The Middleman DVD Review, Did You See This Show?

Who has watched the show, The Middleman on ABC Family?  I'm not going to lie, I completely missed it.  Somehow I had no clue the show was ever even on.  One day I received the complete series on DVD and vaguely recalled a comic series by the same name so I decided to watch it.  
 
The show was based on the comics by writer Javier Grillo-Marxuach and artist Les McClaine.  The main character, The Middleman (played by Matt Keeslar) is a man of mystery.  He works for a secret organization ("Organization To Secret To Know" or simply O2STK) and "fights evil so you don't have to."  The 'evil' often consists of "exotic problems" that threaten Earth itself.  There is no written history of the Middleman.  The job is passed down from Middleman to Middleman.
 

The Middleman often has a protégé, or sidekick.  That's where female lead, Wendy Watson (played by Natalie Morales) comes in.  Wendy was an artist working as an office temp to make a living.  One day at a job at a genetics lab, a freak accident occurred that required the attention of the Middleman.  When Wendy didn't...freak out and remained calm, the Middleman decided to recruit her as his sidekick.
 
First of all, you might say the reason I haven't seen this is because it was on ABC Family.  That would be correct.  No offense to the channel or the shows on there, it's just not a channel I make a habit of checking out.  But that fact is not a reason to fault the show.  
 

While the show is extremely campy and often cheesey, I actually enjoyed the episodes.  The DVD consists of all twelve episodes that aired.  While some may feel a little formulaic, there is a lot to appreciate in each episode.  The characters acknowledge the existence of comic books and often make references (or jokes) to them.  Wendy even refered to herself as "Robin, the Boy Hostage" as Frank Miller wrote before.  Some of the references don't work as well as on a show like The Big Bang Theory but they are nicely done.
 
Where the show faulters (in my opinion) is with some of the supporting cast or 'guest' appearances.  The acting sometimes really pushes the 'cheesiness' with simple bad acting.  Despite that, the episodes are cleverly written.  You'll get a kick out of the hidden references added or seeing the duo face off against lucha libre wrestlers or zombies.  The wackiness is where the show shines.  I also like when the characters curse and it's bleeped out rather than have them saw an alternate curse word.  It adds to the cheesiness, seeing a black bar over their mouths.
 
The special features include web features and alternate scenes.  You have your typical gag reel as well as the casting sessions.  A nice feature is "The Wilhelm Scream."  You may be familiar with this 'scream,' a stock sound effect used in numerous tv shows and movies (including all the Star Wars movies).  The sound was snuck in to every single episode and the feature makes it easier for you to...experience it.  That alone makes this DVD awesome.  You also get some PSAs by the characters.  Who doesn't like PSAs?  "Don't play with probes.  Probes are bad..."
 

While The Middleman may not be the best show to ever air, I was entertained.  I'm sure there were a lot of people that scoffed at the idea of watching a show on ABC Family.  Bottom line, it was a fun show.  I think if it had more exposure, the show could've lasted more than one season.  If I were to rate the series, I'd give it a 3.5/4 out of 5.  Not perfect, but fun to watch.  Check it out if you get the chance.  The DVD was released on July 28, 2009.