- Rating: 7.40
- Year of issue: 1986
- Genres: Sci-Fi, Comedy, Drama, Family
- Countries: United States
- Duration: 22 minutes
- Complexity: 9
A fuzzy unusual wiseguy comes to deal with the Tanner household after crashing right into their garage.
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The whole story starts here as Gordon Shumway, a Melmacian who escaped his planet before it was destroyed, crash lands into the garage of the Tanner family. The Tanners call him “ALF” because he is an Alien Life Form and they decide to keep his presence a secret so that the U.S. Government will not take away the space being and subject him to experiments. From the beginning, there is no sanity for the Tanner family.
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Everybody but Brian and ALF are leaving the house for the evening and Kate doesn't want ALF to babysit Brian, so Willie calls their ever-snooping Mrs. Ochmonek from the neighbor. ALF is told to stay in the bedroom, but when Mrs. Ochmonek starts to watch Psycho, which ALF wants to see, he can't resist sneaking out of the bedroom. Mrs. Ochmonek is in for some unusual experiences.
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Lucky is missing and the evidence suggests that ALF ate Lucky, although he claims to be innocent.
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Gordon (A.L.F.), having lost his planet in an explosion, becomes very concerned about earth's nuclear proliferation. He uses Willie's short wave radio to contact the President of the United States aboard Airforce One - to the great displeasure of the FBI.
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Gordon (A.L.F.) is insulted when the Tanners consider him a parasite, free-loader, sponger. He tries to make money to be less of a burden on the family, but puts Willie's VISA card over the limit purchasing “Terry Faith Cosmetics” to sell at a house party.
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Alf becomes the friend of a lonely blind woman.
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Brian's 7th birthday is approaching and it gets ALF depressed, because he realizes he's never going to see his friends on Melmac again - he was finally going to get together with his true love Rhonda and then the planet exploded. In sleep, ALF dreams about his 228th birthday on Melmac, just before the explosion. In order to cheer ALF up, Brian and Willie start broadcasting into space, in hopes of finding another survivor from Melmac.
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Lynn is excited because “Scott” wants to keep all his band equipment in the Tanner's garage. Willie is not so excited. Lynn is interested in Scott and begs for Willie to allow Scott to keep the equipment in their garage for just two days. Willie gives her his permission. ALF is not happy - he was supposed to be re-decorating his room with Lynn. And he also has a crush on Lynn, so he proceeds to sabotage Scott's time with Lynn while trying to come up with something to impress her.
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9. Jump
It's Willie's birthday. ALF gives him a box he found in the basement. It's full of photos from high school and college. There's also a menu, on the back of which Kate and Willie both made lists of things they wanted to achieve in life. Kate actually did the things on her list, but Willie did not. This starts to haunt him so badly that he decides to do the list. -
Lynn is going to a concert with her friend and is waiting to get the car for the evening… but Willie and Kate are late and the girls are in danger of being late for the concert. Then Willie and Kate arrive… with the help a tow truck. The tow truck man estimates that the repairs will cost way over 3,000 dollars - not good. Lynn is upset and wishes for another car. ALF asks why Willie doesn't buy Lynn a car and Willie has to explain that they can't afford it - especially since a lot of money went into repairing the garage roof because ALF crash-landed on it. Lynn …
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Willie suggests that they go to San Diego on holiday. Kate is all for it, but there's a slight problem: what to do with ALF? Since leaving ALF alone is a recipe for disaster, the family takes him along for the road trip. However, the weather turns stormy, ALF gets bored of sitting in the RV and starts complaining. Willie goes mental and shows ALF the door. Defiantly, ALF wanders off.
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It's Christmastime. Unfortunately ALF chops the Christmas tree into firewood before anyone notices. The Tanners then have two tasks: to teach ALF all about Christmas and find a new Christmas tree.
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Kate's mother, who is not on warm terms with Willie, arrives for a surprise visit that forces the Tanners to lock ALF in the garage for “a few days”. The problem is that ALF just can't stand being not allowed to roam around in the house, with all the luxuries found there. So he just has to do something.
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ALF and Kate's mom are arguing about TV. Kate's mom thinks ALF's favorite soap opera, Midwest General, is sleaze, and shows him her favorite, One World to Hope For, which ALF thinks is boring. Angered, ALF argues that he could write a better script for the series than the writers are coming up with. So ALF actually writes a script and sends it in. The production company actually films ALF's script that bears not-so-subtle similarities to the situation at the Tanners' house…
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Willie catches ALF from eating a box of chocolate that was to be a Valentine's Day present for Kate. This incites Willie to give ALF a lecture on how ALF does not respect private property and needs to adopt a new attitude. Also, Kate's mom is moving out of the Tanners' house. The problem is that her new neighbor, Whizzer, wants to come help Dorothy move her stuff. Which means ALF has to hide from him. Kate likes Whizzer and suggests that they invite him over for a dinner. Dorothy doesn't want that. ALF interjects by claiming to have spoken to Dorothy's dead husband …
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ALF bumps his head and loses his memory. All he knows is that his name is Wayne Schlagel and that he's an insurance agent. The Tanners try to make ALF remember who he really is - cue clips from earlier episodes.
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ALF is now into gardening, which means he's turned over the entire Tanner's backyard. Willie has a problem at work: a lost Mexican boy is at his office and Willie is trying to track down his father. When that fails, and Willie's boss couldn't care less about helping the boy, Willie has no option but to bring the boy home.
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ALF starts to go through a phase where his erratic behavior and hunger for cats will, in his own words, make him “ALF to the tenth power”. He wants Willie to build a cage where he can be locked in until the phase is over. Will the cage be strong enough? Can they keep him locked in when he tries to plot himself out?
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Brian has to lie to his friend who wants to come for a sleepover that the Tanner's basement is flooded, because ALF must be kept secret. Willie then tries to explain to Brian that lying is always wrong even though Brian has to keep lying because of ALF. Lying to the Ochmonecks is also tiring Willie, not to mention having to put up with ALF's antics. Kate suggests Willie talk to Larry, a therapist they know. Of course, Willie has to prove that ALF exists and is not his hallucination, which means that Larry and ALF meet.
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There's a power blackout, so ALF is passing the time by watching the Tanners' neighbors, the Ochmoneks, who are fighting. By dinner time, the power has come back so the Tanners can have dinner. Then comes another, short blackout. Trevor Ochmonek appears at the Tanners' door, seeking peace and quiet from the angry Raquel. Soon after, Raquel comes to demand that Trevor return home. The Tanners persuade him to do so. Night falls and ALF hears the Ochmoneks continue fighting. Suddenly it becomes silent. Too silent for ALF, who's convinced that something foul has happened …
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Lynn has introduced ALF to rap music, much to Willie's dislike. Willie himself is making the final changes to Brian's song in the school pageant where the kids dress as vegetables. Unfortunately, Brian is suffering from stage fright, which causes him to forget the lyrics. ALF offers to help…
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The Tanners are preparing for a garage sale to get some money for house payments. ALF discovers the alluring world of horse racing thanks to Kate's mom who bets on them. When the concept of a bookie is explained to ALF, he gets the bright idea of getting the Tanners some money through betting. When his initial bets yield only profit, the plan seems good… at the time.
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When the living room TV breaks down, Willie declares that he won't have it fixed, despite ALF's complaints that he has nothing to do but watch TV. ALF keeps pressuring Willie, who discovers that the TV is still under warranty and he can have it sent to the factory for repairs. Except that the factory is in Libya and Willie would have to pay for shipping… ALF thinks Willie has been conned, so he calls Consumer Ed, the guy who fights for consumers' rights on TV… Brian announces that he needs to come up with a project for the Science Carnival. On his own, Brian …
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An insect from Melmac has an unexpected reaction when exposed to earthly chemicals.
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ALF thinks he's won in a publisher's sweepstakes, but the actual truth is that he subscribed to “hundreds of magazines” (Willie probably exaggerates here)… The next leaflet ALF gets his hands on *does* promise free gifts, but only if the family comes to listen a sales pitch for vacation homes. The Ochmoneks are going there, so Trevor invites the Tanners to come along. Turns out he is a pilot who flew in the Korean war, so they are able to fly instead of a seven-hour drive. The reluctant Willie eventually warms to the idea, but ALF has to stay home. Or is it that he …
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ALF breaks Kate's precious $1,000 painting and gets confined in the garage. ALF can't handle a single night there and makes a bargain with Kate: unless he can behave 7 days in the house, ALF has to move into the garage permanently.
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ALF has taken liking to watching Gilligan's Island. He dresses accordingly and has coconut drinks. He's bored at the Tanners' and takes things one step too far towards Gilligan's Island.
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In one of those moments, when ALF lets his mind wander, he unintentionally walks into Mrs. Ochmonek's sight and greets her. Cue Mrs. Ochmonek panicking and deciding to warn the neighborhood about the “space creature”.
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Lynn is researching the Tanner Family Tree for a school project. Kate suggests ALF do the the Shumway Family Tree, hoping it will occupy him for some time. However, digging the past may not be a good thing.
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The Tanners get the chance to participate in a new TV ratings system. With clever arguments, ALF gets Kate to let him use the system. After learning his favorite programs might get canceled, ALF decides to tweak the numbers a bit.
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Halloween is approaching and ALF wants to go trick-or-treating. Kate, of course, objects, but ALF persists. He argues that he has a natural costume and tries offering Willie a deal he can't refuse… Lynn presents Lizard to his parents.
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ALF learns the concept of Earthly beauty pageant. Since Lynn, having been dumped, is suffering from low self-esteem, ALF enters her in Miss Southland pageant to prove she is pretty and uses the prizes to lure Lynn to participate.
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Kate's mother has decided to get married in the Tanners' house. Unfortunately, ALF develops a Melmacian Hiccup, that keeps getting louder and louder, threatening to draw everyone's attention within a 100 meters (give or take).
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ALF reminisces his “adventures” on Melmac. Willie reveals that when he was 17, he hopped on trains and crossed the whole country. ALF gets excited about the idea and talks Willie into taking him to the rail yard.
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Willie and Kate no longer share activities, because one of them has to always stay at home keeping eye on ALF. ALF concludes that they are about to break up and in order to prevent that, decides to add romance to their life.
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ALF is frustrated because he can't vote in the presidential election. He watches a televised debate with Kate and offers his “better” ideas on how to solve the world's problems. This gives Kate some weird nightmares.
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The Tanners decide to spend Christmas in a cabin in the woods when Alf suddenly gets lost.
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Mr. Ochmonek's nephew Jake comes to live with the Ochmoneks. The Ochmoneks tell the Tanners that Jake is a problem kid and ask their advice on how to deal with him. ALF can't resist investigating Jake's persona.
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When a football shatters the Ochmonek's picture window, Gordon (A.L.F.) gets the blame and he demands his day in “Tanner Family Court”.
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A visit from Willie's Uncle Albert surprises the Tanners and causes Gordon (A.L.F.) great distress.
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A series of robberies in the neighborhood prompts Gordon (A.L.F.) to want to help with Neighborhood Watch, when Willie is voted block captain.
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Neighborhood Watch volunteers quit as the robberies continue. Gordon (A.L.F.) decides to take direct action, causing chaos at the Ochmoneks'.
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Jody looses her apartment when the building becomes a condominium, so Gordon (A.L.F.) tries to help her “adust” to a new home.
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A stray dog makes Gordon (A.L.F.) jealous, so he gives her to the first (and obviously wrong) person who responds to a “found dog” poster.
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It's the Tanners who learn a lesson while trying to passively resist a belligerent father and son.
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The Tanners may need to sell their house because Willie has been promoted to a supervisory position in San Deigo.
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Gordon (A.L.F.) tries ventriloquism. The attitude of his new “friend”, Paul the dummy, turns contentious - then things get weird.
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24. Tequila
Gordon (A.L.F.) assists Kate's alcoholic friend to the realization that she needs help. -
A dejected Gordon (A.L.F.) wants to expose his existence to the world. Willie has an idea to help him through the crisis.
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Gordon (A.L.F.) discovers that he is responsible for Lynn not being able to attend Amherst College, and makes another attempt to find employment
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Lynn breaks up with her boyfriend and becomes depressed. ALF gets a self-help book of love for her and asks her to confide in him. When Lynn reveals she likes a guy, ALF decides to help her get his attention literally by the book. Uh-oh.
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With the help of his guardian angle, ALF finds out what life would be like for the Tanners if they had never met him.
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Jake pops by because Raquel and Trevor are fighting. This time she throws him out. Kate offers to let him stay in their house. Trevor soon becomes a nuisance, so ALF decides to solve the problem.
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“And heeeere's Alfie!” ALF hosts the Tonight Show instead of Johnny Carson. Is it a dream? Is it an “What if…?” story?
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Lynn has barely turned 18 and he's already moved on from young douches to… a man of Willie's generation. Lynn is forbidden from seeing this Eddie again. Will she obey her parents?
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ALF already ate the Thanksgiving turkey - raw. Willie fails to find a new one, so Raquel invites the Tanners over. A storm arrives as does the neighborhood bum (“a homeless person”), since ALF has been leaving food and clothes for him.
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Pete has called the Alien Task Force. He has been told to keep ALF occupied until Sergeant Fox and his men arrive to capture him. Dead or alive. Will Pete sell ALF out after he's talked with him for a while? Will he?
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The social workers, which includes Willie, go on a strike that may last a while. Kate decides to take a job in order to bring money into the house. ALF is concerned about the repercussions. Well, about those that will affect him.
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When Kate and Willie stop ALF's rummage in the attic, they find Willie's movie of Woodstock and want to watch it. When Willie tells ALF what he was like in college, ALF points out that Willie has turned from an idealist to a sell-out.
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ALF reads a tabloid article about a couple in Barstow who live with a space alien, who sounds to ALF like his cousin Blinky. ALF persuades Willie to drive him there and to go investigate the couple. *Big* trouble ensues.
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ALF gets interested in magic tricks, so Willie gives his old magic trick set to him. When ALF discovers he is no good at magic tricks even though he has the desire, he naturally concludes that he needs proper magician's tools.
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13. Hide Away
ALF has ordered a non-refundable satellite dish. Willie carpools with a talkative guy Jim, who manipulates Willie into inviting him for dinner. There's more to Jim than meets the eye. -
Willie realizes his car repairman is scamming him and decides to do something about it. While Willie refuses to admit that The System Has Failed, ALF and Jake set out on their own to acquire some hard evidence against the conman.
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ALF has started to believe in one of the biggest urban legends - that Elvis is alive. When Raquel describes their new neighbor, ALF is convinced the man is Elvis. Since nobody believes ALF, he decides to venture into the man's house.
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16. Baby Love
Now that Kate is pregnant and the focus is on her unborn child, ALF feels neglected. Raquel throws a surprise baby shower, to which Andrea from the neighborhood brings her baby. ALF, meet baby. Baby, meet ALF. -
An anonymous caller demands $3,000 from ALF - otherwise he will turn ALF to the authorities. On the second call, the extortionist adds that the Tanners will go to jail for harboring an alien. ALF decides to take action.
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Jake has a *huge* crush on a girl called Laura, but freezes every time he tries to approach or contact her. ALF offers to write a letter in Jake's name to Laura. Poor Jake still hasn't learned *not* to enlist ALF to help.
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ALF accidentally burns Brian's History book in the oven. He then insists that he's now under a Melmacian curse: 14 years of increasing bad luck. First, the food on the electric stove bursts into flames. Then other things start to happen.
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ALF wants a pet, so Willie decides to buy him an ant farm. ALF doesn't appreciate his new pets at first, but it will change.
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The start date of Brian's first overnight boy scout camp is almost at hand. But he is afraid of the dark. While Willie reminisces about his own boy scout days, ALF decides to help Brian.
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Jake stops by to tell that her mother has come to the Ochmoneks. She comes to thank the Tanners and Racquel invites her to dinner at the Tanners. Jake, however, starts acting weirdly, and ALF decides to find out why.
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The Tanners are going to a wedding and ALF is left home alone, Willie having rented him silent movies. ALF gets inspired to write his own silent movie. In which he also stars. He then imagines what it would be like.
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ALF experiences his first earthquake (there were no melmacquakes). When he is told that quakes can be a lot bigger, ALF starts to live in fear of the coming of a big one, even though Willie assures him they are prepared.
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ALF is preparing himself for the coming of Kate's baby because, in his opinion, Willie isn't prepared enough. Can ALF be persuaded to accept that Dick Van Dyke show is not an educational program that should be followed as an example?
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ALF earns the right to baby-sit Eric, but almost blows it when the child disappears.
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2. Lies
Tabloid photographers accidentally photograph ALF, so the Tanners have to get the film back. -
ALF shields Willie when a criminal resembling him is profiled on a crime-stopper TV show, but Trevor turns him in.
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Using Willie's home computer, ALF discovers and later becomes addicted to the art of making stock-market deals.
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After a visit from a psychologist, ALF subjects the Tanners to a barrage of unwanted psychoanalysis.
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Willie, in an effort to curb ALF's cotton addiction, holds a support group meeting in his living room.
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ALF, forced to hide, plots the removal of Willie's visiting brother Neal.
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ALF gets peeved about having to remain hidden while Willie's brother extends his visit.
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ALF's attitude toward cats changes after his first encounter with kittens.
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Whizzer comes face-to-face with ALF when he searches for Dorothy at the Tanners.
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ALF, on the outs with the Tanners, is offered a place to stay by Neal.
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12. Fever
The Tanners pamper ALF after he catches his first Earth cold. -
ALF is relegated once again to the attic when the Tanners throw a Hawaiian luau.
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ALF dreams he's a famous stand-up comic.
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Neal and his ex-wife Margaret reconcile, but ALF goes a long way to prove her motives are less than honest.
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ALF enters the art world after he earns praise for a still life made from food.
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As a newly ordained Melmacian minister, ALF must officiate a ceremony on Earth.
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ALF considers the future with the Tanners, who will age faster than the ageless alien.
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ALF encounters youth-seeking senior citizens when he's discovered sneaking into a retirement home.
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ALF and Willie scour Death Valley for buried treasure after discovering an old map.
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A morally outraged ALF writes nasty letters to a pollution-producing company.
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ALF takes to the park in search of food after his diet fails.
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ALF is the only one excited by the idea of Lynn moving in with her boyfriend.
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It's a sad day in the Tanner household as ALF announces he's leaving Earth to settle on another planet with Skip and Rhonda, but ALF is captured by the Alien Task Force before he can get to their spaceship.