Season 8 (1993/94)

Married with Children: Season 8
"Married... with Children" Season 8 DVD cover.
Program information
Episodes aired:
26
Dates aired:
September 5, 1993 - May 22, 1994
Network/Country:
FOX-TV / United States
Previous Season: Season 7
Next Season: Season 9

Season 8 introduces (by name) many of Al's friends, including Aaron, Bob Rooney and Officer Dan (even though Officer Dan wasn't a character in the earlier seasons, the actor who played him also appeared in "Rock 'n Roll Girl", as the sheriff who issued Al a ticket for an insulting bumper sticker, "Weenie Tot Lovers and Other Strangers", as the police officer who arrested Al, and "The Egg and I", as the lead FBI agent searching for Steve). Al, Jefferson, Bob Rooney and Officer Dan (along with Griff and Ike, who are introduced in Season 9) all become members of NO MA'AM in the episode where the men fight back against a talk show host (played by Jerry Springer) known as "The Masculine Feminist". This is also the season where Bud joins a fraternity. The closest we get to an explanation for Seven's mysterious disappearance 14 months before is in the episode "Ride Scare," where a closeup on a carton of milk reveals a picture of Seven with the words "Missing". Al's plus-sized model friends simply look at it without comment before helping themselves.

Episodes

Season 8 (1993-1994)

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code
158	1	"A Tisket, a Tasket, Can Peg Make a Basket?"	Tony Singletary	Kim Weiskopf	September 5, 1993	8.01
When Al and Peggy go to a basketball game, Peggy switches seats with Al and her seat is chosen for a $10,000 free throw contest.
159	2	"Hood 'n The Boyz"	Tony Singletary	Michael G. Moye	September 12, 1993	8.02
Al and Peg go to the big city for their second honeymoon where Al is called to help his childhood girlfriend deal with a young tough guy and his gang.
160	3	"Proud to Be Your Bud"	Tony Singletary	Stacie Lipp	September 19, 1993	8.03
Bud builds a portal in the basement that summons his true self, who tells him how much of a loser he is. Meanwhile, the rest of the Bundy family worry that Bud may be going insane, except for Al, who's fighting with a voice mail system to get parts for his Dodge.
161	4	"Luck of the Bundys"	Tony Singletary	Richard Gurman	September 26, 1993	8.04
Al is worried that his and his family's sudden string of good luck may be reversed because nothing good can ever come from being a Bundy. Finally everything goes wrong and Al is happy.
162	5	"Banking on Marcy"	Tony Singletary	Stacie Lipp	October 3, 1993	8.05
Marcy works through her fear of public speaking by imagining herself having sex. Meanwhile, Al gets interested in rap videos.
163	6	"No Chicken, No Check"	Tony Singletary	Ralph R. Farquhar	October 10, 1993	8.06
Kelly and Bud buy a new car, but end up having to share it when Bud dates a foreign exchange student while Kelly dates a commercial actor. Meanwhile, Al insures the car as a farm vehicle, and in order to collect in case of an accident, there must be a chicken in the car.
164	7	"Take My Wife, Please"	Tony Singletary	Eddie Feldmann & Brad Yuen	October 24, 1993	8.07
In this Halloween episode, Al wishes he was dead, and is visited by the Grim Reaper with a very familiar face. He can escape death only if a family member wished he was around before mid-night. Meanwhile, Peg, Bud, Kelly, and Jefferson impersonate The Village People at a party for menopausal women. They perform the same song over and over again.
165	8	"Scared Single"	Sam W. Orender	Katherine Green	November 7, 1993	8.08
Al tries to help a young high school football player keep from getting married — until he meets the man's wife, who isn't anything like Peg. Meanwhile, Kelly gets stung by beetles in a Verminator commercial and goes insane.
166	9	"NO MA'AM"	Tony Singletary	Larry Jacobson	November 14, 1993	8.09
After women are given their own bowling night and the Nudie Bar is turned into a women's coffeehouse, Al organizes a group called NO MA'AM (National Organization of Men Against Amazonian Masterhood) and face off against a talk show host (played by real-life talk show host Jerry Springer) known as "The Masculine Feminist."
167	10	"Dances with Weezie"	Tony Singletary	Richard Gurman	November 21, 1993	8.10
Al and Jefferson sneak out of a Jeffersons reunion performance to go to a new sports bar, where they end up in a bar fight.
168	11	"Change For a Buck"	Amanda Bearse	Kim Weiskopf	November 28, 1993	8.11
Buck runs away from home and ends up at a dog pound, where he'll face getting gassed if the Bundys don't retrieve him. Bundy's don't notice him to be gone till the last minute.
169	12	"A Little Off the Top"	Sam W. Orender	Michael G. Moye	December 12, 1993	8.12
Al suffers from a bad back and is taken to the hospital, where instead of a circular incision, he gets a circumcision. The family tries their best to keep him away from getting aroused. Meanwhile Marcy has a great time making fun of Al.
170	13	"The Worst Noel"	Amanda Bearse	Larry Jacobson	December 19, 1993	8.13
On Christmas Eve, Kelly and Bud struggle to get a jukebox into the house without Al and Peg (who spend the entire episode arguing over what to watch on TV) seeing them.
171	14	"Sofa So Good"	Amanda Bearse	Doug McIntyre	January 16, 1994	8.15
While Al and Peg are away at a family reunion, Kelly's boyfriend ruins Peggy's couch, prompting the two to find a new, identical-looking couch before Al and Peg come home. Kelly must make a difficult deal with the couch-maker to replace it. Note: Amanda Bearse doesn't appear in this episode.
172	15	"Honey, I Blew Up Myself"	Sam W. Orender	Wayne Kline	January 23, 1994	8.14
Peg gets a boudoir photo of herself taken as a birthday present to Al, which gets blown up to billboard size and posted next to the shoe store, where Al becomes jealous of all the men who find Peg attractive. He finally turns to Marcy's women group for help. Bud & Kelly try to find a perfect birthday gift for Al and end up buying stuff he already has and hates.
173	16	"How Green Was My Apple"	Gerry Cohen	Katherine Green	February 6, 1994	8.16
The Bundys and the D'Arcys fight over possession of an apple tree, and then everything around their house. Gary Coleman, Danny Bonaduce, and Dave Madden guest star.
174	17	"Valentine's Day Massacre"	Gerry Cohen	Cindy Begel	February 13, 1994	8.18
Bud learns about an old Valentine which Kelly has forgotten to tell him about. She is now a famous singer and Bud tries to meet her. Meanwhile, Al shops for Valentine's Day gifts to give to Peggy.
175	18	"Get Outta Dodge"	Sam W. Orender	Mark Driscoll	February 20, 1994	8.17
Peg forces Al to sell the Dodge and he places an ad. The Dodge Company offers a new Dodge Viper for his Dodge if he lets people film a video of the Dodge crossing the one million mile mark. Kelly tries to find Waldo, while Bud tries to make out with a girl.
176	19	"Field of Screams"	Gerry Cohen	Al Aidekman	February 27, 1994	8.19
Al protests against the destruction of the Polk High football field. Meanwhile, Buck and Bud are featured in a Verminator commercial, where they get blasted with an experimental spray that leads to Bud growing breasts and Buck changing into different animals.
177	20	"The D'Arcy Files"	Gerry Cohen	Ilunga Adell	March 20, 1994	8.20
Al is offered $50,000 dollars to reveal the identity of Jefferson, who is revealed to be a spy.
178	21	"Nooner or Later"	Gerry Cohen	Neufeld Callaway	April 10, 1994	8.22
As a part of a radio contest, women are asked to make their husband do embarrassing things. Peg tries to make Al sing Wind Beneath My Wings, name her breasts and then come home so they can have a "nooner". She fails in everything. Meanwhile, Bud and Kelly wait in a long line for concert tickets and keep moving back as people exploit their weaknesses.
179	22	"Ride Scare"	Sam W. Orender	Nancy Neufeld Callaway	April 24, 1994	8.25
Al is forced to carpool by Marcy and her group's green initiative (Cleaner Greener Chicago). His carpool, consisting of him and three plus-sized models, is chosen to promote a campaign to clean up Chicago. Bud makes to the Dean's list due to good grades and no one appreciates him as much as they cheer Kelly when she gets a raise. Note- In 2005, TV Land included this episode as part of it's '100 Most Unexpected Moments in TV History', ranking it number 73.
180	23	"The Legend of Ironhead Haynes"	Gerry Cohen	Katherine Green	May 1, 1994	8.21
Al is threatened that he would lose his parking space if he insults another women. After dodging off Marcy's attempts, he finally ends up insulting a fat woman. He loses his precious parking space, which leads to "NO MA'AM" seeking out to find a guru, Ironhead Haynes, and seek his advice. Bud, Kelly & Peggy steel a full fridge from a funeral and hide it from Al in the Garage. Actor/Counry Music singer Waylon Jennings guest stars.
181	24	"Assault and Batteries"	Sam W. Orender	David Castro	May 8, 1994	8.24
In this special 3D episode, Al, who is hoping to get back home in time to watch John Wayne in "Hondo," gets trapped in a store at the mall while trying to exchange batteries when the computers go down and lock everything down, including the doors. Peggy, who is outside, goes on a shopping spree. He then hallucinates that he, his family and the D'Arcys are in the old west. Finally, in a fit of anger and frustration, he grabs a cash register and throws it at the shatterproof window, but it just bounces off and hits him on the head, knocking him out cold. He then awakens at home in time to hear that the next time "Hondo" will be broadcast is February 18th, 2011. Meanwhile, Kelly and Bud celebrate Buck's birthday after finding his birth certificate in the couch, which Buck hates.
182	25	"Al Goes Deep"	Amanda Bearse	Garry Bowren & Laurie Lee-Goss	May 15, 1994	8.26
Al convinces Jefferson to bet on a football game to make-up for Marcy's tax refund money he spent on his clothes. But the star of the football team starts dating Kelly, and it interrupts his training. He takes Kelly's help, but she ends up injuring him. Finally Al plays the game himself. Peggy goes horribly wrong when she tries to make her ownBonbon.
183	26	"Kelly Knows Something"	Amanda Bearse	Al Aidekman	May 22, 1994	8.23
Al auditions to be on a sports trivia show to win $10,000, when his TV breaks down. But when the producer rejects him for having no personality, Al trains the dim-witted Kelly to be a contestant.