REESE VS. STEVIE Air Date 10/21/05
Chapter 703

Stevie is accepted as a research subject and is convinced he'll soon be able to walk. Reese looks forward to this so that he can finally kick his ass. While Reese redecorates their room, Malcolm blurts out that Stevie will never walk again. Stevie rolls over Reese’s foot, spurring him to pick a fight. As Reese numbs his legs to ensure a fair fight, Stevie kicks down the garage door, revealing his robot-like walking suit from the Institute. He pummels Reese and leaves him laid up in traction at the house. Stevie gets dumped as a subject for using the suit.

Hal catches Dewey smoking a cigarette that was found in Hal’s old stash in the garage. He agrees not to tell Lois, giving Dewey this one as a “free pass.” Then Hal later catches him smoking in the crawlspace. To help Dewey quit, Hal promises to give up coffee entirely. They catch each other sneaking outside to their respective vices. Hal and Dewey play an angry, late-night game of catch to distract themselves, but this ends in disaster as they blame each other for being so strung out. Later, they taunt each other as Hal smokes a cigarette in front of Dewey and Dewey drinks coffee.

Lois decides to craft a baby book for Jamie. The first entry is entitled “Baby’s First Word,” and Lois realizes that Jamie has never spoken. A doctor advises Lois that Jamie just needs to “live in a more verbal world.” Lois promptly stops the narration exercise after listing her day-to-day activities makes her depressed. When Jamie finally speaks, he tells Lois to shut up.