The middle brother (older than Malcolm). Ricky is a culinary savant trapped in a bully’s body. He can debone a chicken blindfolded but thinks “metaphor” is a type of roof tile. His arc: from school terror to line cook at a greasy spoon, finding peace in the kitchen.
Malcolm gets a summer internship at a tech startup. He’s exploited but learns the system. Ricky becomes head cook at a taqueria. Diego builds a Rube Goldberg machine to change Jaime’s diaper. Héctor discovers he has a long-lost half-brother—a priest who is even weirder than him. Malcolm el de Enmedio -Latino- Todas las Temp.
The youngest (until Jamie arrives). Diego is a musical prodigy and emotional genius. He speaks in riddles, builds elaborate puppet shows about family trauma, and secretly runs a dog-walking empire. He’s the only one who understands how to manipulate Luisa with kindness. The middle brother (older than Malcolm)
Premise The story follows Malcolm Reyes , a working-class Latino boy from East Los Angeles who tests into a gifted program at a wealthy, predominantly white private school. His family—loud, loving, struggling, and fiercely loyal—has no idea how to handle a “genius” son, especially when he’s still the same kid who sets the kitchen on fire trying to prove a physics theorem. His arc: from school terror to line cook
The exiled eldest brother. Sent to a military-style boarding school (“Academia Militar del Desierto”) for burning down the garage. Later flees to a remote ranch, then a marriage, then a series of odd jobs. His story is about escaping the family only to realize he is the family.
Luisa is up for a manager job but faces discrimination. Malcolm runs for class president as a joke—and wins. He learns that power is lonely. Frankie and Pilar separate, then reunite after Frankie realizes he’s been replicating his parents’ fights. Heartbreaking and funny.