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As I explained in my response to the Slate piece about the state of TV criticism, I stopped writing about “Modern Family” because dealing with many of the comments each week had become thoroughly unpleasant, and I’d rather spend my limited time writing about other shows that weren’t such a hassle. That said, it’s been about six weeks since the last time I wrote anything about an episode on this blog, and more than two months since my last full-on review, and last night’s episode seemed to encapsulate a lot of things that have been bothering me about the show this season, so I have some things to say on that subject.
I will also say right now: if reading a negative review of an episode of television you enjoyed causes you emotional pain, or even just diminishes the viewing experience, please do not click through and read this. This is supposed to be fun, dammit, and I won’t be offended. If, on the other hand, you’re genuinely curious for my opinion of “Princess Party,” and season two to date, and think you can view those opinions as simply that and not some kind of weird vendetta (again, please read this post, in which I address the conspiracy theorists among you), then by all means, follow me to the review, coming up just as soon as I disrespect party themes…
There was a time earlier this season where I was accused, not inaccurately, of judging each episode of “Modern Family” against a very high standard. Admittedly, it was a standard the show had set for itself in episodes like “Fizbo” and a handful of others. But I had seen what the show was capable of at its best, which made it hard not to find the preponderance of episodes that didn’t reach that level to be wanting. You can decide for yourself whether that’s a fair way to assess the show on a regular basis, but the fact is, here was a show capable of occasional greatness that in many weeks was a collection of a few very funny gags and a bunch of other things that didn’t really work.
The recent string of episodes, though, have come in below the B+ level that the show achieved most of its first season. They’ve been full of the kinds of tropes that have turned me off to most traditional, laughtrack-driven sitcoms in recent years: plots and jokes based entirely on wacky misunderstandings, characterization being sold out for the sake of a laugh and broad guest characters unrecognizable as human beings.
Now, most of the “Modern Family” writing staff – including the show’s creators, Steve Levitan and Christopher Lloyd – comes from the world of traditional multi-camera sitcoms. It’s not a surprise that this is the kind of humor they’d gravitate towards. Even in the show’s first season, I said that a lot of the jokes had the rhythms of Levitan and Lloyd’s previous show, “Back to You,” but that the single-cam, faux-documentary format helped disguise that, and made many of them go down easier than if they were accompanied by braying guffaws from the studio audience (or from the laughtrack machine).
But it feels like this season, the show has increasingly leaned on that kind of humor, and it’s become disheartening to see the series go from something I largely enjoyed, even if it didn’t usually live up to my expectations for it, to something in which the moments where I laughed were becoming outnumbered by the ones where I cringed.
Did “Princess Party” have laughs? Absolutely. I loved Gloria’s weird bear voice, as well as Cam appearing as a cockney Fizbo immediately on the heels of Mitchell’s, “It is amazing the freaks we used to date.” It’s sort of like I talk about the weaker episodes or seasons of “30 Rock” – these are funny, talented people in front of and behind the camera, and it’s not surprising that even a bad episode would have a good joke or three.
But lord, did so much of it make me wince. Matt Dillon seemed to be parodying Johnny Drama while playing Claire’s cartoonish ex. (The brothers Dillon more closely resemble each other when Matt does comedy, but this was so extreme that I had to keep checking the guest credit info to be sure.) And where I had mostly enjoyed Shelley Long’s first appearance as Claire and Mitchell’s crazy mom, this time her behavior was so extreme as to be annoying – and the brief human moment between DeDe and Jay was immediately sold out for the sake of the episode-ending catfight.
There were also instances of characters being nudged out of character for a joke, like the running gag about Luke’s very calculated cuteness, which suddenly made him seem as self-aware and old-beyond-his-years as Manny. And even when characters were in character, they were behaving as such an extreme version of themselves that I found myself disliking them. There is a line the show sometimes crosses in terms of Cam’s desperate need for attention, and he leaped over the line this week. I shouldn’t spend so much of an episode featuring Fizbo wishing that the guy who plays Fizbo would just stop talking already. And while Claire’s not my favorite character to begin with, an episode in which she is two steps away from a meltdown throughout makes her particularly unpleasant, even though she should be the sympathetic party given her mother’s behavior.
The discussion of the Slate piece had me thinking I might take a shot at reviewing another episode sometime soon, and when I saw that this week’s would feature Fizbo, it seemed like perfect timing. Fizbo comes back, I come back, and we’re all happy together. Instead, it wasn’t a very good episode, and was symptomatic of a lot of the show’s recent creative stumbles.
Given the number of shows I cover, I don’t think it’s a good use of my time or yours for me to come back week after week enumerating the same 3 or 4 complaints about this one in particular. If I feel I have something different to say – positive or negative – I can check back in. But most of the recent episodes have left me with the some frustrated feeling, so I’m going to step back again until/unless I feel something else.
What did everybody else think?
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Unfortunately, I have to agree that much of what Modern Family has done recently is standard issue misunderstandings (ie. Gloria mistaken email coinciding with The Dunphy’s getting walked in on). Hell, they even reprised the exact Valentine’s day Bixby joke (with less rewarding payoff). It’s still a great show, but not throwing the same heat as last season.
Agree with what you say, it has been a bit eh for a while, but I think for me the few sprinkled jokes get me through it most weeks. Last night’s line of the night goes to Gloria’s throwaway “all of Haley’s weddings” lol. Made me laugh out loud literally.
That line made me laugh too : D
But yes, the show is lacking this season and this episode was the worst so far.
I think the show has turned Cam and Mitch into I Love Lucy; Phil & Claire into later years Mad About You and Jay & Gloria into a weird hybrid of Archie Bunker and the Jeffersons. We have Malcom in the Middle to thank for Manny and the Brady Bunch for other stories involving the girls.
It’s painfully derivative and less funny by the week.
To me, it seems like a GREAT cast carrying an above-average sitcom. And, while there are certainly better comedies out there right now, I’ll definitely keep watching this. It’s always funny enough that I enjoy the time I spend with it.
I agree. Some very, very talented people in front of the camera, making up for somewhat lesser talents behind the camera.
I’ll still continue to watch and enjoy the series, btu I can see that, in two years or so down the road, when the ideas are starting to get really tired, I’ll probably find myself wishing that the amazing cast was free to do something else.
Hmmm… Definitely thought there was something off with this episode, but ouch, you crushed it, Alan.
I understand expectations are very high for MF, but even an off episode like this is still better than a majority of other sitcoms on right now. To better accentuate that, you should watch Mr. Sunshine right after Modern Family, because wow, even a bad episode of MF is a ton better than that show.
I will say I did not like Matt Dillon’s character all that much. It had a ton of potential, but ultimately fell flat.
Fizbo should have stayed in character the entire episde as a jester also, because that bit was absolutely hilarious.
Yes, even an off episode might be better than a lot of other sitcoms. However, its several tiers lower than both Community and Parks and Rec. Or even Louie for that matter.
Maybe it’s better than average, but it’s all because of its cast – the writing is shoddy and predictable. Makes me ache for ‘Cougar Town’ right about now.
I don’t have anything particularly deep to say about the episode (I think I was waiting for it to hit a rhythm that it never did), but I do want to chime in and say I’m glad you decided to revisit the show, even if only once in a while. Not because it’s “Modern Family” specifically, but because I enjoy the discussions of “why this isn’t working for me” as much as “why this is working for me.”
I thought the episode was OK, but not one of the best. Loved the drugged up Gloria at the party.
Did anyone get a flashback to George Michael having a crush on Maeby (“Arrested Development”) in last week’s episode. In that one, Manny had a crush on Haley.
I kinda did, but the Arrested Development bit was so much funnier in its execution. In Modern Family, it’s barely memorable.
I’m right there with you, Alan. Such a great show in the first season, being brought down by silly contrivances (Phil picks up the wrong room key, Cam & Mitchell make reservations in the same restaurant as Jay & Gloria, etc.). I am the only one in my family of four still watching, hoping for some humor or relatable moments. Like you, I thought we were getting that with the Jay and DeDe conversation, and then the cheap laugh with DeDe attacking Gloria ruined it. I actually like The Middle a lot more these days. The parents and the kids seem like real people, and they are funny.
Horrible. Just horrible. You should be ashamed of…
…”Modern Family.” Because it’s not that good of a show. The review was good, though.
I liked it more than you did, but it wasn’t great. I appreciated the Claire-Mitchell interactions, but this definitely got too sitcommy by the end.
I don’t want to post just to agree (sorry, I’m a practicing douche), so to further the points in the writing I would say that The Office could wring humour from that Matt Dillon dinner scene because it lives that kind of cringe-y humour. But Modern Family plays that as more of a farce maybe and all of a sudden Shelley Long is playing a monster.
I agree with all of the comments, but I will say that even with its occasional faults, I can at least enjoy a full episode and not have to fast forward to get to the laughs. Yes GLEE, I am talking about you!
8/10
Valentine Ep = 10/10
I can’t thank you enough for writing this.
I’VE GOT GLORIA!
(just wanted to add that)
Julie Bowen has been over-acting often this season and it has been grating at times. I’m not sure if she’s trying to help sell bad writing or if she’s just trying to get more attention but she needs to dial it back a few notches. Last season, no matter how frazzled she got, there was still and underlying cuteness to her.
Not saying there weren’t other issues but that’s one recurring one that stands out to me.
have you caught any of her talk show interviews? she’s so all over the place that she nearly bounces off the walls.
i think she may need ritalin.
I saw her on one late-night show (Jimmy Kimmel) in which she seemed like she was on uppers.
The weak point, maybe in the entire history of the show, was DeDe attacking Gloria. Especially considering Gloria’s altered state, which made it all the more vicious. Phil’s “I got Gloria” return didn’t even save the moment. Terrible.
The “I got Gloria” line somehow made the whole thing worst, and it was already sooo bad.
Here’s a question for the commenters – how close are people to spiking the show entirely? I admit that I’ve never really loved this show – even at its best, I feel like it relies too heavily on some pretty creaky tropes. And I’ve gotten to the point where my attention is starting to wander during the episodes. I stick with it because it’s something my wife and I watch together, but she’s more invested in Cougartown, and now with it being off the air I feel like I’m getting close to a point where I’d rather do something else at 9:00 on Wednesday. I’m not there yet but I feel like I can start to see the tipping point.
I’m in for a few more episodes because I like the cast, but it’s not a must-see for me anymore. I wonder if Alan feels a bit vindicated because there are so many more people agreeing with him than the last time he tackled a Modern Family column!
I loved the first season, and I’m willing to ride it out for a while to see if they regain their form.
Hell, I stuck by Friday Night Lights through its sophomore slump, and this is nothing by comparison.
I agree the show has had its down moments this year, but also agree that even its off episodes are better than most other comedies on the air right now. I will keep watching because a) the show remains, at worst, amusing, and b) it’s all worth it when they come up with an episode like Manny’s birthday or the one a few weeks ago when the kids caught Claire and Phil in bed
I’m not. Right now I think it’s at a B/B- level compared to the A- it used to be, but that’s not enough for me to punt it yet. I’m not pissed off and I’m not bored. Yeah, it’s more traditional sitcommy than it used to be, but so far that isn’t bothering me awfully.
Though I did have a disturbing moment last night when my mother, a diehard Two And A Half Men fan, said, “Why is this show” (referring to MF) “funny again?” This led me to explain why 2.5 Men really isn’t that great either, other than for well, Charlie Sheen. (Kind of answers Alan’s question from the other day: would you watch that show for Jon Cryer or the kid or the random women? I think not.) I don’t particularly like that show, but I don’t think it would exist without him.
Boy, did that wander off topic.
Joseph, while that is certainly true, do you watch those other comedies that are worse? If so, my condolences, but if not, then that’s kind of a non-issue. Like for me, I watch Archer, Parks and Rec, Cougar Town, 30 Rock, HIMYM, and Community in terms of comedies, so if this show is better than say 2.5 Men or Outsourced(which it definitely is) that I don’t watch, I’m not sure why that’s particularly relevant.
I’m about ready to drop it from my DVR and I almost never drop shows once I get into them. The decline this season has been huge. I have a theory that the network has been interfering and dumbing down the show since it became a hit.
The decline from the first season has been noticeable, but this cast is just too good to give up on. They save some iffy writing with their humor and charm.
I can’t disagree with any of this, it pains me to say.
The only surprise for me was that Matt Dillon’s character didn’t make a play for Hailey (she of many future weddings). I thought he was going to go for Claire’s daughter, not her mother.
Gloria was the highlight of the night. And Sofia Vergara MILF-O-Meter, it’s good to see you back, you always give me a laugh.
p.s. ABC, please bring back Cougar Town asap.
Yes we need Cougarton stat…. Mr. Sunshine is not sunshine….. *sigh*
;)
I tend to agree with Alan that thus far this 2nd season of MF has been decidedly worse than the 1st season was. I marveled at Modern Family last season in how remarkably consistent it was. It may rarely have reached the heights that Community did (with the exception of the Fizbo ep), but week in and week out it was terrific. This season, not so much. I still watch and love the show, and it’s still among the best comedies on TV, but it is definitely in a sophomore slump.
That said, I still laughed out loud numerous times, and Phil’s “I’ve got Gloria!” line at the end had me rolling.
I’m glad you made the comment about Luke…even as a casual fan I noticed that his behavior was out of character for him.
Eh, I didn’t think it was so bad. He thinks saying “pasgetti” is cute still, when most of us would figure out it’s not cute when you’re over the age of six.
I started to tune out when the panned outside to show Claire’s HS boyfriend making out with the mom. I thought they were going to have the Shelley Long character play the angle of “I don’t want you to settle for less than you deserve.” And end up with DeDe and Jay recognizing that she made the right choice where they did not. Instead the episode played out with virtually every character seeming incapable of not being crazy.
To me, analyzing a comedy is prett simple–while I welcome interesting character development, what it comes down to for me is, did I laugh? And I laugh at Modern Family a lot. Ever week. I watch other comedies, and 90% of them leave me in a sullen silence.
It bothers me not a whit how common the tropes are.
With comedy, if you find it funny, if it makes you laugh consistently, then God bless. That really is the thing that matters head and shoulders above everything. The problem, I think, for a lot of us (or at least for me) is that when the tropes are tired it is easy to see the gag coming, which lessens the impact of it. It’s hard to laugh at a “Three’s Company”-esque misunderstanding when you’ve basically written the entire joke in your head a couple of minutes before it’s delivered.
You know, just had a thought, sort of related to the Slate piece as it relates to a blog such as this. I wonder if a certain groupthink tends to kick in at a certain point. It’s like how couples begin to adopt the same attitudes & prejudices to a lot of things over time—you like and respect what the person has to say most of the time, so you begin to rationalize away the disagreements.
Take Modern Family—while there’s been some blowback from commentators taking issue with Alan’s negative reviews, I think the reverse it happening here. Meaning, if Alan was consistently singing the show’s praises, I don’t think the commentators today would take issue with that—I don’t think there would be a lot of posts saying “no, I disagree, these tropes are tired.â€
Meaning, I think the show has largely been quite good this year, and I suspect many agree, but don’t want to be seen as contentious about it.
kmarko, if you read the comments each week on The Office (with the possible exception of last week’s), you’ll see that groupthink isn’t always so easy to achieve. With that show, half the readers feel I’m being too hard on it, and the other half feel I’m not being hard enough.
That’s a pretty classic bit of rationalization, convincing yourself that everyone still loves the show (like you do) but doesn’t want to stand up against the crowd. It has the added bonus of making you into the lone voice in the wilderness, the one person here who isn’t simply a sheep. Consider the possibility that you are wrong, that people do genuinely find Modern Family less funny nowadays. Again, there is no reason why this fact should detract from your own personal enjoyment of the show. It’s just generally a good idea to take people at their word (as I am taking you at yours, believing that you genuinely still love the show rather than that you are someone who simply likes to go against the crowd) rather than assuming that they don’t have as much integrity as you do.
Craig, I think you’re taking what I said too negatively (I might have expressed it poorly.) I’m not saying it’s a matter of integrity, or even a particularly bad phenomenon. I just think there’s sort of a vast middle that many people might be in on any given show, and attitudes/comments might trend in one direction or another when the leader/partner or whatever you want to call it (Alan in this case) takes a particular stand. That doesn’t make anyone a sheep—it was just a thought I had that seemed interesting to me.
Alan, on your point, a couple of things. One, my thought about groupthink might be entirely wrong (wouldn’t be the first time.) But if there is something to it, a show as established as the Office might be a bit more immune to it, in that we’ve all had so many years to figure out how we feel about the show, even as it continues to evolve & change (or just age–either way, it’s been on for a long time.)
Kmarko,what might refute your theory is that the last time Alan wrote on this subject he was taken to task by a lot of people who disagreed with him. This even cause him some hesitancy in writing about the show for a while. What’s changed since he last wrote about the show? Perhaps a couple poor episodes in a row have caused more people to agree with him. Or perhaps it’s a different group of people commenting. I don’t think the group-think phenomenon is at work in this particular case.
I think that those people in the vast middle, on any comment board, usually don’t comment. It’s only those with strong views for or against those of the writer. Those that disagree with Alan are few in these comments because of the way he framed his review. They either didn’t read it, or read it and knew that their comments/complaints have already been heard. Just my thoughts…certainly agree with this general idea of “groupthink,” especially today.
It just seems to be going through the motions – kind of like an SNL sketch they keep doing that might be funny every odd time. We now had a Fizbo episode and the mom episode.
I hope they open a window soon or might not have time for it.
Still a decent show just kind of fell into the “According to Jim” level.
I’d also like to know what chemicals they used to make Matt Dillion look like he did in the 80’s
I swear that I must be easy to please, because on the whole I enjoyed this one quite a bit. It didn’t rely on the misunderstanding and key-swappings that have marred the last few weeks, and it brought all of the storylines together. (Not a big concern for me, but I know that some prefer it that way.)
At its worst–which this was not–MF is amiable fluff with an engaging cast (even the kids) and some solid laughs. I can think of worse.
I completely agree. I used to enjoy watching this show, but its initially cheery characters keep getting shriller and whinier and meaner, and watching them break down is both sad and aggravating. And the writing always used to manage tropes in such a deft way, but these days (in every episode this season) I can see resolutions coming from a mile away, even when they’re supposed to be the “twist”.
Mostly I just miss ‘Cougar Town’, I guess. At least I still have ‘Parks & Recreation’ for my weekly dose of well-written joy.
And is it just me or has Cam become more shriller and whinier and meaner and snarkier than he was in the first season? He’s pretty unsufferable for long stretches.
I agree with a lot of what Alan said, and a lot of the comments. This show was never really doing anything groundbreaking, but the cast did its job exceedingly well. I didn’t watch the first season as it aired, but I flew through the DVDs. And as enjoyable as it was, I knew it was just a good show, not great. Not something that is on par with Parks & Rec, at least in my opinion.
The show is definitely a bit tired this year, but I still tune in because like Alan said, there’s usually a couple good jokes. You can usually expect a good line from Ed O’Neill somewhere along the way. But it hasn’t been great overall, and this is two episodes in a row now where they completely recycled a plot point from season 1. Maybe they’re just not sure where to go, and that happens to a lot of shows after a great rookie season. It can either break out of the slump or continue to go downhill. Here’s to hoping it’s the former.
I agree entirely, and I wish you would continue to talk about the show because I trust your sensibility. I love season one more than you do (It sounds like). I thought every episode excelled. So the drop off is both remarkable and disappointing–I thought last night’s was awful.
I love Modern Family and I still do. But in rewatching the last half of S1 and all of S2…sadly I am starting to agree with you. My main problem is it’s just not funny anymore and half the time not as heartwarming as it was last season. I don’t mind miscommunication plots-but only if they’re funny and they haven’t been lately. I watched last night’s episode and it was alright with a few funny moments but I wasn’t really feeling much towards the characters. I’ll continue to watch (til the end I’m sure) but I reeeally hope it gets better soon. I’m glad you reviewed it again and I hope you continue to in the future, at least sometimes. Screw the haters.
I agree SO HARD it’s scary. The pilot was nearly perfect- it was a funny and sweet sitcom with a little teeth to it.
There’s still some funny jokes (“cue gasp”- the first time), but there’s also something *off* about the whole thing (“cue gasp” the second and third times).
I don’t know how to really describe it other then that the sweet stuff lacks real heart and the slightly sarcastic stuff that differentiated it from the rest of the pack also falls flat.
I am really looking forward to Community’s faux-documentary send-up tonight though. :) It does seem like every comedy on TV uses meta-camerawork now.
I just posted on the Raising Hope review that I wished you would review RH, The Middle, and Modern Family weekly, but I DO have to agree that last night’s Modern Family was one of the worst episodes so far. I’ve never particularly cared for Shelley Long in any role even on Cheers, but she was just totally over the top and annoying last night. This show is at it’s funniest in my opinion when it involves the Dunphy kids and Jay/Manny interaction. It seems like lately it’s fallen into the habit of being too much about Cam/Mitchell and Phil/Claire. As someone else pointed out, there are plenty of comedies on TV right now that focus on couples, this show is supposed to be about families with kids.
I liked a good amount of the episode but couldn’t stop from wondering why they wouldn’t kick Matt Dillon out from the beginning. He was obviously being rude and wasn’t welcome. I know we need this for sitcom stuff but the stories he was telling in front of the kids just made me confused as to why Claire or Phil wouldn’t just say “it’s time to go” earlier than they did.
I loved cockney fizbo. DeDe annoyed me way too much though. She seemed either evil or extremely naive at points.
Spot-on reveiw, Alan. Luke is such a weak, underwritten character, I hadn’t even noticed his Manny-ization, but you are absolutely right. This episode featured more unrealistic discomfort than it did humor, and that is never the appropriate ratio.
I thought this show peaked early, and since then, it’s been going downhill, with an occasional episode or two that’s good. I like a lot of the parts to the show, but I don’t like how it works. I’m actually a big Julie Bowen fan, but she’s best when she’s playing Claire as trying to be mature and handling the kids, her brother, her dad … and Phil. When Phil is asked to be the calm, collected one, it’s just off.
I liked where they were going with Manny a few episodes back, when Manny realized that he was missing his youth, but they left that off the table and reverted him back to what he was.
There’s a few more things I could say, but in general, I’d like to see some character development, even in a comedy, and I don’t think this show does that.
I still prefer Cougar Town much more to Modern Family. And admittedly, a bad episode of MF is much better than a lot of comedies out there. That said … I’m just not a big fan anymore. Part of me thinks the cast is too big, and that it becomes hard to do service to the characters.
I think you should review a show you absolutely detest just to see what happens.
Ha – well he came close to that with Suspicious Minds.
There’s probably little upside to me posting here since you have outlined your issues with the show in general and most of the people that post here are more than likely to agree with you. But I am a huge fan of the show, and by nature I am a loyal person, and therefore I feel the need to publicly stick up for it.
With all that being said, I am not a blind devotee. If the show had squandered all of its season 1 appeal, I wouldn’t be defending its case. (Season 2 of Desperate Housewives was a creative mess, after a sold first one, for example)
In all honesty, this episode was one of my least favorites of the show, (probably a bit too frenetic), but there is NO episodic comedy or drama that cranks out 24 perfect gems week in, week out. That is one of the problems, I think, with grading every nook and cranny of shows week to week. I often wonder how prolific show creators/showrunners like Norman Lear, Steven Bochco etc would have fared with weekly report cards.
But, I know you also had problems with many of other season 2 eps like “Strangers On A Treadmill†or “Caught In The Act†that I think were terrific. Even in this episode there were things that were great and made me laugh. (Basically any scene with Sofia Vergara, i.e. when she was xanex’d, loved the extra subtle gem in this line “I want to be there for Alex’s graduation and ALL of Haley’s weddingsâ€).
I also think it’s somewhat unfair to paint what you deem the many problems the show has on the fact that this is Levitan and Lloyd’s first single cam, and that its comic rhythms share more in common with their last Back To You. Many of the writers on MF have resumes that include many different types of comedy (and drama in some cases). Last night’s writer Elaine Ko, wrote for Family Guy. Dan O Shannon who has written some great eps, has written for varied shows like Frasier, Threshold, Jericho and Better Off Ted. Greg Garica created Yes, Dear but also My Name is Earl and this year’s wonderful Raising Hope which to me, doesn’t resemble a traditional multi cam at all. Pheof Sutton wrote for Cheers and Boston Legal and this year’s wonderful Terriers. I know you know all this. I guess my point is I don’t think it’s fair to assume the things you don’t like about Modern Family are mostly due to Levitan/Lloyd’s background. I watched Back To You. It was very old school. I don’t see anything in common here. It wasn’t half the show this is. There is a level of sophistication in Modern Family that wasn’t present in Back To You. There are many subtle touches of humor on this show (like the aforementioned Sofia line from this week’s ep) that are not at all present on their previous multi cam work. I think a good writer is a good writer and I think Steven Levitan in particular is getting more awards for this show that he ever has in his career because this show stands above those other shows creatively.
There are other sites that reviewed this episode and had positive things to say and there are 7 pages of comments mostly echoing that and includes commenters chiming in with funny lines that were missed in the review. There are also other critics (2 that come to mind in particular) that are very prominent in the biz that have raved about the show consistently in Season 2. None of this is meant at all to disregard or invalidate your opinion. I am just merely saying there is another side and as has been discussed all week, even critics bring their own preferences to the table.
Look, you are more than entitled to your opinion and I honestly say all this with immense respect. You have reviewed episodic TV for 15 years brilliantly and you deserve all the acclaim you get in the biz. Tone sometimes isn’t conveyed in the written word, so just please understand that while I might disagree with your overall point, I am saying this with kindness and respect for you. I guess I just felt the need to stick up for the show.
I bring up the backgrounds of Levitan (who also worked on Larry Sanders before his long multi-cam stretch) and Lloyd because the problems I’ve had with the show this season have been nearly identical to the problems I’ve had not only with some of their own previous multi-cam shows, but multi-cam in general over the last 10 or 15 years. I’m not saying single-cam comedy doesn’t have its own pitfalls and weaknesses, but the ways in which Modern Family has been bad has had much more in common with the way that latter-day Just Shoot Me was bad.
I like Steve a lot. Great guy, and I’ve enjoyed a number of his previous series at various points. (I was, for instance, a Just Shoot Me Fan for the first year or two.) He’s a talented writer. Most everyone who works on this show, regardless of background are. But from where I sit, the show keeps falling into specific traps that I’ve seen too often before on hacky traditional comedies with laughtracks and such. That’s why I bring it up.
I didn’t get the impression he was ragging on Lloyd and Levitan for their multi-camera background. Today there’s really no such thing as a writer of only multi or only single-camera, except for a few powerful writer-creators. Most writers go where the jobs are, and the jobs are pretty similar in both cases. This was even the case in the ’70s when the writers of a single-camera comedy like M*A*S*H or The Love Boat would come from multi-camera shows or leave to do multi-camera shows; jokes are jokes, no matter how they’re performed.
The argument about these writers is not that they’re not good enough for single-camera (multi-camera is probably harder to write really well anyway) but that they are relying too much on devices that seem tired, no matter what the format is.
What he’s saying, I think, is that just because the format is more “respectable” doesn’t make these devices any better. It just makes them easier to get away with.
Hey Alan, didn’t catch the episode last night, but still a Modern Family fan and was wandering if you were a fan of “Frasier” when it was on? That was a big writing project for Lloyd and it was filled to the brim with misunderstandings and sitcom material and I see a lot of that being repeated here (in less laugh track-y ways, granted).
I liked that stuff on Frasier on occasion, but one of the reasons I fell out of love with that show for a while is that they did it too often.
I thought it was Modern Family’s worst episode to date. Usually I disagree with the complaints about guest-stars taking away from the normal dynamics of the show. But both Shelly Long and Matt Dillon were awful in this episode. Also, the writers seem to have no idea what to do with Luke, but that is not a new problem. A very dissapointing episode from a show I usually enjoy.
Shelly Long is just BAD!!!! She’s bad in everything. That’s why this episode was not up to par. Wished they had used Kristen Chenowith a bit more.
I’ve been enjoying Season Two quite a bit — I laugh a lot and still like the characters, etc. But despite the times I laughed this week (“all of Hailey’s weddings”; “Your hair smells like cheese”; Jay’s “I think they missed an opportunity”; Fizbo’s “They don’t: They’re comically large.”), this was a pretty weak episode.
Sitcoms have to be the toughest things to review b/c what people perceive as comedy varies so much and the plots are so shallow. I agree with almost all your takes on dramas but rarely on comedies. I love Modern Family and find it pretty funny most weeks. I watch Community, but am usually disappointed even though I applaud their willingness to try different things. And, I think we both love Parks & Rec. Dramas, nearly 100% agreement. Comedies, only 33%. Has to be the genre!
Community almost shouldn’t be included in the same category as the other two simply because it tries to do so much more than anything else out there.(with the exception of Louie)
Excellent summary of how and why this season has not lived up to the crazy high expectations we all had for this show. Despite the negatives Alan pointed out in this week’s episode, I still mostly enjoyed it until DeDe jumped Gloria (and Phil “got Gloria” once again). That seriously ruined the episode for me, it was such an obvious sell-out for laughs.
The show has fantastic actors playing hilarious, nuanced, well-thought out characters, and it is at its best when it lets those actors/characters just be their normal selves in normal situations. This season, they rely too much on predictable, one-line “jokes,” which require rushed dialogue to get to, and overall try to cram too much into each episode.
Worst. Episode. Ever.
Alan, you’ve got to get over yourself. As George’s psychiatrist told him on Seinfeld, if you’re going to work in a creative field (i.e. writing), you have to be able to take criticism. Now, I’ll agree that this wasn’t the best episode of Modern Family, but I do think a lot of the second season episodes have been quite good. Not as good as the first 10 episodes of Season 1, but good nonetheless. And honestly, I don’t know that I can take you seriously when you favor vastly inferior comedies (Cougar Town for one). You’re certainly entitled to you opinion, but for you to try to shut down criticism of your work is really pathetic. You don’t have to read the negative comments if you don’t want to, but you can’t stop people from leaving them. Come on, Alan. You’re a lot better than this.
I can take criticism just fine. I love when people disagree and are willing to engage me in a debate.
What was happening in these reviews was not that. It was people going crazy and deciding that the only way I could dislike this show was if I had some hidden agenda. Question myopinions all you like; don’t question my motives please
Alan, you’ve got to get over yourself. As George’s psychiatrist told him on Seinfeld, if you’re going to work in a creative field (i.e. writing), you have to be able to take criticism. Now, I’ll agree that this wasn’t the best episode of Modern Family, but I do think a lot of the second season episodes have been quite good. Not as good as the first 10 episodes of Season 1, but good nonetheless. And honestly, I don’t know that I can take you seriously when you favor vastly inferior comedies (Cougar Town for one). You’re certainly entitled to you opinion, but for you to try to shut down criticism of your work is really pathetic. You don’t have to read the negative comments if you don’t want to, but you can’t stop people from leaving them. Come on, Alan. You’re a lot better than this.
This review echoes most of my own sentiments about last night in particular, but without question, the show as a whole has not been nearly as important to me over the past few months as it was in its inaugural season. In brief…
PHIL/CLAIRE FAMILY STORY: AWFUL, Seemed so forced, so ridiculous in a “would never happen” and hard to watch way — it was impossible to enjoy even one second of it.
GLORIA/JAY FAMILY STORY: The only part I liked… loved the recording of the book and the flashback to the answering machine. Jay is the character I consistently find myself gravitating towards, simply because his reactions mimic mine in most situations.
CAM/MITCHELL STORY: Fizbo was ruined — as annoying as Cam was, Mitchell was back to his pedantic, I know better than you, my way or the highway worst, which made that entire story both useless… and also depressing. It just wasn’t FUN.
I could look at Julie Bowen all day… and her attitude was right, but the story was just flat out bad. Right now, Modern Family appears to be on auto-pilot more weeks than not.
Alan, I say this with love, I think you’re missing some things. Luke isn’t self aware when he suggest that baby talk would be cute for someone his age – he’s being utterly clueless. It’s like Phil’s sexy talk, just sort of “off.” And the Fisbo bit (where we never actually see Fisbo) is perfect – because ultimately Cam is right. Mitchell wants the party to be about Lily, but she’s a baby who doesn’t have a clue what’s going on: the party is for the adults. And, when there’s a catfight, the adults need a distrction.
Matt Damon isn’t doing Drama – he’s doing every stoner loser boyfriend that seemed “soooooo cool” in high school but is ultimately a dud. Matt is the nineties version of Dylan!
I agree Luke isn’t self-aware, which made his baby talk even funnier to me.
Guess I am one of the outliers here because I still love MF, although there have been a few nights where I thought Cougar Town was the funnier show for that week. I also loved last night’s ep, especially finding out DeDe is just *that* nuts (when she attacked Gloria).
(sigh) I can’t even comment on this episode. I have episodes sitting on my dvr waiting for me. I’m so sad that I have no desire to play them. It hadn’t been enjoyable watching the fall episodes, and the only one I can remember anything about was I think manny’s bday and the different car scenes all coming to a halt.
I’ll save the rest of the season, perhaps ill get back into it. It just doesn’t make me happy anymore.
My roommate is madly in love with MF, so it’s still on our DVR (she hates Cougar Town, which she hasn’t seen since it was still a show about cougars, and Community, which she’s never seen). Honestly, if she wasn’t invested in it, I highly doubt I’d watch it with any great interest, beyond having it on in the background. And I think you’ve hit the nail on the head as to why, Alan: it’s striking too many traditional sitcommy beats when I feel that both myself as a viewer, and television as a whole, have moved beyond traditional sitcoms. These past few episodes have been like a greatest hits album for a band that’s only released one previous album. The return of DeDe, the return of Bixby, the return of Fizbo… but all of them serve as reminders of things that were great last season but now are just cheap rehashes. I still think the cast is fantastic, and there are still moments that make me laugh, but on the whole, I don’t feel particularly invested in it.
I laughed a bunch therefore I am very happy with the episode and show overall while acknowledging it was a weak episode in the full spectrum. That is so much more than I can say for so many sitcoms.