Tuesday, May 25, 2010

What I’m Watching: Modern Family (Season Finale)

Modern Family: Season 1, Episode 24 “Family Portrait” (A-)

What a spectacular season this has been. Though, when asked, I often cite this as my second favorite comedy (behind “Parks and Recreation”), I haven’t given any episode from this show’s debut season a grade lower than a B+. Every episode has been completely on, and I’ve laughed many times throughout each installment. This is a great show that I’m sure will be continue to be great in the future, and its first season sendoff was among the best episodes it’s produced yet. Claire’s desire to put together a perfect family portrait is a fun way to frame it all, and I enjoyed that she tried to fix everything while Haley was the only child of hers nearby. Phil has enough of his own obliviousness to contribute to his follies without having done multiple things wrong, but it’s still entertaining to see him squirm when the Kiss Cam constantly stops on him and Gloria. It’s fun how modernity and technology is incorporated, with all of the Dunphy kids texting each other to inform Phil about exactly what kind of trouble he’s in. Mitchell freaking out about the pigeon was very funny, and Jay yelling at both of his children to tell them exactly why they’re uptight ultimately made for a nice family moment. Luke’s lack of interest in Jay’s stories about his time spent in the 1960s resulted in Jay delighting in making up tall tales, and his wrapping up the whole story by saying that he’s happy about ending up with this sorry bunch was a heartfelt moment, even if Luke didn’t quite appreciate it. This is a wonderful show, and I can’t wait for season two this fall.

Season grade: A
Season MVP: Ty Burrell

3 comments:

Greg Boyd said...

I really regret not catching this one (I saw and loved the pilot), and I plan to make up for it by watching on DVD as soon as possible.

As I recall, this was on at the same time as "Glee". I had to choose between the two. In retrospect, I should have picked this one, I think.

Richter Scale said...

There are plenty of sites to watch this on line, so I never had to choose. I'm glad I stuck with both this and Glee. I also loved the finale, and I love how this family works as an ensemble. Another moment I loved was Manny contemplating what would happen if the Kiss Cam fell on him and Alex (which, of course, Alex says she'll punch him if he touches her). So many great moments. I love this family (I'm having a much harder time finding a Season MVP, since I feel this ensemble works as a team, though Ty Burrell is a great choice).

Greg Boyd said...

I know there are, but when the series started my computer speakers were broken, so I couldn't watch.

And I here "Glee" has gotten better. If it continues to get good reception for a bit longer, I may have to pick it up again.