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thirtysomething episode guide

Click an episode title for a brief summary. Click "Details" for an in-depth analysis and photo.
First Season
( 1 9 8 7 / 8 8 )		 Second Season
( 1 9 8 8 / 8 9 )		 Third Season
( 1 9 8 9 / 9 0 )		 Fourth Season
( 1 9 9 0 / 9 1 )
1-01 [01] "thirtysomething"   Details 2-01 [22] "we'll meet again"   Details 3-01 [39] "nancy's mom"   Details 4-01 [63] "prelude to a bris"   Details
1-02 [02] "attack of the killer parents"   Details 2-02 [23] "in re: the marriage of weston"   Details 3-02 [40] "love & sex"   Details 4-02 [64] "life class"   Details
1-03 [03] "housewarming"   Details 2-03 [24] "the mike van dyke show"   Details 3-03 [41] "mr. right"   Details 4-03 [65] "control"   Details
1-04 [04] "couples" or "level of misery"   Details 2-04 [25] "trust me"   Details 3-04 [42] "new baby"   Details 4-04 [66] "the distance"   Details
1-05 [05] "but not for me" or "saturday night"   Details 2-05 [26] "no promises"   Details 3-05 [43] "legacy"   Details 4-05 [67] "the haunting of d.a.a."   Details
1-06 [06] "we gather together"   Details 2-06 [27] "politics"   Details 3-06 [44] "strangers"   Details 4-06 [68] "the guilty party"  Details
1-07 [07] "nice work if you can get it" or "yo! it's my arts center"   Details 2-07 [28] "success"   Details 3-07 [45] "pilgrims"   Details 4-07 [69] "photo opportunity"  Details
1-08 [08] "weaning"   Details 2-08 [29] "first day / last day"   Details 3-08 [46] "the burning bush"  Details 4-08 [70] "never better"   Details
1-09 [09] "i'll be home for christmas"   Details 2-09 [30] "about last night"   Details 3-09 [47] "new parents"   Details 4-09 [71] "guns & roses"   Details
1-10 [10] "south by southwest"   Details 2-10 [31] "elliot's dad"   Details 3-10 [48] "michael's campaign"   Details 4-10 [72] "happy new year"  Details
1-11 [11] "therapy"   Details 2-11 [32] "payment due"   Details 3-11 [49] "pulling away"   Details 4-11 [73] "melissa and men"  Details
1-12 [12] "competition"   Details 2-12 [33] "deliverance"   Details 3-12 [50] "another country" (part one)   Details 4-12 [74] "advanced beginners"  Details
1-13 [13] "separation"   Details 2-13 [34] "michael writes a story"  Details 3-13 [51] "post op" (part two)   Details 4-13 [75] "sifting the ashes"  Details
1-14 [14] "i'm in love... with my gynecologist"   Details 2-14 [35] "new job"   Details 3-14 [52] "once a mermaid"  Details 4-14 [76] "second look" (part one)  Details
1-15 [15] "business as usual" (part one)   Details 2-15 [36] "be a good girl"  Details 3-15 [53] "fathers and lovers"  Details 4-15 [77] "fighting the cold" (part two)  Details
1-16 [16] "accounts receivable" (part two)   Details 2-16 [37] "courting nancy"  Details 3-16 [54] "her cup runneth over"   Details 4-16 [78] "the difference between men and women"  Details
1-17 [17] "whose forest is this?"  Details 2-17 [38] "best of enemies"  Details 3-17 [55] "good sex, bad sex, what sex, no sex"  Details 4-17 [79] "our wedding"  Details
1-18 [18] "nancy's first date"  Details   3-18 [56] "the other shoe"  Details 4-18 [80] "closing the circle"  Details
1-19 [19] "undone"  Details 3-19 [57] "three year itch"  Details 4-19 [81] "out the door"  Details
1-20 [20] "tenure"  Details 3-20 [58] "i'm nobody, who are you?"  Details 4-20 [82] "hopeless"  Details
1-21 [21] "born to be mild"  Details 3-21 [59] "arizona"  Details 4-21 [83] "a stop at willoughby"  Details
  3-22 [60] "going limp"  Details 4-22 [84] "melissa in wonderland"  Details
3-23 [61] "towers of zenith" (part one) or "the go-between"  Details 4-23 [85] "california"  Details
3-24 [62] "towers of zenith" (part two) or "samurai adman"  Details  

The numbering scheme: I like to number a show's episodes straight through, so if there are 21 episodes in the first season that means the first episode of the second season is episode 22. Other people use the numbering scheme where each episode is bound to its season, so episode 1-21 is followed by episode 2-01. This guide uses both conventions, so everybody's happy.
Why does Season 2 have only 17 episodes? That was the year of the writers' strike.
Two-parters: The only "official" thirtysomething two-parter was episodes 61 & 62, "Towers of Zenith." However, other episodes clearly go together and I have taken the liberty of adding the labels "part one" and "part two."
Tired of following links? Here's the whole episode guide in one text file.

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