How to Get Up to Speed on "Party of Five"

San Francisco's Salinger family has more than its fair share of drama and hardship. The five children in the family lost their parents in a drunk driving accident and are trying to raise themselves under the watch of the oldest brother, Charlie. Sibling rivalry always lies in wait to spice things up.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Look forward to the show's syndication. "Party of Five" ends its run this season, but that means you'll get a chance to watch it from the beginning when it's resurrected.
2. Meet Charlie (Matthew Fox), the dubious "head" of the Salinger family, who has had to grow up fast and become more responsible than he ever wanted to be. He recently fought Hodgkin's disease and a long string of bad relationships. He now finds himself married to Kirsten (Paula Devicq), whom he previously left at the altar.
3. Watch Charlie raise his baby daughter, Diana, whose mom, Daphne, bailed on them but is trying to be in the picture now as a friend and part-time mom. Charlie is a custom furniture maker and is considering going into business with his brother Bailey.
4. Meet Bailey (Scott Wolf), who at the tender age of 21 is a recovering alcoholic and is raising his younger brother Owen (Jacob Smith), who was just a baby when their parents were killed. He and Charlie fought about this arrangement for a long time; Bailey was even going to take Charlie to court. He also runs the Salinger restaurant that their parents used to own. Bailey proposed to his girlfriend Sarah (Jennifer Love Hewitt), who turned him down and ran off to New York.
5. Get to know Julia (Neve Campbell), who used to be married to Griffin and is currently attending a writing college in San Francisco. She was attending Stanford and got ensnared in an abusive relationship there. She's trying to write a nonfiction book about her family, but they aren't thrilled about their private lives being made public.
6. Get to know Claudia (Lacey Chabert), the youngest sister, who returned home from boarding school because she was homesick. She's in the awkward throes of high school, dating and makeup. She recently moved in with Julia.
7. Understand that this show is never dull. There is always something going on, and it's usually big and dramatic. The characters have dealt with cancer, abortion, abuse, alcoholism, sexual orientation and years of lingering grief. But in the end, family is family.
8. Watch "Party of Five" on Fox, Tuesdays at 9 p.m.