The BEST episodes of Perfect Strangers season 3

Every episode of Perfect Strangers season 3, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Perfect Strangers season 3!

The series chronicles the rocky coexistence of Larry Appleton and his distant cousin Balki Bartokomous. A Wisconsin native, Larry, who comes from a large family with numerous brothers and sisters, has just moved into a new apartment in Chicago, and is experiencing his first joys of newfound privacy when Balki, a hitherto unknown cousin from a Greek-like island in the Mediterranean called Mypos, drops by to live with him. Balki, a shepherd by trade, interprets what little he knows about the United States by relying on his own recollections of American pop culture, which are often out-of-context. After initially gently rebuffing his cousin's request to stay at his apartment, Larry, an aspiring photographer, decides to take Balki under his wing and teach him about American life...

Last Updated: 9/3/2024Network: ABC (US)Status: Ended
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Pipe Dreams
star
8.00
16 votes

#1 - Pipe Dreams

Season 3 - Episode 17 - Aired 2/10/1988

Jennifer asks Larry if he can call a plumber for her to fix her shower head while she's away. Larry decides that to impress her he'll fix it himself and as Larry and Balki try and put everything together, things go extremely wrong and they end up flooding Jennifer and Mary Anne's bathroom.

Writer: Bob Keyes
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Just Desserts
star
7.63
19 votes

#2 - Just Desserts

Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/3/1988

After Balki serves Larry, Jennifer, and Mary Anne some ""bibi-bobkas"" (Mypoian cream puffs), Larry suggests selling them but baking them cannot be rushed.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Graduate
star
7.63
19 votes

#3 - The Graduate

Season 3 - Episode 19 - Aired 3/9/1988

Balki manages to graduate night school at the top of his class but soon finds out that there is no graduation ceremony. So Larry talks to the principal and arranges one.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Writer: Robert Blair
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Your Cheatin' Heart
star
7.57
23 votes

#4 - Your Cheatin' Heart

Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/28/1987

Jennifer is planning on buying a surprise typewriter for Larry and asks Balki for help barganing at a clearance sale. Larry gets suspicious after he sees Balki and Jennifer sneaking around, and thinks they're having an affair.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Bye Bye Biki
star
7.52
21 votes

#5 - Bye Bye Biki

Season 3 - Episode 18 - Aired 2/24/1988

Balki is excited because his 106 year old grandmother Biki is coming to America to see him but when she switched planes in New York, she died at the airport and Balki has a hard time accepting it and pretends to be happy.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
You Gotta Have Friends
star
7.50
16 votes

#6 - You Gotta Have Friends

Season 3 - Episode 22 - Aired 3/25/1988

While Larry is doing some important research, Balki goes out to the races and when he gets back, he tells Larry about meeting Carl Lewis but Larry doesn't believe him since he has taken Balki's money and left.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Karate Kids
star
7.48
25 votes

#7 - The Karate Kids

Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/11/1987

While at a happy hour restaurant, Larry and Balki get beaten up at a bar by a bully who hit on Jennifer. So they decide to take karate and after several weeks of fine training, Larry insists on returning to the bar to pick a fight with the bully.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Night School Confidential
star
7.45
22 votes

#8 - Night School Confidential

Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 11/18/1987

Balki is cheated by a con artist who sold him counterfiet watches. And after getting no help from the police, Larry and Balki go undercover to expose the con artist and put him out of business.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Taking Stock
star
7.40
20 votes

#9 - Taking Stock

Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/14/1987

Balki buys one share of stock in a cereal company and discovers that there isn't enough raisins in a box that they advertise. Knowing that the company is cheating the public, he decides to go to head office to complain and Larry goes with him.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
To Be or Not to Be
star
7.36
22 votes

#10 - To Be or Not to Be

Season 3 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/6/1988

When Larry and Balki are chosen to be in the commercial for the Chicago Chronicle, Larry takes his acting abilities too far and goes overboard.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Writer: Robert Blair
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
All the News That Fits
star
7.35
26 votes

#11 - All the News That Fits

Season 3 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/22/1987

Larry gets a job at the Chicago Chrinicle local newspaper as a reporter and brings Balki to find a job. Mr. Burns the city editor hires Balki in the mail room but Mr. Gorpley the mail room boss doesn't want him there and tries everything to fire him.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Weigh to Go, Buddy
star
7.33
27 votes

#12 - Weigh to Go, Buddy

Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/29/1987

When Larry discovers that he has gained 7 pounds, He goes on a diet that won't work. So Balki gives him a Mypos diet but Larry has trouble following it and Balki won't let him quit.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
My Brother, Myself
star
7.29
17 votes

#13 - My Brother, Myself

Season 3 - Episode 21 - Aired 3/18/1988

Larry's successful brother Billy (Ted McGinley) comes down for a visit, and Larry is upset because he brags about his success. So he tricks Balki into lying to Billy to make him think Larry is more successful.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
My Lips are Sealed
star
7.26
19 votes

#14 - My Lips are Sealed

Season 3 - Episode 14 - Aired 1/13/1988

After Mr. Gorpley gets information out of Balki about what's in the mail, Larry tells him that it's against the rules for him to give away what's in the mail. But in order to buy his dream car, he needs to know about his raise that was processed in the mail.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Horn Blows at Midnight
star
7.25
24 votes

#15 - The Horn Blows at Midnight

Season 3 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/4/1987

When a famous psychic visits the Chronicle, She goes into a trance and predicts that a bog storm will come and Larry will die at midnight after sitting on a sheep and eating a golden ring. Larry thinks that it is just superstition until a storm comes out of nowhere.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:Apple TV
The Defiant Guys
star
7.21
19 votes

#16 - The Defiant Guys

Season 3 - Episode 20 - Aired 3/11/1988

Larry is very angry at Balki for making him late for work and won't speak to him so Balki handcuffs them together and loses the key during Larry's important luncheon sate with Mr. Burns and the publisher R.T. Wainwright.

Watch Now:Apple TV
Future Shock
star
7.19
26 votes

#17 - Future Shock

Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 11/25/1987

Jennifer has been given a promotion but if she accepts it, she has to move to LA. Larry refuses to tell her how he feels as a fear of rejection but later that evening, he has a dream about being a lonely old man with Balki and Mary Anne married, rich, living upstairs.

Watch Now:Apple TV
The Pen Pal
star
7.11
28 votes

#18 - The Pen Pal

Season 3 - Episode 15 - Aired 1/27/1988

Vince Lucas the racketeer that Larry and Balki testified against has been paroled and Balki invites him into their apartment after writing to him ever since he went to prison. Even though he threatened them, Balki trusts him but Larry's too scared.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Writer: Bob Keyes
Watch Now:Apple TV
Sexual Harrassment in Chicago
star
7.10
20 votes

#19 - Sexual Harrassment in Chicago

Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/7/1987

The editor of the Chronicle's Sunday Magazine makes a play for Balki but he isn't interested. She won't take no for an answer and anyone who ever tried to report her lost their jobs.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:Apple TV
The Break-In
star
7.09
22 votes

#20 - The Break-In

Season 3 - Episode 12 - Aired 12/9/1987

Balki accidently delivers Larry's offensive article to the publisher. So they break in late at night to retrieve it and end up on the ledge dealing with someone trying to commit suicide.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Watch Now:Apple TV
Better Shop Around
star
6.83
23 votes

#21 - Better Shop Around

Season 3 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/21/1987

While grocery shopping, Balki wins a shopping spree to happen the next day and he thinks it would be fun. But Lary makes a plan to get certain things to sell for an air conditioner which takes all the fun out of it.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Writer: Bob Keyes
Watch Now:Apple TV
Couch Potato
star
6.79
24 votes

#22 - Couch Potato

Season 3 - Episode 11 - Aired 12/2/1987

When Larry and Balki get cable TV, Balki becomes glued to the TV and won't stop watching it to the point where he forgets about his job, sleep, and never goes out anymore. So Larry must make an important decision of getting rid of the cable.

Directors: Joel Zwick
Writer: Bob Keyes
Watch Now:Apple TV