1.3 "Malcolm in the Middle" - "Home Alone 4" Quiz

Answer: Peas

The episode opens with Dewey saying that babies come from some sort of explosion that involves bubbles, and everyone laughs. According to Malcolm's calculations, his family has a pleasant meal every 17.4 dinners, so it is a rare thing to see. Hal makes a pea angel with his plate of peas and mashed potatoes, and even Lois, who is usually very strict, joins the family in playing with her food.

The fun quickly comes to an end when Reese threatens to fling mashed potatoes from his spoon to Lois's face. Lois tells Reese "don't you dare" to which Reese replies "I wasn't going to!" The exchange gets so tense that Malcolm compares the scenario to dynamite (Lois) being paired with a kid with matches (Reese). Hal manages to break the tension by throwing mashed potatoes at Lois himself, causing his wife to laugh. However, Lois and Reese quickly resume their argument.

Contrary to popular belief, peas are not vegetables, but legumes. The crop's seeds, obtained from inside their pods, are packed with vitamins, proteins, and antioxidants.

Answer: Janitor

Malcolm was ready to get out of the classroom as soon as the bell rang, but his teacher stops him before he can leave prompting the rest of the Krelboynes to mock him as a "teacher's pet". Caroline tells Malcolm that she's concerned about the "emotional distance" she feels between them, especially given Malcolm's "colorful" family.

The teacher says she wants them to connect on a deeper level, which makes Malcolm think that she is coming on to him. Malcolm then says "I thought you were dating the janitor", to which Caroline defensively responds that she only had one drink with him.

Answer: Popsicles

For the first time since he was sent to Marlin Academy, Francis is back at home to spend time with his family. He will be there for the whole weekend watching his three younger brothers, who are very excited to see him, while their parents go to a wedding. Dewey tells Francis about how he was drawing a robot and he ate a popsicle after that. He quickly corrects himself and says he actually ate 12 popsicles. Reese tells Dewey to stop bothering Francis while Malcolm tells us how much he missed his older brother.

Popsicles usually come in a rectangular or cylindrical shape, and they are treats made by freezing a mixture of water and fruit juices. They come in a variety of flavors, including strawberry, lemon, and pineapple, to name a few.

Answer: Pierced it

Malcolm overhears his parents talking about bringing Francis back from military school, depending on how this weekend goes. After hearing this, he tries to stop Reese and Dewey from fighting because he wants to make sure the weekend goes smoothly. Reese wants to tell Francis, but Malcolm stops him because he knows how Francis behaves when he is told what to do.

As an example, the brothers remember a time when Lois warned Francis not to pierce his nose or else, they would send him to military school. Immediately after Lois said that, the rebellious Francis smiled and then got his nose pierced.

Answer: Fireworks

The boys agree not to do anything that would jeopardize Francis's possible return from military school but they are confused as to how to "be good". Lois appears to have covered all her bases before she leaves, including marking down all the liquor bottles, counting Hal's cigars, blocking the adult channels on the TV, checking the car's odometer, and checking the balance of all their credit cards. Hal and Lois even back up the car before they leave to make sure their children understood the message.

However, as soon as their parents are gone, Francis pledges to show his brothers "the coolest thing they've ever seen". Apparently, Francis needs lighter fluid, a waffle iron, and one of Dewey's stuffed animals to make this "cool thing".

Answer: Golf

Malcolm, Reese, and Dewey all tell Francis that they are too tired to do whatever the eldest Wilkerson brother had planned. Instead, they sit and watch golf on TV to pass the time. As Malcolm describes it, "the only thing worse than no TV is golf on TV". Francis was about to fall asleep, but he then gets a call from his friend Richie, who is living in his mother's basement. Francis invites Richie to come over as long as it is only him and two other friends, and they don't have any parties. Of course, that is not what ends up happening, as we then see the completely defaced house and a police car taking away Francis's three friends as the neighbors watch.

Golf is a sport played with a variety of different clubs, which all have different uses. For example, wedges are used for short approaches, and putters are used when the ball is very close to the hole ("putting"). Other types of clubs include hybrids, woods, and irons.

Answer: Shaving her legs

We next see Lois's legs covered in shaving cream as she passes a razor with the car in movement. As the song "Afternoon Delight" by Starland Vocal Band plays in the background, Lois tells Hal that she can't believe they're going to the wedding because it's a waste of time. Hal says it will be fun and sarcastically asks if Lois is trying to seduce him with the shaving. Lois agrees and says it is nice not to be yelling at someone every 20 seconds, but immediately follows that comment by yelling at another driver.

Answer: "It's Mom!"

Richie, Circus, and Justin make a big mess at the Wilkerson house. Francis is surprised that three people were able to create such damage but doesn't seem to care that much about it. Francis seems to think that it doesn't matter if his parents "freak out" about the mess because they always freak out. His brothers explain that this is different because the weekend may be a test or a trap to define whether Francis goes back to military school. Still incredulous, Francis explains that his parents will not arbitrarily and unreasonably decide his future based on one weekend, but Malcolm replies: "it's Mom!" Immediately, Francis changes his mind and starts cleaning up the house with his brothers.

They all do a great job, so good that they think the house is too clean to be true! So after all their hard work in cleaning the house, they take steps to make it look messier and more believable.

Answer: He drives the car in reverse

Just as the brothers were finishing up with the house, wooden shelves fall on Malcolm's face, causing him a head injury. It was so bad that Dewey yelled "put his face back on!" Lois calls home to check on the boys, but Dewey tells her that his brothers are in the bathroom and hangs up. After realizing how serious Malcolm's head injury is, they decide to go to the hospital. They bring Malcolm to the car with his face completely covered and his shirt stained with blood. Malcolm is worried about taking the car because their parents warned them that they checked the odometer, so they would know if the brothers used the car. Francis gets around this by incredibly driving the car in reverse all the way to the hospital.

Meanwhile, Lois is upset because she found out that Hal's family calls her "Lois Common Denominator". Hal tries to calm her down saying that probably is because his family has never met someone like her. Hal and Lois then start passionately kissing, distracting the priest, the bride and groom, and everyone else in attendance. They are later found inside the bride and groom's car!

Answer: Yes

When the boys arrive at the hospital, the nurse is not remotely surprised to see them. In fact, Malcolm admits that the boys "have a history there". We then see flashbacks to some injuries the boys have suffered in the past while behaving recklessly. Some of these are Reese playing with a bottle of WD-40, Francis balancing the tip of a knife with his fingers, Malcolm holding scissors dangerously close to his nose, and Dewey biting a bicycle's wheel while it was in motion.

The boys want to pay for Malcolm's stitches at the hospital so that their parents don't find out, but they don't have enough money. Malcolm has an idea: he calls his teacher Caroline and they guilt her into paying the bill for them. Francis hurts Dewey without Caroline noticing so it looks like Dewey is crying because he is sad about Francis going back to military school. Even though the teacher explains she barely makes enough money, she eventually agrees to pay for the hospital bill.

Lois and Hal return home and search the house to find out what the boys did this time. Lois knows that "there's always something" and makes Malcolm take off the red hat he was wearing to hide his injury. Instead of getting angry, Lois simply says "you boys". They even compliment how well Francis did in taking care of his brothers, attributing his newfound maturity to his time in military school. It looks like Lois has once again outplayed her children by making them think there was a chance for Francis to come back if they behaved. The episode ends with Reese, Malcolm, and Dewey trying yet another dangerous stunt. Malcolm also is happy that Caroline is no longer annoying him at school as she now barely makes eye contact with him.