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

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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 😭😭

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

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.

I remember watching the night this episode aired: I was lying in a hospital bed a few weeks after being in a car accident with a friend of mine, who was killed. Like Alex and his friend who died, we were 21. Like Alex, I felt unspeakable Survivor's Guilt. This show was so beautifully written and so beautifully acted, I will never forget it.

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.

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.

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

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

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

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

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.

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.

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...

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

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.