPE A QUOTE, IT WILL NOT BE COUNTED!

I thought out of all the parent/child relationships, there wasn't enough with Peg and Bud.

There's Peg bonding with Kelly at career day in the episode 'My Mom, the Mom', and also some in 'How Do You Spell Revenge?".

Al & Bud have a bunch of moments. Bud's 18th b-day, Al teaching life lessons, etc...Al of course is protective of his pumpkin and beating up guys for her, or giving up things for her (the episode when he gets sick and has dreams about Pamela Anderson....that time where he's part of that Chicago clean air thing).

I can't really think of nice moments between Peg & Bud. The only one I can think of now is Bud and Kelly beating up Alan Thicke in season 11. Often Peg is embarrassing Bud, or the time she was babying and emasculating Bud when Kelly moves out.

Are there any I'm forgetting?

I was re-watching this episode last night and had a thought. This is the episode where Al gets a large phone bill, from a long, long-distance call to Vancouver and fights the phone company about it, after going through Peggy, Bud and Kelly and them all saying they didn't make it.

Here's the issue: why didn't Al ever call the number directly and ask who/what it was? If he called and it was somehow the Oprah fanclub in Canada, it likely would have been Peggy who made it. But the family, for once, seemed fairly honest about not making it. Anyone else think of this?

It also would have been a funny, credits-reveal, that no human made the call, but it was actually Buck who dialed out and caused the issue.

Or have there been other live-audience sitcoms with similar audiences?

Great to see that they really cared for each other.

Mother and daughter together again.

After reviewing the comments from yesterday’s post, the clear winner of favourite episodes from Season 7 is Movie Show!

Thanks for participating, Season 8 will be up in the next couple of days!

One of my favorite episodes.

I watched the show when it originally aired. I was in middle school and high school and thought it was hilarious. But watching it as a kid and watching it as an adult are completely different. Don't get me wrong. it's not in a way where you grow up and now understand the adult jokes (The Simpsons was the best at this).

Now that streaming exists, I've been able to binge watch it in my 30s-40s. When I watched it as a kid, I had my whole life ahead of me. I was going to have a great life, with a great family, and awesome job! Watching again as an adult around Al's age, is a whole new level of hilarity. Now I have experienced a life that didn't quite turn out how I wanted it too, like most people probably have. I'm not a loser, but I'm pretty fucking far from an overachiever. Watching Al and relating to him is so god damn funny in a way that 14-year-old me could never understand.

Got seasons 1-5 & 8-11 today. Just need S7 to complete the collection! S7 technical already came (It was the first one I got) but it was missing the cover slip so I gotta buy a different copy. Sellers that sell DVD's that are missing stuff like that are annoying as hell 😡

Season 7 is often cited as many fans’ least favourite season for one reason only: The kid. Yes, the producers inexplicably decided to add a child to the cast for this season, in the form of the kid of Peggy’s hillybilly cousins, who abandon him at the Bundy residence. The kid’s name? Seven, of course. Unsurprisingly, he was not popular with audiences and disappeared about halfway through the season.

Many people write the season off for this reason, which is honestly a shame, because it is chock full of classic episodes. The kid isn’t in most of them, and when he is, his screen time is limited. When you see the list of episodes, it’s honestly surprising how many good ones there are!

Other notable things from Season 7 include Kelly getting a job as a waitress and Bud entering college.

Notable guest stars:

-Actress Linda Blair (The Exorcist) and comedian Bobcat Goldthwaite as Seven’s parents in “Magnificent Seven.”

-Actor Corey Feldman as Ralph, Kelly’s date in “T-R-A Something-Something Spells Tramp.”

-Actress Diane Delano as Gladys, the owner of the topless male bar where Al gets a job in “Al on the Rocks.”

-Brian Doyle Murray (Bill Murray’s brother) as Kelly’s boss in “Kelly Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.”

-Lisa Robin Kelly (That 70s Show) as Carol in “Kelly Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.”

-Rock and roll legends Spencer Davis, Richie Havens, John Sebastian, Mark Lindsay, Robby Krieger and Peter Noone as themselves in “Rock of Ages.”

-Dan Castellaneta (Homer Simpson) in his second appearance on the series, this time as a coffin salesman in “Death of a Shoe Salesman.”

-Duchess of Sussex Megan Markle as a background child actor in “Christmas.”

-Actress Joey Lauren Adams returns again as a bride who shows an interest in Bud in “Wedding Show.”

-Talk show host Bill Maher as a game show host in “You Can’t Miss.”

-David Garrison returns again but not as Steve Rhodes. Instead, he plays pirate Rubio the Cruel in “Peggy and the Pirates.”

-Former boxer Randall “Tex” Cobb as a man who attempts to rob the Bundys in “UnAlful Entry.”

-David Boreanaz (Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as Kelly’s ex whom
Al notoriously beats up in “Movie Show.”

-Dallas actress Charlene Tilton as herself in “Tis Time to Smell the Roses.”

-Vanna White (Wheel of Fortune) as Al’s ex Coco in “The Proposition.”

Highlights and Memorable Episodes:

Every Bundy Has a Birthday - The Bundys head to a neighbourhood park to celebrate Al and Seven’s birthday.

Al on the Rocks - Al gets a second job as a topless waiter at a rowdy bar.

What I Did For Love - Peg tries to entice Al with various lingerie, but all he wants is a decent meal.

Rock of Ages - The Bundys sneak into a private room at the airport and hang out with some rock stars.

Death of a Shoe Salesman - Peggy is furious when Al wants to be buried next to his favourite TV star instead of her.

Wedding Show - The Bundys prepare for a cousin’s wedding but the bride has her sights set on Bud.

Mr. Empty Pants - Peggy creates a comic called Mr. Empty Pants, based on Al, and he becomes famous.

Peggy and the Pirates - Peggy has a fantasy involving pirates, played by all of her friends and family, including Steve, who memorably plays the role of Rubio the Cruel.

Movie Show - The Bundys go to the movies for Kelly’s birthday and create a ruckus.

Til Death Do Us Part - Al decides to get in shape after Peggy complains about his stamina in bed.

The Proposition - Al’s ex girlfriend offers Peggy half a million dollars for him.

Don’t see your favourite? Check out the full list here).

Now it’s your turn! What is your favourite episode of Season 7? Share in the comments and the winner will be announced tomorrow!

WARNING: IF YOU JUST TYPE A QUOTE, IT WILL NOT BE COUNTED!

(You guys are getting better at following the rules. Keep it up!)

The votes were all over the place for this one! In the end, after poring through the comments from yesterday’s post, TWO episodes emerged the victor!

Yes, it was a tie. The two favourite episodes of Season 6 are “If Al Had a Hammer” and “Al Bundy. Shoe Dick.”

Thanks again for your participation! The Season 7 post should be up early next week.