Product Details

• Actors: Patricia Heaton, Neil Flynn, Charlie McDermott, Eden Sher, Atticus Shaffer
• Format: AC-3, Box set, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
• Dubbed: Portuguese
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 3
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• DVD Release Date: August 31, 2010
• Run Time: 528 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (118 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B002JVWQUU
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,996 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "The Middle: The Complete First Season" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The Middle is the most honest--and, for that reason, the funniest--sitcom about middle class family life since Roseanne. Frankie Heck (Patricia Heaton, Everybody Loves Raymond) wearily runs a cluttered, chaotic household with her husband Mike (Neil Flynn, Scrubs) and three unruly kids: sullen teen jock Axl (Charlie McDermott), hopeless klutz Sue (Eden Sher), and smart but socially awkward Brick (Atticus Shaffer). The plots revolve around the kind of mild crises that make domestic life so difficult: Frankie and Mike can't find time to be alone together; debts force difficult choices; the kids spend more time watching television than talking to each other. Again and again, Frankie longs to teach her kids good values but realizes she isn't living up to those values herself--and her reluctant efforts to muster virtue within herself can be achingly funny. Frankie is superbly well realized, a perfect match of writing and performer. Heaton portrays her contradictory impulses (virtue vs. convenience, open-heartedness vs. a hunger for just a little time alone) with wonderful subtlety; the wary look in her eyes flickers between sincerity and cynicism.

The supporting cast is every bit as strong. These kids actually look and act like kids, in all their obnoxious, oblivious, naive glory, not like glossy supermodels in training. Flynn pulls his own deft balancing act, making husband Mike blunt and a little insensitive without seeming like a jerk or a caricature. The show is still working out some kinks--Chris Kattan (Saturday Night Live) plays a hapless coworker of Frankie's; the character has possibilities and Kattan seems game for anything, but the writers don't quite know what to do with him yet. A host of guest stars--including Brooke Shields as a white trash neighbor and Betty White as an imperious librarian--fit nicely into the show's world, rather than sticking out like stunt casting. The Middle treats middle America with compassion, intelligence, and genuine appreciation. --Bret Fetzer

Product Description

Patricia Heaton stars as Frankie Heck in this warm and witty single-camera comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations. Frankie Heck is a superhero. Well, no, not an actual superhero - but sometimes it seems to Frankie as though getting her kids out the door for school every morning is a superheroic act. Middle aged, middle class and living in the middle of the country, this harried wife and working mother of three uses her wry wit and sense of humor to try to get her family through each day intact.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

67 of 74 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best show on television April 16, 2010

By R. McCarty

Format:DVD

I thought it would be impossible for another show to nail the family life experience the way "Everybody Loves Raymond" did previously. But after watching ABC's "The Middle" I realize how "sitcom" that earlier show was. My family shares the exact same dynamic of the Hecks; the same distribution of kids in the same ages and genders. More than that, "The Middle" portrays an honesty that a regular studio audience sitcom could never convey.

Unlike the over hyped "Modern Family," this show doesn't play to stereotypes, but has its finger on how children actually behave and the realities of middle class life without being sarcastic, mean, or condescending. It's as though real people sneaked into Hollywood and produced this show. The cast is spot on and Patricia Heaton shows she can easily lead a series all on her own.

My family never misses "The Middle" and are happy to see it doing well in the ratings. Let's hope it stays on the air for years to come; can't wait to own this series on DVD.

51 of 56 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite TV series since Friends December 29, 2009

By K. Littlejohn

Format:DVD

I've waited a long time to really love a television show since the greats; Friends and Frasier. ;o) Finally here comes The Middle. My husband and I have not missed an episode nor will we. The moment it's out on DVD we are buying it. It's uniquely funny and I think a lot of full time working Moms will really "get it". The youngest child, Brick is lovable and hilarious and Sue the daughter is so akward you could cry and laugh at the same time. Kudos to the writers of this great comedy.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars love the show! February 20, 2010

By Little D

Format:DVD

i think this is one of the best new comedies. i love it and cannot wait for the DVD release! a must buy for sure.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Sit Com-I LOVE Brick March 29, 2010

By carol irvin TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

The little kid on this show is just wonderful, Brick. I am not a parent myself but he has utterly captivated me. He is an odd kid, doesn't fit into anyone's niche but that is what makes him irresistible. So even if the rest of this show was a disaster, I doubt I could give up seeing Brick each week. But the rest is not a disaster, just the opposite in fact. Patricia Heaton plays a middle class mother in Indiana holding it all together despite being the Mom in a family of true eccentrics. Between juggling her full duties as mother of three and wife, she also works at a car dealership where she is the absolute worst salesperson. Even if the economy were booming, I could not see her zooming ahead in this field. The other two kids are teenagers. The daughter, Sue, is awkard in the extreme but the soul of an optimistic good nature. Her older brother is every teen parent's model of apathy and cynicism. He could be the poster boy of the teenage years. The actor playing Mike the father also does a good job. He and Heaton mesh believably as a couple.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best New Shows out there. March 31, 2010

By G. W. Hansen

Format:DVD

I am a Patricia Heaton fan. I have enjoyed her work since Everybody Loves Raymond. I loved the short lived show she did with Kelsey Grammar a couple years ago called "Back to You." I was so mad when it was cancelled. Then came "The Middle." This show is a gem. I love Brick, the little guy with an inquisitive mind and that oddball way he repeats his comments to himself in a whisper. I love Axel and Sue. Each kid has their own unique personality. And Heaton and Neil Flynn are great as the parents. The stories are quick, smart and endearing. The focus is family togetherness in a small Indiana town. I even get a giggle out of the Heck's horribly gawdy decorated home. But they all love each other and their affection for one another is precious. I do hope this show stays on for a long time as it is high quality, original and a joy to watch. It is followed on Wednesday nights by "Modern Family", another great new comedy. ABC has finally hit two right out the ball park. I can't wait for their DVD releases.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Has Potential.... August 27, 2010

By J. Janssen

Format:DVD

I found this show by accident during the summer repeat season and initially thought it interesting but a little flat. It wasn't ELR nor even (the cancelled way too early) "Back to You". It's different from Patricia Heaton's earlier shows, but makes up for the lack of fireworks with a subtle social undercurrent that runs through the episodic plot lines. Never grating or in your face, you never forget that the Heck family is living the day to day struggle to hang onto a middle class lifestyle that is tragically slipping away from so many in the real world.

The title itself is sly and descriptive meaning either middle class, middle age, mid-America or mid-point in Heaton's career depending on how one wants to interpret it. The plot lines are a little predictable and bland, but the cast, is more than up to the task of raising the scripts to a higher level than they deserve. The kids are suitably nutty enough to endear them to viewers without their personalities reaching the cloyingly sweet level. The quarry closing where "hubby" worked, the kids need to fit in and "Frankie's" daily grind of holding it all together present a charming and realistic sit-com that has great potential to become a staple for years to come. My only reservations are some of the weaker scripts and whether or not this show will be allowed the time to "blossom". If ABC has any brains left in it's corporate offices, they'll give it the time.

UPDATE: Fortunately "The Middle" has been given time to mature and has taken on a "Rosanne for the 21st century" patina which wears pretty well as the ratings seem to be up. "Mike" is back at work and they've dropped quite a bit of the social commentary and focused on the dysfunctional family story lines which is probably what network TV viewers want to see.... The two younger kids ("Brick" and "Sue") have emerged as standouts and portray a comic reality not seen in sitcoms since the emergence of Bart Simpson and the Bundy kids 2 decades ago. Not the greatest comedy ever broadcast, but enjoyable and quirky. Read more ›