Modern Family: Career Day (4x21)

In this episode, there were two plot threads that worked really well, and one that had some pretty major annoyances for me. Let's take them one at a a time.

Jay talks about how he used to want to write spy thrillers, but that life got in the way. Gloria, a bit insulted about being called a distraction, facilitates a day off from work for Jay so he can try and write. Turns out, he has no motivation. Luckily, Manny steps in and begins writing. However, when Gloria reads the story, she pokes holes in it, continuing to insult it until Manny finally admits that it's his in the process of angrily defending it.

This thread was my favorite one in the episode. It had a lot of jokes, and I love the Jay and Manny bonding. Some of my favorite moments from this thread: Gloria asking Jay why he hasn't written the story, and Jay saying that he's been too busy. She replies: "You had a three hour nap on Saturday." Jay: "I was tired!" Gloria: "From what? Your two hour nap on Sunday?" I also loved Manny defending his work, and then at the end he does a voice-over of one of the lines that Gloria said was too long, and Jay responds with: "She's nuts, that's fantastic!" It was funny to see Jay fail with his dream, and funny to see Manny try and step in. The plot had nothing too substantial going for it, but it was nice and fun.

Then we have Cam, Mitchell, and Lily. Lily loses her first tooth, and in a fit of over-enthusiasm, Cam gives Lily $100 from the tooth fairy. Immediately, both dads realize that this was a mistake, and try to find a way to have Lily give it back. Mitchell just wants to tell her she has to give it back, but Cam wants to use it as a teaching opportunity and say that the Tooth Fairy made a mistake. This way, Lily will give the money back if she wants to. They enlist Haley to play the tooth fairy, and even though Lily figures it out, she still decides to give the money back in the end.

There were a lot of great moments in here. I liked how Cam kept using glitter to signify the Tooth Fairy, and Mitchell was all pissed because someone would have to clean it up. Haley pretending to be the Tooth Fairy was fantastic, as was Lily's smart-ass attitude about everything. That little kid really can't act, but she's cute enough that I don't mind. Some favorite quotes included Lily calling Marshall and Cam "Daddies," along with the Tooth Fairy's quote in her letter to Lily: "Sorry if that bites." There was also Haley asking to borrow the costume, and when asked for an explanation, she just says: "I'd rather not say."

Okay, but then I must discuss the third thread. I was enjoying it all the way up until the very last moment of the episode, and at that point I feel like all of its potential was drained away. So, it's Career Day at Luke's school and Phil tries to talk about being a real estate agent when all of a sudden Gil Thorpe enters and steals his thunder. Gil ends up offering Claire a job, which she accepts after Phil gives her his blessing. But, in the end it turns out Gil treats her poorly, and she quits right away.

There were some funny things going on here: I liked Phil's idea for a video conversation with a younger version of himself, and I liked how Gil messed it up. I also liked the more serious tone going on here, as Claire speaks about how she feels undervalued, and that this job is a chance for her to feel important again. I thought it was great to see Phil give Claire his blessing, even with how much he dislikes Gil.

But here's what sucked. Wouldn't it have been so much more interesting if Gil, while being an ass to Phil, was actually a sincere boss and was giving Claire a real chance? Then there could have been an opportunity to see Claire in a new environment, and it could have added tension to her relationship with Phil. Instead, she quits immediately because Gil is a sexist asshole. And I actually do respect that. If I were in Claire's shoes, I'd probably do the same thing. But instead of letting the moment be an opportunity to deal with serious issues of sexism in the work place, Phil says he's sorry that it didn't work out and then immediately asks Claire what's for dinner. This was played off as a joke, and Claire is angry but clearly willing to slip back in to her old role of stay-at-home mom and housewife. There is nothing wrong with that job, but since Claire spent a lot of the episode telling us that she felt unsatisfied with it, it seems very wrong to just let her slip back into that role without any more discussion.

I hope Claire's dissatisfaction with her current life will continue to show up as a conflict in the future, otherwise I'm not sure what the point of this episode was in regards to her character or to the plot.

So, with two great threads and one that I felt totally messed up with a bad ending, I will give this episode over all...

7.5/10