MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE: The Complete Seasons

Malcolm in the Middle is an American sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Network. The series was first broadcast on January 9, 2000, and ended its six-and-a-half-year run on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons. The series received critical acclaim and won seven Emmy Awards, one Grammy and was nominated for seven Golden Globes.

The show starred Frankie Muniz as Malcolm, the third-born of four, then five later in the series (six, in the last episode), sons of Lois (Jane Kaczmarek) and Hal (Bryan Cranston). The eldest, Francis (Christopher Masterson), was shipped off to military school, leaving three brothers: Reese (Justin Berfield), Malcolm (Frankie Muniz), Dewey (Erik Per Sullivan) and starting in season four Jamie (James and Lukas Rodriguez in the later seasons) living at home, Malcolm being the middle child still at home (hence the show's title). The show's early seasons centered on Malcolm and the rigors of being an adolescent genius and enduring an eccentric, although eerily normal, life. Later seasons gradually explored the other members of the family and their friends in more depth.

The series was different from many others in that Malcolm broke the fourth wall and talked directly to the viewer; it was shot using a single camera; and it used neither a laugh track nor a live studio audience, just sound effects. Emulating the style of hour-long dramas, this half-hour show was shot on film instead of video. Another unique aspect is that the cold open of every episode is unrelated to the main story. Exceptions were episodes which were the conclusions of "two-parters"; these episodes opened with a summary of part one and Bryan Cranston (Hal) saying "Previously on Malcolm in the Middle" in a humorous manner.