Late to the Party

It's funny how you can sometimes miss out entirely on a television show, all the time griping about there being nothing worth watching. I have recently discovered one of those entertaining shows that totally slipped past me until it was over and done with.

There are other television shows I've missed out on when they were current. Star Trek, for instance. I don't think I ever watched it when it was on in prime time. We discovered it when it was in reruns several years later. Simon & Simon is another I discovered in reruns.

Lately I hesitate to get attached to television shows, since they no longer get the courtesy of being allowed to cultivate an audience before they are axed and replaced with another hideous reality show. It was with some surprise that I read last week's Entertainment Weekly and discovered that the few shows I follow with any regularity (NCIS, Two and 1/2 Men, Lost, House) are actually in the top 20 of popular shows. It's rare that the shows I enjoy stick around very long, much less achieve any degree of popularity.

Over the past two weeks I have discovered another jewel that escaped me back in its heyday. I did watch a few shows here and there and recognized it as well-written and well-acted, but I just could not get into it then. Now it is in reruns and just happens to coincide with the period of time I am eating breakfast and reading the newspaper.

So am I the last person to discover the terrific comedy of Malcolm in the Middle? The cast was wonderful, the writing was outstanding and every show makes me laugh out loud.

Did you know the creator of Malcolm in the Middle was Linwood Boomer? The same Linwood Boomer who was a big part of Night Court and the same Linwood Boomer who played Mary Ingalls' blind husband in Little House on the Prairie. Who knew that stuffy Adam Kendall had the zaniness of Night Court and Malcolm in the Middle hiding inside him.

It's a terrific show. I'm sorry I missed it back when, but I am having a great deal of fun catching up.

LSW