‘Last Man Standing’ Finally Reveals How Mandy Welcomed Baby During the Pandemic

Last Man Standing‘s final season has rarely mentioned the coronavirus pandemic since the season began, but this week’s episode was a flashback that put the pandemic front and center. Viewers finally learned how Mandy (Molly McCook) welcomed her daughter Sarah in “Midwife Crisis.” Most of the season has taken place in the future after the pandemic ends.

The beginning of “Midwife Crisis” was set in the same future as the rest of the season. Mike (Tim Allen) wondered why Mandy did not want Sarah to play with Kristin’s (Amanda Fuller) daughter Evelyn. Mandy said Evelyn was always taking a bossy role whenever the two played together. The situation reminded Mike of the chaos that unfolded just before Sarah was born. At that time, the pandemic was still going on.

Molly and Kyle (Christoph Sanders) learned that they could not get an extended stay at the hospital, so they decided to have a home birth at Mike and Vanessa’s (Nancy Travis) home. Kristin decided to help them with this, including booking a midwife. Mike was very apprehensive about the idea, especially when he learned that the baby would be born on Mike and Vanessa’s bed. They were also shocked to hear that Mandy and Kyle picked Kristin to be the one extra person in the birthing room. Vanessa really did not like this idea.

The next day, Vanessa told Mike she was frustrated that she could not be there to protect Mandy like she was with Kristin. Then, Kristin walked in. Vanessa said she was proud of Kristin for protecting her sister. This whole conversation was interrupted by Kristin talking with the midwife, who apparently wanted a playlist that was different from Mandy’s picks. Kristin was forceful and said Mandy would only give birth to the songs Mandy liked. Vanessa really was happy to see how Kristin would do anything to make sure Mandy had the perfect birthing experience.

The episode then flashed forward to the future. The point of Mike’s story was that Kristin would do anything for her younger sister, so Evelyn is similarly taking a protective role for Sarah. Kristin then walked in to drop off Evelyn. Mandy surprisingly ran up to hug Kristin and said she did not want to rob their daughters of spending more time together. The situation also inspired another Outdoor Man Vlog episode where Mike explained how if you raise your children right, you can see them learn how to look after each other, just as their parents looked after them.

Last Man Standing is now in its ninth and final season. In the season premiere, “Time Flies,” the show jumped ahead in time to 2023. Sarah was already three years old in the episode. Last Man Standing airs Thursdays at 9:30 p.m. ET on Fox.