The Middle: Season 1

The title of this family sitcom refers to the middle of nowhere: Orson, IN, home of the world's largest polyurethane cow, as well as a family named the Hecks, who are barely squeaking by on credit and surviving assorted predictable mishaps. Patricia Heaton stars as Frankie, the overtaxed mom who narrates the tales of parenting challenges in the modern world of work versus childrearing, with Neil Flynn playing the straight man as her blithely honest but always supportive husband, Mike. Together the pair deal with their rambunctious brood: snarky high schooler Axl (Charlie McDermott); geeky, gawky adolescent Sue (Eden Sher); and brainy but odd youngest child Brick (Atticus Shaffer), who has the creepy habit of whispering to himself as though he's possessed. Chris Kattan costars as Bob, Frankie's buddy at the used car lot where she works. The broad comedy here plays like a warmed-over version of Malcolm in the Middle, with cartoonish humor and smart-aleck narration offering comic counterpoint to the dysfunctional behavior on display. The Middle was successful enough to earn a second season, but in the crowded sitcom world, this familiar exercise ultimately falls short. Compiling all 24 episodes from the 2009–10 first season, DVD extras include two behind-the-scenes featurettes, deleted scenes, and a gag reel. Not a necessary purchase. (S. Axmaker)