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The Middle is an American sitcom about a lower-middle-class family living in Indiana facing the day-to-day struggles of home life, work, and raising children. The series premiered on September 30, 2009, on the ABC network and concluded on May 22, 2018, after nine seasons and 215 episodes.
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The Middle is an American sitcom television series, airing...
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The Middle originally aired from September 30, 2009 to May...
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This is a list of The Middle's episodes. Seasons: 1, 2, 3,...
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TV or Not TV is the 20th episode of the first season. After...
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The Middle (stylized as the middle.) is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from September 30, 2009 to May 22, 2018. The series, set in the fictional town of Orson in Indiana, follows a lower-middle-class family living and facing the day-to-day struggles of home life, work, and raising children.
Sep 9, 2009 · The Middle is an American sitcom television series, airing on ABC between September 30, 2009 and May 22, 2018. The series features Frances "Frankie" Heck (Patricia Heaton), a working-class, Midwestern woman and her husband Mike Heck (Neil Flynn), who reside in the small fictional town of Orson...
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- The Hecks
- Recurring characters
- Notable guest stars
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 Middle originally aired from September 30, 2009 to May 22, 2018 on the ABC network. It features Everybody Loves Raymond star Patricia Heaton and Scrubs star Neil Flynn.
Below is a list of characters central to the series.
•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. She is a devoted wife and mother and sees family as the most important thing in her life. Her motto, "You do for family", guides her daily routine, despite the frustrations she encounters with her husband and three kids, as well as her older ailing relatives who often depend on her. She often forgets family members' birthdays (most frequently Brick's) and her and Mike's anniversary. Frankie attended college but did not finish. She is often busy with work and does not have time to volunteer at her children's school activities. When the family goes on a trip, she always forgets "the blue bag" which has the food in it. She initially works as an under-performing salesperson at Ehlert Motors, a job she took after losing her position as a dentist's receptionist when the office closed. After she loses this job in season 4, Frankie completes dental assisting school and gets a job at a dentist's office near the end of the season, a job she would keep for the remainder of the show's run.
•Neil Flynn as Michael "Mike" Heck Jr., Frankie's husband, known for his straightforward manner and lack of emotion. Mike works at the local limestone quarry as the manager. He reached his 25-year work anniversary at the quarry in the season 9 episode "The Crying Game", wherein he was promoted to Regional Manager. Despite his no-nonsense approach to work and family, Mike is a devoted and understanding husband and father who always seems to come through for Frankie and the kids. It has been said on several occasions that Mike's favorite film is Reservoir Dogs and that he only asked Frankie out on a second date because she lied and said she also liked the film. Mike's reclusive, emotionally distant father, "Big Mike" (John Cullum), and Mike's well-meaning but unreliable brother Rusty (Norm Macdonald) both live in Orson. It is revealed in season 8's "Clear and Present Danger" that Mike's mother died of lung cancer at age 42, and his father made him do his homework and go to school the next day instead of allowing Mike time to mourn. Mike loves all sports but is particularly passionate about seeing the Indianapolis Colts play in the Super Bowl. In season 7, he and Rusty start a business in designing disposable diapers with sports team logos on them named "Li'l Rivals", which he sells off in the next season to pay for Sue's college tuition.
•Charlie McDermott as Axl Redford Heck, the oldest son of Frankie and Mike. He and cannot be bothered to wear more than boxer shorts most of the time at home. Unlike his siblings, Axl is rude, sardonic, lazy, selfish, and a bit narcissistic. However, he is good at heart, which he shows when he deliberately loses a basketball game in an attempt to win back his ex-girlfriend, Morgan. With his frequent problems and the situations they land him in, Axl is arguably the most frustrating to deal with to Mike and Frankie, who in particular wishes he would be more open with her, as he was apparently a very loving "momma's boy" when he was a child, something Frankie seems to want to re-capture. Despite his behavior, Axl is much more popular and outgoing than his siblings, but he does not do well in school like they do. Axl also plays the electric guitar, and it is presumed that he was named after Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose. It is revealed in season 3 that Axl is two years older than Sue as he starts his junior year at high school while Sue starts her freshman year. He has gone to prom twice with Weird Ashley Wyman (Katlin Mastandrea), an outcast at his school, both times accidentally inviting her. Axl gets another girlfriend in season 4 named Cassidy Finch, who tutors him after Sue runs over his foot and breaks it while learning to drive. They later break up in "Hallelujah Hoedown" and Axl begins dating Devin Levin. As a running back on his high school football team, he was recruited by a Division II state college in Indiana, called East Indiana State. After being a star player in high school, Axl was a bench warmer in college, causing him to take his pursuit of a business degree a bit more seriously. Early in season 8, Axl dates and later secretly marries his sweetheart April, mainly as a way to defy his parents, who do not like her. The marriage is quickly annulled after both sets of parents find out. At the end of season 8, he begins dating Sue's roommate Lexie and graduates from college with a bachelor's degree in business. Between seasons 8 and 9, he travelled in Europe with Kenny to promote Kenny's upcoming apps. After briefly working as a school bus driver and at Spudsy's early in season 9, Axl gets his first professional job as a sales rep for a plumbing fixture company in the episode "The 200th". In the series finale, he moves to Denver for a job opportunity, but a flash-forward reveals he eventually comes back to Orson, marries Lexie, and has three boys that behave similar to himself as a teenager.
•Eden Sher as Sue Sue Heck, the middle child of Frankie and Mike whose sunny personality tend to make her an object of ridicule, especially by Axl. Despite her best efforts, she is usually unrecognized by teachers and other students. Her best friends are Carly and Brad. She looks up to Reverend Tim-Tom. When she does not know something she goes to kickingitteenstyle.com. When she is lying she will say "and so on and so forth and what have you". Many of her plot lines involve her being overlooked, or trying to organize parties or events and receiving no help. In season 1, Sue is not pictured in the yearbook despite having her picture taken three times, and she finds her favorite teacher has no memory of her at all. (She is eventually placed in the yearbook, but in the section reserved for students who died, with the caption reading: "In Loving Memory of Sue Heck, Gone Too Soon.") Sue wears braces, which were briefly removed in season 3, but it was determined that they over-corrected her condition. She had them removed again at the beginning of season 6, needing only a retainer thereafter. She is also left-handed, apparently the only southpaw in her immediate family. She is two years behind Axl in school, graduating high school in the season 6 finale. She is known for trying out for almost everything but never actually getting picked, because she is always terrible. In season 2, she joins the no-cut cross country team by heroically going around the track five times on crutches because she was hit by a deer the day before. Sue becomes a "wrestlerette" in season 3 (which turns out to be a group of fellow misfits) and dates a wrestler named Matt for a short time. In season 4, she dates Axl's friend Darrin MacGrew. She is engaged to Darrin for three days in season 6, before deciding she does not want to get married yet and ending their relationship. This marks a rare moment where Sue is not a pushover, explaining her situation to Darrin in an intelligent, articulate, and socially mature manner. The season 3 episode "Leap Year" reveals she was born on leap day, but then she had her 16th birthday the following season (season 4, episode 17, "Wheels of Pain"). She gets accepted to the same college Axl is attending. He did not want her to go, but Mike and Frankie tell him it is not his decision, and Sue does later accept the offer to attend the college. Her crush on Sean Donahue is revealed in season 8. In season 9, she is a junior in college and is majoring in hospitality management. She turns 21 later that season, and Frankie comes to college and they get drunk together. In a flash-forward in the series finale, it is revealed that Sue and Sean broke up and got back together a couple of times before finally being married, with Reverend Tim-Tom officiating.
Extended family
•Edie and Ginny Freehold (Jeanette Miller and Frances Bay, introduced in season 1) are Frankie's elderly aunts who are heavy smokers and drinkers. Aunt Edie used to work in Mike's quarry as the bookkeeper, often showing signs of memory loss. One such occasion is when they went to a funeral for Edie and Ginny's brother, and Aunt Edie thought it was her birthday. Aunt Ginny uses a wheelchair and rarely talks. They have a sickly Basset Hound named Doris. On many occasions, Frankie is forced to care for Doris unexpectedly; on one such occasion, Doris gave birth to puppies. In the season 3 episode "The Map", which premiered in early 2012, Aunt Ginny dies. (The actress who portrayed her, Frances Bay, had died in real life.) Brick's elderly friend, Grandma Dot, then moves in with Edie to take care of her. In the early 2015 episode, "Hecks on a Train", Aunt Edie has just died (actress Jeanette Miller had retired from acting) and the Hecks are left to care for Doris. •Michael "Big Mike" Heck Sr. (John Cullum, introduced in season 1) is Mike's reclusive, man-of-few-words father, who is a widower. He appears to be an unloving, uncaring parent, but this is primarily because he simply does not want to be a "bother" for either of his sons. He is also depicted as a hoarder. In season 6, Big Mike and Axl fixed the Hecks' kitchen sink, which was a rare bonding experience for the two of them. In season 8 it is revealed that he sent Mike Jr. to school the day after his mother died, not allowing him time to grieve. •Orville "Rusty" Heck (Norm Macdonald, introduced in season 2) is Mike's unreliable, irresponsible, dim-witted but well meaning brother. He often makes up excuses why he cannot be anywhere or do anything Mike asks him to do. He once took Brick out of school to bowl and to teach him how to drive, even though he was not old enough or ready. It is revealed in the season 3 finale that his real first name is Orville. Also in the season 3 finale the Hecks get an invitation to his wedding but it says the wedding is happening at their house. Rusty marries a woman named Marlene, but in season 5 when Marlene invites herself to Thanksgiving at the Hecks' house, Rusty tells them that they got a divorce because she slept with his best friend. Rusty appears later in season 5 and is homeless (again). He ends up moving in with the Hecks, and accompanies Mike and Brick to Brick's spelling bee in Chicago, where Rusty makes a deal with Brick to lose, allowing Rusty to win some money on a bet he made. In season 7, Rusty comes up with a business idea that Mike shockingly thinks might work, and the two start a side business together. •Pat Spence (Marsha Mason, introduced in season 1) is Frankie's mother. Pat appeared at least once in all of the first seven seasons. Her first appearance was in season 1 episode 22 ("Mother's Day"). Her last appearance was in the season 9 episode "The Setup". •Tag Spence (Jerry Van Dyke, introduced in season 2) is Frankie's father. Tag is a schmoozer and always talks to Mike endlessly, which Mike finds very uncomfortable and annoying. In season 4 Tag calls Mike to meet up at a Stuckey's restaurant, to have man-to-man chats every Sunday. After a couple of meetings, Mike decides he just cannot possibly stand to do it any longer, so he suggests that Tag should try chatting with people on Facebook. Tag's final appearance was in season 6, episode 21 ("Two of a Kind"). The episode reveals a longstanding feud between Tag and his brother Dutch (played by Jerry Van Dyke's real-life brother Dick Van Dyke), which is mostly fueled by Tag's jealousy, and Mike and Frankie end up trying to resolve it.
Co-workers
•Bob Weaver (Chris Kattan, introduced in season 1) is Frankie's co-worker and friend at Ehlert Motors. He is depicted as a lonely, insecure man who lives with his mother and does not seem to have any friends. Thus, he tends to insert himself into the Hecks' family life whenever he can. Bob was credited as a main character in the first two seasons, but the role was significantly reduced after Frankie was fired from Ehlert Motors. He was a recurring character in season 3, and has since made two other appearances (his final one in season 5, when Frankie rushes out to her dental office job but accidentally goes to Ehlert Motors). Bob and Mike once moonlighted together delivering Little Betty snack cakes to stores. •Don Ehlert (Brian Doyle-Murray, introduced in season 1) is the racist and misogynistic owner of the car dealership where Frankie used to work, and where Bob presumably still works. Frankie and Bob constantly worry that he is going to fire them. Ehlert's wife left him when he chose work over her, and Frankie was first sympathetic but later turned angry. He often drinks at work. Elhert, like Mike, likes sports. As with Bob, appearances by the Mr. Ehlert character were significantly reduced after Frankie was fired from Ehlert Motors. •Pete Miller (Peter Breitmayer, introduced in season 1) is Ehlert Motors' best salesman and star employee, and he is not afraid to tell everyone about it. Pete often brags about his success at Frankie's and Bob's expense, putting them down about how little they contribute to the business while developing a "teacher's pet" relationship with Mr. Ehlert. •Jim (Troy Metcalf, introduced in season 1) is an employee at the quarry Mike manages. He has appeared in at least one episode every season. •Dave (Malcom Foster Smith, introduced in season 1) is an employee at the quarry Mike manages. He has appeared in at least one episode every season. •Wayne (Ezra Buzzington, introduced in season 1) is an employee at the quarry Mike manages. •Chuck (Greg Cipes, introduced in season 2) is a younger, laidback employee at the quarry Mike manages. He once babysat for Brick, giving him questionable advice on a school project. He often speaks in the third person, referring to himself as "The Chuck". •Dr. Ted Goodwin (Jack McBrayer, introduced in season 4) is the dentist who hires Frankie as a hygienist in season 4. He has few friends, and Frankie is forced to spend time with him after work in "The Jump" (season 5). Ted's dental office is bought out by the conglomerate Smile Sensations in season 7. Frankie does not like the changes, but continues to work there. •Edwin (Jimmy Bellinger, introduced in season 5) is the young manager at Spudsy's, a baked potato fast food restaurant in a mall food court where Sue worked steadily since season 5.
Neighbors
•Nancy Donahue (Jen Ray) is the Hecks' neighbor and president of the booster club. The Donahues (Nancy, her husband Ron, their son Sean, and their two daughters) are portrayed as the idyllic family Frankie yearns to be like. From season 5, episode 4 ("The 100th"), Nancy and Frankie's friendship has waned a little, mainly because Nancy overheard Mike and Frankie talking about her. In season 7, episode 18 ("A Very Donahue Vacation") Nancy's daughter, Shelly hears Frankie talking about Nancy and tells her. However, Nancy forgives Frankie and they remain good friends. •Ron Donahue (Sean O'Bryan, introduced in season 2) is Nancy's husband and the father of Sean, Dotty and Shelly. He appears to be very involved in his kids' lives. •Rita Glossner (Brooke Shields) is the Hecks' uncouth and troubled neighbor. She is the single parent of four rambunctious boys, as she had kicked the boys' father out of the house some years ago. The Glossners appear to be the only family on the block that is worse off financially than the Hecks. Rita often shows her disdain for the Hecks' higher status, even calling Frankie a "one-percenter" in the season 7 episode, "Halloween VI: Tick Tock Death". Only three Glossner boys are introduced at first, but the season 8 episode "Trip and Fall" reveals that Rita has a fourth son, Rodney, her oldest child who has just made her a grandmother. In the season 9 episode "Hecks vs. Glossners: The Final Battle", Rita's children are sent to juvenile detention. After her children are gone, it brings out the nicer side of Rita. •Derrick Glossner (David Chandler), Wade Glossner (Parker Bolek), and "Diaper" Glossner (Gibson Bobby Sjobeck) (all introduced in season 1) make up the dreaded Glossner boys, Rita's children. They are neighborhood bullies who used to terrorize Sue and Brick. In the first season, Sue and Carly attempt to fight the two older Glossner boys via a dance routine set to "Kung Fu Fighting". In the fifth season, Derrick reveals he has a crush on Sue and unexpectedly kisses her multiple times. Despite describing her as a "rich girl" with "one dad and two different kinds of chips" (and thus out of his league), he vows to better himself and come back for her someday. In the season 9 episode "Hecks vs. Glossners: The Final Battle", Derrick proclaims he has kept his promise by getting a part-time job at a tattoo parlor that pays him $50 a week. Sue tells him she is in love with someone else (Sean Donahue), prompting Derrick to call her a "cheater". •Paula Norwood (Julie Brown, introduced in season 2) is another of the Hecks' neighbors. She serves as somewhat of a counterpoint to the idyllic Nancy Donahue in that her life and family (including husband Bill) is depicted as being similar to Frankie's, having a lot of the same issues. •Bill Norwood (Pat Finn, introduced in season 2) is the Hecks' neighbor and Paula's husband who frequently embarrasses her. Bill tends to try too hard to convince Mike he's his friend, to the point of buying Mike expensive sunglasses for Christmas, even though the two had never agreed to exchange gifts. Bill reveals in the season 9 episode "The 200th" that he and Paula are separated. In the season 9 episode "Hecks vs. Glossners: The Final Battle", Bill meets a female police officer and the two agree to go on a date. They are shown to be still together in the series finale. •Dierdre Peterson (Emily Rutherfurd, introduced in season 7) is the Hecks' new next-door neighbor. She has three rambunctious, noisy children, plus a new baby.
•Amy Sedaris as Abby Michaels (season 1)
•Betty White as Mrs. Nethercott (season 1)
•Doris Roberts as Ms. Rinsky (season 2)
•Ray Romano as Nicky Kohlbrenner (season 3)
•Molly Shannon as Frankie's sister Janet (seasons 3 and 4)
•Brandon Scott as Cory (season 3)
This is a list of The Middle's episodes. Seasons: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Survey Says... Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
TV or Not TV is the 20th episode of the first season. After failing to pay the electric bill on time, the electric company shuts off the Heck's power. This leads Frankie and Mike to cut down on their unnecessary expenses, including their cable TV.
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Sep 30, 2009 · The Middle is an American sitcom about a middle-class family living in Indiana facing the day-to-day struggles of home life, work, and raising children. The show premiered from ABC on September 30, 2009, and concluded on May 22, 2018. The series stars with Patricia Heaton and Dennis Quaid.
