Poor Jennifer (Tina Yothers) gets more than she wanted or bargained for when she asks Alex (Michael J. Fox) to help her with her oral presentation in The Disciple. Written by Rich Reinhart, this episode was first broadcast on 9 January, 1986.

Jennifer has to present a report on how a bill becomes a law, and Alex is more than willing to help her if she does it his way. She agrees and begins to regret it, as he expects her to put in more effort and research than would be expected of a seventh-grade report.

In fact, the report turns out so well that Jennifer’s teacher, Mrs. Pedroza (Belita Moreno) nominates Jennifer for a Dewey Award, meaning she’ll have to give the report again, before a big audience, alongside other presenting students (including Corey Feldman).

She’s not sure she wants this, and intentionally fumbles it revealing how much Alex helped her.

No one is happy how things turn out, but Alex reminds Jennifer of how smart she actually is, and not to be ashamed or embarrassed of her knowledge. And she reminds him about compassion.

This one was cute and fun and has a silly b-story about Steven (Micheal Gross) and Elyse (Meredith Baxter) competing with another set of parents over how advanced their babies are.

Where’s Poppa? was written by Susan Borowitz and Marc Lawrence and originally aired on 16 January, 1986.

Alex is in charge of running the school’s parent-student weekend and against Ellen’s (Tracy Pollan) wishes he reaches out and invited her father, Franklin Reed (Ronny Cox!). She doesn’t always get along with him, and often argues with him, he’s well-off, driven, but he always pushed Ellen to achieve, when she just wanted to be.

Alex takes a shine to Reed because of his money and beliefs, and doesn’t understand how they don’t get along. He may argue with his parents but they always get along, and, he points out, perhaps the two of them just need to find a way to reconnect.

Ronny Cox is always a favourite, and Pollan is a delight anytime she shows up in the series, consequently they make a good father-daughter couple and there’s some real emotion behind their discussions that countless families can no doubt relate to.

It’s a nice reminder that we’re all trying in our own ways to connect, and also shows that maybe, even if it doesn’t work, we don’t stop trying.

This one has lots of fun moments as Alex navigates a fine-line between Ellen’s liberal views, and her father’s conservative ones.

Fool for Love was written by Marc Lawrence and debuted on 23 January, 1986.

Alex is trying to grow a moustache to give himself some ‘class and maturity’ before delivering the high school homecoming address. In fact, the whole episode is about the homecoming.

Skippy (Marc Price) wants to ask Mallory (Justine Bateman) to the homecoming dance, but she shuts him down, and Alex reminds him about Nick (Scott Valentine), her boyfriend. Skippy believes she’s only with Nick to make him jealous. Nick would have been okay with Mallory going with Skippy, because he doesn’t want to go to the dance.

Skippy wants a date for the dance to make Mallory jeaouls, so, consequently Alex works to find a date for Skippy for the dance. He arranges a blind date with Sylvia (Suzanne Lederer), but Sylvia is a doctor, a psychiatrist, who is only interested in Skippy as a test subject.

Skippy just can’t get a win. Sylvia gives him advice, though it won’t pay off the way he thinks it will.

It’s nice to see Skippy get a few moments, and it also deals with something a lot of us can relate to from a perspective of falling in love with someone who doesn’t feel the same for you. Nick speaks out for him, which is really nice, and Mallory admits that she likes Skippy, just not in the way he wants.

And hey look! Jerry Hardin!