"Malcolm in the Middle" (2000) TV series 2000-2006

Creator:

Linwood Boomer

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Release Date:

9 January 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

A gifted young teen tries to survive with his dimwitted, dysfunctional family.

Plot Keywords:

Dysfunctional Family | School | Military School | Sitcom | Ranch

Awards:

Nominated for 7 Golden Globes. Another 39 wins & 82 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Fri. Nov. 27	1:30 AM	MyNetwork	Thanksgiving	#5.4
Fri. Nov. 27	7:00 AM	FX	Buseys Take a Hostage	#6.21

Cast

Bryan Cranston	...	Hal (151 episodes, 2000-2006)
Justin Berfield	...	Reese (151 episodes, 2000-2006)
Erik Per Sullivan	...	Dewey (151 episodes, 2000-2006)
Jane Kaczmarek	...	Lois (150 episodes, 2000-2006)
Christopher Masterson	...	Francis (150 episodes, 2000-2006)
Frankie Muniz	...	Malcolm (150 episodes, 2000-2006)
Craig Lamar Traylor	...	Stevie Kenarban / ... (61 episodes, 2000-2006)

Also Known As:

Fighting in Underpants (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:TV-14 (one episode) | Canada:G (Quebec) (DVD rating) | Canada:PG (DVD rating) | Argentina:Atp | Brazil:Livre | Singapore:PG | USA:TV-PG | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Satin City Productions

Trivia:

"Krelboyne", the name of the class of gifted students to which Malcolm belongs, is taken from the name of the nerdy hero of The Little Shop of Horrors (1960).

Goofs:

Continuity: In the episode when Francis runs away from military school, he and his father are talking in the van. There is a pair of headlights behind them following very close, but when seen from outside, the car is driving down the rain soaked road with no car behind them.

Quotes:

Hal: If this baby's half as bad as our least bad one, we're still ruined.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Knowing (2009)

Soundtrack:

Boss of Me

Consistently funny and original

When this show first debuted right after THE SIMPSONS, I incorrectly thought it was just a live action knock-off of the Simpson family. While there are some similarities, the show managed to carve out a unique niche for itself due to the show's wonderful ability to tell two or three stories simultaneously and interweave them so well. Plus the humor involving this very dysfunctional family managed to be unique enough that I honestly can't say it was like any other show on television. Excellent writing, casting and enough bizarre plot twists to keep you interested, it's not surprising this show lasted seven seasons. In fact, considering how FOX moved the show around so much, it's a testament to the quality of the show that this didn't kill it--as so often happens when they move shows around without consideration for the audience. In the end, when it was canceled, the show was STILL well written and going strong--and could have perhaps gone on for another season or two.

By the way, as a testament to the great writing, unlike most comedies this one did not use a laugh track because they knew the situations were funny and they didn't need to coax the viewer into laughing--and it didn't insult the intelligence of the audience.