Al creates a Tool Time board game, hoping to earn enough money to propose to Ilene. But the game has problems and sometimes catches fire.

Wilson decides to act more like others after a newspaper critic gives his performance a bad review.

Lisa, the old Tool Time girl, returns and Tim gives her her old job back without consulting Heidi, the current Tool Time girl.

Tim and Randy disagree on Binford's environmental policies. Jill gets an internship counseling families.

Tim realizes his friends are boring, so he starts hanging out with students half his age.

On Tool Time, Tim manages to throw himself out a window while doing renovation work. Jill tries to get Tim to help prepare for a tax audit. Brad and Randy become rivals when Brad's article ""Hey Yo!"" takes the spotlight away from Randy's ""Genetic Mutations in the Second Half of the 20th Century.""

At a Halloween party Tim encourages Wilson to break up with his girlfriend. who claims to be a witch. But, after he dumps her he mysteriously disappears. Tim blames the witch but when the police arrive Tim is accused of Wilson's disappearance.

Tim gets preoccupied when he is left alone to write his book.

Tool Time continues to be a "jewel" despite the continued excess presence of the Binford name. Things rapidly turn sad when Al decides to take his mother out to dinner to tell her he's going to get married... and she has a heart attack and dies.