A Man. And His Blog.

You could say it that way: another mockumentary comedy series? NBC is partly failing with Parks & Recreation (which last week’s season premiere was hilarious, btw), because the producers of the NBC show don’t really know how to use the mockumentary style properly, while The Office makes it right. But you have to give Modern Family a chance. Because this might be the best comedy in network television of the last years. Not only funny as hell, but actually with interesting characters, an excellent cast and nice stories.
ABC’s new comedy show deals with three different families (who are together one big family consisting with the grandparents, brothers and sisters as well as uncles, aunts and all the kids), all of them with their own mockumentary camera in front of the faces. There is Jay (comedy veteran Ed O’Neill), who just married the much more younger Gloria (Sofía Vergara). She tells us something about her first husband and falling out of a window while making love, he tries to be a cool old guy, after he saw he is just too old. Both are raising the 11 year old Manny (Rico Rodriguez), Gloria’s kid, with overweight and in love with a 16 year old girl – sorry, woman.
Than we have the gay couple Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Fergusen), who went to Vietnam not just for fun, but to adopt a baby. So very Angelina Jolie- and Madonna-like.
And then the big family consisting of Phil (Ty Burrell) and Claire (Julie Bowen; conspicuous pregnant, she couldn’t even hide it) and the kids Haley (Sarah Hyland), who makes out with senior high schoolers, Alex (Ariel Winter), who wants to have her sister pregnant as well as brother Luke (Nolan Gould), who is going to be shot by his dad, because… daddy tries to teach his son an important lesson.
All of the families are totally hilarious, in their stories, in their characters and in their acting skills. Not only has the show probably one of the most talented cast in network comedies of recent history, but all the punchlines are actually fitting. I was laughing every two, three minutes about something and I can’t even remember why. There are actions of the characters, which are either satirical or just plain stupid, but in a charming way.
Best example is the baby presentation at the end. Mix the soundtrack of The Lion King, together with the very hilarious Eric Stonestreet (probably a type like Zach Galifianakis) and you have yourself a scene where you can laugh at every time. Hilarious.
Or Alex, who yells at her mother about yelling at her through the whole house, when she could have easily texted her to come down to the kitchen. Or Phil, who tries to teach his son a lesson and might be shooting the new boyfriend of his older daughter. And then himself. Hilarious.

The mockumentary style totally works out in this show – way more better than in Parks & Recreation. Finally a real sophisticated and satirical comedy in network television, I was waiting for that for a while. Together with the great cast and their characters, ABC might have a winner here. But I don’t really think this kind of show is working on ABC. At least let’s hope this one will survive the season, because I totally liked it.
8,5 out of 10 points.