Malcolm In The Middle Season 6 Review

27th May 2013

As I mentioned in my review of season 5 of Malcolm in the Middle I really thought the last few seasons would show a decline in quality. It’s generally what you expect from long running shows. I have once again been proved wrong and am rather surprised to say that season 6 is possibly my favourite season thus far.

It appears this season the writers have really identified the elements which make this show perfect. This season (in my opinion) thankfully does away with the outside the family home subplots of Francis and his exploits. Francis is still there but crops up within the family home and situations. And this is what makes season 6 so great; it is very specifically about family relationships. Ok yes you could say this is a family show and centres around them since the beginning but in this season there are very specific relationships and themes which the episode to episode stories are built upon.

Firstly Lois’ role as a mother. With a young baby challenging her we see Lois in crisis more often about what kind of mother she is and a hilarious glimpse back to the 80s. Her relationship with Francis finds some conclusion and the episode between Dewey and Lois when Dewey begins seeing another mother makes hilarious comparisons with other types of relationships.

The second theme I particularly loved was the relationship between brothers. It is specifically Malcolm and Reese’s connections which play out this season with a sweet depth being explored. In the episode Pearl Harbour we not only get the return of Jessica (Hayden Panettire), who I wish they featured more of, but also a quite touching demonstration of how Malcolm and Reese truly care about each other and would do anything for one another. In other episodes the division which occurs when you have three children is touched upon. Having two older sisters I identify!

Bryan Cranston (Hal) is once again a comedy genius and steals every scene he is in. And yes he does feature in his y-fronts. Again. I was happy to see a focus back on Dewey’s own story lines this year after what I have felt was a rough ride for him in season 5. Dewey becomes the leader, and responsible for, his special needs class. The star of which is Chad (Cameron Monaghan), a tiny little ginger kid, who strangely I believe is now about to become a bit of a heart throb for teens in The Vampire Academy films (another vampire teen fiction translation).

After the slight lull of season 5 this season really did make me laugh out loud fairly often (and I am hard to make laugh). Out of all the seasons this is one I think I will revisit more often and I hope that the show ends with strength in season 7.