Modern Family: Under Pressure (5x12)

This week's Modern Family had a lot going on. The plot centered around the school's parent's night, where all of the parents go to check out their kid's classes. This allowed for a lot of comedic possibilities, and there were so many subplots in this episode that it's hard to keep track. However, the episode still avoided being cluttered. Let's jump straight in!

Alex is cracking under the strain of school and SATs, and has a breakdown at dinner on her birthday. She decides to go see a therapist. When she does, at first she's just trying to solve the problem right away and move on, but then she finally admits to the therapist that she feels a lot of pressure, and she doesn't think her family really understands her. At parent's night, Claire realizes how much Alex is taking on, and feels bad for never understanding all of the pressure she's under. She tells this to Alex, who hugs her gratefully. This may have been my favorite plot of the night. I really like Alex and I liked the opportunity to explore her a bit more.

Phil is attending Luke's classes while Claire attends Alex's. Jay is in one of the classes because Manny has it also. Jay goofs around with Phil and convinces him to play hooky. They go to watch the football game in the teacher's lounge, where Phil impresses Jay with his ability to fix the TV. The two of them are eventually caught and taken to the principal's office. This little thread was fine, but nothing too remarkable happened and it was rather forgettable.

Gloria, meanwhile, is trying to butter up one of Manny's teachers to get him the opportunity to go to Washington DC for a junior congress. There's only one spot available, and Gloria finds herself competing with another mom. The two of them go head to head in a fierce game of dodge ball, and they too are taken to the principal's office. They do make it up, however, when the other mother admits that she's just afraid of losing her son in the divorce she's going through. Gloria comforts her. I liked this one a lot. There were some funny jokes concerning the whiteness of the other mom, while Gloria was playing on Manny's status as Latino to try and win points with the teacher. It also had a nice climax and resolution with the dodge ball game.

The dodge ball game, incidentally, happened because of Cam. He was worried about boring all of the parents with his talk about gym class, and wanted to play a game of dodge ball instead. The principal forbid such an action, but when Cam sees how bored all of the parents are during his talk, he lets the dodge ball game happen anyway. This is where Gloria and the other mom get into their physical fight. This was the one plot thread that I didn't care too much for. There were really no funny jokes, and just more of the same in terms of Cam's flamboyant behavior.

Manny and Luke have a double date with twin girls. Although Luke's date has more in common with Manny and vice versa, the girls remark that they don't want to switch dates, because they are attracted to the boys they're already with. When Manny and Luke start to leave, offended, the girls offer to make out with them. This plot was pretty harmless, but I don't have any lasting fond memories of it either.

Lastly, we've got Mitch and Lily's plot. Their neighbor, played by Jesse Eisenberg, berates Mitch for not being green enough. Mitch resents the implication, but soon has to admit that he's not as green as his neighbor, who finds his green behavior isolating, because he takes everything to the extreme. In the end, Mitch invites him over for dinner. Of all the plots, this one really didn't fit in with the others. I liked it just fine, but since all the others were in some way tied to the school, this one felt like it belonged somewhere else. Jesse Eisenberg was a fun guest star, though!

Alright, so there you have it! A lot of threads in this one, but they were pretty good for the most part. In particular, I loved focusing on Alex's character, and I got a kick out of Gloria's antics.

7.5/10