Ep 2. The Loneliest Locker

The Middle season 6 episode 2, titled "The Loneliest Locker," brings another hilarious episode to the dysfunctional Heck family. The episode follows Sue and her various attempts to get a spot on the high school's cross-country team. However, her dream of winning a medal for the team quickly becomes overshadowed by her quest to have a locker in the main hallway.

Sue is devastated to learn that she has been assigned a locker in the far-off, out-of-the-way wing of the school. Determined not to let this small inconvenience keep her down, she sets out to find a way to get a better locker. She uses all her quirky charm and social skills to try and convince her classmates and teachers to let her trade lockers, but to no avail.

Meanwhile, Brick's new year starts off with a bang when he receives a hefty summer reading assignment. With 1000 pages to read and a report due on the first day, Brick is overwhelmed and turns to his mother for help. But Frankie is too busy trying to keep her new job at the car dealership and juggling family drama to lend her son the support he needs.

At the same time, Axl is busy enjoying college life, partying and avoiding his responsibilities. When he gets a call from his boss at Little Betty's who tells him to attend a mandatory training session, Axl decides to skip it and lie about attending instead. However, his careless behavior soon catches up to him.

"The Loneliest Locker" may not have a particularly unique storyline, but it is full of heart and humor, relying on the incredible chemistry of the Heck family to make it work. It's the small moments and interactions between the characters that make the episode so endearing and entertaining to watch.

As always, the standout performance comes from Patricia Heaton as Frankie Heck, who manages to convey the stress and exhaustion of a working mother while still bringing plenty of laughs. The relationship between Frankie and her kids is a highlight of the show, and this episode does not disappoint in that department.

The episode also showcases Sue's eccentric personality, which is always a treat. Her wild-eyed optimism and relentless determination are on full display as she tries to get a better locker, and it's impossible not to root for her. As for Brick, he gets some great character moments in this episode, particularly in a touching scene with his dad where they talk about their love of reading.

Overall, "The Loneliest Locker" is another strong episode of The Middle that delivers laughs and heart in equal measure. It's not groundbreaking, but it doesn't need to be - it's a great example of a well-executed sitcom that relies on its talented cast and witty writing to keep the audience entertained.