So I guess this is official word that ABC Family is not going to pick up The Middleman for a second season? It's a damn shame because I thought the show was one of the sharpest and most entertaining shows on television. TNT picked up Leverage for a second season and it's also a "fun" show. Maybe the producers should shop the show to another network. In the meantime, things are coming back full circle as word has slipped that ABC Family will be bringing the series finale to comics this summer.

Ironically, the series will be published by Viper Comics, which is the company that published the original Middleman comics that inspired the television series. The graphic novel, titled "The Doomsday Armageddon Apocalypse" is being written by creator Javier Grillo-Marxuach and Hans Beimler. So in a way you could also call this just the next Middelman comic story. Sure there were some minor continuity variations, but we should get all that trademark snappy dialogue and wacky encounters the show was famous for. And maybe the TV variation of the story behind Wendy Watson's father.

(S01E12) "Can't wait to hear this guy's monologue. 'I am the Palindrome. Feel my power. Power my feel. Palindrome the am I.'" --The Middleman

Paul's out and about traveling; I think he's been recruited to the exciting world of temporary employment by the Jolly Fats Wehawkin Temp Agency; so I'm stepping in to cover the first season finale of The Middleman. I'm not even going to consider this as a series finale because it's just too smart and too good to end. ABC Family has yet to make a decision one way or the other about the future of the show, but apparently ratings haven't been great so it's riding the bubble right now.

(S01E11) "We have vents large enough to crawl in through with accessible registers everywhere. Was this building designed by TV writers, or what?" --Wendy Watson

Well, well, Wendy Watson. Wow! Natalie Morales was possibly looking hotter than ever in the opening scene of tonight's episode. it's amazing the depth of cleavage they are able to create with what assets she has. The power of Hollywood brassieres, I guess. My wife would kill for that magical ability. I wouldn't be displeased either.

Then they upped the ante by giving us a full-on panties and bra scene. Or boxers and t-shirt for the Middleman if that's more your flavor. I guess for next week, she'll spend the entire episode in a string bikini. Maybe that'll help the ratings. It's sad to think that next week is the season, and possibly series, finale of what has become a charmingly delightful little show.

(S01E07) "8660 Hawkins Lane, Apt 9. God am I underpaid." Ida and then the very next scene caption

Paul will be pleased to see that the continuing theme of opening each episode checking out hot Wendy and hot Wendy's hot roommate continued in this installment. And once again, it was hot Wendy's hot roommate who was wearing less and heating up the screen more. But then we got a bonus edition of the hotness on board the Titanic. Even the Middleman changed his suit for that one.

I think this episode returned the show to form, keeping the humor and lightness, but adding a real sense of emotional attachment to these characters and their various situations. Sure some things hit better than others, but The Middleman is really starting to hit its stride and stand as a pretty damned good series.

(S01E05) The basics of the show are established by the fifth episode and now it's up to the characters and the premise to sustain it. With this episode, The Middleman proves that it knows how to dance that fine balance between the campy silliness of its plotlines and snappy dialog and the deeper relationships between the principal cast.

I wasn't sure early on if Wendy's supporting cast, namely Lacey and Noser, were going to work in the long run on the show, but I think the normalcy they represent in Wendy's life is as important as the work-driven lunacy that the Middleman and Ida represent. In fact, those two are almost caricatures in their personality, which juxtaposes them even moreso with Noser and Lacey, who are gaining depth and complexity without sacrificing the innate quirkiness that made them work in the first place.

(S01E03) "Slutty But Sweet," the business mantra of restaurant The Booty Chest

Even the previews for The Middle Man capture that cheese-tastic tone that made the '60s Batman an instant classic. Like Paul, I also enjoy the frenetic pace of the dialogue and the bright colors that sprinkle the show. I've selected the picture over there to explore the costume difference Paul mentioned, wherein Natalie Morales' Wendy Watson dresses pretty hot when off-duty, and then when working wears a suit that truly doesn't work on a woman, as mentioned last episode.

Why can't she put on that Avengers' Emma Peel catsuit she's wearing in the opening credits. She looks really damned hot there. The show itself seems to speak to a mix of that and Get Smart! though The Middle Man is more Agent 99 to Wendy's Maxwell Smart. Even the little goofy things like giving us the time from different time zones each scene change, and not necessarily a time zone that we're in. But in each case it's relevant to the plotline. We get Shanghai time when we're in a Chinese restaurant for example. It's these little touches of quirky humor that make the show such a unique success.

(S01E02) "I'm as serious as a hefty bag full of Rottweilers." - The Middleman

One thing I noticed about last week's episode carried over into the opening scene of this week. When Wendy is "off the clock" she seems to always dress in very relaxed clothes; skimpy shorts, halters, etc. Her hot roommate not only enjoys the freedom that shorts and tanks offer but apparently has no problem with public nudity as well, especially if it's in the name of freedom. I'm not sure what these fashion choices mean but it's something I couldn't help notice.

I have a feeling Ida is going to be my favorite character on this show. Not because Mary Pat Gleason is a talented veteran actress but because she seems to have an endless array of functions. Not only can she produce a cup of coffee from her midsection but it comes in a to go cup with the logo of an imaginary coffee shop already printed on it. Very cool.