Darlene's friendship with a manager at Wellman Plastics lands her in an awkward situation Louise's brother tries to win over Jackie by making a thoughtful gesture, creating tension.
It's Beverly Rose's first birthday, but it's no party when Becky and Emilio disagree on the kind of celebration she should have Jackie meets someone who wants to be more than friends.
Darlene isolates herself from her co-workers, making them think she's an elite snob Louise teaches Harris a very expensive life lesson Jackie's determined to keep the restaurant open.
Mary's crushed when the city cancels Halloween, so Darlene and Becky enlist Jackie and the family to create an unforgettable experience Mark confronts a kid at school who won't mask up.
The Conners must deal with the pandemic The Lunch Box closes for everything but takeout and delivery while Becky and Darlene search for additional income at the Wellman Plastics plant.
Darlene and Ben go apartment hunting Jackie and Becky take Beverly Rose on a road trip to Mexico to meet her father for the first time Dan reluctantly shares his financial troubles with Louise.
Dan and Louise take their relationship to the next level and come to appreciate the complexities of aging Darlene spends the night in jail and leaves parenting duties to Ben Mark and a friend's class experiment leaves them with hickeys.
Dan is finally ready to share his feelings with Louise Darlene realizes how badly she wants a baby Ben gets caught up playing handyman and babysitter for Becky, which causes him to miss an important meeting.
Back from Arizona, Bev announces that she wants to use her finances to spread happiness when she offers to fund Mark's tuition to a prestigious coding camp, Darlene tries to convince her to give the money to Harris instead.
Darlene struggles to decide between David and Ben Becky begins to doubt herself as a mom Mark gets in trouble at school when a picture of him and his boyfriend kissing goes viral.
In the wake of Emilio's deportation, Jackie steps into the role of a paternal figure and creates a birth plan for Becky Darlene is tangled in a complex love triangle with David and Ben Harris is caught up in a problem of her own.
As Darlene grapples with a life-altering offer from Ben, an unexpected conversation with David turns her world even more upside-down relationship problems lead Jackie back to the bottle.
When Ben offers Mark free piano lessons, Darlene thinks it's a way to test his parenting skills Jackie throws Becky a baby shower, while Emilio keeps hoping to be part of the baby's life.
Dan gets injured covering D.J.'s vending machine route, but choosing to sue the company could lead to D.J. getting fired Jackie's appalled when Becky seeks life coaching from her nemesis.
When Becky helps Harris keep a secret from Darlene, it causes a split between the two sisters. Jackie supports Peter with his Nordic history project, while Dan reunites with an old friend.
Dan questions Peter's motives when he learns about the pricey Christmas gift Jackie purchased for her new, unemployed beau. Meanwhile, Mark and Mary write up their Christmas wish lists.
With Mark and Mary's help, Jackie convinces Dan to build a backyard chicken coop so the family can eat organic eggs - but from a bird's-eye view, it appears she may have ulterior motives.
A family member drops a life-changing bombshell Dan suspects Becky might have resumed drinking Darlene continues her job hunt Jackie offers English lessons to a Casita Bonita busboy.
Geena learns D.J. hasn't been taking Mary to church while she's been away, so she insists they go as a family to make things worse, Mary refuses to go without her cousins Harris and Mark.
It's Halloween - the Conner family's favorite time of the year - that is until a school email banning certain costumes, including Mark's, sets off a huge argument between Dan and Darlene.