2.3 "Malcolm in the Middle" - "Lois' Birthday" Quiz

Answer: Jansen

The episode opens with Malcolm saying that there are a lot of good things about weekends, such as watching cartoons and the fact that there is no school. The best part though, he says, is going to Mrs. Jansen's house. We soon learn why the three Wilkerson brothers are so eager to visit their neighbor: they appear to be taking advantage of her poor memory. First, they wear masks as if it was Halloween and say "trick or treat!", prompting the innocent lady to give them candy. Seconds later, they change their outfit and tell Mrs. Jansen that they have shovelled her walkway. Mrs. Jansen believes them and gets her purse so she can pay them. Malcolm admits these are condemnable actions, but that this is probably the only human contact Mrs. Jansen gets.

Jansen Panettiere is an American actor born in 1994. He has appeared in movies and TV shows like "The X's", "The Last Day of Summer", and "The Martial Arts Kid". His sister Hayden Panettiere also has had a successful acting career.

Answer: Stick his hand in a toy machine

Malcolm explains that their mom, Lois, took them to the store where she works so they could buy her a birthday present. Seconds later, we see Reese with his hand stuck in a toy machine; he was presumably trying to get a toy for free. Annoyed, Lois inserts a 25-cent coin to free Reese's hand from the machine, also releasing a toy in the process. Reese looks very happy because he successfully got the toy.

Answer: A potato

Lois decides to give each of her children $10 so they can buy her a present in the store. Malcolm is puzzled given that this is something they have never done before. Instead, they give their mother presents that seemingly don't have any value. We see a memory of one of Lois' past birthdays when Reese gifted her a "potato bank"; that is, a potato with a coin stuck in it and the words "Happy Birthday, I Love You" written with a marker.

Lois then points to a foot massager that costs $24.99, which would fit the boys' $30 budget. However, they ignore her and run past her with the money. She also runs into her coworker Craig, who rather unsuccessfully tries to flirt with her while talking about his workouts and his jazz group (where he volunteers as a costumer).

Answer: Mozambique

Francis studies at a military school in Alabama. He explains to a girl on the bus that while he is heading home to see his mother on her birthday, he is also attending a huge party that his friend Richie is "coincidentally" throwing on that same day. Francis then expresses his surprise at the fact that the group came all the way from Mozambique just to see "national parks and monuments". He adds that "you really haven't seen America until you've seen the small towns" in an obvious ploy to get her to go to Richie's party. When Francis is finally done talking, another girl tells him that he was talking to someone who doesn't understand English at all.

Mozambique is a country in southern Africa. The country's official language is Portuguese, and it gained independence from Portugal on June 25, 1975.

Answer: Flowers

When the boys finally come out of the store, Lois is expecting to see a nice gift (probably the foot massager she indicated she wanted in a rather obvious way). Instead, she is shocked to find that her children got her an eyeglass repair kit, a box of throat lozenges, and a dirt bike magazine. Reese even says that he would like to read the magazine once she's done with it. Wondering whether all that cost $30, she soon finds out that they spent around $20 of the money she gave them on candy for themselves.

When the boys get back home and ask what they are having for dinner, Lois tells them to eat candy (clearly upset about what happened in the supermarket). Malcolm is the only one who notices something is wrong and thinks about asking his mom, but soon gets distracted by the TV.

Answer: Yes

Francis and the girl he met on the bus make it all the way to his parent's home and start kissing. When they see Hal's car approaching, they hide behind the bushes but continue kissing. Hal sees Lois lying in her bed while visibly upset. Hal tries to comfort her, only to hilariously find out that he forgot it was her birthday! Hal freaks out because he had programmed his watch to play "Happy Birthday" on that day to remind him, but the watch did that when it was too late. Then, he yells at his children things like "you boys are in so much trouble" while simultaneously whispering to them "you gotta help me on this". Unfortunately, in a very funny scene, Hal mixes up what he wants to shout and whisper. Hence, he ends up whispering "sorry isn't good enough, mister" and shouting "I forgot your mom's birthday".

Craig then shows up at the house with a $129 gift. Hal realizes this is his opportunity to pretend he had a gift the whole time, so he fights Craig for the present. Infuriated, Lois walks past everybody, gets in her car, and drives away (not without first kicking Francis and his friend out of the car).

Answer: Behind Every Good Woman

Reese and Dewey are still not getting why their mom is so upset, but Malcolm realizes that they pushed their mom out of the house by being so inconsiderate. Francis also claims he's upset (but only because of how this situation is affecting him), and decides to leave with his new girlfriend.

The boys then wonder where Lois might be. We then see her furiously batting balls inside a batting cage as American musician Tracy Bonham's "Behind Every Good Woman" plays. The song was part of her album "Down Here", which was released in 2000.

Answer: Violinist

Lois is taking out her frustration at a batting cage. When children waiting their turn ask when she will be done, she replies that she's an adult with a credit card and no curfew, and therefore can do whatever she wants. Lois sarcastically tells them that if they want her to leave the cage, they will have to reverse time 15 years so that she can stay single and become a concert violinist (instead of her current life). The kids are very confused, call her "crazy", and then run away from her.

Antonio Vivaldi is perhaps two of the most famous violinists in history. Vivaldi is one of the most prolific Baroque composers in history, known for pieces like the "Four Seasons".

Answer: Timmy

While Francis and his new girlfriend are driving to Richie's party, they spot Lois at the batting cage. She is already upset about how much Francis has been talking about his mother. Francis drives away but then turns around. He returns with the rest of the family to try to speak to Lois.

When they arrive, there is a birthday party taking place. A group of children dressed in baseball attire is singing "Happy Birthday" to a boy called Timmy. When Timmy is about to blow out the candles on his cake, Hal interrupts and buys the cake from Timmy's father.

Answer: Biting a clown's leg

Hal and the boys (joined by a clown who was there for Timmy's party) sing "Happy Birthday" to Lois with a cake in their hands. Hal tells Lois they're there to celebrate as a family, then instantly turns to Francis' girlfriend and asks "who are you?" They then apologize and ask what they can do to get her back home. Lois responds that there's a lot they need to change. For example, she says she never again wants to remind them when her birthday is and wants them to put their clothes in the hamper without exception. Hal explains that they are not smart enough to do things by themselves but are only capable of offering Lois their "total abject obedience".

A clown then calls Lois something derogatory, to which Hal responds by punching him. The two start trading punches, and then the other clowns who were there join the fight. Francis defends his father, while Malcolm and Reese trip two more clowns to prevent them from getting to Hal. The youngest of them, Dewey, initially hides under a table and eats the cake. But then, he also joins by biting a clown's leg and not letting go. Despite the absolutely chaotic scene that is unfolding, Lois smiles as she watches her family in their purest form. The episode ends as the song "You Decorated My Life" by Kenny Rogers plays in the background. A classic "Malcolm in the Middle" episode!