Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair

1/10

Disney does what Disney does ruin a series. The main 4 brother barely In the show, Malcom is the main brother that appears but show mostly about his kid,dowie doesn't even make a physical appearance , and Reese is barely in it Francis has some parts but not much, Jamei Basically ai, Definitely a miss and not worth the watch.

These 4 episodes don't know what they want to be - nostalgia? A one-off grand bang finale? Or what? Clearly Linwood Boomer and whoever else are angling for a series and trying to use these 4 episodes as a 'test' - which makes everything everywhere and nowhere.

Here's my offhand list of what's wrong:

1. No clear target audience, so let's target everyone and no one - fans of the old series left disappointed, new viewers left, middle or right don't really care.

2. Wrt above - lets throw in 'new' characters in the way of older children who were barely there in the old series, and now spend a huge amount of 4 episodes on these bland unknown 'them' - maybe one will stick .

3. "Modernized" for no good reason - not only in the they/them thingy, but in the 'realization' and 'reconciliation' forced drama. Oh and yes to please the old fans, let's jumble in some chaotic antics - which are now misplaced and neither here nor there.

4. Miscasting - the original 'gang' were so perfectly casted they clicked and boomed from the first 10 minutes of that first episode 26 years ago. Malcolm breaking the fourth wall flowed in naturally to good effect. The two new 'daughters' are just unmemorable and bland - and breaking that fourth wall with Leah is just total cringy misfiring.

5. While the original writers were supposedly still used, either they've become jaded or they were put under some form of studio confines or duress. The scripting of the 4 episodes just come off as forced - both too much and too little at the same time.

6. Adult Malcolm and Reese behaving exactly like they did as young boys and teens - just badly weird and caricatured.

7. Lois so obsessed w an anniversary - totally out of character of the get-it-done no-fuss Lois we knew.

8. Hal suddenly feeling unwanted and spending many unnecessary minutes going ''deep' bout it - also totally out of character of the come-what-may Hal we knew.

9. Malcolm totally hiding his daughter's existence from Hal & Lois - just extremely psychotic and unnecessary. Not a funny setup in any way.

10. The original brothers spending such little scene time together - a total let down which also made this short series disjointed and lacking the chemistry that allowed them to play off each other so well before.

11. And why is Hal & Lois house suddenly so suburban clean and new and bland? And why do they seem to be financially much better off? The 'realness' of the family is gone.

If Boomer et al wanted to do a new series, they should have just done that with a new 'gang' and leave Malcom in the Middke alone. OR just do a real confirmed short series for the old fans with only the excellent original cast who are thrown together in some escapade or other - exclude the daughters, Jamie, Dewey (since Erik rightly declined) and any wives and girlfriends.

As is, this 'reboot' now join the string of failed re-boots of a pantheon of excellent series of the past. I, like so many others, had hoped this would be a success but alas ... 😢Wrong Tone, Underwhelming, Misfired.

The return of Malcolm, and the family is sure to catch the eye of anyone who grew up on the original series. It's been incredible to see the cast back together, slipping right back into character. The original cast is complimented by some familiar and new faces, who fit well. It's the same but different, with plenty of nods to the fans without it being overdone. Whilst more episodes would have been great, it's a great way to tie off an incredible legacy. My props to the team.

Nostalgia is definitely here, no doubt about that. However, I don't think die hard fans will fully enjoy this. One of the positives is that they brought back the original cast, including many supporting characters. I'm not sure how they managed to fit so many of them into just four episodes, but they did. The characters still act like themselves, which makes it feel genuine. Malcolm, Hal, and Malcolm's daughter (Keeley Karsten) are the standouts, with particularly strong performances.

The new kids are also decent, which is interesting considering their ages. One was a newborn and the other was three years old when the original series ended.

However, there are too many downsides. There is too much focus on LGBT+ themes, and the jokes are not funny most of the time... While it feels fresh in some ways, I think hardcore fans might find it annoying. I also found myself irritated at several moments. The series is too short, and too much happens too quickly. It often feels like something is just about to develop, and then the series suddenly ends.

Still, for a weekend morning watch, I'm glad I gave it a try.

Final score: 6 out of 10.

Right off the bat, I have to say: Malcolm in the Middle is one of my favorite series of all time. It was special, genius, and featured truly irreplaceable characters. Because of that love, I knew I'd watch this no matter what. My first impression? Meh. This was absolutely unnecessary. We got 4 episodes that equate to the length of a single movie, yet so much was left unsaid. While the original was fast-paced and chaotic, this felt stretched thin yet empty.

The handling of the cast is particularly frustrating. Some iconic characters were given only a scene or two just so the production could say "they're here." It felt like a checklist. Even the side characters felt like they were just thrown in so fans could point at the screen and reminisce about past seasons. Instead of meaningful development, we got cameos for the sake of cameos.

Then there's the forced modernization. Altering established character traits and shoehorning in contemporary social issues adds absolutely nothing to the story. It feels like forced writing just so the show can claim to be relevant for new generations. It's hollow and doesn't serve the spirit of the original show at all.

Ultimately, I'm left asking what the point of this was. While it triggered a small dose of nostalgia seeing these characters still being "crazy" in their own way, these 4 episodes failed to touch on anything substantial. Life might still be unfair, but this revival was the most unfair part of all.