Hope & Faith (2003)

After years of being on the single merry-go-round and searching for her soul mate, Faith receives proposals from not one, but two ardent boyfriends - Gary "The Gooch" Gucharez", the sexy former baseball star, and Larry, the romantic and handsome TV news anchor. Will she take the plunge? Will she say "I do"? Yes! But does Hope approve of her sister's decision? It isn't all rose petals on the way to the altar on the Season Premiere of "Hope & Faith"!

After years of being on the single merry-go-round and searching for her soul mate, Faith receives proposals from not one, but two ardent boyfriends - Gary "The Gooch" Gucharez", the sexy former baseball star, and Larry, the romantic and handsome TV news anchor. Will she take the plunge? Will she say "I do"? Yes! But does Hope approve of her sister's decision? It isn't all rose petals on the way to the altar on the Season Premiere of "Hope & Faith"!

When Faith advises Sydney to use a death-in-the-family excuse to get an extension on her term paper, Sydney concocts an extraordinary story that Faith met a tragic end. The media circus that follows restores Faith's celebrity status on television and in the press; however, Faith's attempt to seize the opportunity to make a comeback goes awry when Hope becomes a media darling as her grieving sister.

Faith confesses that she’s tired of Hope nagging her about every aspect of her life – from parking tickets to her love life -- so a frustrated Hope vows to abstain from cleaning up Faith’s messes. But Charley is the one who suffers when Hope redirects her energy to focus solely on him.

When Faith crack a tooth she makes Charley treat her, despite the fact that they despise each other. or do they? The nitrous oxide he gives Faith makes her "a little baby," and what she says while she's under is very surprising indeed.

There's a neighborhood Halloween party contest between Hope and her neighbor Trudy but what can Faith do when she is invited to Trudy's party as the date for Trudy's rather attractive cousin?

Faith is forced to pick up Hope's birthday gift for Charley after Hope is unable to make it. But Faith is too late and instead gets Charley an uncharacteristic shirt. Charley loves it and Hope fears she's too predictable these days. So Faith takes her to a strips aerobic class. However there are unexpected results when Hope prepares to shake it for Charley.

When Faith refuses to take her job search seriously, Hope and Charley suggest that she see a therapist - portrayed by Susan Sullivan - Who can help her straighten out her life. Faith resistant at first, but soon finds a way to use the doctor's advice to manipulate her family.

Hope and Faith are surprised to spot their dad, Jack, in town earlier than expected for Thanksgiving. His suspicious behavior with his companion, a young man named Jay leads the sisters to jump to conclusions. They soon learn their father is harboring a secret about Jay, which has a huge impact on their family ties.

When Dr. Lombard suggests that Faith channel her energy into a creative outlet, she signs up for a poetry slam on the same night that Charley is set to receive an award from “The Optimist’s Club.” Hope, who is busy preparing for the Great American Bake Sale, is torn between which event to attend. When Faith’s actions that night result in a rift between Hope and Charley, she concocts a misguided attempt to make amends, tricking them into a therapy session with Dr. Lombard.

Faith surprises the entire family with personal, extravagant Christmas gifts, including an expensive gold watch for Charley. When Charley realizes he forgot to buy a gift for his beloved employee, Hassan, Hope, inspired by Faith’s generosity, encourages him to give Hassan his treasured championship watch. Later, Charley is furious when he discovers that the “gold” watch Faith bought for him is a fake. Feeling extremely guilty, Hope insists that Faith attempt to retrieve Charley’s watch from Hassan, but in the end, Faith really surprises them with an uncharacteristically magnanimous gesture.

Hope is stung when Charley laments that their love life has been non-existent for weeks. When she confides in her sister, Faith tells Hope that it’s unrealistic to think married couples can keep the spark alive for years – only a sexy single like Faith can continue to have a sizzling sex life. Upset that Faith might be right, Hope invites Charley to meet her at a hotel. They have so much fun that their activities escalate, and they sneak around for days, fabricating lies to get Faith to do Hope’s household and parenting chores. But even as she puts her own love life on hold, Faith brings her unique style to her new domestic responsibilities

Faith is surprised to spot her ex-husband, “The Gooch”, in her yoga class, having returned from playing baseball in Japan. Although she is still attracted to him, she is shocked to discover he has adopted a Zen lifestyle -- forsaking his sports career, his car, his cell phone and sex for a life of celibacy and meditation. Hope encourages her to move on to other romantic possibilities, such as their attractive yoga instructor, Kiley. However, when Kiley and Faith get too close for comfort, “The Gooch” is overcome by jealousy and is forced to reveal to Faith the truth about his return from Japan.

Hope and Faith are shocked to find “Handsome Hal” working as a clerk at the local convenience store. It seems that Hal has fallen on hard times, having been busted for running a scam at his car dealership. After Hope chastises Faith for gloating over his bad luck, Faith invites him to stay with her while he gets back on his feet. Faith immediately regrets her compassionate act when Hal takes over her bedroom and becomes just plain annoying, but then the odd couple decide that her acting talent and his people skills make them the ideal team to audition to be hosts of the Glen Falls morning show. Will the duo have that perfect TV chemistry?

The Gooch is nervous about meeting Faith’s dad, Jack, who is visiting for Hope and Charley’s 20th anniversary party. After a rocky start, Jack and the Gooch begin to bond, so Faith is astonished when Jack tells her that the Gooch is not a good match for her. At the party, Faith’s efforts to spruce up the Gooch’s image in order to gain Jack’s approval backfires, and Hope is upset when the focus of her party shifts – as usual -- to her sister.

When Faith finally gets her agent on the phone, he tells her to have new head shots taken. Charley offers to take them, and the agent loves them. He loves the photography, that is.

Charley finds a skill of Faith's he can admire: She's a good bowler. So he asks her to be his partner in an upcoming tournament. Then he must figure out a nice way to dump his usual partner, the athletically challenged Hope.

When the sisters’ half-brother, Jay, hires Hope as the new sous-chef at his restaurant, Faith is jealous of their growing bond. Dr. Lombard, Faith’s therapist, says that if she wants to be closer to Jay, she should focus on him – and not herself. After struggling to do just that, Faith gets Jay to open up and reveal that the over-enthusiastic Hope is driving him crazy by taking over his kitchen – and he wants to fire her. Faith and Charley devise a plan to spare Hope’s feelings, but their ruse backfires.

When the family finds Jay depressed on his birthday over his last break-up, both Hope and Faith jump at the chance to fix him up with a new girlfriend. Hope beats Faith to the punch, introducing him to Betsy, her pleasant, unexciting PTA friend. But Faith answers back with her sexy, spontaneous friend, Amber, whom she’s intent on pushing on Jay. Although Faith initially gloats when Jay hits it off with Amber, she’s shocked and embarrassed when she discovers Amber’s hidden agenda, so she enlists Charley and Hope to help solve the dilemma.

Faith complains to Dr. Lombard (Susan Sullivan) that Sydney thinks she’s totally uncool and that Hope and Charley make her feel middle-aged. So when her therapist advises that one solution might be to change her living situation, Faith finds a place online and tells a horrified Hope and a delighted Charley that she’s moving out. Upon arrival at her new home, however, Faith is horrified to discover it’s a retirement community, but in typical Faith style, she quickly finds a silver lining to her situation. Meanwhile, Charley rents Faith’s old room to someone he thinks is a dream tenant.

After a loud, late-night dancing session by Faith and “The Gooch” pushes Hope and Charley over the edge, they suggest that the couple find their own home. Unfortunately Charley and Hope learn that a local real estate technicality makes Faith the legal owner of her garage apartment – unless she has paid them rent. So Charley tries to squeeze a single rent check out of Faith, but the truth comes out and Faith declares an all-out war on Hope and Charley to keep her place – and they join in an outrageous battle of one-upsmanship.

Hope reminisces with her family about the first fight she and Charley had during their courtship back in 1985 when they were both in college. Flashbacks to that fateful night reveal that it was also the first time Charley and Faith met. The fireworks begin when Hope cancels her date with Charley to go to a Huey Lewis concert, choosing instead to stay and console Faith, who is distraught after not being cast as the lead in her high school play. Both Charley and Hope think they missed the concert, but as the story is re-told, Hope uncovers some outrageous secrets that Charley and Faith have kept under wraps all these years – not to mention one last surprise that’s revealed about Hope.