The Middle (TV series)

The Middle
Genre	Sitcom Family comedy
Created by	Eileen Heisler DeAnn Heline
Starring	Patricia Heaton Neil Flynn Charlie McDermott Eden Sher Atticus Shaffer
Narrated by	Patricia Heaton
Composer(s)	Joey Newman
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	7
No. of episodes	166 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	DeAnn Heline Eileen Heisler
Producer(s)	Werner Walian Vijal Patel Roy Brown Robin Shorr
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	30 minutes
Production company(s)	Blackie and Blondie Productions Warner Bros. Television
Distributor	Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network	ABC
Picture format	720p 16:9 (HDTV)
Original release	September 30, 2009 – present
External links
Website

The Middle is an American sitcom about a working-class family living in Indiana and facing the day-to-day struggles of home life, work, and raising children. The show premièred September 30, 2009 on the ABC network and features Everybody Loves Raymond actress Patricia Heaton and Scrubs actor Neil Flynn.^[1] The Middle was created by former Roseanne and Murphy Brown writers Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline of Blackie and Blondie Productions. The show is distributed by Warner Bros. Television Distribution and Blackie and Blondie Productions. The Middle has been praised by television critics and earned numerous award nominations.

On March 3, 2016, the series was renewed for an eighth season.^[2]

Premise

The series features Frances "Frankie" Heck (Patricia Heaton), a working class, middle-aged, Midwestern^[3] woman and her husband Mike (Neil Flynn), who reside in the small fictional town of Orson, Indiana. They are the parents of three children, Axl (Charlie McDermott), Sue (Eden Sher), and Brick (Atticus Shaffer).^[4]

The series is narrated by Frankie, initially an under-performing salesperson at a used-car dealership and later a dental assistant. Her stoic husband Mike manages a local quarry and serves as a stabilizing influence in the family. Frankie has often complained about his lack of affection at times. The kids are quite different from one another: oldest son Axl, a popular but under-motivated and cynical teenager, does well in sports but not in academics; daughter Sue is an enthusiastic young teen but chronically unsuccessful and socially awkward; and youngest son Brick is an intelligent but introverted compulsive reader with odd behavioral traits.

Cast and characters

Main

• Patricia Heaton as Frances "Frankie" Heck (née Spence), wife of Mike and mother of Axl, Sue, and Brick. Frankie is the central character in the show, as her voice is heard narrating at various points in every episode.
• Neil Flynn as Michael "Mike" Heck Jr., Frankie's husband, known for his straightforward manner and emotional stability. Mike works at the local limestone quarry as the manager, and has a no-nonsense approach to work and family.
• Charlie McDermott as Axl Heck, the oldest child of Frankie and Mike. Popular and athletic in school, he is also sarcastic, lazy, narcissistic, and often dominant over his younger siblings.
• Eden Sher as Sue Heck, the socially awkward middle daughter of Frankie and Mike. Her genuine nature, bubbly personality, and persistent sunny optimism tend to make her an object of ridicule, especially by her elder brother.
• Atticus Shaffer as Brick Heck, youngest of Mike and Frankie's children. He loves to read and is very intelligent, but is also introverted, odd and often easily distracted.

Recurring characters

• Chris Kattan as Bob, Frankie's co-worker and friend at Ehlert Motors, where Frankie used to work (main cast seasons 1 & 2; recurring season 3; guest star seasons 4 & 5).
• Don Ehlert (Brian Doyle-Murray) is the owner of Ehlert Motors, where Frankie used to work.
• Pete Miller (Peter Breitmayer) is Ehlert Motors' best salesman and star employee. He is disliked by Frankie and Bob for his continuous boasting.
• Edie and Ginny Freehold (Jeanette Miller and Frances Bay) are Frankie's elderly aunts who are heavy smokers and drinkers. Throughout the series it is heavily hinted that none of the Hecks enjoy looking after them. Both characters passed away during the series.
• Brad Bottig (Brock Ciarlelli) is Sue's flamboyant, theater-loving, tap dancing and slightly camp ex-boyfriend, who is still a close friend. In season 7, he comes out as gay to Sue in a passive way, but Sue says she knew.
• Carly (Blaine Saunders) is Sue's best friend in school. The two girls are extremely alike.
• Nancy Donahue (Jen Ray) is the Hecks' idyllic neighbor.
• Sean Donahue (Beau Wirick) is one of Axl's best friends, teammate on the high school football team, and Nancy Donahue's only son. He is always complimentary to the Hecks but is still similar to Axl in a way.
• Darrin McGrew (John Gammon) is Axl's dimwitted other best friend and teammate, and Sue's ex-boyfriend.
• Paula Norwood (Julie Brown) is another of the Hecks' neighbors.
• Bill Norwood (Pat Finn) is Paula's husband and one of the Hecks' neighbors.
• Michael "Big Mike" Heck Sr. (John Cullum) is Mike's reclusive, man-of-few-words, hoarder father.
• Orville "Rusty" Heck (Norm Macdonald) is Mike's unreliable, silly brother.
• Pat Spence (Marsha Mason) is Frankie's mother. She is keen to help the Hecks in any way she can and spoils the kids, much to Frankie's annoyance. She has two daughters, Frankie and Janet (Molly Shannon), who rarely appears in the series at all, though mentioned.
• Tag Spence (Jerry Van Dyke) is Frankie's slightly grumpy father and Pat's husband.
• Reverend Timothy "Tim-Tom" Thomas (Paul Hipp), is a musical youth minister at the Hecks' church whom Sue deeply admires.
• Rita Glossner (Brooke Shields) is the Hecks' uncouth and troubled neighbor. She is mother of stealing, rude children but apparently is not aware of their nastiness as she describes them as "angels".
• Rodney Glossner, Derrick Glossner (David Chandler), Wade Glossner (Parker Bolek), Little Glossner and a girl who appears as a joke in one episode (Gibson Bobby Sjobeck) make up the dreaded Glossner children, Rita's rowdy children.
• Zack (Andrew J. Fishman) is Brick's friend from the socially challenged class.
• Morgan (Alexa Vega) is Axl's ex-girlfriend in Season 1.
• Matt (Moisés Arias) is a boy on the wrestling team at Sue and Axl's school who likes Sue and becomes her first real boyfriend.
• Ashley "Weird Ashley" Wyman (Katlin Mastandrea) is Axl's weird classmate who has twice been his accidental date to prom. She is also on Sue's wrestlerette team. She transfers to East Indiana State, Axl's college, much to his dismay and his girlfriend Devin's humour.
• Courtney and Debbie (Brittany Ross and Natalie Lander) are two think-alike cheerleaders in Axl and Sue's high school who date Axl as one.
• Mrs. Tompkins (Krista Braun) is Brick's social skills mentor and guidance counselor.
• Dr. Fulton (Dave Foley) is the school therapist that works with Mrs. Tompkins and counsels Brick.
• Principal Barker (Rachel Dratch) is Brick's Middle School Principal.
• Arlo (Nick Shafer) is Brick's odd friend whom he meets during the second season.
• Dr. Ted Goodwin (Jack McBrayer) is a smiley, optimistic dentist who hires Frankie as a hygienist in season 4.^[5] His dental practice is taken over by Smile Superstars.
• Cassidy Finch (Galadriel Stineman) is Axl's tutor and later girlfriend in season 4.
• Kenny (Tommy Bechtold) is Axl's college roommate who does nothing but play World of Warcraft. He only properly talks in the Season 7 Hallowe'en special, as a joke.
• Charles "Hutch" Hutchinson (Alphonso McAuley) is Axl's football teammate, best friend and eventual roommate at college.
• Devin Levin (Gia Mantegna) is a relative of Frankie's hairdresser who becomes Axl's girlfriend in Season 6. She is virtually a female Axl.
• Cindy (Casey Burke) is a classmate of Brick's who becomes his sort-of girlfriend in Season 6. She is part of Brick's posse, Brick, Cindy and Troy in season 7.
• Troy (Jovan Armand) is Brick's large classmate who initially protects him at school, then later becomes his friend.
• Holly (Lyndon Smith) is Sue's bad-mouthed and mean college dorm mate.
• Logan (David Hull) is Sue's latest love interest beginning in Season 6. They then break up in mid season 7, as he says that his major will be changed to Religious Studies and he wants to become a priest.
• Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) is Sue's new college dorm mate and friend.

Development and production

The series was originally developed in the 2006–07 development cycle and was to star Ricki Lake as Frankie.^[4] Atticus Shaffer was the only actor to retain his role when the show was re-developed.^[6] The series was created by Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline (who is from Muncie, Indiana)^[7] and the pilot was directed by Julie Anne Robinson.

Though based on Jasper, Indiana, Orson is actually a studio lot in Los Angeles. Set director Julie Fanton shops at Target and Kohl's so the show appears to have a realistic middle-class look.^[7]

The series was picked up for a full season of 24 episodes after airing just two episodes.^[8] On January 12, 2010, ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson announced that he was renewing The Middle for a second season.^[9][10] The show was renewed for a third season. The third season premiered with a one-hour episode on September 21, 2011. On May 10, 2012, ABC renewed the show for a fourth season,^[11] which premiered with a one-hour special on September 26, 2012. The show was renewed for a fifth season on May 10, 2013. ABC confirmed on May 9, 2014 that the series was picked up for a sixth season of 22 episodes,^[12] and officially ordered an additional two episodes in October of that year, bringing the season six total to 24.

On May 8, 2015, ABC officially picked up the series for a seventh season, renewing the contracts of the main cast at the same time.

Reception

Critical reception

Season		Critical response
		Rotten Tomatoes	Rotten Tomatoes – Audience Score	Metacritic
	1	74% (19 reviews)[13]	82% (42 reviews)[13]	70 (25 reviews)[14]
	2	N/A	84% (27 reviews)[15]	N/A
	3	N/A	87% (24 reviews)[16]	N/A
	4	100% (5 reviews)[17]	76% (27 reviews)[17]	N/A
	5	N/A	81% (71 reviews)[18]	N/A
	6	N/A	80% (50 reviews)[19]	N/A
	7	N/A	80% (8 reviews)[20]	N/A

The Middle has received critical acclaim, citing its unique and original characters along with how many families easily relate. It holds a score of 71 on the review aggregator website Metacritic as of April 1, 2011.^[21] Critics praise the show's realistic look at the middle class, its good timing, writing, and acting, with Robert Bianco of USA Today saying, "...This series seems to more assuredly offer a first-class version of what so many viewers say they want: a humorous, heartfelt, realistic look at middle-class, middle-America family life."^[22] The praise has been, so far, consistent, with Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker saying that, in season two, The Middle continues to be "...a rock-solid show, the saga of a family struggling to keep their heads above the choppy economic waters..."^[23] In the 2009–2010 season, The Middle ranked number six on Metacritic's "Best Reviewed New Network Show" list.^[24] Airing behind the quickly cancelled Hank during its first season, ratings were not impressive at first. At the beginning of the 2010/2011 season, ABC moved the show to 8:00pm and ratings increased substantially, with the show usually ranking second in its time slot to CBS's Survivor.

Ratings

Season	Timeslot (ET)	Episodes	Premiered			Ended			TV season	Rank	Viewers (in millions)
			Date	Premiere viewers (in millions)	18–49 rating	Date	Finale viewers (in millions)	18–49 rating
1	Wednesday 8:30 pm	24	September 30, 2009	8.71[25]	2.6[25]	May 19, 2010	7.55[26]	2.5[26]	2009–2010	No. 65[27]	6.90[27]
2	Wednesday 8:00 pm	24	September 22, 2010	8.81[28]	2.7[28]	May 25, 2011	7.33[29]	2.2[29]	2010–2011	No. 56[30]	8.11[30]
3		24	September 21, 2011	9.74[31]	3.1[31]	May 23, 2012	6.52[32]	2.0[32]	2011–2012	No. 64[33]	8.08[33]
4		24	September 26, 2012	9.16[34]	2.9[34]	May 22, 2013	7.70[35]	2.0[35]	2012–2013	No. 48[36]	8.40[36]
5		24	September 25, 2013	8.94[37]	2.5[37]	May 21, 2014	7.85[38]	2.1[38]	2013–2014	No. 44[39]	8.24[39]
6		24	September 24, 2014	7.59[40]	2.2[40]	May 13, 2015	7.03[41]	1.8[41]	2014–2015	No. 53[42]	8.68[42]
7		24[43]	September 23, 2015	8.21[44]	2.1[44]				2015–2016

The season 3 episode "Halloween II" was the most watched episode so far, viewed by 10.16 million viewers.^[45]

Awards and nominations

In 2011, The Middle received a Gracie Award for Outstanding Comedy Series.^[46] The 1st Critics' Choice Television Awards nominated the series for Best Comedy Series, Patricia Heaton for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, and Eden Sher for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

Year	Award	Category	Recipients and nominees	Outcome
2010	Young Artist Award[47]	Best Recurring Young Actor 14 and Over	Brock Ciarlelli	Nominated
		Best Recurring Young Actress	Eden Sher	Nominated
	Humanitas Prize	30 Minute Category	Episode: "The Block Party"	Nominated
2011	Gracie Award[48]	Outstanding Comedy Series		Won
	1st Critics' Choice Television Awards[49]	Best Comedy Series		Nominated
		Best Actress in a Comedy Series	Patricia Heaton	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	Eden Sher	Nominated
	Young Artist Award[50]	Best Guest Starring Young Actor Ten and Under	Parker Contreras	Won
			Mason Cook	Nominated
		Best Recurring Young Actor	Brock Ciarlelli	Won
		Best Guest Starring Young Actress 11–15	Kelly Heyer	Nominated
		Best Recurring Young Actress 17–21	Blaine Saunders	Nominated
		Outstanding Young Ensemble in a TV Series	Eden Sher, Atticus Shaffer, and Charlie McDermott	Nominated
2012	2nd Critics' Choice Television Awards[51]	Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	Eden Sher	Nominated
	1st PAAFTJ Television Awards[52]	Best Comedy Series		Nominated
		Best Actress in a Comedy Series	Patricia Heaton (Episode: "Thanksgiving III")	Won
		Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	Eden Sher (Episode: "The Test")	Nominated
		Best Production Design in a Comedy Series	Episode: "The Map"	Nominated
	Young Artist Award[53]	Best Recurring Young Actor 17–21	Brock Ciarlelli	Won
		Best Guest Starring Young Actress 17–21	Katlin Mastandrea	Nominated
		Best Guest Starring Young Actress Ten and Under	Marlowe Peyton	Nominated
	Primetime Emmy Award[54]	Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic)	Episode: "The Play"	Nominated
	Humanitas Prize	30 Minute Category	Episode: "The Map"	Nominated
	TV Guide Award	Favorite Comedy Series		Nominated
	Online Film & Television Association Award[55]	Best Guest Actress in a Comedy Series	Whoopi Goldberg	Nominated
2013	Young Artist Award[56]	Best Recurring Young Actor 17–21	Brock Ciarlelli	Won
		Best Recurring Young Actress 17–21	Katlin Mastandrea	Nominated
	3rd Critics' Choice Television Awards[57]	Best Comedy Series		Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy	Eden Sher	Won
	2013 Teen Choice Awards[58]	Choice TV Female Scene Stealer	Eden Sher	Nominated
	TV Guide Award	Favorite Comedy Series		Nominated
	2nd PAAFTJ Television Awards[59]	Best Comedy Series		Nominated
		Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Charlie McDermott	Nominated
		Best Artistic/Visual Achievement in a Comedy Series	Episode: "Hallelujah Hoedown"	Nominated
	EWwy Awards[60]	Best Actor in a Comedy Series	Neil Flynn	Nominated
2014	Young Artist Award[61]	Best Recurring Young Actor 17–21	Brock Ciarlelli	Nominated
		Best Recurring Young Actress 17–21	Katlin Mastandrea	Nominated
	EWwy Awards[62]	Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	Eden Sher	Won
	ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards[63]	Top TV Series	Joey Newman	Won
	Humanitas Prize[64]	30 Minute Category	Episode: "Halloween IV: The Ghost Story"	Nominated
	2014 Teen Choice Awards[65]	Choice TV Scene Stealer: Female	Eden Sher	Nominated
	TV Guide Award	Favorite Comedy Series		Nominated
2015	5th Critics' Choice Television Awards	Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	Eden Sher	Nominated
	Young Artist Award[66]	Best Recurring Young Actor 17-21	Brock Ciarlelli	Won
		Best Guest Starring Young Actress 14-16	Ava Allan	Nominated
	Kids' Choice Awards[67]	Favorite TV Actor	Charlie McDermott	Nominated
	Online Film & Television Association Award[68]	Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series	Dick Van Dyke	Nominated
2016	6th Critics' Choice Television Awards[69]	Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	Eden Sher	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Neil Flynn	Nominated

Syndication

On March 6, 2012, it was announced that ABC Family (now Freeform) obtained the rights to The Middle, which began airing the series in September 9, 2013.^[70]

Hallmark Channel also acquired The Middle for syndication, which began airing in March 2014.^[71] In addition, the series debuted in local syndication on September 16, 2013.^[72]

DVD distribution

In region 1, Seasons 1-4 have had an official release, with seasons 5 & 6 having only been released as a DVD-R via the Warner Archive Collection. Distribution for Region 4 has now ended, and only Seasons 1-4 are available.

The Complete First Season[73]
Set details			Special features
24 episodes 3-disc set 1.78:1 aspect ratio Languages: English (Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles) Português (Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles) Français subtitles Español subtitles Chinese subtitles Thai subtitles			Raising a Sitcom Family Sue's Best Shots Unaired scenes Gag reel
Release Dates
Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
August 31, 2010	September 12, 2011	January 13, 2011

The Complete Second Season[74]
Set details			Special features
24 episodes 3-disc set 1.78:1 aspect ratio Languages: English (Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles) Português subtitles Français subtitles Español subtitles Chinese subtitles			Unaired scenes Gag reel
Release Dates
Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
September 20, 2011	November 5, 2012	October 6, 2011

The Complete Third Season[75]
Set details			Special features
24 episodes 3-disc set 1.78:1 aspect ratio Languages: English (Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles) Português subtitles Français subtitles Español subtitles Chinese subtitles			Unaired scenes Gag reel
Release Dates
Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
October 8, 2013	December 21, 2013	May 28, 2014

The Complete Fourth Season[76]
Set details			Special features
24 episodes 3-disc set 1.78:1 aspect ratio Languages: English (Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles) Português subtitles Français subtitles Español subtitles Chinese subtitles			Unaired scenes Gag reel
Release Dates
Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
February 25, 2014	September 1, 2014	May 28, 2014

The Complete Fifth Season[77]
Set details			Special features
24 episodes 3-disc set 1.78:1 aspect ratio Languages: English No subtitles			None
Release Dates
Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
October 7, 2014

Broadcast

The Middle premiered in the US on September 30, 2009 on ABC and in Canada on City. In Australia, the show premiered on December 7, 2009 on Nine Network. The New Zealand premiere was on May 8, 2010 on TV2. In India, the show premiered on January 5, 2015 on Romedy Now. In the UK it premiered on August 29, 2010 on Sky1. Season 5 premiered on Comedy Central, UK on January 21, 2014 and in Ireland on April 16, 2014 on TV3. It has also been adapted in Hindi on Reliance Broadcast Network comedy channel BIG MAGIC as Tedi Medi Family.

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External links

• Official website
• The Middle 5 days a week
• The Middle at the Internet Movie Database
• The Middle at TV.com