We need to talk about Chad, and there's kind of a redemption at the end with Hal's attitude towards Chad. I sometimes what happened to the relationship between Polly and Abe, because nothing has been mentioned about it since the racially groundbreaking episode Polly in the Middle.
2 Reviews
This episode assassinated Hal's character and continued on with mental health stereotyping
snickzella8 December 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I like Bryan Cranston. I may not be a big fan of his, but I like him in other shows and in other things. It's shows like this where he did show off his chops as a comedic actor before going into serious roles like on Breaking Bad. The character of Hal is a sad, pathetic person, he's a complete free spirit with no fatherly instinct and yet someone how he's likeable. He sort of reminds me of Chevy Chase's character Clark Griswald; a completely filthy and dirty a-hole, but on the surface is naively positive and likeable. But sometimes the two characters really are too similar. I thought the character of Hal was untouchable and redeemable. But not after this one. He violates his wife's privacy by taking a picture of her naked, while she's passed out drunk and doesn't tell anyone about it. That is wrong. It be one thing if it were consensual, but no, that isn't funny it's wrong. As much as i hate the character of Lois, she does not deserve that type of violation. This was the turning point for Hal as a character, as this is what killed the character.
But it wouldn't be an especially terrible episode without bringing in one of the Busey's and belittling mental health issues. In this epsiodes case, Chad's parents. I should mention the actor who plays Chad is Cameron Monaghan, a really great actor who knows how to play troubled but still sympathetic characters, as shown during his time on Shameless. In fact Shameless by all accounts and all reason should be worse than Malcolm in The Middle. But it isn't. Because the biggest draw a show like Shameless has over Malcolm in The middle is the fact that it goes for pathos and takes it seriously and has some really believeable and relataible characters whom i want to see everything turn out right for them in the end. Even a low life scumbag character like Frank Gallagher manages to be more likeable then Hal from Malcolm in The Middle, because at least Frank isn't trying to hide his selfishness. But back to Chad. Parents of mentally ill or troubled kids are people whom you don't mock, or call failures, or have them be screaming and unlikeable morons who treat their child like an animal instead of a person. I know the writers and audience think, "come one who would believe that a kid like this would really exist. Or for that matter who would believe Cameron Monaghan is really mentally ill", but he was still play a stereotype. Plus, for those who've him on Gotham or Shameless, knows he's a pretty versatile actor, able to play characters with mental health problems with conviction and honesty, here though, he's playing it like the writers want him to be a stereotype of those with mental illness, except he was a kid when he did this episode, so he probably didn't know that much about the actual horrors of and injustices which occur in that circle. Especially given how parents with mentally troubled children would easily just lock their child up and forget about them and treat their illness like they were dealing with an untrained or disobedient dog. Again, the dehumanizing and offensive portrayal of these type of characters is what really makes me hate this show so much. The idea i have of what went on behind the scenes of this show and the mind set going on in the writers room is of a bunch of jocks filled with heavy amounts of testosterone and beer cans and talking like 90's era skateboarders or surfers, and listening to Limp Bizkit while fight club plays in the background.
But it wouldn't be an especially terrible episode without bringing in one of the Busey's and belittling mental health issues. In this epsiodes case, Chad's parents. I should mention the actor who plays Chad is Cameron Monaghan, a really great actor who knows how to play troubled but still sympathetic characters, as shown during his time on Shameless. In fact Shameless by all accounts and all reason should be worse than Malcolm in The Middle. But it isn't. Because the biggest draw a show like Shameless has over Malcolm in The middle is the fact that it goes for pathos and takes it seriously and has some really believeable and relataible characters whom i want to see everything turn out right for them in the end. Even a low life scumbag character like Frank Gallagher manages to be more likeable then Hal from Malcolm in The Middle, because at least Frank isn't trying to hide his selfishness. But back to Chad. Parents of mentally ill or troubled kids are people whom you don't mock, or call failures, or have them be screaming and unlikeable morons who treat their child like an animal instead of a person. I know the writers and audience think, "come one who would believe that a kid like this would really exist. Or for that matter who would believe Cameron Monaghan is really mentally ill", but he was still play a stereotype. Plus, for those who've him on Gotham or Shameless, knows he's a pretty versatile actor, able to play characters with mental health problems with conviction and honesty, here though, he's playing it like the writers want him to be a stereotype of those with mental illness, except he was a kid when he did this episode, so he probably didn't know that much about the actual horrors of and injustices which occur in that circle. Especially given how parents with mentally troubled children would easily just lock their child up and forget about them and treat their illness like they were dealing with an untrained or disobedient dog. Again, the dehumanizing and offensive portrayal of these type of characters is what really makes me hate this show so much. The idea i have of what went on behind the scenes of this show and the mind set going on in the writers room is of a bunch of jocks filled with heavy amounts of testosterone and beer cans and talking like 90's era skateboarders or surfers, and listening to Limp Bizkit while fight club plays in the background.
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