I don’t think that THE MIDDLE gets enough credit for being the start to a great Wednesday night of TV on ABC. It’s a realistic, exasperated look at family life that we haven’t seen in a long time.  If you’re not watching this who, you’re missing out!  In tonight’s all new episode, a funeral leads Frankie to evaluate the time she spends with her family, while Brick and Axl eat their way through the house in search of the perfect Indiana shape, and Sue is moving forward with her Wrestlerettes.  Spoiler Alert, it’s at one of her meets that I laughed out loud, and hysterically to the point where I paused the episode so I didn’t miss what was coming.  To talk about what’s coming up, I chatted with Charlie McDermott (Axl) and Eden Sher (Sue).  After we chatted about a party that Eden was throwing [we’re still waiting for our invite…], we got down to business!

We are here to talk about THE MIDDLE. Am I wrong in saying it’s one of the best shows on TV?
Charlie: Oh thanks!
Eden: Thank you!!

Loved last week’s New Year’s Resolution episode – got me thinking, would you ever do a resolution that someone else had chosen for you?
Charlie:  No, I don’t even do resolutions.  They usually don’t exist until people ask me about them.  The ones that people offered me, definitely not.
Eden: Depends what it is.  If the resolution was, like, ok, you have to look as sexy as you could possibly look, and I had to like go to the gym, of course I would do it! [Charlie laughs] Come on!  If someone else were daring me to do something like that.  Unless it was like, so crazy that I really couldn’t physically do it, I would absolutely do anything.  I’m up for a challenge!

What can we look forward to in the upcoming episodes this season?
Charlie: Axl and Brick get together.  It’s one of the only times me and Brick have a storyline together.  I can’t remember the last time we had a storyline together.  We’re pretty much together the whole episode, so that was pretty fun.  I eat his school project and have to make him a new one. [laughs]  And I think that was the last one we filmed.  Was that the last one we filmed? Eden, do you remember?

Eden:  I don’t.  I remember the last one being the funeral one, but I think that’s airing tonight [Editor’s Note: it was a Friday].

Charlie: Uh, tonight?  Did they change our schedule?

Eden: Oh I mean this week!  Yeah, we have an every day schedule now!

Charlie: Yes!

Eden: Sue’s love life should be of interest to people.  Because it’s going to start changing.

Charlie: It’s blossoming.

I think it’s funny that Axl talks a good game about it, but Sue has actually had more going on her love life lately than the Ax-man has!
Eden: Oh yeah!  Sue gets a serious boyfriend before Axl does.

Charlie: Not if you count Morgan.  Come on, come on!!

It feels like we’re seeing a turn around for Sue here – creating this thing that she gets to be involved in.  Are we going to see the Wrestlerettes continue for a while?
Eden: Definitely!  Absolutely!  This is Sue’s new pride and joy.  [laughs]

She approaches everything with open arms, no care in the world.
Eden: Yeah, exactly!  I know everything seems like it’s her pride and joy, but this one actually follows through.  I get a little motley crew together.

What have been fan reactions to you – do you get people coming up to you?  What are people’s reactions?
Eden:  I’ve heard people tell me that they love me on my show…MODERN FAMILY. [laughs]

Charlie:  Yeah, I get that, too.  They’re like, you’re the best show on TV.  I’m like thanks. They say I love you, MODERN FAMILY’s like the best show! [Eden laughs]  It’s like, thanks, I wasn’t aware I was on MODERN FAMILY!

It’s funny – the family on THE MIDDLE is definitely a modern family.  Not that MODERN FAMILY, but easily relatable because they go through what we all do.
Charlie: I thinking [Eden] might agree with this – when we’re not here, because I don’t live in Los Angeles.  All year round – I’m here when I’m filming, and I go back to Philadelphia, pretty much, to my mom’s.  So here, I don’t really get much of anything at all.  But when I go home to Philadelphia, or anywhere that’s more like in a MIDDLE type area.  Not rural, but less city-ish.  It’s gotten bigger every year, people say that they really relate to it, at least it seems.  They pick out an episode and say “that happened to me” or to their family.  It’s kind of funny because our dishwasher broke; we had a dishwasher hole during the dishwasher episode, at my house in Pennsylvania.  I thought that was kind of ironic.

Eden: Your dishwasher broke in Philadelphia?  That’s so funny, I didn’t know that!

Charlie: I was like, who am I?  Am I Axl or am I Charlie?

What do you watch when you have some time to sit and watch TV?  Do you have a favorite show that you watch?
Eden: I do, for sure.  I cannot wait for the 9th because 30 ROCK returns, and I’m a very loyal PARKS AND REC watcher.

Charlie: Oh yeah, you are, aren’t you?  I watch BOARDWALK EMPIRE, which is over now.  And BREAKING BAD, but I missed the last few episodes of last season, so I’m waiting for the DVD.  SNL I watch.  I started watching ANGRY BOYS, Chris Lilley’s new show.  And 24/7, which ended also.

THE MIDDLE’s all new episode, “The Map,” airs tonight on ABC at 8/7c. Don’t miss it!  For more info on THE MIDDLE, head to ABC’s show page!