With the stress of the pregnancy, Lois lulls herself into a fantasy where her life is easier because she had all girls.
Episode Tropes:
- Abuse Mistake: In all fairness, Lois should've lost custody of her kids years ago, but for once the abuse she was being accused of wasn't her fault. Malcolm punched Reese and Reese was so embarrassed, he lied to salvage his pride, leading her to think he was scared to admit Lois hit him.
- All Abusers Are Male: Pleasantly defied, the social worker suspects Hal or Lois could be abusing their children. This also happens at the store with an old woman bullying her way against Malcolm at Dewey and even using her walker to threaten them until Reese defies her. The authorities of course don't believe the boys when the old woman plays the victim card.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Right in the final stage of the fantasy, all the girls turn on Lois, confronting her for thinking "Girls are easier to deal with" when in reality they can outdo Lois because they know how she thinks.
- Doting Parent: Hal is so complacent with his girls that he even buys an expensive purse Mallory wanted just because she guilt-tripped him, despite Lois refusing to give in.
- Gender-Blender Name: Francis keeps his name in the fantasy due to Frances being a girl's name too. Curiously Reese is called Renee even though Reese can be a girl's name too.
- The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: Lois tries to escape from reality by idealizing the dynamics of her kids if they were girls. It turns out that they were even more toxic than their actual relationships. Renee got pregnant from Mallory's crush, and it was Daisy who ratted her out in front of everyone. And let's not even start with Frances...
- Ignored Aesop: Despite Lois realizing her life would be hell whether she had boys or girls, she still hopes her baby is a girl.
- Never My Fault: Just like his original self, Frances is a complete trainwreck of a person, having divorced multiple times, dropped out of college, constantly borrowing money from them... and somehow everything is Hal's fault.
- Pet the Dog: After all they put Lois through that day the family gets Lois her favorite chocolates.
- Post-Stress Overeating: In the alternate reality, Hal has become overweight because of all the stress of being the only male in the family.
- Teen Pregnancy: In her fantasy, Renee is pregnant and sleeping with Mallory's crush.
