1st Season
1999-2000
#1 Pilot
#2 Let's Spend the Night Together
#3 The Scarlet Letter Jacket
#4 Liars and Other Strangers
#5 There Be Dragons
#6 A Dream Deferred
#7 The Ex-Files
#8 The Past Is Prologue
 		#9 Outside Hearts
#10 Thanksgiving
#11 Where There's Smoke
#12 The Gingerbread House
#13 Mediation
#14 Sneaky Feelings
#15 The Mystery Dance
#16 Daddy's Girl
 		#17 Unfinished Business
#18 Strangers and Brothers
#19 Cat-in-Hat
#20 My Brilliant Career
#21 Letting Go
#22 A Door, About to Open
Other seasons
1 | 2 | 3
Music by W.G. Snuffy Walden, Supervising editor Ron Rosen, Production designer Stefania Cella, Director of photography Charlie Lieberman, Producer Liberty Godshall, Producer Winnie Holzman, Consulting producer Richard Kramer, Producer Jan Oxenberg, Producers Sue Paige & Daniel Paige, Producer Michael Weller, Producer Dan Lerner, Produced by Peter Schindler, Executive producers Edward Zwick & Marshall Herskovitz

#1 Pilot: Aired Tuesday, September 21, 1999

Rick and Lily meet, he asks her out, and after a pleasant dinner they kiss. They go out bowling on their second date, and find themselves making out in the car. She takes him back to her house since she asked her ex-husband to take her two daughters for the night, but her ex and her kids return as she's making out with Rick in her bra on the couch. Rick's son Eli is failing tests due to a learning disability, and Rick isn't strict enough to make him study. Eli has a wonderful new girlfriend named Jennifer. Lily's oldest daughter Grace thinks she's ugly and can't bring herself to go to a make-out party. Eli tries to be nice to Grace at school since their parents are dating.

top
#2 Let's Spend the Night Together: Aired Tuesday, September 28, 1999

After communication problems, ex-girlfriends, insecurities, and pure terror, Rick and Lily finally sleep together. Rick tries to educate Eli about sex and women before he has sex with Jennifer. Jennifer thinks Eli cheated on her with Grace, when Grace's story about catching Lily and Rick on her living room couch becomes warped by school gossip.

top
#3 The Scarlet Letter Jacket: Aired Tuesday, October 5, 1999

Rick and Lily's families come together at the school carnival. Lily and Karen work the same booth, and Karen is upset when she finally finds out that Lily and Rick are dating and everyone else knew before she did. Rick and Jake work the dunking booth together and are surprisingly cordial. Grace is developing what she knows is a ridiculous crush on Eli, but when she's called on it by older girls in Eli's class she's devastated. While Lily is trying to tell Grace not to worry about what other people think, she herself is getting more and more nervous about the gossip circling about her and Rick. Lily recalls another time, when she was 17, that public opinion kept her from fulfilling her dreams with a boy, and consciously decides to ignore outside opinion.

top
#4 Liars and Other Strangers: Aired Tuesday, October 12, 1999

Rick and Lily are besotted, and spending more and more time together... and more and more time in bed. Judy lets Lily use her apartment for a clandestine meeting, and meets Rick. Rick and Judy immediately don't hit it off. Eli feels the need to protect his mother from his father's new romance, and spins a web of lies that eventually gets him into trouble at school. Grace judges her mother like she judges Jennifer at school, as a slut. But when she realizes that Jennifer is actually pretty cool, she takes a second look around.

top
#5 There Be Dragons: Aired Tuesday, October 19, 1999

Rick is planning his annual fall hike with Jessie, and asks Lily to stop by and meet his daughter for the first time. Not only does Jessie get her period on that day and have to be rushed over to her mom's house, but when they get back and Lily stops by, Rick cuts his finger making sandwiches for the hike. Lily takes Rick and his kids to the emergency room, and gets along with Jessie really well. Everything is going great until Jessie sees Lily kissing Rick goodbye and starts to get very moody. Rick can't understand why Jessie is so upset about Lily since he's dated before, but even Karen can see that it's obvious that Rick feels differently about Lily than he did his past girlfriends. Jessie finally realizes that her parents will never reconcile. Meanwhile, Jake has decided that he wants Lily back, and agrees to go to counseling or do whatever it takes. She keeps resisting him, and finally he spontaneously kisses her, which she resents.

top
#6 A Dream Deferred: Aired Tuesday, October 26, 1999

Between her washing machine breaking, Judy wanting to put a coffee bar in the bookstore and Jake not paying the mortgage on time, suddenly Lily finds herself concerned about money. Lily asks Jake for a formal written financial agreement. Rick ends up building the coffee bar at the bookstore, and Lily is afraid that she's just finding someone new to take care of her. When Lily and Judy war over the whether to build the coffee bar, who should build it, and general sisterly relations, Judy threatens to leave the store to go film commercials.

top
#7 The Ex-Files: Aired Tuesday, November 2, 1999

Rick and Karen go away together with their kids to watch Eli play in a basketball tournament. When Eli injures himself making a game-winning shot, he is frustrated that he can't play the next game. His frustration is mirrored in that of his parents watching each other move on with their lives. Lily tries to relish her weekend alone with Rick away and her kids staying with Jake, but she ends up stressing about Rick being with Karen. Jake's girlfriend Tiffany spends the weekend with him and his daughters, and Zoe likes her while Grace freaks out and finally calls her mom to come take her home. Karen gives her phone number to Lloyd, a guy she's not interested in at all, simply to make a point to Rick.

top
#8 The Past Is Prologue: Aired Tuesday, November 9, 1999

Bad memories from their marriages surface for both Lily and Rick when Rick is suddenly consumed by work and doesn't have time to spend with Lily. Eli is frustrated and feels stupid when he studies his ass off and still fails an English test.

top
#9 Outside Hearts: Aired Tuesday, November 16, 1999

Lily goes out of town for the weekend on business and leaves Judy in charge of her daughters. Rick drives out of town to meet Lily at her hotel room Friday night. Grace and Eli are both planning on attending a big party Saturday night. Grace assures Judy and Eli assures Rick and Karen that there will be parents present, and they definitely won't be drinking. The party is huge and wild, no parents in sight and lots of booze. Eli has a few beers even though he brought a car. Grace tries to talk to a guy she's interested in. Eli's friend Roger passes out, and Eli makes the difficult decision of calling 911. The cops break up the party and Roger is taken away in ambulance. When Judy comes to pick up Grace, Grace is crying and scared. Eli gets into his car with Jennifer and decides to call his father to pick him up so he doesn't have to drive. When Lily finds out about the fiasco, she freaks out on Judy, and Grace is upset that Lily is mad at Judy. Karen thinks Rick doesn't take parenting seriously, while Rick is actually impressed with Eli's behavior all things considered.

top
#10 Thanksgiving: Aired Tuesday, November 23, 1999

When Lily's parents show up for Thanksgiving she realizes that they're not ready to accept her separation from Jake yet. Lloyd takes over Karen's Thanksgiving with her kids. Lily sneaks out of her disastrous Thanksgiving to see Rick who is alone on Thanksgiving. She tells him about her missing brother who has schozophrenia.

top
#11 Where There's Smoke: Aired Tuesday, December 7, 1999

Rick takes Lily and her daughters out for dinner, and although the night isn't a complete disaster, Lily worries about pushing her kids into something that makes them unhappy. Jake is at Lily's house a lot because the electrical wiring needs fixing. She sees that he's stressed, yelling a lot on his cell phone, and has an altercation with his contractor on the front porch. She begs him to tell her what's going on, and finally he says that he can't pay his bills and he'll probably lose the restaurant. A emotional moment between Lily and Jake becomes a sexual one. Eli is becoming more and more frustrated with his mother trying to run his life, and when he wants to move into the basement, which has its own door to the outside, Rick supports him. Karen feels like Rick just wants to be Eli's buddy, which makes her seem like the bad guy all the time. When Eli starts bitching about Karen to Rick, saying that he understands why Rick divorced her, Rick draws the line and says that Eli doesn't know what he's talking about and shouldn't talk about his mother that way. Eli and Karen have a small reconnection.

top
#12 The Gingerbread House: Aired Tuesday, December 21, 1999

Lily is suffering from anxiety attacks after sleeping with Jake. She promises Judy that she won't tell Rick about her indiscretion, but Rick can already tell that something is wrong. Rick tries to tell Lily that he trusts her, and Lily feels so guilty that she blurts out the truth. Rick can't forgive her. Meanwhile, both Grace and Jake think that Jake and Lily might be getting back together. Lily dashes their hopes on Christmas Eve, formally asking Jake for a divorce. While fighting with Jake, she also manages to ruin Zoe's belief in Santa Claus. Even though Lily and Judy say that they neither of them needs the other to get them a Christmas present this year, they both end up getting each other presents. Lily tries to make a perfect gingerbread house from scratch, that turns out pretty well with some well-placed mistakes.

top
#13 Mediation: Aired Monday, January 24, 2000

Lily begins the process of mediating a divorce settlement with Jake. The mediation becomes less and less pleasant, Lily is having a hard time trusting Jake, and it looks more and more likely that they will have to sell the house. Rick deals with a difficult client named Miles Drentell, and leaves his partner feeling betrayed. After their break-up, Rick and Lily are both moping around. While Grace is tutoring Eli in English, they talk about their parents' mutual miserableness. After David confronts him about his betrayal, Rick realizes that he needs to really talk to Lily. He asks her out so that he can formally break up with her, citing bad timing and saying that no one is to blame. Lily is miserable, since she was hoping they were going to reconcile. As they kiss goodbye, Rick realizes he can't let Lily go.

top
#14 Sneaky Feelings: Aired Monday, January 31, 2000

Karen, while dating Lloyd, finds herself attracted a young socially inept doctor that she's working with. She breaks things off with Lloyd and succumbs to the passion of the young doctor. Eli is getting frustrated with Jennifer monopolizing his time, and finds himself attracted to a pretty volleyball player who is pursuing him. Jennifer busts the two of them together and is incredibly hurt. Jessie is mad at Eli because she really liked Jennifer.

top
#15 The Mystery Dance: Aired Monday, February 7, 2000

Just as Judy is about to give up on dating, she meets an artist friend of Rick's named Samuel. Their attraction is immediate and strong, and she's already fallen hard for him when she finds out through Lily that he's married. She is angry and rejects him, but he finally wears her down enough so that she will listen to him. He gives her a book with a poem about life with meaning, and she ends up letting him back into her life romantically. While Rick is still dealing with the demeanding Miles Dentrell, he and Lily try to repair their relationship. He finally tells her that he loves her and can't live without her.

top
#16 Daddy's Girl: Aired Monday, February 14, 2000

Lily loses her patience after Jake maxes out her only credit card and her bank account is so empty that she can't afford groceries or $400 to send Grace to a writing camp. Jake had told her that there was no money, but she realizes he's lying when he's preparing for the restaurant grand opening and hires a band and buys radio advertising time. She finally hires a divorce attorney and starts looking for a full-time job as an editor. Lily also tries to finally stand up to her father who still keeps taking Jake's side in all arguments. Grace quickly bonds with an African-American boy in her English class, and although they are awkward around his friends, they have great conversations and share a kiss in the library. Rick is incredibly supportive of Lily, giving her a cricket for luck on Valentine's Day. Grace realizes that Jake even lies to her about money.

top
#17 Unfinished Business: Aired Monday, March 6, 2000

Lily is applying for a job at an online magazine. She is unnerved by the chatty young woman who interviews her, and frustrated when her (older) age becomes an issue. Then she finds out that the position is not as an assistant editor, but as an assistant to AN editor... the chatty young woman, Christie. Phil takes Grace to her play rehearsal, and as they're leaving she notices him not feeling well. They get into a car accident on the way home, and she's fine but he ends up on crutches. Even lying on Lily's couch with her taking care of him, Phil is still trying to get her to stop putting the restaurant into recievership for her divorce. They fight, and then Lily finds him late at night collapsed in the kitchen. He has had a stroke, and even in the hospital he continues to tell her to lend Jake money. Two days later, he has a second stroke, and the Brooks family has to make the difficult decision to take him off life-support.

top
#18 Strangers and Brothers: Aired Monday, March 13, 2000

The Brooks family goes through its mourning, sitting shiva and having a funeral. Rick helps out by finding them a rabbi in the area, and mentions to Lily how honestly sad Jake seems. In Phil's will, he gives his widow and his eldest daughter the power to fire Jake as manager of the restaurant even though he is a 30% partner. Jake tries to kiss up to Barbara in order to keep his job, and though Lily is upset that he's taking advantage of her mother, she realizes that he deserves a chance to make the restaurant what he said it could be. Lily and Judy's schizophrenic brother Aaron comes to mourn with them, and bonds with Grace. Lily and Judy realize that they don't know their mother very well at all.

top
#19 Cat-in-Hat: Aired Monday, April 3, 2000

Karen slept with Leo, but is unnerved when he stops by her house unnanounced, stays for dinner and hangs out with her kids. His spontanaeity starts to mess with her carefully ordered life, plus she feels like she's too old for him, so she breaks up with him. However, he has made her question her rigid lifestyle, and when her kids yell at her for expecting too much she decides to make some changes and goes back to Leo. When Karen won't give him the car to go out at night in the city, Eli turns to his dad, not telling him that Karen already forbid it. Eli gets busted when Leo brings Karen to the same club. Jessie is about to go for her black belt in Tae Kwon Do, but almost doesn't go through with it because a guy she likes is bitter that she keeps beating him. Karen, with both her kids mad at her, feels good when she manages to make Jessie understand, through a roundabout story, that it's not worth losing on purpose.

top
#20 My Brilliant Career: Aired Monday, April 10, 2000

Lily starts her new job and finds that she's doing everything wrong, doesn't have enough time for her family, and her boss is a nightmare. Just as she's ready to walk out on the whole thing, Christie, her boss, tells her how much she appreciates her and likes having her around the office. Grace and Zoe stay with their father while Lily is settling into her new job. Jake has his daughters hanging around at the restaurant while he's working, and his girlfriend Tiffany helps care for them. Grace finds out accidentally from Tiffany that Tiffany was dating her father long before her parents got separated. Grace isn't sure that she can forgive her father for cheating on her mother, and Jake is terrified that he's lost his daughter forever. Lily advises Grace to forgive her father. Graces relationship with Jared progresses, and Jared gets along with her family.

top
#21 Letting Go: Aired Monday, April 17, 2000

It turns out that Judy is still seeing the married artist, Samuel Blue. When Rick runs into them buying condoms, Judy ends up talking to Lily about the relationship. She also tells Lily that she wants to sell the bookstore. Meanwhile, Grace is still upset with Jake after finding out that he cheated on her mother. She makes him realize that he didn't just cheat on Lily, he cheated on his daughters as well. Grace turns to Judy for support, and makes Judy realize that her actions will affect a lot of people. Judy breaks up with Samuel. When Rick gets sick, Lily realizes how much she depends on him and the fact that she would marry him if he asked.

top
#22 A Door, About to Open: Aired Monday, April 24, 2000

Rick and Lily plan to bring their children together for dinner, and they're all apprehensive except Zoe who is looking forward to having a new sister. Just as Karen is concerned about Lily becoming involved with her children, Lily is concerned about Tiffany becoming involved with her children. Karen stops by the bookstore and ends up bonding with Judy. Judy is still fending off calls from Sam. Naomi dumps Lily as a friend because Lily is so self-centered. Eli finds out that his new girlfriend, Cassidy, is cheating on him.

top
Other seasons
1 | 2 | 3