Sci Fi TV Genre Gems: Forgotten magic and hidden treasures from the worlds of sci fi TV
What Is It? This short-lived television series is based on the comic books of the same name created by Javier Grillo-Marxuach (who also served as creator/executive producer of the show). It follows the exploits of a super crime fighter known as the Middleman who’s motto is “Fighting evil so you don’t have to” (he’s in the middle between us and all that evil, thus the name). The current Middleman is just the most recent in a long line of crime fighters who have held the position throughout history (a la the Phantom). In the first episode of the series, he recruits a young art student named Wendy Watson as a trainee to take up the mantel in his ongoing war against forces of evil represented by the likes of menacing aliens, mad scientists, evil Sino-Mexican wrestlers, and more.
Aired: ABC Family, 2008 (1 Season Totaling 12 Episodes)
Starring: Matt Keeslar, Natalie Morales, Mary Pat Gleason, Brit Morgan, Jake Smollett
Created by: Javier Grillo-Marxuach, Les McClaine
Why It Stands Out: This fast-paced, wit-a-minute series went mostly unnoticed when it found itself out of place on ABC Family’s Prime Time schedule, but it delivered a fun, quirky show that’s worth seeking out for those who missed it or only caught a glimpse of it before it disappeared.
Is It Must-Watch Sci Fi TV? Not necessarily. But it is definitely worth checking out a few episodes for a show that gleefully skewers the superhero genre as well as sci fi in general.
The Skinny: The Middleman series actually has a similar feel to the Men in Black movies, but in this case the heroes have expanded their jurisdiction beyond policing just alien activities. But it rises above simply offering a pale imitation of the MiB movies as it bundles up an assortment of genre allusions (including a wonderful homage to The Avengers with its opening credits) while also managing to establish itself on its own merits. It offers fast-paced episodes with rapid-fire, witty dialogue and a sufficient helping of contemporary youth-savvy heaped on for good measure. And the lightning-fast interchanges between the characters carry so many genre and pop-culture references that you will want to watch the episodes multiple times just to catch everything.
In addition, the series presents a cast perfectly suited to its action-packed yet light-hearted storylines. Matt Keesler plays the Middleman with just the right balance of dead-pan and self-smirking. And Natalie Morales holds her own as Wendy Watson and provides the perfect foil to her mentor with her sarcastic repartee as she portrays the intellectual every-girl. And of course Mary Pat Gleason took no flak from either of these two as she played the acid-tongued Ida who ran the show from behind the scenes. Then there was also Lacy Thornfield (Brit Morgan), Wendy’s ditzy, art-school, environmentalist roommate, and the guitar-wielding, pop-philosophy spouting Noser (Jake Smollett) who always seemed to be hanging around rounding out the regular cast.
For the most part, the stories are clever and witty, but at times the writers did misfire. There is a fine line between clever and not-so-clever, and the creative team tread very close to that edge. And the rapid-fire wit can start to wear thin really quickly and turn from amusing to annoying. This is one of those series that is best taken in small doses and that likely just could not have kept up its momentum over many seasons. But the twelve episodes it did deliver were quite enjoyable and it would have been nice to have had at least one or two more seasons from this one.
Buy The Middleman on DVD from Amazon.com
Cancelled Too Soon? Yes. This show was a little bit ahead of the superhero boom on television, and its self-winking, meta zeitgeist attitude did not quite fit in too well on its family-friendly network. Its ratings were not high enough for ABC Family to give it a second season and its original episode order was even cut short by one. But Grillo-Marxuach had nothing bad to say about the network because he claimed that they allowed him plenty of creative freedom with the show. He said that he would have much rather done just twelve episodes the way he did rather than have the show go on for multiple seasons with the network looking over his shoulder.
Should It Be Rebooted? Sure. The premise lends itself to reboots and could pick up with Wendy Watson now as the lead Middleman bringing on yet another trainee. This one could also work well as an animated series with the original voice cast reprising their roles. Or it could come back with a whole new cast. Grillo-Marxuach has remained very active in television production and may have enough clout to convince another venue to pick up the series. Anybody up for a “Bring Back The Middleman” campaign?
Interesting Facts: All of the episodes were rife with pop culture references and the writers would generally pick a theme for the references in each episode. For example, one episode drew many of its names from Frank Herbert’s Dune while another borrowed names from the Back to the Future movies.
The graphic novel The Middleman: The Doomsday Armageddon Apocalypse came out in 2009 and was based on an unproduced script from the television series. It acts as a finale of sorts for the show.
Where Can You Watch It? The entire series has been released on DVD, though not Blu-ray yet. It is not streaming on any of the major services, but you can buy the complete first season VOD from Amazon.com at an economical price.
Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com
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