The Middle

On the season premiere, Frankie gets accused of being an over-protective mother, when she tries to explain Brick's eccentricities to his new third grade teacher (DORIS ROBERTS).

Frankie and Mike must choose which of them is going to proudly walk Axl onto the field at Homecoming...or wait for Sue to stagger over the finish line at her first cross-country meet.

Frankie is humiliated when a store clerk mistakenly assumes that she's shopping for adult diapers when she's actually looking for baby diapers for Sue's babysitting job.

When Axl is suspended from school, Mike forces him to go to work at the quarry to teach him a lesson. And Frankie blames herself when Sue's cross-country team is cut by the school.

Frankie's best laid plans go awry when she convinces Mike and the kids that the Heck family should host a foreign exchange student from Japan (guest star MATTHEW MOY) to expose him to life in an average American family. But the Hecks become frustrated when the student shows no sign of interest whatsoever in the family.

Frankie wants Mike to wear a costume to the neighborhood Halloween party, and Sue's spirits are lifted when Reverend TimTom (PAUL HIPP) returns to host a Halloween church event.

For his birthday present, Brick demands that Frankie and Mike tell him the true story about the day he was born - which has always remained a Heck family secret.

Brick is sick and tired of being forced to accompany Frankie on her weekend errands and pleads with her to let him stay home alone. Meanwhile, Mike is torn over how to deal with Sue's friend when he overhears her diss his daughter. And, with his fellow teammates all growing beards for the football playoffs, Axl attempts to grow one of his own - with mixed results.

Frankie wants the macho Heck men to share their feelings with each other when Mike's father and brother (NORM McDONALD) join the family for their annual Thanksgiving feast!

Frankie's plans to have a simple holiday are threatened when her parents (guest stars MARSHA MASON & JERRY VAN DYKE) come to town to spend the 12 days of Christmas with the family.

Frankie and Mike decide it's time to regain control over their lives and the Heck household after years of bing at their kids' beck and call.

Mike freezes Frankie out because he can't fathom how she inadvertently paid $200 for a small bottle of eye cream that she thought was priced at $20. Meanwhile, Axl's fathering techniques are put to the test when he has to take care of a mechanical infant doll for health class; and Sue and Brick desperately search for a way to fix a hole that they caused in Sue's bedroom wall.

As the Super Bowl approaches, Mike is thrilled when Brick takes his advice and studies up on football in order to understand and talk the sport. But Axl thinks his little brother is taking over his turf by being Mike's football buddy -- a position Axl used to cherish. Meanwhile, Frankie thinks her professional career is looking up when Mr. Ehlert (guest star BRIAN DOYLE-MURRAY) chooses her to acco

As Valentine's Day approaches, Frankie becomes elated when elusive son Axl asks her to accompany him to help pick out a present and choose a restaurant to impress his mysterious new girlfriend -- who may be way out of his league.

Fearing that a friendless Brick could be missing out on his childhood, Frankie makes it her mission to find a suitable friend for him. Meanwhile, after Mike forbids Sue from seeing an R-rated film, she goes against her father's wishes and sneaks into a movie theater with her friend Carly (guest star BLAINE SAUNDERS); and Axl and his band need a hot chick to appear in their online music video and a

After Sue wins a family trip to New York, Murphy's Law goes into full effect and it's anything but a smooth flight, when the Hecks board a plane and fly to the Big Apple.

Frankie once again goes head-to-head with Brick's third grade teacher, Ms. Rinsky (guest star DORIS ROBERTS), when Brick gets a 'D' on his math test, and Frankie thinks bad teaching skills are to blame.

Spring Break turns out to be anything but peaceful when the Hecks attempt to clean up 20 years of junk accumulated throughout the house. But digging up the past leads to things that were better left buried and forgotten. Meanwhile, Brick opens up a lucrative neighborhood information stand, giving advice on everything for a dollar per query.

After receiving multiple warnings about leaving his dirty, smelly socks lying around the house, Mike has finally had enough and punishes Axl by forbidding him to play in the final school basketball game of the season.

Obsessed with the upcoming royal wedding, Frankie shocks her family when she treats the event like the Super Bowl and begins purchasing commemorative "tchotchkes" -- as well as an expensive HDTV -- to enjoy the festivities.

Mother's Day for Frankie turns out to be anything but serene when Mike and the kids present Frankie with the perfect Mother's Day gift -- a day to herself. But when her special day off goes awry, Mike offers a do-over with the family, which comes complete with its own set of glitches.

After learning that Axl text-invited the wrong girl to prom and plans to solve the situation by standing her up, Frankie and Mike demand that he meet the girl face-to-face in a timely manner to gently break off the date.

Frankie and Mike attempt to cure Brick of his irrational fear of crossing over bridges. Meanwhile, Axl is pitted against nemesis Sean Donahue (guest star BEAU WIRICK) when a lifeguard position opens up at the local public pool, and Frankie is ready to pull her hair out when she tries to help an indecisive and emotional Sue pick out a two-piece bathing suit to wear on the pool's opening day.

With only three days left until summer vacation, Frankie is ecstatic that she's made it through another school year with the family.