For free room and board, a college student takes care of three kids while still finding time for a social life (apparently his studies tended to get back-burnered).
Charles has his hands full as he tries to entertain his dream girl Gwendolyn who has come over for a date while also maintaining order in the house.
Charles encourages Lila to join the cheerleading squad and Douglas to join to soccer team and needs to boost their spirits when they do not succeed.
Charles feels like he has to choose between Buddy and Gwendoline when they get into an argument about how Charles should spend his Saturday night.
Mrs. Pembrooke sets Charles up to show a cute girl who is interested in child care a day in the life of taking care of the kids. The same day, Douglas and Jason decide to have a war.
When the kids' 'fun' cousin shows up, Charles feels threatened and has difficulty keeping control of the cousin's irresponsible ways.
After a fight with Gwendolyn, Charles decides to take a night off from women because he can't understand them. Unfortunately for him, Lila is having a slumber party at the house the same night.
Douglas gets an "F" on his book report and Charles has to go to the school to talk to the teacher. He is in for a surprise when she turns out to be young, smart, and very pretty.
It's Halloween and Charles helps the kids prepare for the night. He also helps out Buddy who is lacking confidence over a date and wants Charles to 'accidentally' run into the girl and learn what she likes.
Douglas discovers love when he meets a strange friend of Lila's named Enid. He likes her the way she is and gets upset when Lila tries to give her a makeover.
In an attempt to improve their relationship, Charles and Gwendolyn decide to see other people. This arrangement works well until Gwendolyn gets a date and Charles finds himself jealous.
Charles plans to go home for Christmas are canceled so he stays at the Pembroke house where he has to deal with a jealous grandmother. Meanwhile, Lila gets asked out on her first date.
Charles finds himself in a bind when he wins two tickets for a Bruce Springsteen concert and both Buddy and Gwendolyn want to go with him. He also has to deal with doing the right thing with a dog that the boys brought home.
Mr. and Mrs. Pembroke are fighting and Charles needs to get a term paper done by the next morning while avoiding the many distractions that the house provides.
The Pembrokes' irresponsible cousin Elliot has decided to run for student body president on campus. With Gwendolyn's urging, Charles runs against him in an effort to do the responsible thing.
Mrs. Pembroke gets a promotion at work leaving less time to spend time at home with the children and more responsibility for Charles who has a date.
Grandma Irene comes to the house while Mr. and Mrs. Pembroke go out of town and she tries to convince Charles to work for her in the lucrative business of selling pizza.
The Pembroke house is snowed in while Mr. & Mrs. Pembroke are at the movies. Things go from bad to worse for Charles when the furnace goes off and he has to deal with the kids as well as a group of Lila's friends.
Charles and Buddy join forces to start a new business venture that will have them screen potential live-in house helpers to be trained by Charles himself. Not all candidates are quite up to their standards.
Charles, Buddy, and Gwendolyn head to Florida with some friends for spring break but things get complicated when they are all stuck in one room and then Charles and Buddy are arrested.
Lila is asked out on a date by a guy that her parents do not approve of and she must decide whether to go on the date and betray the trust of her parents and Charles.
Charles invites an old friend of Mrs. Pembroke's to the house for dinner but regrets what he has done when the guest turns out to be a condescending jerk.
Charles and Buddy prepare to leave town for summer jobs while Douglas tries to figure out which summer camp to attend. An appearance from the kids' grandfather surprises everybody.
Charles comes back after his summer trip to find that the Pembrokes are gone and that a new family named the Powells is now occupying the house.
Charles is surprised when a friend poses nude for an art class.
When Adam gets bullied by a neighbor, Charles and Mr. Powell have different ideas on how he should retaliate.
Charles helps the Powell kids with a school project; Walter dates Buddy's grandmother.
Charles fears that his future is in doubt when he gets a letter in the mail saying that his student loans might be canceled.
Sarah's writing is accepted by the judges in an American Teen contest.
Buddy's visit to the Powell home turns into an extended stay when he twists his ankle.
Cmdr. Powell's old shipmate hopes to win Ellen's affection.
Charles attempts to save his favorite pizza parlor from the wrecker's ball.
Charles uses the principles of bartering to solve a growing family crisis.
Ellen won't let Jamie attend a movie with a boy.
Mayhem erupts when Buddy sells Charles a broken cassette player.
While Charles is away, Buddy takes over his duties at the Powell house. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles helps out a famous movie star who wants privacy when she attends college.
Overprotective parents cast a cloud over Charles' date with an attractive girl.
Charles' mother takes the Powell children to a violent movie that Walter had forbidden the kids to see.
Mrs. Powell orders Charles to have a relaxing weekend even though she's holding a yard sale.
Sarah accuses Adam of killing her pet turtle.
The Powell house is turned upside down when the kids and Charles believe that they've seen UFOs.
Charles proposes to his former girlfriend, who is about to marry another man. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles' former girlfriend has second thoughts after she accepts his marriage proposal. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles, already tired of having no time away from the Powell kids, is upset when Jamie starts working as a waitress at Sid's Pizza, his off-work hangout.
Charles plans a party to introduce the new chef at Sid's Pizza Parlor.
Charles becomes ill when his mother dates a golf pro.
Buddy and Charles teach a shy boy the finer points of a social life.
Ellen's married cousin (Kay Lenz) makes a pass at Charles.
Charles and the Powells are stranded in a mountain cabin for the holidays after a storm hits.
With Commander Powell coming home, Charles must bake a cake, pick up the Commander's clothes at the cleaners, buy party supplies, attend Adam's boy scout meeting, meet with the plumber, and counsel Jamie.
Charles moves in with Buddy, much to the Powells' disappointment. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles panics when he and Buddy are assigned an oral report in history class.
Charles' relationship with his girlfriend is in danger when he becomes infatuated with a fashion model.
When Jamie decides to enroll at a modeling school which appears to be a scam, it is up to Charles to find out the truth even if it means hurting her.
Charles serves as the mediator in a feud between Walter and Lillian.
After one of his childhood friends dies, Mr. Powell gets worried about his own mortality. To cheer him up, Charles decides to invites Mr. Powell's father to the house, unaware that they are estranged.
Buddy is nervous when his shy sister, with whom he is not very close to, comes to visit from California. When she all of a sudden becomes the life of the party, it is quickly found out that alcohol abuse is to blame.
Charles's girlfriend gets him a job at the local paper filling in for the vacationing advice columnist. One of the first letter writers he has to give advice to appears to be Sarah, and the problem she wants advice for sounds quite racy.
When Charles is unsure about what to major in, he gets a visit from his uncle from Brooklyn who tries to get him to quit school, leave the Powells and join the pickle business.
When Buddy is not himself after being dumped by his girlfriend, Charles and Mr. Powell decide to build his confidence back up by sending him to a self-improvement program. However, it gives him too much confidence and he becomes very rude to everyone.
Charles and Buddy are surprised to find out that the boy who is going out on a date with Sarah is the same person who overcharged them on playoff tickets. So they decide to spy on Sarah's date.
Charles gets an A on an English assignment, but later discovers he handed Sarah's paper in by mistake.
When his mom goes away for the weekend, she puts Charles in charge of the pizza parlor. When it is learned that the Roving Gourmet, a newspaper food critic, might make an appearance, Charles and Buddy do everything they can to find out who he/she is and impress him/her despite having a shortage of pizza.
Charles and Buddy hope to become members of a fraternity. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Buddy and Charles stop a would-be robber from holding up the pizza parlor.
Charles dreams that all the Powell family members have turned into other characters. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
When Charles gives advice involving Jamie and her love life and it doesn't work out, she gets upsets and blames him.
Charles must find a way to speak to Sarah's class, chaperon Jamie's birthday party, and go out on a double date with Buddy, all in the same night.
When the Powell children feel that Charles does not have enough time to do things for them, they decide to own him, by buying him in a charity slave auction.
Sarah's boyfriend causes trouble when he asks Jamie for a date.
When Charles is assigned to be a teacher's aide at Jamie's school, Jamie is apprehensive about him further intruding on her life and embarrassing her. Her fears are realized when she misbehaves and Charles gives her detention.
When Sarah tries to get closer to a boy that she likes by inviting him over to study, she is upset when he pays more attention to Charles than her. Buddy's girlfriend seems more attracted to Charles than him.
Charles, Buddy and the gang take part in a quiz contest at school.
Charles is threatened when he dates a woman who has a jealous ex-boyfriend. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Sarah joins an anti-nuclear protest outside her Navy father's ship. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles and an unfair faculty supervisor clash over a literature student's grade.
Lillian is in a jam when a celebrity impersonator cancels his appearance at the diner. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
When Adam needs help on what to do on a date with a woman, he decides to hide downstairs and study Charles on his date with Stephanie. When he uses the same techniques on his date, he and Charles end up in hot water.
Lillian opens a 1950s-style cafe; Charles tutors two football players.
An obsessed coed pursues Charles. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles matches Walter up with a younger woman (Marcia Wallace).
Buddy and Charles attempt to keep Sarah and Jamie from escaping to an after-hours dance club.
Unknown to Charles, the Powell children charge his new credit card to its limit. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles realizes the true gift of friendship when Buddy lies near death in a hospital.
When a film crew decides to shoot a commercial at his mom's restaurant, Charles tells Jamie that she was chosen as a model. However, when it is realized that it is Sarah that they want, Charles must find a way to not hurt Jamie's feelings.
Charles and Buddy are shocked when they learn that one of Jamie's favorite teachers is wanted for torching a federal building when she was in college.
Charles uses one of Sarah's poem to try and impress a girl. When the girl publishes the poem in a magazine under Charles' name, Sarah's teacher sees it and accuses her of plagiarism.
When Charles gets hit on the head, he develops another personality, Chaz, a leather wearing biker. He picks a girl named Tiffany and goes off and marries her.
The Powells' are stunned when the amnesia-stricken Charles gets married.
When Jamie joins a cult which tells it members to give all their money away and quit school, Charles must try to prove to her that the leader, Abba-Kahn, is a phony.
Everyone has their own plans on how to use the family's new recreation room.
When the Powell's old babysitter comes to visit, Charles begins to feel unneeded when the children are more attentive toward her. His fears are worsened after he loses a pearl necklace that Mr. Powell entrusted him to hide.
When Mr. Powell has a date with a woman who shares his love of World War II, Charles must deal with several crises at the last minute to make sure everything is in place for the special night.
Charles uses a digital electronic organizer to help plan out his schedule. However, he finds out that it cannot come close to solving all of the Powell's problems.
When Buddy's dad comes to visit from California, Buddy is surprised to learn that his parents are near divorce.
Buddy and Charles are trapped in a case of mistaken identity when they date identical twins. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Jamie considers transferring to a New York school for performers.
Charles dreams about what kind of life the Powell children would lead without him. With Don Most. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles helps a bright student who has a police record.
Charles has a tough time writing an essay about growing up. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles allows the children to make their own rules.
After a near-death experience, Buddy considers becoming a priest. Sarah tries to become a cheerleader so she can be popular like Jamie.
Walter winds up with three dates in one night. Ruta Lee, Marcia Wallace, and Marlyn Mason guest star.
Jamie befriends a conceited girl with hopes of getting into a popular group.
Charles' girlfriend (guest star Tiffani Amber Thiessen) tries to ruin his friendship with Buddy. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles judges a beauty pageant in which his two girlfriends are participating. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Buddy winds up baby-sitting a 3-year-old girl. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Charles falls in love with a rock star (gust star Samantha Fox). Directed by series star Scott Baio.
When Charles' obnoxious childhood friends come to visit, Charles begins to neglect the kids and Buddy to hang out with them.
Jamie gets upset with Charles when she feels that he is trying to interfere too much with her life.
When Charles drives Buddy to a psychiatric hospital to do research, they hold him for observation and Charles must find a way to get him out.
Charles gets revenge when a city inspector blackmails Lillian.
When Charles and Buddy get tested for ESP, it is determined that Buddy may have it. Soon, he starts making predictions about what will happen in Charles's life.
Jamie (Nicole Eggert) and Sarah (Josie Davis) run for student body president.
Charles (Scott Baio) takes on the task of teaching the children about earthquake safety.
Jamie gets upset when her boyfriend dumps her because she is shallow. So Charles does her a "favor" by allowing her to follow his sophisticated girlfriend around in hopes of getting him back.
Charles (Scott Baio) takes on a whole new personality after he accidentally bumps his head.
Lillian (Ellen Travolta) considers marrying an old boyfriend.
Buddy's identical cousin lands a job at a Hawaiian resort.
When Charles substitute teaches one of Sarah's classes, he gives them a project where he assigns her the cutest guy in class, who uses Sarah to do all his homework.
Charles (Scott Baio) and Buddy (Willie Aames) wind up locked in a cage. Ben Stein guest stars. Directed by series star Scott Baio.
Walter (James Callahan) takes a history class that is taught by Charles (Scott Baio). With Pamela Anderson.
Charles' aunt may lose her business when she cannot pay her lease.
While picking up a cake for Mrs. Powell's birthday, Charles gets stuck in an elevator with an attractive woman. He is initially excited about a possible romance with her until he finds out that she is blind.
Sarah tries to help her relatives communicate with each other.
Charles faces a tough choice when he must decide whether to help the Powell children by directing their fund-raising play or to study for a test that will get him into graduate school at Princeton.
Complete episode guide for Charles in Charge with detailed information about every season and episode including air dates, summaries, ratings, and streaming availability in United States.
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