I’ve missed The Middle.
It’s been some time since I’ve sat down with the Hecks and seen what they’ve been up to. And they didn’t disappoint last night.
The thing I’ve missed so very much about them is the relatableness the family has. But no real family has it quite like them. They have the natural tendency to take that relatableness and crank it up to an “11” … and that’s where all the fun is.
For example, I remember my sister being all giddy about her first cheerleading tryouts, similar to what Sue was going through, just without all the drama. Plenty of angst and anticipation, but none of the shrillness. Sue was so out of control and so high strung she was ready to bust.
Brick was a crack up and a half. His being bullied brought back memories as well, reanimating a few talks I had with my father about schoolyard etiquette, standing up for oneself and bullying. “If someone is bothering you, just remember: Never throw the first punch. After he throws one, though? Go after him like a freight train and make him think twice about bugging you again.” Good advice. Solid advice. Advice I’ve taught my children.
And holy moley, did the one-liners and quips come fast and furious last night too; so fast they really had me missing my DVR! Not only that, but I’m certain I had to have glazed over a few with all the guffawing I was doing. The writers on The Middle really seem to have no problem whatsoever keeping the banter cruising along at a nice clip. Lines like “My brain just vapor locked and I totally munched it” from Axl bring back memories of the doofus things I was saying with my friends in school, courtesy of the lovely, pliable and wonderful English language.
One of the spiffy moments of “The Test” I really enjoyed was catching a glimpse of the bag of chips Axl was eating from. Did you notice it? “Let’s” with BBQ flavor. “Let’s” … ?!? Really? I can’t even conceive of the reason behind such a moniker, but I had to chuckle at it. I wonder how many other interesting products there were throughout the broadcast I missed.
Lastly, I really concentrated on where The Powers That Be were taking the Sue/cheerleading plot. It would have been oh, so easy for her to have been spurned by the ditzy captains of the team and then go directly into all the drama of rejection. But, instead, they crafted a convoluted situation and frolicked about with it courtesy of Sue’s demands once she learned her admittance was a flawed mistake. I have to give it to the writers once more for turning something which could have turned out predictable into something completely watchable. Plus: pom pom caught in the braces? Nice touch.
Has The Middle always been this good? I guess it has … and I’ve just been missing out.
Quotes:
“57 messages about a float … none about the PSATs. Just sayin’.” — Frankie when she finds out Axl’s PSATs are the following week
“You’re supposed to nag me about important stuff … that’s what I’m used to.” — Axl
“Do I smell barfy to you?” — Frankie, smelling herself after hugging Axl who admitted he retched after his PSATs
“If you don’t want to have sex tonight, just tell me.” — Mike in response
Clacked by Michael Noble 
on Oct 13, 2011 @ 12:49 EST5EDT
