Modern Family: The Big Guns (6x12)

Eh. There was nothing wrong with this episode, but I only really liked one of the plot lines. The other two were basically just mediocre. Let's get going.

The Dunphys have another run-in with their neighbors Ronnie and Amber, when they park a giant boat in their driveway, making it hard for Phil and Claire to park their car in their own driveway. They try to be nice about it and ask them to move it, since it's technically against the law for them to have it there, but they won't listen. Phil and Claire invite Phil's dad over with his retirement buddies, and they park their giant RVs in the Dunphy driveway as retaliation. However, this plan backfires when the old guys get along really well with Ronnie and Amber, and hang out with them in the boat. Phil's father convinces them they should move the boat, though. Just as it looks like things are wrapping up peacefully, the police show up because Claire had called them to complain. Both families get written up for having the boat and the RVs in their driveways.

There wasn't anything wrong with this plot, but I didn't laugh at it. The closest thing to a funny moment was when Luke is trying to get the hot teenage daughter of Ronnie and Amber to like him. He tries to flirt with her, but it doesn't work, so he then follows Alex's advice and goes outside for something without even looking at her as she sunbathes in the driveway. The girl is miffed at not being ogled, and Alex declares that soon, Luke will have won her over. She also lets slip that her own personal fantasy would be being kissed in the science museum. So, that subplot got some chuckles out of me. But honestly? All the stuff about the boat and the RV and Phil's father and everything... it was all just a bit of a letdown. Ronnie and Amber usually make for a funny episode, but there wasn't really anything too special here.

Cam goes behind Mitchell's back to take Lily to clown school. When Mitchell doesn't like the routine that the two of them do, Lily starts improvising by hitting Cam, which Mitchell thinks is pretty funny. Lily keeps it up, and Cam accuses Mitchell of turning their daughter against something that he loves. When Mitchell talks to Lily about it, he learns that she is hurting Cam not because she's trying to make Mitchell laugh, but because she hates being a clown and wants to be a bad one so Cam will let her quit. Mitchell encourages Lily to tell Cam the truth, but Lily lies and says that she doesn't want to be a clown anymore because it's too much pressure, but maybe she'll try again later.

Again, nothing in this part of the episode made me mad, but it also didn't make me laugh, so... there's that. Honestly, when Lily commented on how she doesn't find clowns funny, I was thinking: I agree. Why am I watching a whole subplot about them? However, I did like the moment when Mitchell found out Lily didn't like clowns. He was just so relieved to have an ally. That was pretty funny.

Jay thinks it's time to potty train Joe, but Gloria thinks it's too early. Eventually it comes out that Gloria exaggerated when talking about what a prodigy Manny was as a child - he wasn't actually advanced, she just told him that to boost his confidence. She doesn't want to push Joe either. Manny understands that Jay is pushing the issue because he wants to be there for Joe especially, because he wasn't really there for Mitchell and Claire when they were growing up, and he's also not sure how long he's going to be around for Joe. Gloria tells Manny that what's special about him is his compassion and his sensitivity, and how he understood what the real issue was with Jay. Turns out, Joe was ready to be potty trained after all, so that's good news!

This plot thread was the only one I enjoyed. Manny's horrified discovery of his own mediocrity was hilarious, and I especially liked what Gloria said when she admitted what she had done. She tells Manny that she exaggerates a lot, and that in fact Colombia is actually a very normal country. That had me laughing out loud. I also liked the sweeter side to this episode, especially the fact that Jay wants to be there for Joe and be a better father this time around. Very nice!

Okay, so that's that. I continue to come back to the fact that Modern Family has basically been coasting on the success of its earlier seasons. They have these really creative episodes sometimes, but when they just try to do run of the mill comedy, it often falls flat.

6/10