Modern Family Recap: Episode 3

So. A few things are different from the last time we recapped Modern Family: 1) We’re not drunk off screwdrivers, 2) we didn’t have someone else around to scream at whenever something stupid happened and 3) we actually thought this episode was charming. Yes! Charming!

We’re still not sure why Cool Dad and Uptight Mom’s children don’t appear in every episode, but that’s fine since that particular family unit is our least favorite. On this particular episode, we got to see different family members interact with one another one-on-one, which was a wise choice on the part of the show’s writers since it’s easy to see these as three, separate, disjointed little units and forget that all the characters are related. 

The focus this time around was mainly on our three favorite characters: Manny and Cameron and Mitchell. Cameron and Mitchell, after leaving their adopted daughter, Lilly, with some invisible caretaker or in a shoe box or whatever, went off on a trip to Costco. Mitchell also took some time to demonstrate one of our pet peeves: Shirt collars tucked under jackets. Like so:

Shudder. Anyway, these two characters have the most chemistry with one another and are the closest to seeming like multi-dimensional people who have distinct personalities and exist as more than just stereotypes. We learn that Mitchell is kind of a snob and didn’t initially think much of Cameron when the two first met, but then he remembered that he has red pubic hair and cannot to be picky about his prospective mates.  They share a cute little recurring joke concerning charades and Casablanca and, aw, we don’t know. It was all very charming and relatable. 

Meanwhile, Cool Dad was still stuck being an embarrassing, one-dimensional, unrelatable caricature of a human being. At one point, he got hit in the face by a toy plane. It should have been funnier and more of a relief than it ended up being, but whoever edits this show has no sense of comedic timing. But at least it’s good that Dane Cook is getting work somewhere, no?

Then came a commercial about killer chinchillas. It was confusing, possibly xenophobic, and kind of awesome. Who knew the little boy who plays Manny moonlights as a furry?

Speaking of Manny, he’s one of the best characters on this show and Rico Rodriguez, the actor who plays him, has a good sense of timing and delivery. Plus he looks like a baby chinchilla. Manny spent some time with his step-sister, Uptight Mom, dispensing advice on all sorts of things. And, boy, does Uptight Mom certainly have a lot of things to learn. She doesn’t even bake with the one secret ingredient cookies should always have: Oxycontin. Caring. 

Then there was an extremely weird story line featuring Uptight Mom’s daughter, Alex, having some sort of weird she-boner for her step-grandmother, Gloria, and asking her about her chocha tattoo and piercings and sex partners and sapphic experiences. We’re not sure how this might have looked on paper but to us it came across and kind of creepy and unnecessary. 

Meanwhile, Cool Dad still sucks.

And some other stuff happened…

Then all the dudes said I love you or whatever and Cameron had the best line of the season so far:

“I’m like Costco. I’m big, I’m not fancy. And I dare you to not like me.”

Love him.

Oh, and in case that milk mustache photo wasn’t enough to make you feel a little frightened and confused, Sofia Vergara’s character, Gloria, mentioned that she had wanted a daughter so much that she used to put baby Manny in dresses and pass him off as a girl.

She also made the face (shown above) that we highly suspect we make when discussing something. We’ll go ahead and dub it The Latina Convo Face (LCR). Talking with your shoulders and hands is an integral part of pulling off this expression and Sofia executes it beautifully. 

So. What did you guys think? Is the show getting better? Has it been consistently good? Would you rather watch Everybody Loves Two And A Half Queens than watch another episode of this? Tell us!