The Middle Series Finale Review

The title of the episode is true, it really has been a heck of a ride over the last nine years. The way that this family has grown over all of the seasons has been amazing to watch, and it has done that while being consistently funny. Now we have reached the emotional final hour of The Middle.


S9E23-24 "A Heck of a Ride"

The series finale picked up right where last week's episode left off. Frankie is crying, and can't decide whether she wants Mike to hold her or not. The scene is very funny, even though we can't see Frankie or Mike because it's dark. They have a great conversation about Frankie's nightstand cookies, and in the morning Mike wakes up to crumbs across Frankie's side of the bed. On a cookie high, Frankie has accepted that Axl is moving. Axl tells his siblings that he's leaving, and the two very different reactions are hilarious. Axl tells everyone that he has a month, as he starts his new job in June, but Mike discovers that the job actually starts in May, which Axl realizes after a hilarious debate about what the 5th month is.

Axl is upset about how Brick doesn't seem to care that he is leaving. This is a story I did not expect, but it is a great one. Axl is usually not a sentimental one, but he does care, and this story clearly shows it. Sue meanwhile tries to have a moment with Axl, but Axl just wants to talk about Brick. Axl and Brick talk about this in the backseat of the family car, where Brick reveals to Axl how he doesn't know what the room will be like without Axl. Sue interrupts, as she wants in on a moment with Axl. It's then Axl's turn to reveal his hidden emotions, telling Sue how hard it will be for him to say goodbye to her. This scene with the three Heck kids in the back of the car is absolutely wonderful, both funny and heartfelt.

Preparing for Axl to leave, Frankie acts cool so that Axl will want to take her calls and visit for the holidays. There is an enjoyable scene where she puts this into action, as they try to get good boxes from the Frugal Hoosier, and Frankie doubts that they are giving her the best boxes. Right before the family leaves, Mike gives Axl a sentimental gift of a watch with the latitude and longitude of their house on it. It's a very heartfelt scene, and there's a funny part here when Frankie gets annoyed by this. As the family prepares to leave, some neighbors say goodbye, as well as Brad, Lexi, and best of all, Weird Ashley, who has a hilarious goodbye for Axl. As the first half of the finale ends, the Heck family leaves Orson, and it's great when Nancy comments that they are fighting already, she knows them well!

The family heads out, and Frankie is still annoyed about the watch, telling Mike that when she gives a gift, she writes both of their names on it. I had a good laugh at Mike's response when he has trouble hearing her: "Maybe I don't want to get my ears checked." Frankie decides to stop and get peaches, but the peaches end up attracting bees. When Frankie gets an alert that they are nearing their data use limit, she tells the kids to get off of their devices. This is a great way to get the family to interact, which leads to arguing about Axl freezing Sue's head. I love the old recurring jokes that are getting brought up again in this finale, such as this one.

At the airport, Sean discovers the snowglobe. While I dislike how long this story has been dragged on, the fact that it began and is ending with the snowglobe is a great way to weave it all together. Sean decides to rush after Sue because of this, and while stories like this have been done before, it doesn't make this one any less great. Sue and Sean share a great scene, and I loved how the snowglobe broke once its purpose had been served. I also enjoyed the recapping of this story, and how Axl and Brick were involved.

Frankie gets another text alert about data usage, and when she brings this up, Axl suggests she take him off the family plan, because he will get a phone plan with his new job. When he says that he won't be part of the family anymore anyway, Frankie loses it. They stop the car, and she gets out. It is a very emotional scene, and Frankie's freaking out is perfectly balanced by Mike's reassurance that this is the way that things are supposed to be. This family moment on the highway is perfect, an absolutely wonderful moment of emotion. They don't forget the the comedy though, as this emotional scene is accented by the family forgetting the blue bag.

In the final minutes of the series, Frankie tells us about the future for the Heck children. Each one is wonderful, Axl having three boys just like him, Brick writing a novel series party inspired by his life, and Sue marrying Sean. The family has all grown up, and it is wonderful to see them as adults. The wedding scene also gets us one last look at some of the show's recurring characters, such as a pregnant Lexi, and Brad with a boyfriend. I lost it at the wedding, it was such a great moment showing the family all together again and happy. At the end, the family drives off, and it's ended with a perfect final moment with Brick whispering "the middle." The series could not have ended in any better of a way.


I am absolutely stunned by how wonderful of an hour this was, and my expectations certainly weren't low. The Middle creators Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline did a fantastic job writing a finale full of both comedy and heart, with a perfect ending to send the show off. Patricia Heaton, Neil Flynn, Charlie McDermott, Eden Sher, and Atticus Shaffer have been great as the Heck family, and this finale is no exception. I will miss this show dearly, but I am also so happy to see it conclude in such a strong way.

Score: 10/10 (part 1)
Score: 10/10 (part 2)

What did you think of "A Heck of a Ride"? Was it a proper conclusion to the series? Will you miss The Middle? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E22 Review

We are one week away from the series finale of The Middle now! It's a bittersweet thing, I have been very excited for these final episodes, but I also don't want the series to end. Last week's episode set events in motion to get us headed toward the finale, and this week's episode readies us for that final hour.


S9E22 "Split Decision"

After finding out that Axl was offered a job in Denver, Frankie is very opposed to him taking it. At a family dinner, Frankie is very obvious in her attempt to sway Axl away from taking the job, which is quite funny. When her over-the-top attempts don't seem to do much, she turns to Lexi. The scenes between Frankie and Lexi are very entertaining, especially when Frankie gets mad at Lexi when she tells Axl that she will support him no matter what he ends up deciding.

Meanwhile, Axl talks to Mike about his decision. Their conversation at the hardware store is a great moment between the two of them, as Mike admits that he "would miss the hell out of" him, but it's Axl's decision. I really liked when Axl asked Mike what he should do, and Mike shared the advice of not letting other people make your decisions.

In the end of the episode, Axl has made his decision. It's hard for him to tell his parents that he's taking the job, doing it in the dark so he can't see their faces. The episode ends with a moment that's both funny and saddening, as Frankie cries about the decision. The finale next week is going to be emotional.

Sue spends the episode depressed because Sean is leaving soon for Ghana. There isn't much entertaining going on here until Mike takes her to the hardware store. It's another great moment between Mike and one of his children where they speak honestly. Neil Flynn does an excellent job this week in these hardware store scenes. At the end of the episode, Sue puts the snowglobe in Sean's luggage, continuing to prolong that story, as expected.

Throughout the episode, Brick is searching for a replacement for his lawn chair, which is fraying. It's very entertaining as his collection of lawn chairs expands, at one point filling an entire room. It's a fun little quirky Brick story, with quite a few funny moments. In the end, he takes the chairs to Big Mike's, but end up with a recliner. There's a funny line at the end about how Brick knows how to pick a chair.


While Sue's story didn't do much for the episode until the end, and I am still annoyed at how long everything with her and Sean is being dragged out, the rest of the episode was great. The episode delivered on comedy, sentimental moments, and emotional ones. It fully prepared the show to say goodbye next week.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "Split Decision"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E21 Review

Frankie is once again excited for an upcoming royal wedding. And, it's time again for the holiday that doesn't always work so well for Frankie, Mother's Day, the final one that The Middle will be celebrating as it prepares to conclude in two weeks.


S9E21 "The Royal Flush"

The episode begins with Axl telling Mike that he has a potential job offer in Denver. They agree that Frankie can't know about this, but it is harder to hide this from her than it might seem, as Frankie runs into Axl in the middle of the night, and Mike tries to cover up when he accidentally mentions Denver. Based on this, Frankie thinks they are planning something for Mother's Day, and her attempts to find out what it is are entertaining.

When Sue realizes that Mother's Day is coming up, she scrambles to plan something. It's hilarious when she texts the others about it in the family's group text, which Frankie reminds them she is part of. Brick and Sue discover that the prize to a trivia contest is a trip to London for the royal wedding.

Brick and Sue go to the bar for the contest, and there is a funny joke about how Brick looks 32 when you ignore his body. They win, but discover that this was just the semi-final. In the final, they are doing well until Sue takes an ill-timed bathroom break. The two get disqualified when Brick texts Sue to come back to answer a Taylor Swift question, which is disappointing, though it was expected, and the text conversation is quite funny.

When Mother's Day arrives, the family tells Frankie of their two failed plans, first the royal wedding one, then fixing the toilet. The moments here where she gets her hopes up are really funny. The family instead makes the royal wedding day the best it can be for Frankie, which is really nice considering how the last royal wedding went for her. However, the day isn't perfect when Axl finds out that he got the job, and Frankie overhears. The look on Frankie's face is heartbreaking. This final scene gave me goosebumps, the end is near for this show and I am not ready.


There were some slower moments earlier in the episode, but the episode came to a wonderful conclusion with the Heck family putting in an effort for Frankie, and then gave us a final moment that is letting us know to brace for what's to come. Expect laughs and tears in the final hour and a half of The Middle over the next two weeks.

Score: 9.5/10

What did you think of "The Royal Flush"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E20 Review

Two Hecks need a push this week, Brick to go to the prom, and Axl to get Sue a belated birthday present for her 21st.


S9E20 "Great Heckspectations"

The episode begins with Frankie and Mike getting a surprise. They are out driving, and see Brick on the road. As a result of this, they ground Brick, until they discover that prom is on Saturday. Frankie insists that Brick has to go to prom, despite the fact that he doesn't really care. This is typical The Middle, Frankie and Mike sending mixed messages in their parenting. Brick asks Cindy to prom, and while she doesn't say yes to a regular, fancy promposal (where Brick hilariously struggles to walk through a banner), she does when he asks in a quirky way, dressing up as a bookmark.

Frankie comes up with the idea of Brick having the kids from his former social skills group over, another group of people that The Middle is ensuring it acknowledges as it prepares to say goodbye. There is a funny twist here, in that Brick is the only one from the group that hasn't outgrown his quirks. Frankie worries about this, and she tells Mike, who reflects on how Brick being who he is has given them great moments. It's a very sweet scene. It turns out that Brick and Cindy didn't actually go to prom, but they went to the library instead. I really enjoyed Brick's line about how this is a big moment in their parents' lives.

Lexi discovers that Axl didn't get Sue anything for her 21st birthday, and she tells him that he has to. So, Axl tells Sue that he is going to get her a present the next time he sees her, but he doesn't have anything for her the next time he sees her. He lies and tells her he's working out the details, because what he's planning is more of an experience. Axl blindfolds Sue, and takes her places, ending up back in her room. Sue gets really angry about this. However, a story that Frankie tells her changes her attitude. It turns out that when Sue was really little, Axl was attached to her, and ended up giving her a stuffed animal to protect her. It's a really cute story, and Sue's reaction to it is enjoyable.


The main story about prom had some strong moments. Axl and Sue had their moments as well, but I didn't feel that it had a very good conclusion. Also, through the episode there was a small ongoing story about Mike struggling with a new moment, which wasn't really expanded upon much, and the potential here wasn't really utilized.

Score: 7/10

What did you think of "Great Heckspectations"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E19 Review

Dr. Goodwin is back on this week's The Middle, but this time he reveals his dark side to Frankie, all because of peanut brittle.


S9E19 "Bat out of Heck"

After Brick reveals to Frankie that he needs to sell a bunch of peanut brittle in two dates, and Frankie needs a ride to work, things work out very well when Dr. Goodwin gives her a ride, and offers to buy all the necessary peanut brittle, as he loves it. However, he gets impatient waiting for the peanut brittle. I have enjoyed Dr. Goodwin in the past, but in this episode he just wasn't that funny, and the Me Too and Time's Up jokes did not work well at all. Dr. Goodwin ends up trying to help the Hecks once they realize they have a bat in their house, but it doesn't work out very well. Somehow, this resolves his intense desire for the peanut brittle.

When Axl decides to sell the Winnebago and buy a car, he gets a lot of advice from Mike on it, which irritates him. Mike keeps telling him how to do everything, which Brick explains is nature taking over, giving an example from the wild, which Axl later butchers in a funny way. When Axl says the store is out of chips because Mike reminded him and he forgot to get them, he pretends to call the store, and Brick acts as someone who works there, which is a hilarious scene. After Mike helps Axl buy the car, Axl finally tells Mike how he feels, and the conversation is a great moment. Axl is growing up, and his relationship with his father is developing as a result.

Sue hears of a scholarship, and despite the fact that no one from East Indiana State has ever gotten this scholarship, the ever-optimistic Sue applies for it. Answering questions for the scholarship, she feels hopeless, but ends up becoming a finalist for the it. She participates in a Skype interview, all while the rest of the Heck family and Dr. Goodwin try to catch the bat. She eventually reveals to the person interviewing her what is going on at her house, which gets her the scholarship, because of how calm she remained under pressure. When Sue shares this with her family, it's a heartwarming victory, on the level of when Sue made the cross-country team in the first season finale. We see how hard Sue has worked for this and how much it means to her, and it feels earned and wonderful.


While everything having to do with Dr. Goodwin didn't really work, the rest of the episode did, very well. The show is seriously preparing to wrap up, giving Sue a meaningful victory this week, and advancing the father-son relationship between Mike and Axl into an era where Axl is an adult.

Score: 8/10

What did you think of "Bat out of Heck"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E18 Review

We're really in the final stretch for The Middle now, as the show has made a move to 8:30 for the spring to air after the first revival season of Roseanne. In this week's episode, the Sue/Sean story continues, but they aren't the only ones dealing with romance, as Brick and Cindy are kissing all around and all during school, and Frankie and Mike deal with romance at their age. Also, Axl is forced to write thank you notes from years ago that he didn't complete.


S9E18 "Thank You for Not Kissing"

After Sue hilariously debates which part of a chocolate bunny she should start with, she and Brad talk about Sean, and they decide she is going to tell him how she feels. However, they end up seeing Sean hug a girl, and Brad hilariously tries to come up with some reason why they may be hugging that isn't that these two are dating. Brad tries to train Sue to act more like a grown-up, so that she won't seem like Axl's younger sister to Sean. There are some funny moments here, such as when Sue tries to contain her excitement about glitter and double rainbows, but this seems pointless, Sue already knows at this point that Sean has at least some interest in her.

Luckily, Sue realizes that she should be who she is and should go and tell Sean how she feels. Sadly, the show refuses to come to the realization that they should just make the pairing of Sue and Sean happen already rather than dragging this out, and when Sue shows up at Sean's, he shares news that he will be leaving in a month for a summer-long internship in Ghana.

Frankie and Mike are called into Brick's school, where they learn that Brick and Cindy have been making out all the time at school. These two are not strangers to meetings having to do with Brick's behavior, but the issue this time was surprising. Mike goes to talk to Brick, and it's hilarious when he asks "what's wrong" when Mike turns off the TV while a basketball game is on, assuming someone died. He tells Brick that he and Cindy should kiss in private, and there are some funny lines, especially from Mike, here.

Cindy shows up and interrogates Mike, which is hilarious, and has a theory that the love is gone in Frankie and Mike's marriage. Affected by what Cindy said, Mike surprises Frankie, but she elbows him, which is a funny moment, and as a result he tells Brick to kiss Cindy wherever and whenever while he's young. The episode ends with a funny moment where Frankie gets home to Mike trying to seduce her, so she quickly shaves her legs and shouts that she's on her way.

When Frankie stumbles upon old thank you notes that Axl started writing but didn't finish and didn't send, she insists that he complete them and send them. This is a great set-up for a story, as it is very true to Frankie and Axl's respective personalities, and it shows how, even though Axl is an adult now, she's still in charge. Axl's initial solution is to send out a group thank you text, which Frankie disapproves of. The funniest moment here is when she describes the text, where Axl didn't even spell out the words.

The obvious end to this story is that Axl will write the thank you notes, and getting him to do that seems like a stretch, but the show pulls it off wonderfully when Brick goes through the notes and makes a comment about how one to Aunt Edie is too late. This affects Axl, and the portrayal of this is powerful. In the end, Axl gets a response to one of his thank you notes, and it contains money, which Frankie tells Axl he will have to write a thank you note for, and he hilariously collapses on the floor in response.


This was a very funny episode that had stories that were rooted in the characters' personalities, and it even had a great serious moment with Axl's realization that Aunt Edie would have loved the thank you note he never wrote her. Still, I do not appreciate the show dragging out the story between Sue and Sean, and I'm quite disappointed as this is the last show I would expect to fall into a typical will they/won't they that goes on for way too long.

Score: 9.5/10

What did you think of "Thank You for Not Kissing"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E17 Review

The Glossners are highlighted in this episode of The Middle, one of the show's last, when the Hecks, the Donahues, and other neighbors team up to get Sue's car back.


S9E17 "Hecks vs. Glossners: The Final Battle"

After Sue's car disappears from the driveway, Frankie sees Rita Glossner driving the car at the grocery store. The confrontation is very funny, but after that, Frankie is ready to give up. Mike, however, is not, and decides to go to the police. The police though hilariously don't want to intervene. Mike announces that it is time to stand up to the Glossners, and it's great when the rest of the family says "I'm in" except Brick, who realizes he is supposed to say that, but doesn't see what he can contribute.

The Hecks head over to the Glossners', but it doesn't go well. They don't get the car, and Sue gets trapped. As they prepare to go back to rescue Sue, other neighbors show up to help. The battle feels like something from an action movie, which is very entertaining. Frankie manages to get to the garage and into the car, but Rita is hiding in the back. This scene is very funny, especially when Frankie tries to convince Rita that they need a "mom revolution" and when she makes her escape.

The family gets the keys to Brick, who has wanted to drive the whole episode, and he gets the opportunity, but hilariously drives slowly and cautiously to prove to his parents that he can do that. Sue tries to get her snowglobe back, but the Glossner that is in love with her tries to keep it from her, and has a really funny line about how he has bettered himself (after buying beer and cigarettes, he still has eighteen dollars left from his paycheck). In the end, everything is resolved pretty quickly, as the police show up. I did really like the fact that having less kids around made Rita less crazy in the end though, it was very fitting for the show.


This wasn't a great episode, but it was a really nice finale to the tension with the Glossners, and it had its funny moments, especially between Frankie and Rita. The pacing was a bit off though, I wish that the battle hadn't been resolved so suddenly, and considering the episode's focus on the battle, I think they should have gotten to it faster.

Score: 8.5/10

What did you think of "Hecks vs. Glossners: The Final Battle"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E16 Review

Mike gets some big news at work in this week's episode of The Middle. Also, Brick is struggling in his health class. As this goes on, Frankie tries to find a chance to cry.


S9E16 "The Crying Game"

Mike is offered a promotion, which would take him to corporate. His employees have some interesting reactions when they discover that he is leaving. They want to throw him a party, and many of them also want to replace him. Mike somewhat gives a small speech when it is demanded out of him. It was fitting, how the man of few words didn't need to say many words to make an impact. When he had a brief emotional moment, it gave me chills.

There ends up being a really funny ending here, when it turns out that there is no space at corporate, so Mike will be doing his new job from the quarry. The interaction he has with the workers at the quarry when he returns is really funny, as they are irritated that they went to all the trouble of throwing him a party when they were going to see him again so soon.

Brick is struggling in his health class. He reasons that his teacher doesn't like him because she suffered through Axl, so he sends Axl to apologize to her. This ends up not going well, which is fairly entertaining. Brick turns to Sue next, whose interaction with the teacher ends up going a lot like Axl's, which I really enjoyed. It was also really great to call back to Sue's high school days, and how no one ever remembered her.

There is a hilarious line about how Frankie wasn't being graded when she let Brick go home with another family, while Brick is being graded in his class, and it's even better when she tells all of her kids that sometimes in life you don't always get the baby you want. That got a big laugh out of me. In the end, Brick discovers that the reason that his teacher doesn't like him because he licked her car, and when he explains how he is weird, she no longer has it out for him. It was a great ending, that fit into who Brick is, and his problem was resolved in an interesting way.

Also throughout the episode, Frankie is trying to find a time to cry. Her attempts to cry keep being interrupted, as happens when you're Frankie Heck. There isn't much to these parts of the episode, though I did enjoy when Mike insisted that, since she doesn't remember what she was going to cry about, there's no point in her trying anymore.


I wasn't a fan really of the Frankie trying to cry parts of the episode, but the rest of the episode was great. Both Brick and Mike had funny stories with great endings, and I especially loved Mike's. This was a very strong episode, though I'm sad that we are now two-thirds of the way through The Middle's final season.

Score: 9.5/10

What did you think of "The Crying Game"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E15 Review

Now that the Olympics are over, regular programming is back, and that includes The Middle. There are two bigger things with this week's episode. One is Sue's 21st birthday. The other is that Axl and Hutch head to Kenny's wedding.


S9E15 "Toasted"

The Hecks are all headed out at the start of the episode, going three separate ways. Frankie plans on bringing the "blue bag" (which is now orange), which other members of the family object to, but the funny twist is that no one ends up bringing the bag. Frankie is going to celebrate Sue's 21st birthday with her. Sue and Frankie get drunk, and behave like typical drunk sitcom characters. When they run into Sean, he acts as the adult. Unlike Aiden, Sean takes control of the situation, and takes care of drunk Sue. This proves how Sean is better for Sue than Aiden. Sue and Sean thankfully end up a step closer to being together, as Sue breaks up with Aiden.

Mike reluctantly takes Brick to a Planet Nowhere convention, where he complains about everything. When he doesn't like Mike's attitude, Brick texts Frankie, who texts Mike. When the two get home, Mike tries to take away something that Brick likes, realizing that taking away his phone won't do anything, and there's no point in sending Brick to his room. This is a funny scene, especially when Brick says that there isn't much that he cares about. In the end, Mike ends up breaking the light-bulb in the microfiche, and Brick convinces Mike to take him back to the convention by reminding him how many things he has from the Colts, so that Mike will be less critical of the Planet Nowhere memorabilia he wants.

Axl and Hutch head to Kenny's wedding, and along the way they contemplate whether or not they are grown-ups. They find it strange that they are old enough to have a friend that is getting married, but find reasons to assure themselves that they are not grown up. They wonder about what kind of people would be at Kenny's wedding, and assume that it will be small. However, a text from Kenny tells them that 600 people will be there. Hutch and Axl each come up with what they would say about each other if they were the one getting married, which is a nice moment, showing how much the two of them have grown. At the end, they discover that most of the attendees of Kenny's wedding are online. I wish we had gotten to see more of this wedding than just this brief moment, as we only got a second of Kenny.


This wasn't the strongest of Middle episodes, but it wasn't a bad one either. Each of the stories had their moments, though I enjoyed Frankie and Sue's story the least, as it fell into some typical sitcom tropes, but I am glad that progress was made in the Sue and Sean story. It was nice to see Hutch and Kenny again, though I would have liked more Kenny.

Score: 7/10

What did you think of "Toasted"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E14 Review

After taking two weeks off, The Middle is back again, before it takes another two weeks off. This episode is the final one for Norm MacDonald, who plays Mike's brother Rusty, who in this episode brings Sue a gift.


S9E14 "Guess Who's Coming to Frozen Dinner"

Mike is trying to spend more time with Sue, so they watch a movie together. This gets awkward in a funny way when the movie has fairly graphic sex scenes. When Mike's brother Rusty comes into town, he gives Sue a very nice necklace, but Mike becomes suspicious of how he got the necklace. Mike ends up discovering that Rusty didn't steal the necklace, but it was one he got long ago that used to belong to their mother, and he planned on giving it to his daughter. It's a sweet ending, and I liked seeing Mike jealous of his brother having a special moment with Sue, but much of the comedy here was rooted in Rusty being stupid, which became a bit much.

Axl gets his first paycheck from his job, and while Mike tells him to be responsible with it, Frankie encourages him to treat himself. However, he ends up taking that too far, buying a gigantic TV. As Axl and Frankie work together to try to be more financially responsible, they talk about writing a book about the topic. The jokes here are alright, as the two talk about what their mascot should be, but not that funny. After that, this story doesn't really go anywhere.

Brick has an entertaining small story this week, as he thinks that the universe is making it up to him after he has been ignored for much of his life. When he goes outside, he finds gifts for him right outside the front door. I thought it was especially funny when he told Frankie and Axl about this, and they didn't really pay attention. At the very end of the episode, Brick delivers the flowers he receives to Cindy, who sees the note in them. It turns out, as I had expected all along, that these things were intended for Sue, and were sent by Sean. I wish the Sue and Sean story had been set aside for this week, as I wasn't really interested in another week of this story when it doesn't actually progress.


This wasn't the strongest episode of The Middle, and Frankie and Axl's story was especially weak. There were still some funny moments though, such as Mike and Sue watching the movie, and Brick thinking the gifts at the door are for him, and there was a sweet ending with Mike and Rusty's story.

Score: 6/10

What did you think of "Guess Who's Coming to Frozen Dinner"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E13 Review

Reverend TimTom appears in this week's episode of The Middle, helping Frankie figure out her third act of life. Also, Mike decides that the hole in the wall between the kids' bedrooms has to go, and Axl has issues with how much more money Lexi has than him.


S9E13 "Mommapalooza"

After seeing on television that after 50 people in Sweden prepare for death, Frankie decides it's time to get her third act started. She doesn't know what she wants to do, and ends up going to a life coach. Frankie then becomes a life coach for a short amount of time, which is really funny, especially when she gives a senior citizen playing bingo her business card. Reverend TimTom asks Frankie if she would like to sing with him, and she likes the idea. Later, she hears her kids talking bad about her performances with Reverend TimTom, and decides to quit, but Reverend TimTom then sings a song to the kids telling them to be nice to their mother. Frankie's appreciation of this song is entertaining, and I loved her narration at the end where she explains how her interest in singing with Reverend TimTom dwindled.

Because Sue and Brick have for some reason been arguing a lot, Mike tells them that they have to fix the wall between their bedrooms. Brick, however, ends up destroying the entire wall, as he was following the directions of a video that said it's easier if you make the edges of the hole straight. Sue comes up with a solution, using her poster boards from the things she ran for, but this isn't a lasting fix. It's funny in the end when Brick uses his ticks to not be blamed for the wall disaster.

Axl is struggling with the fact that Lexi wants to do things that cost a lot of money, but doesn't want her paying for everything. This story takes on the difference in class between the two, which hasn't really been explored much. Lexi keeps giving Axl money and things and making him think he got them by accident, but it's obvious that he knows what she's doing. In the end, Lexi discovers she is getting cut off by her parents since she is 21 now, and Axl offers to teach her the ways of being poor, which is a great way to conclude this story.


This wasn't the strongest episode, the Sue and Brick story only had a couple of funny moments, but I did really like how the Axl and Lexi story used differences already established about the characters, and how that story ended with a reverse in who is the expert.

Score: 7.5/10

What did you think of "Mommapalooza"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E12 Review

In this week's episode of The Middle, Axl is spending more time with Mike, and Sue tries to help Brad get to know a friend of her boyfriend's that he is interested in before she breaks up with him.


S9E12 "The Other Man"

Axl is starting his new job, and this ends up leading to him and Mike spending more time together. It doesn't really make that much sense to me that Axl's job would cause this, but Axl and Mike spending so much time together leaves Frankie to feel left out, and the way that she reacts to this is very Frankie-like. Frankie takes Brick to have fun to make the other two jealous, and Brick ends up sharing some advice with Frankie about how he is able to stand being left out so much.

There ends up being a sweet ending here, where Frankie gets Brick a piece of birthday cake for each of the seven that she missed. It seems like Frankie and Brick will be closer after this, and I really like that. Also, at the very end of the episode, Axl leaves to spend time with Lexi, so Mike and Frankie end up spending more time together again.

Sue and Brad's part of the episode all has to do with dating. Sue is going to break up with Aidan, as Brad encourages her to do, but then he asks her to wait when it turns out that Aidan has an attractive gay friend named Luke. Brad, of course, doesn't know what to do around Luke. At first he is boring, but after Sue brings that to his attention he can't stop talking. There are some funny moments throughout this story, such as Sue and Brad's conversation about dating, and every time that something Aidan does leads to Sue getting hurt.

In the end, Brad finally goes out with Luke, and Sue realizes that she might want to be with Aidan. I really don't like how long they are dragging out the Sue romance story, I thought they were getting really close to getting Sue and Sean together, but it looks like they aren't.


There were some really enjoyable parts of this episode, Brad and Sue being the highlight. Frankie was also funny, though like I said, I don't see how Axl getting this job suddenly caused him and Mike to hang out so much, and how that caused Mike to not think about Frankie.

Score: 8.5/10

What did you think of "The Other Man"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E11 Review

As we enter 2018, the final year that we will be entering with The Middle (unless it eventually gets revived, as so many shows are now), the Hecks celebrate the New Year.


S9E11 "New Year's Revelations"

The episode begins with Frankie and Mike taking down the Christmas tree. Sue has a really funny line about this, "You're taking down the Christmas tree? But that's how I know that it's Valentine's Day," and then tells Frankie about what happened with her and Sean. This shows how close Frankie and Sue are, and there are some funny moments with Frankie's excitement. Sue worries that the kiss might not have meant anything, and Brad decides that they can test this if he kisses her at midnight on New Year's Eve.

Frankie throws a New Year's party, and she and Brad try to get Sue and Sean together at midnight. Sean gets pulled away right before midnight, and it's really entertaining as he attempts to get to Sue in time. At midnight though, Sue gets kissed by someone else. But, the episode ends with Sean telling Axl that he likes Sue.

Mike gets a call from his dad, who wants Mike to drive him somewhere but won't say where. Mike brings Axl and Brick with him for any potential things that they have to lift, and they try to get their grandfather to give them more than the usual five dollars they get from him, which is funny.

It turns out that Big Mike wants to just die by a tree that's important to him, and it's funny when no one can think of a reason for him to keep on living. Mike decides to drive away, but he eventually returns. Big Mike hilariously seems dead when they return, but turns out not to be. Mike convinces Big Mike to keep on living by making him think about how much of a bother he would be dying instead of living, which is a great way to end this story.


While I wish that the Sue and Sean story wasn't being dragged out so much, it really did feel like progress was made this week with that final scene. Mike's parts of the episode were also great, as he and his dad had some really funny moments.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "New Year's Revelations"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E10 Review

In The Middle's final Christmas episode, the Hecks and Donahues celebrate Christmas together.


S9E10 "The Christmas Miracle"

Frankie comes up with a new plan for Christmas, considering that the kids are older now. It's funny when she calls it an adult Christmas, and puts "adult" in front of other words that give it another meaning. The Hecks and the Donahues get together and have a Yankee swap (I guess there are many names for this, we call it a White Elephant). Sue's gift ends up being the snowglobe that she had found that Sean had intended to give her. Sean almost picks it the first time, and does pick it the second time, but before he can open it, he gets a text and leaves the room.

Sue goes to find Sean, and he reveals that grades were posted, and he got Bs and Cs, which he is completed not used to. Sue comforts Sean, saying that average isn't bad, and that you don't have to compare yourself to others. In the end, it turns out that the snowglobe wasn't necessary to lead to Sue and Sean get together, as they end the episode kissing. It's great that this won't be drawn out for any longer, as it was getting a little tedious.

Axl tells Frankie that he doesn't want to go to church. So, Sue and Frankie try to convince Axl to go to church. Sue is the most entertaining here, as she tries to give examples of miracles. Axl ends up getting Frankie to question her faith. At the end of the episode, Frankie realizes why she goes to church, and when she shares that with Axl, he decides to go.

In the other stories of the episode, Brick struggles to wrap a present, and Mike tries to stop one of the Glossner kids from destroying an inflatable snowman in their yard. Brick is hilarious, especially as he is bitter that no one is selecting his present. He's the highlight of the episode to me. Mike's dedication to catching the Glossner kid is also entertaining, but it doesn't have that satisfying of an ending, as he confronts the kid, but he gets away.


Brick was hilarious this week, and the Sue/Sean story finally going somewhere was great. I wish the show had gone a little stronger on a Christmas theme considering it is their last chance to, but this was still a really good episode.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "The Christmas Miracle"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle 200th Episode Review

The Middle has come a long way since its debut in fall 2009. Two hundred episodes to be exact. And in this landmark episode for the series, some old recurring cast members have returned.


S9E9 "The 200th"

The episode begins with Axl trying to get one of his family members to answer his phone, and it's hilarious when they don't want to until he reminds them that it could be a response from one of his job applications, and when he gets a job he can move out. When Sue answers the phone, she is believed to be Axl's assistant, so Axl gets Sue to act as his assistant, which leads to some entertaining moments. Sue agrees to help him, but she makes him promise to not make any more jokes about freezing her head when she dies. When they get to the interview, Axl is suddenly worried, so Sue physically forces him to go in, which is hilarious.

Nancy and Ron Donahue come over to the Hecks' to inform them that Orson has been named the 200th most livable city in Indiana. They are going to celebrate this along with the cow re-dedication, which reminds Frankie that she still needs an item for the time capsule. She has a funny interaction with Mike about this: "What is the matter with me?" "That's a list we don't want to get into before bed."

Mike finds out that Bill Norwood and his wife are getting separated. He doesn't really care at first, and it's funny when he explains to Frankie that he doesn't know more because Bill started crying, so he went into the house. When Mike later has Bill over, Bill makes Mike realize how great his life is. Mike starts to express how grateful he is for his family, which they are hilariously and reasonably weirded out by.

After concluding that Cindy still has feelings for him at the end of the last episode, Brick confronts Cindy to find out for sure. It's hilarious when he tells her who it is when he approaches her. Cindy tells Brick that he has to perform three acts of bravery in order to get her back. He comes up with two, but is unable to come up with a third. In the end, he admits this to her, and she counts him admitting he was wrong as the third act of bravery.

At the cow re-dedication, there are appearances from a couple of characters that we haven't seen in a little bit, the cheerleaders that Axl and Sue went to high school with and Mr. Elhert, who makes everything all about his business instead of about Orson. After his speech disappoints the crowd, Mike decides to speak, and his speech is great, as he talks about what he likes about Orson, and reveals that he put a hammer that Bill lent him in the time capsule because that's what this town is about.

After this, the 200th visitor to Orson that day arrives, and Ron tries to stop him and give him a gift basket, but the car hits him. It's really funny when Frankie steals a coupon from the gift basket. At the end of the episode, Frankie and Mike talk, and it's funny and very in-character when Mike says that he would probably feel the same way about his life if he met someone else instead of Frankie and lived in a different town.


This episode had a lot of funny moments, and the stories were great. I didn't love Brick's part of the episode as much as the rest, but I still enjoyed it, and it had its moments. The episode found a great way to celebrate 200 episodes of The Middle while not going too over-the-top on appearances from past cast members and the like.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "The 200th"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E8 Review

This week's episode of The Middle has Brick trying to win over a girl, Axl visiting Hutch, and Sue unable to sleep.


S9E8 "Eyes Wide Open"

Brick meets a new girl at his school who hasn't met anyone else yet, so he becomes determined to win her over before she meets anyone else. He gives his parents a script to follow to ensure that a visit to their house goes as best as it can. As he reminds them, "It takes a village to get me a girl." It's funny that Mike is the one that goes along with Brick's plan well, but it makes sense considering how simple his role is compared to Frankie's.

The visit goes well, surprisingly, and it's funny when Brick praises Mike, and Frankie is annoyed because her role was much harder. The girl's first day at school even goes well, but she reveals that she recieved threatening notes from Cindy, which makes Brick excited about getting her back, though Frankie opposes this, considering how much work they put in to making this girl interested in Brick.

Axl, annoyed by his parents, visits Hutch. However, it turns out that their lives are very different. Hutch has a very nice apartment, and wants to make sure that it stays that way. This visit makes Axl realize that Hutch's adult life is what he wants, so when Axl returns home, he decides to take looking for a job seriously.

Sue has a weekend to herself, but after watching Silence of the Lambs, she can't sleep. She tries a lot of tricks, but they don't work. Mike visits her to help her sleep, which is a great way for him to show how much he cares about her, and he tells her about how he would get her to sleep when she was little. This story had a really sweet ending, though it wasn't very funny.


It's a good thing that Brick's story was the biggest one in the episode, because it was easily the funniest. The rest of the episode wasn't that good, except for the ending with Sue and Mike, and it was nice to see Axl grow up some, though there wasn't really ever a moment when Axl was visiting Hutch that made it seem like he would do that.

Score: 7/10

What did you think of "Eyes Wide Open"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E7 Review

It's our final Thanksgiving with the Hecks, this one featuring a road trip.


S9E7 "Thanksgiving IX"

The family spends most of the episode this week on their way to Frankie's sister's house. On the way, a variety of things happen. Mike decides to pay the toll of the next car at a toll booth, but the family in the other car doesn't acknowledge them. Then, they run low on gas, and discover that they have no way to pay for the gas. Throughout all of this, there are a lot of funny lines, all in a very Heck sort of style. When they get stuck in traffic, Frankie realizes that they aren't going to make it to Thanksgiving dinner, which ends up leading to a bunch of strangers sharing their Thanksgiving dinners. It's a sweet ending, and very much in the style of the holiday.

The Heck kids are all working at Spudsy's now, which is the kind of idea that would be sure to generate a lot of comedic material, but it isn't lasting long, as only two of them are needed, and they need to decide which one is out. Their bickering about this in the car is very entertaining, and Frankie's refusal to take sides while Mike decides that Brick should be the one to go is reminiscent of the fourth season premiere, "Last Whiff of Summer", when Frankie didn't pick a favorite child, but Mike does. After Axl secures a spot by getting the family tips from a Spudsy's, it's between Sue and Brick. Brick ends up letting Sue keep the job, realizing how much it means to her, and for another, very funny reason: he keeps licking the potatoes.


The Middle delivered a strong final Thanksgiving episode, with both a lot of humor and a sweet ending. Also, a lot of the humor came out of the entire family being together, which was great.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "Thanksgiving IX"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E6 Review

This week's episode continues both the Sue and Sean Donahue story and the ending of last week's episode, where Frankie's mom went to the hospital.


S9E6 "The Setup"

As Sue and Sean talk about dating, Sue suggests that they set each other up on dates, despite the fact that they both obviously want to date each other. Sue tells Brad about what happened, and this scene is hilarious, as Brad is a great audience for a story. Sean decides, instead of setting Sue up with someone, to be her date, but things go wrong in a very funny way when Sue thinks that the person delivering Lexi's dinner is her date.

At the end of the episode, Sue tells Sean that she liked the guy she ended up going out with. This is a nice added complication to Sue and Sean's story, but I feel like it's about time that they actually get together, especially with so few episodes left of the series now.

Frankie is taking care of her mom after her visit to the hospital last week. However, Frankie's mom is being a total pain. Eventually, she lashes out at her. Mike comforts her after this, and it's very funny when he starts to quote Sue's inspirational posters. This story has a sweet ending, when Frankie recalls how her mom helped her when her kids were young.

There is also a very funny scene where Brick and Axl try to figure out what exactly it is that Mike does at work, and they decide that they need sleep more than he does. They end up oversleeping, and Axl has to use the Winnebago instead of the bus to take the kids to school. This leads to a chaotic commute, which is funny, but causes Axl to get fired.


I didn't care much for Frankie's story for most of the episode because I felt like it went too far in making her mom obnoxious, but it came to a great conclusion. Sue and Sean's story was well planned-out, but I do feel like it's going on for too long now.

Score: 7.5/10

What did you think of "The Setup"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E5 Review

This week on The Middle it's Frankie and Mike's 25th wedding anniversary...though they both forgot.


S9E5 "Role of a Lifetime"

A note from the Donahues causes Frankie and Mike to realize that it's their 25th wedding anniversary. It's hilarious when Frankie asks Mike, doubting that they have been married 25 years, who would know better, him or Nancy Donahue. Mike goes to Sue for help with planning their anniversary, and Sue ends up realizing how much she does for the family. She calls a family meeting, which leads to a hilarious debate as to whether she can call a family meeting, and she tells everyone that she's not going to be that person anymore. At the meeting, the other family members tell the family what their roles are, and after it they all decide to no longer go along with their usual roles.

The big argument that ends up happening in the kitchen has a lot of funny lines, and it works really well that at the moment where everything gets out of hand, something brings them all together. The family comes together, embracing their roles, at the hospital. Frankie's mom being in the hospital is serious, but it ends up being the right amount serious that it grounds the episode, but doesn't keep funny moments at the end of the episode from working.

Brick is shocked by the fact that he saw Cindy at school without her hat. His shock is very funny. As a result, he decides to make it clear that he is available, which he does hilariously horribly. Meanwhile, Axl has come up with a new idea: a drink that mixes beer and wine. This serves as a great running joke through the episode, and I loved his claim that twenty percent of America is interested.


This is one of my favorite episodes of The Middle. I didn't think that The Middle would pull off an episode this strong in its final season, except for perhaps the series finale. The conflict remained funny despite being tense, and the resolution was perfect.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "Role of a Lifetime"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Middle S9E4 Review

It's The Middle's final Halloween episode this week, and this year Frankie and Brick investigate a murder mystery, while Sue is a third wheel to Axl and Lexi.


S9E4 "Halloween VIII: Orson Murder Mystery"

Frankie discovers that before they lived there, a woman died in their house. Frankie and Brick read old newspaper articles to find out more about it. It's funny that Frankie is convinced the husband murdered her, and funny when Frankie explains to Mike that they are calling this case number one.

Things lead Frankie and Brick to the sister of the woman who died, and there are some very funny moments in this interaction, like when Frankie tells the woman that she doesn't remember telling them her sister's name because she's old. There's also a funny ending when a call that Frankie made earlier causes it to be revealed that they have been underpaying for water for twenty years.

Sue won't leave Axl and Lexi alone, even though they obviously want her to. She embraces her role as the third wheel, and literally dresses up as a wheel. This is really funny, though Sue does end up going a bit over-the-top, even for Sue. There is a sweet ending here to, where Axl tells Sue that he enjoys having her around sometimes.


The main story this week was very enjoyable. It had a lot of funny moments, and the ending was the type of thing that would of course happen to the Hecks. Sue and Axl weren't all that funny this week, but still enjoyable.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "Halloween VIII: Orson Murder Mystery"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!