Innovative 'Malcolm' immortalized in reruns

tjpeople

Site Administrator
Staff member
Thought this was a nice write up on MITM

Are you tired of all the sex and violence on TV and looking for some good, clean family fun? Don't worry; I'm not talking about "The Brady Bunch."

Although the show ended with its seventh season last year, "Malcolm in the Middle" still ranks among the best sitcoms on television.

The show won two Emmys and was nominated multiple times each year, something even "Friends" can't boast.

When it debuted in 2000, the show defined itself by being one of the first modern sitcoms to be filmed without a laugh track or a live studio audience.

Another interesting element occurs when Malcolm, played by Frankie Muniz, breaks the fourth wall by looking into the camera and talking directly to the audience.

One of my favorite parts of this series is watching the four children grow from season to season.

In the first episode the children look young and innocent, and you are shocked to hear them swear.

As the show progresses, you watch their acting talents improve.
The show revolves around a dysfunctional family of four badly behaved boys, three still at home and the fourth at military school for his unruly behavior, and their equally awful parents.

One of the more comical elements of the show is the exaggeration of everyday events.

In one memorable episode, Lois, played by Jane Kaczmarek, becomes angry when the woman she parked next to dents her car door.

The scene quickly transcends into chaos as the two middle-aged women repeatedly crash their cars into each other.

The episode ends with both cars rolling toward each other at a snails pace, smoke rising from the engines, and elderly shoppers scurrying by the crawling cars with their walkers.

Despite this exaggeration, viewers can still relate to the trials the characters face.

Reese, played by Justin Berfield, does not want to graduate from high school so he studies really hard for his finals so that he could purposefully fail all of his classes and have to stay another year.

Hal, Bryan Cranston, does something to make his wife angry and offers the boys money if they lie and take the fall.

Dewey, Erik Per Sullivan, becomes tired of being bullied by his older brothers so when the tables turn and he has power over them, he makes them dress up like girls and sing opera.

If you haven't been lucky enough to catch an episode I strongly recommend that you catch some of the reruns or rent the first season on DVD.

"Malcolm in the Middle" reruns air weekdays at 2:00 and 2:30 PM and 1:30 AM on FX channel 42.

Source: http://media.www.utcecho.com/media/....malcolm.Immortalized.In.Reruns-2965448.shtml
 
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