Malcolm in the Middle stars Frankie Muniz as the titular Malcolm, a scientific genius who is the middle child in a dysfunctional family of four (later
Malcolm in the Middle stars Frankie Muniz as the titular Malcolm, a scientific genius who is the middle child in a dysfunctional family of four (later five) boys. The show ran for seven seasons from 1999 to 2006 and was adored by many an 00s kid for its portrayal of middle-class family life and the struggle to fit in that comes with adolescence. The show was truly a masterpiece of its time, taking many unorthodox approaches for a TV sitcom, including multiple location changes, a single-camera setup, and montages, none of which are typical of sitcoms.
Recently, a four-part revival series was released to a positive reception. This means that if you’re a fan of the show, it might be time for a rewatch. Or if you’ve never seen the show in full, it might be time for a first-time viewing. As with any show, some Malcolm in the Middle episodes are better than others, with some really shining above the rest. This is usually due to how technically unique the formatting of the episodes is, but it’s also sometimes due to the storylines or production values.
25
“Pearl Harbor”
Season 6, Episode 4 (2004)
Image via 20th Century Fox
In this episode, Hal (Bryan Cranston) becomes fed up with his neighbor always copying his Christmas decorations, so he opts to celebrate “Pearl Harbor Day,” which is not an official holiday, to see if his neighbor really is copying him. But that isn’t why the episode is great. The best part of it is that Malcolm and Reese’s (Justin Berfield) friend Jessica (Hayden Panetierre) stays over, and develops an elaborate plot to convince them that the other is gay, solely for the purpose of her own amusement.
This actually works. Malcolm thinks Reese is gay and vice versa. Instead of making fun of each other for it, like one would expect them to, they actually learn to accept each other and get along for once in their lives. Lois (Jane Kaczmarek) is not cheerful with Jessica, but is cheerful to see their boys get along for once. It’s an awkward episode, but one with a very significant social message that was way ahead of its time, and which still holds up today.
24
“Reese Joins the Army (Part 2)”
Season 5, Episode 22 (2004)
Image via 20th Century Fox
The Season 5 finale throws the family without a last name into possibly the worst situation they’ve ever been in. Malcolm steals Reese’s girlfriend in the prior episode (jerk!), causing Reese to run away to join the army without telling his family where he’s going. Hal is framed by everyone at his company for embezzling money when he isn’t responsible, causing him to face a lengthy prison sentence, while Lois is abruptly fired from her job. During the court proceedings, Lois starts to lose her mind a bit and adopts a frighteningly tranquil demeanor.
Even though it does work out in the end, seeing the whole family fall apart like this is admittedly kind of amusing. The episode does take on a distinct tone from the rest of the series. Much of the episode revolves around Reese’s military training, which actually changes him as a person. It’s also an episode where Malcolm lets his genius show as he eventually bails his family out of the horrible situation. Technically, the episode is a three-parter, with the third being the Season 6 premiere. Still, it’s a great episode all-around, and definitely one of the most memorable.
23
“Billboard”
Season 6, Episode 10 (2005)
Image via 20th Century Fox
In this episode, the boys see a strip club billboard on an outing and decide to vandalize it via spray paint that night. As always, though, Lois catches them. Reese begins to paint a speech bubble saying “I want Reese” over the woman, but only gets so far as “I want Re” before being caught. Upon their discovery, Malcolm hatches a genius plan. He wedges Reese’s pocket knife in the trapdoor of the catwalk, preventing access, and finishes the graffiti with “spect,” so that it spells “I want respect.” He then hatches a story about how this is an act of protest because they don’t like how the woman is portrayed. It’s a moment where Malcolm’s quick thinking shows.
Lois, of course, isn’t buying it, but everyone else is, with a huge group of supporters forming at the bottom of the billboard. While Lois is correct to assume that the boys are just trying to weasel out of trouble and don’t actually care about the issue they’re supposedly protesting, in their time spent on the billboard, they actually do learn about equality and women’s rights from their own introspection. This episode isn’t just cleverly written, but it has a great message at the same time. Don’t worry, it still manages to be pretty witty, too.
22
“Dinner Out”
Season 2, Episode 4 (2000)
Image via 20th Century Fox
People who didn’t grow up in the 2000s have no idea how much of an influence this single episode had on youth culture. This episode famously opens with “The Circle Game,” a game where the goal is to make someone look below your waist while you make a circle with your fingers. If they fall for it, you get to punch them on the arm. Yes, it is indeed stupid. While this episode didn’t exactly invent the game, it definitely popularized it.
For years afterwards, kids and teens in many English-speaking countries were playing the same game, punching each other on the arm and thinking of more and more elaborate ways to fool people. This isn’t even the primary plot of the episode–it’s a side plot if anything. But its influence is undeniable, and is felt even today by way of internet meme culture. Solely based on its widespread influence, it definitely earns a top spot in the best episodes of the series.
21
“Burning Man”
Season 7, Episode 1 (2005)
Image via 20th Century Fox
The Season 7 premiere is one of the most unique episodes in the show. It doesn’t do anything different technique-wise like some other episodes, but it has a whole different vibe from the rest of the series. In this episode, Malcolm and Reese attempt to sneak off to Burning Man, only to get caught by their parents. However, their parents are actually on board with the idea once they learn what it is, and the whole family goes.
There, Malcolm meets a woman named Anita (Rosanna Arquette), a shaman to whom he loses his virginity. Reese and Lois have the best time, though, participating in all the weird and wonderful events at the festival, and surprisingly, bonding with each other. This episode isn’t just witty—it makes for one of the most thematically captivating episodes in the series, and introduces a lot of character growth for many of the individual family members. And of course, it’s rife with the usual disordered family lively.
20
“Ida’s Dance”
Season 6, Episode 18 (2005)
Image via 20th Century Fox
“Ida’s Dance” is about Lois’ cantankerous mother, Ida (Chloris Leachman), who is celebrating the fictional Saint Grotis’ Day with a bunch of other women from her unspecified European country of origin, with Lois doggedly joining the festivities. Here, various aspects of Ida’s culture are shown, which belong to various countries, or no country at all, leaving her ethnicity ambiguous. This is another example of the show’s running gag of being intentionally vague.
The actual dancing in the episode is honestly very impressive, and kind of comical considering the ridiculous traditions put in place by Ida and her friends. This includes making an enormous tart with 100 layers of fruit that is intentionally challenging to make, and that doesn’t even really taste that good, and performing a dance where the goal is to dodge razor-sharp blades, inspired by the Philippine bamboo dance known as Tinikling. It’s a bizarre episode, but one that is pretty darn comical in all aspects.
19
“Mrs. Tri-County”
Season 6, Episode 22 (2005)
Image via 20th Century Fox
In the Season 6 finale, the boys jokingly enter their mother in their local beauty pageant, but are stunned when she is actually selected to perform. Hal catches onto their ploy and really cracks down, intending to make the entire experience the most non-embarrassing event of Lois’ life. The result is a coordinated family effort to ensure Lois at least has a good performance, with Dewey (Erik Per Sullivan) in charge of music, Hal directing, and Malcolm in charge of bribing his evil teacher, who also happens to be a judge in the competition.
In the end, Lois actually comes out on top, winning the pageant and earning the title of Mrs. Tri-County. It’s a moment of pure triumph for Lois, showing the great things that can happen when the family stops fighting and really puts their minds together to create something magical. Lois never suspected she was entered as a joke, but her fleeting victory is one of the greatest moments of her life, and it shows as her face beams with pride and happiness.
18
“Tutoring Reese”
Season 2, Episode 19 (2001)
Image via 20th Century Fox
“Tutoring Reese” follows Reese’s academic struggles, which is nothing novel, considering Reese is a bit of a dimwit. Reese becomes threatened by his teacher that if he doesn’t step up his game, he’ll be placed in the remedial program. As such, Lois orders Malcolm to aid Reese study, and the two begrudgingly spend hours poring over notes until Malcolm is confident Reese can pull off a C. Yet, Malcolm’s lessons don’t seem to be paying off. To ensure his success, Malcolm organizes an elaborate scheme to cheat on Reese’s test, wherein Malcolm writes the test for Reese, yet Reese still gets an F.
In this moment, Malcolm realizes that Reese’s teacher is just out to get him, something that eventually slips to Lois. This revelation is home to some brilliant comedic timing, as well as Lois’ parenting philosophy. The teacher argues that if they complain to the school, they will know Malcolm cheated and will likely be expelled. Yet, this doesn’t faze Lois, as she rebuts that she could basically throw Malcolm to the wolves on Monday and he’d be leading the pack by Friday—Reese is the one who actually needs the aid. It’s an episode that shows how Lois thinks, the family’s disordered lively, and that, as much as Reese gets under Lois’ skin, she still loves him, no matter what.
17
“Funeral”
Season 1, Episode 11 (2000)
Image via 20th Century Fox
“Funeral” follows the death of Lois’ aunt Helen, a woman whom Lois despised with every fiber of her being. However, Lois is determined to get the family to the funeral, because Helen is still family and deserves respect. Unfortunately, nobody else seems to want to go, so Lois angrily concedes and allows everyone to do whatever they want, and gets rid of all the rules in the house. As one can imagine, with the family’s lively, this quickly leads to chaos.
One of the main reasons this is such a memorable episode is the introduction of the one-time character, Egg (Alexander Gould). He barely says a word and just kind of shows up in the family’s home, apparently a friend of Dewey’s. Egg quickly became a fan-favorite character for how nonchalant the family was about accepting him into their debacle and their lives, without asking him where he came from or who his parents are. Aside from Egg, though, the episode has an significant moral about familial responsibility, and about choosing what is right over what is fun or simple.
16
“Lois’ Birthday”
Season 2, Episode 3 (2000)
Image via 20th Century Fox
“Lois’ Birthday” opens up with Lois giving her three youngest sons money so they can buy something for her birthday, hinting to them that if they pool the money, they can buy her a foot massager that she really wants. Instead, they buy her a bunch of useless gifts that she clearly doesn’t like, and spend the rest of their funds on candy for themselves. Lois is miserable, made even worse by the fact that her own husband forgot about her birthday. Furious, she heads off to the batting cages to blow off some steam.
There, her family does her best to make up for it, with clowns and a cake that was stolen from another party. One of these clowns insults Lois, leading to an all-out brawl between the clowns and the Wilkerson boys. This slo-mo fight sequence highlights the bond the Wilkersons have as a family. Though they are constantly at each other’s throats, they look out for their own. As it turns out, seeing her boys defend her in such a manner proves to be exactly what Lois needed that day, and she smiles proudly. This final brawl is one of the best scenes of the whole show and is an example of the overarching narrative of love conquering all.
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