Tonight at 8p
The Middle turns 100 and a big reason why the family sitcom to this milestone is not only the writing, but also the amazing chemistry between the cast. On Saturday, I attended the party to celebrate their centennial episode and it was evident that not only do they enjoy what they do but also they enjoy who they are working with on The Middle.
On tonight’s episode the town of Orson is also celebrating turning 100 and Frankie (
Patricia Heaton) and Mike (Neil Flynn) have the distinct honor of riding the main float which is a cow. The night before the parade, they have to guard the float and we find out how they wound up in Orson and not Chicago like their original plan. It is a sweet moment between the two and since this is The Middle, it won’t last.
They aren’t the only ones taking part in the festivities, Brick (Atticus Shaffer) thinks he has come up with the motto for the town’s next 100 years. It really is a good one, but is it the best one? That is up for the town to decide. Shaffer told me about one motto that didn’t make the show, but it was his personal favorite. One of the prop guys came up with, “Orson enjoy your dairy air.” It is much funnier when you read it aloud.
Axl (
Charlie McDermott) has new idea to make money quickly at the parade. Will it work out better than his past ideas or will it go down in flames like something else on the show tonight?
Then there is Sue (
Eden Sher), who is trying to enjoy the festivities as much as she can now that she knows her boyfriend has moved on. Will this finally be the one thing that gets her down? Who are we kidding, nothing can get our Sue Heck down and that is just how we like it!
The Middle is turning 100 because it’s that rare show that deserves to make it to this honor. The Hecks are you, they are me and they are everyone we know. That is why every week we find ourselves tuning in for it.
So what does turning 100 mean to the cast? It means something different to all of them, but they all agree that they love their jobs. For Patricia Heaton and Neil Flynn it means it’s their second sitcom in a row that has gotten to that magical number, and it is something they don’t take lightly. Heaton told me that going from Everybody Loves Raymond to The Middle, “I find it miraculous. I kind of want to turn around and see if anyone is going to take it away from me. It is sort of crazy that this happened. I am very grateful.†Flynn has this to say this about going from Scrubs into another hit, “I’m twice as lucky. I am fortunate to have it happen once, but twice.â€
Now while they have been here before, for the three actors who play their kids this is the longest they have been on or at something. Charlie McDermott summed up that feeling with, “This is the largest thing I have ever done. I don’t think I’ve done a 100 of anything before this. So it is nice to spend that much time on something I enjoy a lot. It is really cool to be here.†His TV sister, Eden Sher, added, “It means that I am a lucky child. It means I am examine my life every day and I cry from gratitude.†As she answered the question to what it means to hit this milestone, you can tell she really is in awe of it all! Then her younger TV brother, Atticus Shaffer, said it perfectly when he told me, †It took a long time to accomplish, but it’s been a lot of fun along the way.â€
Aw Heck, if they can have fun along the way as they make The Middle, then we can have as much fun watching what they made. Something that is very easy for us viewers to do every Wednesday at 8p on ABC. The Middle is about the Heck family and in a way that is what they have become to us. But unlike our real family we get to shut them off after a half hour. Which is about as much time as we actually enjoy spending with our real families. Also unlike our real families, we get to laugh with them every week.
So here is to 100 more episodes of The Middle!!!
