The Best Guest Stars on The Middle

It is hard to believe that The Middle has been on the air for six seasons. I will admit, I dismissed the comedy starring Patricia Heaton and Neil Flynn early on in its run. It was not until I started to DVR the show which followed the series, that I began to see the closing of the show every week. I decided to give the series a shot and I am glad I did. Not only is the casts’ comedic timing impeccable, the series of guest stars that have popped up over the last six years are just as awesome. Here is a look at some of our favorite actors to appear on The Middle since its 2009 premiere. Maybe your favorite guest star made our TV Overmind list.

The Heck’s have always talked about their horrible neighbors the Glossners, and when the series first started we would see some of the Glossner children terrorizing the neighborhood. In the 12th episode of the series, Brooke Shields made her first appearance as matriarch Rita Glossner. She was everything we expected her to be: trashy, scary, and of course hilarious. Shields has appeared on The Middle two additional times. Her next appearance would not be until the 4th season when Rita and Frankie would have an argument over a “stolen” hose. Shields’ final appearance was in a season five episode where Frankie is annoyed over the loudness of Rita’s wind chimes. Hopefully Shields will be back this season to deliver plenty of more laughs.

Jack McBrayer spent seven years playing the loveable and at time odd NBC page Kenneth Parcell on the comedy 30 Rock. After the series concluded in 2013, McBrayer headed over to The Middle to play Frankie’s new boss Dr. Ted Goodwin. The character is very similar to Kenneth the Page, but that’s what makes his appearances on the comedy so great. McBrayer first appeared on a season four episode where Frankie is looking for a new job after graduating from Dental School. In total, McBrayer has made 5 appearances on The Middle. He even appeared on the fifth season Thanksgiving episode where the Hecks host many surprise visitors to their feast. Though he has yet to appear in season six, he should be back since Frankie continues to be employed at his dental office.

McBrayer is not the only 30 Rock alum to appear on The Middle. SNL vet Rachel Dratch made various appearance on her friend Tina Fey’s show and has been featured on The Middle in two episodes. Dratch plays Brick’s new principal once he enters middle school. Her first appearance was the season 5 episode, “The Potato.” Frankie and Mike have to go to school and meet with Principal Barker. Brick has not been going to classes according to the attendance roster. Frankie and Mike figure out that Brick is going to class but not the right ones. He has been picking and choosing which classes he likes and dislikes in order to find the perfect schedule. Dratch would appear one more time in the season five episode, “The Carpool.” Principal Barker announces that the bus drivers are on strike and parents must form a carpool in order to get their kids to school. This results in one of the best episodes in the history of The Middle.

 Chris Kattan spent 7 years making us laugh late at night on Saturday Night Live from 1996-2003. Kattan was actually a series regular on The Middle when it premiered in 2009. He played Bob, who was a co-worker of Frankie’s when she was still employed at the used car dealership. His first appearance was in the pilot episode of the sitcom. He would stay with the series through the conclusion of the 3rd season. Kattan would make a guest star appearance during the show’s fifth season. Frankie accidently show’s up at the car dealership to work instead of going to the dentist office. Bob is there working and the two have a brief interaction. Hopefully, there will be more appearances from Kattan in the future because I enjoyed the character Bob when he was on the earlier seasons of the show. With Frankie no longer working at the used car lot, I am sure it is more difficult to incorporate him into future stories.

Norm MacDonald is yet another SNL veteran to make a guest star appearance on The Middle. He was on the late night variety show from 1993-1998.  MacDonald has appeared on five episode of the series since 2010 as Mike’s brother Rusty. He first showed up in the second season episode, “Thanksgiving II.” Frankie finds out that her mom will not be attending Thanksgiving at the Heck home this year, so Frankie encourages Mike to invite Rusty and his father over for the holiday. John Cullum plays Big Mike and has also been on five episodes of the show. MacDonald’s last appearance was towards the end of season five. Rusty joins Mike and Brick on a road trip to a spelling bee Brick is a contestant.

I was not a fan of Dave Foley’s character on News Radio back in the 90’s, but I have enjoyed the characters he has been recently playing on Hot in Cleveland, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and The Middle. Foley made his first appearance on The Middle in the season 4 episode, “Bunny Therapy.” Dr. Fulton believes that if Brick pets a rabbit it will help his social skills. Foley would appear two times during The Middle‘s fourth season in the episodes entitled, “Life Skills” and “The Ditch.” He last appeared on a season five episode where Brick begins to sleep in the kitchen. Since Brick continues to be socially awkward, I think Foley may be back playing Dr. Fulton in the near future.

Who is your favorite guest star on The Middle? Let us know in the comments sections below.