Larry Appleton has just settled in his new Chicago apartment after leaving home of one of nine kids and took a job at the corner discount store working for his greedy landlord Mr. Twinkacetti until he can eventually become a photo journalist. But one evening, Balki Bartokomous, his distant cousin and a Mediterranean sheep herder from the island of Mypos shows up on his door step looking for a place to stay. So Larry takes him in and tries to get him a job at Twinkacetti's store which may mean risking his own job.
Larry tries to kickstart his career and gets tipped off that Dolly Parton is in town committing adultery. So he decides to follow her until he can get a picture to sell to newspapers. Meanwhile, Balki will do a favor for anyone who will ask for it so Larry teaches him to say ""no"" once in a while but it backfires on him.
Larry takes Balki to the bank to open a bank account but Balki doesn't seem to understand everything about banking when he overspends with his checks and buys Larry new furniture. Meanwhile, Twinkacetti is going to a poker game and his wife, Edwina doesn't like him gambling. So he asks Larry to tell his wife that they were at a basketball game but Larry refuses to.
Larry and Balki win a trip to Las Vegas. When they get there, Larry plans out what to do for their entire trip to prevent Balki from going to the casinos and becoming a compulsive gambler. Balki eventually talks him into it and after Balki has a string of good luck playing roulette, Larry starts playing and won't stop.
Mr. Twinkacetti hasn't been living up to his landlord responsibilities so Larry, Balki, and all the tenants hold a meeting and declare a rent strike. The tenants still won't quit even after Twinkacetti turns off the electricity, water and heat which is too bad for Twinkie who needs money to pay off a gambling debt.
After Mr. Perkins, an employee at the Chronicle parked in Larry's parking space and Jennifer breaks a date with him at the last minute, Larry figures he has trouble being assertive. So he goes to a seminar called ""stop"" hoping it will help him become more assertive. When he returns, He tells Jennifer and Mr. Perkins off, and he instructs Balki how to get a raise after Mr. Gorpley laughed in his face when he asked for it. He finally gets Balki to demand a raise from Mr. Gorpley.
The Chicago Chronicle is having a camping trip. Larry hates camping but knows that Jennifer loves it, so he arranges a trip. Jennifer insists she won't go alone with Larry (remembering the skiing incident), so Larry elects Balki as the camping leader thinking that Jennifer would feel safe and Mary Anne decides to go along.
After the river takes them on a wild ride, The four end up lost in the woods. Hoping that Larry can regain Jennifer's respect, he talks Balki into letting him lead them back to the camp site but they end up walking for five hours in a circle. Later, Larry and Balki almost drown in quicksand and in the evening, they get attacked by a bear.
Larry prepares a surprise party for Balki who is taking his college entrance exams. While they are waiting for him to return, they talk about some things they've been through together such as when they first met, the first day at the Chronicle, when they tried to fix Jennifer and Mary Anne's shower, etc. Larry thinks that he has helped Balki come along way but it seems that Balki has been helping him more.
On Christmas Eve, Larry and Balki throw a Christmas party at their apartment for all their friends. But when Balki realizes that Mr. Gorpley is lonely, he invites him who causes a lot of trouble with snide attitude and everyone wants to throw him out. But Balki insists on spreading a little Christmas cheer his way too.
Larry's bowling team is one game away from winning the trophy that Mr. Gorpley has been waving in Larry's face for the last year. But Calvin, the star player has been sent out of town by his boss - Mr. Gorpley of course. Balki tries bowling for the first time and had an excellent score so he becomes the substitute, but his trip to the ophthalmologist before the tournament may make playing difficult.
Larry writes an expose of a money laundering scheme that gets him his first front page story but he's upset when he realizes that Marshall & Walpole too all the credit for his article. Also, Marvin Berman, the money laundering scheme's accountant, is also upset because his boss took all the credit for the scheme that was really his idea. So he shows up at the Chronicle with a bomb and demands a printed retraction.
Larry and Balki, Jennifer and Mary Anne, Lydia and Mr. Gorpley, and of course Larry's father are all trapped in the flooding basement. Larry attempts to solve the problem without much luck. So thinking they're all going to die, Larry must tell his father how he feels. Luck changes when Larry finds his chemistry set.
While playing a board game, an argument breaks out between Jennifer and Mary Anne. The result being Mary Anne moving out and in with Larry and Balki at Balki's insistence. Larry doesn't like the idea because is jeopardizes his relationship with Jennifer. So Larry and Balki devise a plan to get Jennifer and Mary Anne back together.
Jennifer was asked out on a date by an old boyfriend and checked with Larry first. But he agreed thinking that's what she wanted but she really wanted to know here their relationship is going. Confused, She breaks up with Larry who is too scared to tell her how he really feels but they eventually end up getting engaged.
Larry is assigned to do an article about a Korean war pilot and goes up in his plane to fly with him, even though he is petrified of small planes, and Balki goes too. After doing tricks in the air, the pilot bails out, Balki lands the plane and Later, Balki discovers that Tephlonous, the Myposian God of Protection was with them and that they are indestructible for 4 weeks. It turns out to be a dream after Larry fainted.
Larry is sent to Los Angeles to write an article about a soap opera star's wedding and Balki goes with him. While attempting to get a better story, they get chased by mobsters after they witness and video tape Marco Madison, a big time gangster, murder an undercover drug agent and Larry and Balki are prime suspects.
After doing some research, Larry finds evidence that Mary Anne is a serial killer but Jennifer is very skeptical since she's known her all her life. But Larry gets scared when Mary Anne is planning on taking Balki mountain climbing, and when Jennifer gets called into work, he thinks that Mary Anne killed her. It turns out to be a total misunderstanding.
Larry's popular high school rival Bunky McDermott comes to see him and invites him and Balki to a formal dinner party and make him a member of his popular club. Larry is so excited and lies to Bunky about going to the Caribbean but to convince him, Larry and Balki spend some time in a tanning bed and end up getting sunburned.
Larry manages to get tickets to go to a Bulls game with Balki on the night that Larry promised to take Jennifer to the ballet. So Larry lied to Jennifer saying that he had to work. Balki tells him a story about an old Honeymooners rerun where we see Ralph (Larry) lying to Alice (Jennifer) about having to work late when he plans on going bowling with Norton (Balki) and Alice ends up finding out about it while she was with Trixie (Mary Anne). However Jennifer found out about the basketball game and Larry is in a heap of trouble.
Balki is discovered by a music promoter and he offers him a record and video contract. So Larry convinces Balki to accept and he becomes the newest rap star after shooting a video called ""Fresh Young Balki B."" But after they watch it, they notice that a different voice was dubbed in and Balki quits.
Larry suggests to Mr. Wainwright that a Chronicle employee stay on a billboard until the Bull' losing streak is over. Mr. Wainwright liked the idea and assigned Larry to find someone to do it. So he tricks Balki to do it but when Balki wants to get down, Larry kicks the ladder down and they both get stuck up there until the Bulls win.
Balki's catering business really takes off when he is catering for Texans. At Larry's advice, Balki books another party on the same night unaware that Larry already booked another party without telling him. Even with Larry helping him in the kitchen, and Jennifer and Mary Anne serving, all three parties are too much for them to handle.
Larry is going duck hunting with Mr. Wainwright and Balki wants to go to get revenge on something that happened to him when he was a kid involving a duck. Larry lets him go when he sees what a great shot Balki is but it turns into a disaster when Balki will only let them kill one kind of ducks - pterodactyls.
Balki and Mary Anne expect Larry and Jennifer to set a wedding date but they're too scared. To help them, Balki gives them an official marriage test to see if they're right for each other but things don't go as expected. In the end they set the wedding for September regardless of what the test says.
Larry and Balki are driving to Lake Whitefish where Larry and Jennifer are getting married and they are pulled over for going too slow, but they are arrested when Larry backs into the patrol car, then they are picked out of a line-up when Larry is identified as a robber. Larry and Jennifer end up getting married in jail until the real robber confessed.
King Ferdinand of Mypos comes to visit America and dies in Larry's arms - which means that Larry is the new king according to Myposian custom. But convinced that Larry would make a terrible king, they must pretend that he's alive and drop him into the arms of the King's advisor - The Speaker of the Hut.
When Balki finds out that there is a ghost in their house, Larry refuses to believe it. Jennifer and Mary Anne are convinced when Balki shows them a book about it. So they go up to Balki's room (where the ghost lives) and wait for him to come out. Even when miraculous things start to happen, Larry still doesn't believe it until he's attacked.
Balki has passed his Citizenship test and is about to be sworn in as an American Citizen. So Larry arranges for Balki's mama (Bronson Pinchot in a dual role) to come to American to witness him being sworn in. When Balki's mama discovers that he will not come back to Mypos to live, She is angry and Balki has to go back to Mypos.
Larry travels to Mypos to try and persuade Balki's mama to let him come back to America. But before he can talk to her, Larry settles happily into the relaxed life style of Mypos and wants to stay. Eventually, he gets fed up and talks to Balki's mama who realizes that it would really make him happy to let him come back to America where is finally sworn in as an American Citizen.
Balki wins an all-expenses paid trip to Las Vegas but is sad when they can't get any tickets to see Wayne Newton. Jennifer attempts to call up an old boyfriend who can get her tickets, But a jealous Larry calls up Wayne's people and tells them that Balki is going deaf and manages to get tickets. After the concert, Wayne wants to meet Balki personally but Larry is afraid the truth will come out.
When Balki takes Larry's ""Wheat"" play-script to Lydia's theater, Larry goes down to see the cast. But when the director tries to change the lines, Larry won't let him, so they all quit. But Larry insists that they keep the show by casting him with Balki, Lydia, Jennifer, and Mary Anne, but they've never acted before and make a mess of it.
Mary Anne has been hinting at Balki to propose to her and he has failed one too many times so she threatens to move out. Larry talks to Balki and tries to get him to realize but do to mis-communication, Balki thinks that Jennifer's in love with him and Mary Anne is going to die. But in all the confusion, Mary Anne move out.
Balki hasn't gone out since he broke up with Mary Anne. So Larry convinces Balki to go out and meet new people and takes him to a singles bar. Balki brings home a woman to watch a Woody Woodpecker marathon but her friend comes with her who is drunk and falls asleep in Larry's bed around the time that Jennifer comes home.
Balki has been having so many dates in the past two weeks and Jennifer thinks he still misses Mary Anne but Larry refuses to believe it. Later on, Balki meets the woman of his dreams who is identical to Mary Anne, and they later discover that Mary Anne is dating a man identical to Balki. Balki and Mary Anne don't seem to realize what's going on for a while, but when they do, they end up getting engaged.
According to a sacred Myposian custom, Balki and Mary Anne must be married within 24 hours and they get everything ready. Larry feels left out of the duties so Balki makes him his best man and the guardian of his Myposian marriage necklace which he must have during the ceremony, but Larry accidentally throws it out. So Larry and Balki search the dump for it and eventually find it and Balki and Mary Anne finally get married.
Jennifer is seven months pregnant; Balki and Mary Anne have been on their honeymoon for five months in Mypos and their about to come home. When they arrive, they have a surprise, Mary Anne is also pregnant but isn't going through any bad symptoms like Jennifer is. Balki brought a root back from Mypos that could help Jennifer but when Larry and Balki eat it, they start acting very hyper and ruin the baby shower.
Jennifer is two weeks overdue and has a few false alarms. Meanwhile, After Balki and Mary Anne went to the fair, Mary Anne goes into labor and has her baby in the driveway. Jennifer is told about a balloon ride Mary Anne went in and in hopes of going into labor, Larry and Balki take Jennifer up in the balloon.
Merry montage of Balki and Larry's signature two-step throughout the show's first two seasons.
As if “Stranger Things” didn’t already have enough ’80s pop culture in its DNA, Jimmy Kimmel took it even further with a teaser for the mock spinoff series “Perfect Stranger Things.” In the clip from Monday’s episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Larry (Mark Linn-Baker) and Balki (Bronson Pinchot) get a third roommate named Dem O’Gorgon (Kimmel, in a pretty convincing costume), adding a dose of streaming-era sci-fi to the TGIF sitcom.