Thursday, October 24, 2013

The Middle: Happy 100!

My hometown(ish. the next city over, actually) celebrated its centennial when I was a junior in high school, on the same weekend as my school's Homecoming, actually. And, because it meant all kinds of free stuff (including a Sister Hazel concert), a bunch of us went to the party downtown first, then to the dance. It may not have been the smartest move ever (tons of traffic, finding your friends was a huge pain in the crowds, etc.), but it was a good time. The event didn't change my mind about how boring of a city it was, so it was nice to see the Hecks actually affected by Orson's birthday. However, I'm still stuck on the lie that Mike told Frankie all those years ago that kept them there in the first place! Well, that and how cute it was to theme the 100th episode with the 100th birthday of the setting!
ABC/Michael Ansell
The Middle "The 100th" (S05E04): Orson is turning 100 years old, and each of the Hecks is taking notice. Frankie and Mike signed up on Independence Day to drive a float in the parade. Axl is home for the event and decides to get Boss Co. back in business. Brick tries to come up with a slogan for the city. Sue is more of a bystander watching it all, though hoping that there will be vacancies on parade committees that she can fill.

Axl and his friends decide to offer a VIP experience, complete with chairs for watching the parade, snacks, and drinks. However, nobody in Orson is interested in seeming like they're fancier than anyone else, except Sue and Brad. It's only made worse when the motive of the two friends is to attempt to make Darrin notice Sue again. [hilarious that she liked that hairstyle Angel did!] After learning directly from Angel that she's only interested in Darrin for his body, Sue turned to brad for help, and he suggested they try to make Darrin jealous. [though I don't think "Summer Nights" would have ever worked.]

After 100 bad ideas, Brick does some research and comes up with a good slogan for the city: "The Heartland's Hidden Gem," but one of the other six beats him out. "Orson, Why Not?" was apparently better, and Mike and Frankie would probably agree. They spend the night camped out with the float (to prevent vandalism) and talk about why they live in Orson... they had packed a moving truck to head to Chicago, but Mike "forgot the gas cap" and they had to go back. Then, they ran into an old friend of Mike's who offered the quarry job, and they stayed in Orson. Now, years later, Mike admits that there was never a gas cap problem, he just didn't want to be honest with Frankie. [I think that would royally piss me off. Especially in comparison to the whirlwind that is Chicago!] Once inside the float, Mike and Frankie talk about their neighbors, unaware that there are others on the channel. [haha!] The float winds up catching some electrical lines and a fire starts, with the Hecks evacuating just in time. And, coincidentally, gives Darrin a chance to rescue Sue from being run over. [but he didn't really seem to think much of it.]
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