Jack ""Madman"" Buckner is an egocentric magazine columnist whose new young publisher also happens to be his daughter Meg. In the opener, father and daughter lock horns when Meg decides to fire Jack's best friend.
After Jack writes a column wishing for the death of a noisy robin, the bird chirps its last chirp—prompting the neighbors to wish Jack tarred and feathered.
Jack decides to go over Meg's head when budget cuts cost him Knicks season tickets, but he may get slam-dunked when he complains to the big boss.
Jim's friendly punch to an old buddy at an awards ceremony turns ugly after the friend socks him and the magazine with a lawsuit.
After Jack sets up Meg with a stranger he met in a bar, she discovers that her new beau is an executioner.
A blackout in the city finds Jack enduring a miserable birthday, Delia bonding with her usually hostile neighbor, and Sasha and Meg stuck on an elevator with a gorgeous construction worker.