There are so many great characters on Modern Family, it's hard to choose one who is my favorite. They definitely have one of the strongest ensemble But if I really had to choose, it would come down to Phil or Luke and then I'd refuse to narrow it down any further. They're both such great characters and it was wonderful to see them paired up tonight in an episode, that maybe wasn't as funny as Dude Ranch last week, but still had lots of great moments, many coming from Luke and Phil who begin the episode by watching a documentary about a tightrope walker.
"Seeing that weird, wonderful little man up there pursuing his dream of walking on a tightrope made me think maybe I could pursue my dream... of walking on a tightrope".
And with that, Phil sets in motion his plot for the episode, assisted by an eager Luke who unbeknownst to everyone has obtained a large stash of junk food from Mitchell (who is going on a juice fast with Cameron. More on that later.) and is on a big sugar high ("There was a lot of chocolate in that bag"). He begins by walking it while on the ground (and he only falls a couple times), but is unable to do it when it's slightly higher. It takes some wisdom from Luke to make him realize that maybe he's only falling because he knows he can fall. So he tries it from seven feet up and pulls it off.
Meanwhile Alex and Hayley wind up in the same math class and hate it. Claire tries to convince them to tough it out, but she only causes them to agree to Alex giving Hayley answers in exchange for a month at the cool table. She also has a couple run-ins with the parking officer at the school and doesn't react well to them at all. As she tells them she's disappointed that they ruined a chance to better themselves and be super Dunphy's, they see Phil on the wire and Claire sees it as Phil teaching them a lesson by actions (teaching Alex to relax and Hayley to challenge herself). As Phil puts it though:
"I kept thinking if I could do this... then I'd have two ways to get across my yard". Oh Phil, never change.
Meanwhile Mitchell is helping Cameron on his juice fast, but is concerned because he's been invited to his boss' fundraiser party and Cameron doesn't act well on diets. (stages he goes through involve dispair and rage. Rage leads to a great gag where Cameron bumps his head on a cabinet and rips off the cabinet door in anger. He gets farther than he's ever gotten, but Mitchell has no idea what's gonna come next When they get to the party, Cam is irritable, but it's Mitchell who winds up having an emotional breakdown as his boss tells his story of a sea lion he became attached to who got caught in some ocean garbage and disappeared. This leads to Mitchell racing to the ocean and Cam having to calm his down. Which they do, but they get caught in a wave. Needless to say, they don't make a good impression.
Jay and Gloria also have a story where Gloria is angry that Jay is paying more attention to the dog than her. This is a small story and there's not much to it, but it still has some good jokes in it (Like Gloria wanting to know why Stella is allowed in the bed, but Manny isn't when he has nightmares. Cut to Manny on the floor wanting Jay to answer the question.)
All in all, another solid episode of Modern Family. If they keep this up, I predict much, much more emmy's for them.
Grade: Awesome! (Good)
Memorable Moments
-Jay: "They're not real cupcakes. They're doggies treats in the form of cupcakes". Gloria: "You should've told Manny that before he ate one." Jay: "Come on! His coat never looked shinier!"
-Phil: "Tightrope shoes. Got them at an estate sale. Only worn once". Claire: "That's not a ringing endorsement Phil."
-Luke: "The other day, Uncle Mitchell brought a bag of junk food over so he and Cam could do a jew fast". Phil: "You mean Juice fast." Luke: "I'm pretty sure they said Jew".
-Gloria: "Gloria: Where I come from, men cherish women. It goes wife, mistress, dog. Dog always at the bottom".
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