After returning from a two-month trip to Europe with a new look and shorted hairstyle, Julia finds herself in uncharted territory with her new husband, Griffin, who in his opinion realizes that “absence definitely makes the heart grow weirder.“ Meanwhile, Bailey is facing the consequences of the drunk-driving accident that put Sarah in the hospital when he's arrested after Sarah's powerful, revenge-seeking parents officially charge him with drunk driving. Claudia decides to try out for a cheerleader during her first day at Grant High School, but ends up becoming the school mascot instead. Also, Charlie finds some complications when he finds Owen dressing in girls clothing fearing that Owen is developing a bond with his pre-school teacher Jenny.

In its seven-year run on television, Party of Five managed to portray extreme emotions in a contained, tasteful, and level-headed way without sacrificing poignancy or richness. Aimed at a teen audience but with crossover appeal to most viewers, the series dealt with recurring themes of loss and disappointment, made all the more interesting because Party of Five's major characters, especially in season 1, are youthful siblings coping with the recent deaths of their parents in an automobile accident. Shocked into a beyond-their-years awareness of the fragility of ordinary life and the importance of loyalty and loving bonds, the Salinger offspring--24-year-old Charlie (Matthew Fox), high schoolers Bailey (Scott Wolf) and Julia (Neve Campbell), 11-year-old Claudia (Lacey Chabert), and baby Owen (various infant actors)--bring a deeply felt, sometimes desperate gravitas to lesser but still significant misfortunes in relationships, peer pressures, and ambitions. On top of that, each has to take on responsibilities beyond their experience--hiring nannies, raising money for mortgage payments, etc.--and make sacrifices robbing them of formative experiences.

Back in her family home, Wenqian Zhang settles in with her camera. A Long Journey Home tells the story of this cohabitation via a relational and temporal journey that stirs up emotions while challenging contemporary China’s “making a family” from the inside. This is a brilliant quest for emancipation seeking a place among one’s own people.

Daphne, now living with Charlie at the Salinger house, gets increasingly fed up with his constant nagging about her wild lifestyle. Meanwhile, Julia arrives at Stanford to go back to college and meets her wild and crazy dorm roommate, Maggie and her equally hormone crazed boyfriend Ned. Julia also meets Josh, another student and pizza delivery man that takes an interest in her, despite that she wants nothing to do with him. Kirsten helps Claudia pack her things as she prepares to go away to Phillips Prep School in Massachusetts. Also, Bailey and Sarah, now back together once again, decide to move out of the apartment building into a loft for themselves.

《五口之家 Party of Five》改编自1990年同名剧，原版的主创Chris Keyser及Amy Lippman会继续负责该剧。原版中主角为五兄弟姐妹，他们的父母被醉酒驾驶者撞死，主角们因而成了孤儿；而在重启版中主角群改为墨西哥裔，他们父母被遣返回墨西哥，因此被留在美国的五兄弟姐妹得依靠彼此生活下去。

Charlie and Kirsten hit a snag involving the site for their coming wedding which throws planner (and control-freak) Bailey into overdrive. Sarah, who turned down Bailey's own marriage proposal, can't say anything without getting a snappish response from him. A modicum of support comes from Kirsten's visiting parents, with her mother playing the peacemaker as her father does little to mask his disapproval of the event knowing of the first fiasco marriage attempt years before. Meanwhile, Julia is offered a great opportunity to write a book by her academic editor Evan. Also, Claudia's relationship with Cody takes a turn when she finds him kissing someone else.

Charlie is shocked and furious when his ex from four years ago Pamela Rush turns up as swears her adorable son is his. Seeing traits of himself in the boy, Charlie is quickly delighted with paternal prospects, but Pamela already left San Francisco again. Bailey can't appreciate Will's efforts to arrange a date for him, feeling it's too soon after his Jill trauma, yet discovers he has a lot in common with clearly interested campus waitress Sarah Reeves. Julia discovers Jill's brother Griffin, whom she dated all summer while Justin was in London with his father, knows about her infidelity and feels free to see others. Justin returns and rebukes her hypocrisy for bugging him about an innocent companion from his youth, still ignorant about Griffin.

乔治·R·R·马丁透露第四季正在筹备中。

第四季将视野拓展到教育系统，其它主要情节还有第三季中引入的市长竞选，并深入描写了Marlo Stanfield领导的贩毒团伙在西巴尔的摩的不断壮大。