There's nothing especially wrong with "The Middle," a new family sitcom set in Indiana, except that the characters feel like more contrived versions of other characters we've been meeting in sitcoms for years.
Which raises the question, at the risk of sounding rude, of why we need "The Middle" at all.
The review seems to think the familiar and yes contrived is somehow not what people have been watching since the family sitcom first came into being. The theme can be writ large -- is Danielle Steel a multi-millionaire because all of her legion of books are unique animals with novel plots and situations, quite realistic to boot? In fact, the same reviewer gave a decent review to a new medical drama that a co-reviewer at the paper later reamed as ridiculously contrived.
It is tedious (at the very least, I find it so) when reviewers now and again speak about some particular work (perhaps a sequel) as contrived or familiar. It is like the myriad of television shows and movies out there generally are novel or something. This in a television universe filled with medical, forensic/lawyer (usually prosecution centered) and reality programming that is somewhat hard to tell apart, especially since some are part of a series (this is the one with Jeff Goldblum, right?). This works also in the written word, as noted above, since the number of books makes the number of filmed works look trivial in comparison.
The question is often not novelty per se, but how standard themes are treated in any particular entry. First, it is fair to look at the specific work, not simply the fact that the themes etc. are standard fare. The Middle has no laugh track and uses one camera; the latter is less immediately apparent to the causal viewer than the former (which I appreciate in particular -- intrusive laugh tracks are annoying), but probably has some real effect overall. Likewise, it is a question of the writing and acting. The dad (resigned to his fate but deep down a decent guy) and daughter (naively optimistic) has potential. The quirky youngest son has some fans, but that can get too cutesy.
So, no, this show is not simply Malcolm in the Middle or Everyone Loves Raymond (I find the latter annoying) just because Patricia Heaton is in it or it is about a quirky middle class family.* Overall, I checked out this show last night (ABC/8:30 EST) and thought it had potential. I like the way the parents accept their quirkiness and flaws, some attempt to give us a sense of place that NY/generic shows do not, and the leads show some talent. I think the sons might be somewhat weak links (the older one in particular needs more character) and all the jokes didn't work.
But, I'm looking for another comfortable show with both humor and some realism. Reba is a gem in this department, and even there sometimes the plots were hit and miss. And, lately, there really haven't been too many successful shows in this department. The Monday and Thursday comedies are not of that caliber (the one with 2.5 men being the only real "family" comedy) and a few others not that good (e.g., Gary Unmarried). You have me for at least another episode.
On that front, the second episode of The Good Wife was disappointing. Another long shot case with some connection to her situation (last time, a mother with kids struggling to handle things; this time, a stripper who brought to mind the prostitute her husband used) felt repetitive. I turned it off. Oh well. There are some shows out there that are of some value; this doesn't mean I care to watch them. And, even those shows, are not really novel, particularly in tone and character.
Bottom line, we don't "need" any of these shows. But, if they provide the goods -- basically some reason for enough people to watch -- they serve their purpose. They need not be novel or really that great to do this. Just good enough for the tastes of enough viewers. Tastes that in fact sometimes like comfort food, particularly if it has just enough flavor to do the trick. Novelty is not exactly why Law & Order is starting its twentieth season. Though I liked the first episode (Bybee proxy charged for conspiracy for writing torture memoranda while in New York), the lack thereof led me to stop watching a long time back.
But, some like that sort of thing. Maybe, some will like this show too.
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* Patricia Heaton's comments in one of the vids linked above suggests her previous show did not have one camera. I'm not aware if Malcolm did. The mom is the narrator here and there is a daughter, which does point to differences on that front.