The second season of '' Malcolm in the Middle'' premiered on November 5, 2000 on Fox, and ended on May 20, 2001 with a total of 25 episodes. Frankie Muniz stars as the title character Malcolm, and is joined by

Jane Kaczmarek Jane Frances Kaczmarek (; born December 21, 1955) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Malcolm's mother Lois on the Fox television sitcom '' Malcolm in the Middle'' (2000–2006), which earned her three Golden Globe nominat ...

, Bryan Cranston,

Christopher Kennedy Masterson Christopher Kennedy Masterson (born January 22, 1980) is an American actor and disc jockey known best for his role as Malcolm's oldest brother Francis on the Fox sitcom '' Malcolm in the Middle''. He is the younger brother of Danny Masterson, ...

, Justin Berfield and

Erik Per Sullivan Erik Per Sullivan (born July 12, 1991) is an American former actor. He is best known for his role as Dewey Wilkerson, Dewey, the younger brother to middle child Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox series ''Malcolm in the ...

Episodes

Cast and characters

Main

* Frankie Muniz as Malcolm *

as Lois * Bryan Cranston as Hal *

as Francis * Justin Berfield as Reese *

as Dewey

Recurring

* Craig Lamar Traylor as Stevie Kenarban * Catherine Lloyd Burns as Caroline Miller * David Anthony Higgins as Craig Feldspar * Daniel von Bargen as Commandant Edwin Spangler * Drew Powell as Cadet Drew *

Eric Nenninger Eric John Nenninger (born November 19, 1978) is an American actor, best known for playing Scott Braddock in the 2003 horror film, '' Jeepers Creepers II'', he had a recurring role as Cadet Eric Hanson on '' Malcolm in the Middle'' and Scott in '' ...

as Eric Hanson * Evan Matthew Cohen as Lloyd * Kasan Butcher as Joe * Kyle Sullivan as Dabney * Merrin Dungey as Kitty Kenarban *

Tania Raymonde Tania Raymonde Helen Katz, is an American actress and artist. Her career first caught traction when she played the recurring character of Cynthia Sanders on the Fox sitcom '' Malcolm in the Middle'' between 2000 and 2002, followed by the role o ...

as Cynthia Sanders

Production

Main cast members Frankie Muniz,

, Bryan Cranston,

, Justin Berfield and

return as Malcolm, Lois, Hal, Francis, Reese and Dewey respectively. Catherine Lloyd Burns, who portrayed Caroline Miller as a regular in season one, appeared in only two episodes of season two due to being pregnant, and left the series after giving birth. The episode "Bowling" alternates between two storylines with the same characters, taking inspiration from '' Sliding Doors'', and uses several split screens.

Release

Broadcast history

The season premiered on November 5, 2000 on Fox, and ended on May 20, 2001 with a total of 25 episodes.

Home media

The season was set to be released on Region 1 DVD in the fall of 2003, but was cancelled due to high costs of music clearances. It was released on Region 2 DVD on November 19, 2012, and Region 4 DVD on September 4, 2013.

Reception

David Bianculli, writing for ''

New York Daily News The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ...

'', said the season was "genuinely goofy right from the start". Steve Johnson of ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' said it "is certainly a family program, and a first-rate one, but it's not at all traditional. Viewers accustomed to sitcom conventions will have a hard time with "Malcolm's" breakneck pace and lack of laugh track or theatrical stage." Mike Lipton of ''

People A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

'' wrote,"With parents as manic as these, how can Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) and his brothers possibly vie for attention? They can’t, but that’s okay. It’s the sight of adults behaving badly that fuels this show’s delightful anarchy." Alan Pergament of '' The Buffalo News'' said, "Muniz still is adorable as Malcolm. But, unlike Bart, he is growing up before our eyes and that charm probably only has a few more seasons to run." The episode "Bowling" won two

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

s for Outstanding Directing and Writing for a Comedy Series for Todd Holland and Alex Reid, respectively, in 2001. Leading on from this, Holland won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Comedy Series in 2002. Frankie Muniz was nominated for the

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series This is a list of winners and nominees of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. The award is presented to the best performance by a lead actor in a television comedy series. Beginning with the 18th Primetime Emmy ...

for this episode.

References

{{Malcolm in the Middle 2000 American television seasons 2001 American television seasons Malcolm in the Middle