Jackie and Mark take in a female wrestling match; D.J. is not prepared when he realizes he may be about to have his first sexual experience when a night of watching videos with Heather turns into a night of passion; and Bev introduces Leon and Scott to her new "friend", a boozy lounge singer named Joyce.
The show portrayed a working-class family struggling to get by on a limited income in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois. Many critics considered the show notable as one of the first sitcoms to portray an American family in which economics necessitated two parents working jobs outside the home.