Malcolm in the Middle season 1
| Malcolm in the Middle | |
|---|---|
| Season 1 | |
.jpg) DVD cover | |
| Starring | |
| No. of episodes | 16 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Fox |
| Original release | January 9 – May 21, 2000 |
| Season chronology | |
The first season of Malcolm in the Middle premiered on January 9, 2000 on Fox Broadcasting Company, and ended on May 21, 2000 with a total of sixteen episodes. Frankie Muniz stars as the title character Malcolm, and is joined by Jane Kaczmarek, Bryan Cranston, Christopher Kennedy Masterson, Justin Berfield, Erik Per Sullivan and Catherine Lloyd Burns.
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | US viewers (millions) [1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Pilot" | Todd Holland | Linwood Boomer | January 9, 2000 | 10012-99-179 | 22.4 |
| 2 | 2 | "Red Dress" | Arlene Sanford | Alan J. Higgins | January 16, 2000 | 06-99-103 | 23.3 |
| 3 | 3 | "Home Alone 4" | Todd Holland | Michael Glouberman & Andrew Orenstein | January 23, 2000 | 06-99-106 | 19.3 |
| 4 | 4 | "Shame" | Nick Marck | David Richardson | February 6, 2000 | 06-99-107 | 16.8 |
| 5 | 5 | "Malcolm Babysits" | Jeff Melman | Maggie Bandur & Pang-Ni Landrum | February 13, 2000 | 06-99-105 | 17.9 |
| 6 | 6 | "Sleepover" | Ken Kwapis | Dan Kopelman | February 20, 2000 | 06-99-110 | N/A |
| 7 | 7 | "Francis Escapes" | Todd Holland | Linwood Boomer | February 27, 2000 | 06-99-101 | 16.6 |
| 8 | 8 | "Krelboyne Picnic" | Todd Holland | Michael Glouberman & Andrew Orenstein | March 12, 2000 | 06-99-109 | 15.5 |
| 9 | 9 | "Lois vs. Evil" | Todd Holland | Jack Amiel & Michael Begler | March 19, 2000 | 06-99-104 | 16.3 |
| 10 | 10 | "Stock Car Races" | Todd Holland | David Richardson | April 2, 2000 | 06-99-102 | 14.4 |
| 11 | 11 | "Funeral" | Arlene Sanford | Maggie Bandur & Pang-Ni Landrum | April 9, 2000 | 06-99-111 | 15.3 |
| 12 | 12 | "Cheerleader" | Todd Holland | Dan Kopelman | April 16, 2000 | 06-99-112 | 13.0 |
| 13 | 13 | "Rollerskates" | Ken Kwapis | Alan J. Higgins | April 30, 2000 | 06-99-108 | 14.5 |
| 14 | 14 | "The Bots and the Bees" | Chris Koch | Alan J. Higgins & David Richardson | May 7, 2000 | 06-00-202 | 12.3 |
| 15 | 15 | "Smunday" | Jeff Melman | Michael Glouberman & Andrew Orenstein | May 14, 2000 | 06-00-201 | 12.6 |
| 16 | 16 | "Water Park (Part 1)" | Ken Kwapis | Maggie Bandur & Pang-Ni Landrum | May 21, 2000 | 06-00-203 | 13.9 |
Cast and characters
Main
- Frankie Muniz as Malcolm
- Jane Kaczmarek as Lois
- Bryan Cranston as Hal
- Christopher Kennedy Masterson as Francis
- Justin Berfield as Reese
- Erik Per Sullivan as Dewey
- Catherine Lloyd Burns as Caroline Miller
Notable guests
- Craig Lamar Traylor as Stevie Kenarban[2]
- David Anthony Higgins as Craig Feldspar[3]
- Daniel von Bargen as Commandant Edwin Spangler[3]
- Karim Prince as Cadet Stanley[3]
- Drew Powell as Cadet Drew[4]
- Merrin Dungey as Kitty Kenarban[2]
- Dungey also plays Malcolm's teacher before he transfers to the Krelboyne class in the pilot episode[2]
- Landry Allbright as Julie[2]
Production
Development
Malcolm in the Middle was created by Linwood Boomer and originally based at UPN. Four months later, the network passed on the series as it did not fit their target demographic; it was soon after picked up by Fox Broadcasting Company.[5] Boomer based the series on his own life. He called the central family a "gigantically exaggerated and self-serving version" of his family and childhood: "My mother was very no-nonsense [...] Who could blame her? She was working while trying to keep up with four destructive and always hungry boys."[6]
Casting
The title character Malcolm was initially written as being nine years old. While auditioning, the-then 13-year old Frankie Muniz thought that he would not get it, believing he was "too old". However, the producers were impressed with Muniz, so he was cast, and the character was aged up.[7] In the season, Malcolm's age is intentionally not mentioned, with the revelation that he only attends middle school, "not the actual grade level."[8] Aaron Paul was interested in auditioning for the role of Malcolm's eldest brother Francis, but the producers were not interested in casting him; the role went to Christopher Kennedy Masterson,[9] who was cast after a single audition.[10] Jane Kaczmarek initially did not want to play the matriarch of the family Lois, even after receiving the script, but then wondered, "Wow, they really love me [...] Maybe I should read this." After reading the script, she found that "there was something undeniably quirky and endearing about Lois", so she accepted.[11]
Justin Berfield was cast as Malcolm's older Reese, despite Berfield being younger than Muniz, while Erik Per Sullivan was cast as the youngest brother Dewey,[12] and Catherine Lloyd Burns as Malcolm's teacher Caroline Miller.[13] The character of Hal, the patriarch of the family, was initially underwritten, and described by Boomer as "a writer's conceit that just lay there on the page like a turd". During Bryan Cranston's audition for the part, he had to simply be "listening to a fight between the mom and one of her sons" as required. At that time, Cranston put a pipe in his mouth and watched the fight, causing Boomer to fall from his chair while laughing. Boomer recalled that Cranston "just had this vast inner life going on." Boomer described Cranston's look at that time as a man who "looks like he's listening, but he's actually building a rocket ship in his head", and Cranston was cast immediately.[14]
Filming
Much of the filming for the season was done on location.[15] Unlike other sitcoms, the makers avoided including laugh tracks or studio audience, and cinematography was done with single-camera to achieve a more "cinematic look".[6] A privately owned home, located at 12334 Cantura Street in Studio City, California, was rented for upwards of $3,000 a day to film as Malcolm's house.[16] School scenes were filmed at Colfax Elementary School.[17] For the episode "Rollerskates", Cranston learned how to skate and performed most of his skating scenes, while a stunt double was used for the more complicated skating scenes. During "The Bots and the Bees", he wore a suit of live bees as required for the role. He was covered in 10,000 bees, but only got stung once, during which he did not flinch.[18] In "Stock Car Races", when Hal and the boys are entering a race track, the billboard behind the entrance displays the place as Irwindale Speedway, a real race track in Southern California.[19] The season finale was filmed at a water park called Wild Rivers located in Irvine, California.[20]
Release
Broadcast history
The season premiered on January 9, 2000 on Fox, and ended on May 21, 2000 with a total of sixteen episodes.[21]
Home media
The season was released on Region 1 DVD by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on October 28, 2002.[22]
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes calculated an approval rating of 100%, based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The site's consensus reads, "Malcolm in the Middle blasts out of the gate with a startlingly adept child performance from Frankie Muniz, a robust family ensemble, and a distinctive, punchy visual style."[21] On Metacritic, the season has an 88% score based on 25 reviews, indicating "Universal acclaim".[23]
Ratings
The series started off with ratings of 23 million for the debut episode,[24] and 26 million for the second episode.[25]
References
- ^ "Audiencias USA: Base de Datos". Quidsweb.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Lee, Jaimie (January 15, 2019). "Where is the cast of Malcolm in the Middle today?". Sports Retriever. Archived from the original on May 25, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ a b c "Casting Malcolm S01". AlloCiné (in French). Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ Mason, Aiden (August 17, 2017). "Five Things You Didn't Know About Drew Powell". TVOvermind. Archived from the original on August 9, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (May 12, 2006). "Malcolm: The Beginning, Middle and End". TV Guide. Archived from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ a b Weinraub, Bernard (January 30, 2000). "COVER STORY; A Warm and Fuzzy Family, But the Brady Bunch It Isn't". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ Krulik, Nancy (February 21, 2001). Frankie Muniz Boy Genius. Simon & Schuster. pp. 21–22.
- ^ Shuster, Fred (August 19, 2001). "`Malcolm' power no longer a babe in the woods, this breakthrough series hits its growth spurt". Los Angeles Daily News. Archived from the original on November 30, 2014. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ Cormier, Roger (January 4, 2016). "16 Fun Facts About Malcolm in the Middle". Mental Floss. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ "Being Francis". BBC Online. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ Turner, Miki (August 20, 2000). "Malcolm's Mother — She's no Plain Jane". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ Eames, Tom (February 11, 2018). "Malcolm in the Middle: What do they look like now?". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ "Photos from What the Cast of Malcolm in the Middle Is Up to Now". E! Online. January 10, 2020. Archived from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ Martin, Brett (July 16, 2013). "Bryan Cranston on Becoming Walter White and the Final Season of Breaking Bad". GQ. Archived from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ Finer, Abby; Pearlman, Deborah (January 2004). Starting Your Television Writing Career: The Warner Bros. Television Writers Workshop Guide. Syracuse University Press. p. 234. ISBN 978-0-8156-0831-8. Archived from the original on June 27, 2014. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
- ^ Johnson, Tricia (July 5, 2001). "As seen on TV!". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
They pay about $3,000 to $4,000 a day.
- ^ "The school where Malcolm in the Middle was filmed". TVMaps. Archived from the original on May 5, 2013. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
- ^ Potts, Kimberly (January 9, 2015). "'Malcolm in the Middle' 15th Anniversary: Celebrating Bryan Cranston's 5 Craziest Moments as Hal". Yahoo!. Archived from the original on July 26, 2020. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
- ^ "Toyota Speedway at Irwindale". Morebooks.de. December 3, 2010. Archived from the original on July 26, 2020. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
- ^ "Enquête : mais où habite la famille de Malcolm ?". Malcolm France (in French). November 28, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2020. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
- ^ a b "Malcolm in the Middle: Season 1 (2000)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on November 30, 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
{{cite web}}:|archive-date=/|archive-url=timestamp mismatch; July 26, 2020 suggested (help) - ^ "Malcolm in the Middle: Season 1". Amazon.com. Archived from the original on March 8, 2020. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
- ^ "Malcolm in the Middle: Season 1". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 5, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ Adalian, Josef; Schneider, Michael (January 17, 2000). "Sitcom savior?". Variety. Archived from the original on July 4, 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ De Leon, Kris (July 5, 2009). "'Malcolm in the Middle' Airing on Nick at Nite". BuddyTV. Archived from the original on June 25, 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
