BWW Recap: Emotions are High, Low and Non-Existent on This Week's MODERN FAMILY

Howdy ho, MODERN FAMILY fans! We're fast approaching the end of the season - JUST ONE WEEK AWAY! To prepare us to bid farewell for the summer, the topic of this week's episode was, fittingly, caring for your kids and keeping them close while simultaneously knowing you can't keep them close forever. :-(. From a misunderstanding between Claire and Jay to a heartwarming reunion of sorts for Haley and Alex, a HILARIOUS and cleverly placed old comedy routine from Luke and Phil (Really? Who else?!), and two more LOL plot lines featuring the rest of the gang, this episode certainly had it all - and had me grinning from beginning to end. A true MODFAM classic episode IMO, and a great way to start to wrap up the season. And now, to delve to into the recap:

Ever the student, Alex plans to ditch Senior Ditch Day in favor of catching up on work at the library. However, desperate to break her out of her mold, Phil, Luke and Haley "kidnap" her and plan to drive to California Adventure. En route to the park, they pass a demolished movie theatre, which Phil reveals to be the movie theatre he helped renovate as a construction worker(!), before he got into real estate.

Glad to be given this little nugget of Phil's past. So our list of careers for Phil pre-marriage: college cheerleader and 10-month construction worker. Is this a sitcom dad or what?! Brilliant!

Feeling nostalgic, he and the kids break in. Phil's desperate to salvage the memories of the theatre before its bulldozing, but Haley wants out to visit the mall, and Alex insists on getting back to school. Ugh. Kids. Amirite? (Sorry. Don't know where that came from). Maybe a little slapstick comedy will change their mind and bring them back to what's really important.

And yep, it does. Haley reveals yet another surprising side of herself when she asks her sister if she'll ever call her when she's away at college; Alex apologizes for shutting Haley off: "I'm sorry if I've been acting like I didn't wanna hang out with you lately. Or ever." This line struck me because, while we have seen scenes of them together interacting, they are essentially the polar opposites of one another - I assume that's because that's the initial formula the creators were going for, with the brainiac up against the popular girl - who've never really "related" to each other in this way before. With the younger of the two now taking the plunge into college and "growing up," it's poignant that we have a moment in which they approach and discuss their relationship from a more mature, grown-up position. They've grown and changed, and therefore, the way they think about each other has changed. For now, they're not bicker-y; they're just appreciative. I hope this dynamic keeps up into next season, and considering, as Alex says, they won't be "caged in together," it will indeed affect their relationship. Might even bring them closer. Awww... #sisterlove (And A+ to those writers for weaving that detail with Phil into the girls' plot line. And it took me a moment to recognize this, but they end in the same pose he had described. OMG!)

Manny's facing the after-effects of wisdom teeth removal, and Gloria sneakily uses the opportunity to try to get rid of Manny's girlfriend, Kylie, who she doesn't like. She especially doesn't like that she plans to whisk him away to camp with her over the summer, and is desperately in need of a way to stop it.

Another girl trying to threaten Gloria's relationship with her son? Yeah, we've seen this before. But this one's different - and it's because of the addition of the wisdom tooth. Nay, the wisdom tooth business is critical to the success of the storyline (though the whole "hitting the balloon to wake him up" was a bit much. Seriously, Gloria! Have some respect! Are you that needy?)

Drugged up on pills, Manny's consistently forgets what has happened since he got home from the hospital, wherein Kylie greeted him with a strawberry milkshake and a get well balloon and bear. So, Gloria, in an attempt to drive him away from thoughts of Kylie, takes credit for all she's done. Hey, he won't remember anyway, right? (P. S. The funniest non-verbal scene this week goes to Gloria removing the scarf!)

It backfires, then front-fires, then backfires again (pretty much like elements of every other plot line in this episode - heyyy!!) all with that touch of special MODFAM charm. The bright side? Manny finally confronted Gloria about the way she treats him: "You have to start letting me make my own decisions." Glad you finally woke up and realized it too, dude. Look, I love Gloria. But it's six seasons in and the guy's a grown man now. Let it go. Didn't Idina Menzel teach you anything?!

Claire receives a job offer with a high-end hotel chain as Regional Vice President in Charge of Promotions (or something like that; I hear the name gets longer every time she says it), but struggles with telling boss/dad Jay the news. That soon changes when she does tell him - and he shows no emotion at all. She takes the job, considering that "clearly my father doesn't care if I live or die," but then looks back to see Jay wiping tears from his eyes while looking at an old photo of Claire.

I totally know this is gonna be one of those misinterpreted you-have-the-wrong-idea plots, but the fact that I don't know what exactly Jay is thinking intrigues me. This is gonna be good!

She discusses her issues with Mitchell over lunch (and he his issues with her; see below) and it's hands down the funniest scene of the episode. Love these two together! Again, the fact that they're the only adult sibling pair on the show gives them such a unique relationship, and their past with Daddy Emotionless prepares you for hilarity before they even speak. Their dynamic is unmatched, both as characters and as actors (Bowen/Ferguson), and coupled with spot-on witty dialogue, what results is simply, as cliché as it sounds, comic genius.

Watch it through to see what I mean, 'cause it's just too good for words to explain here (though some jokes are below). Love it!

Anyway, as Jay recounts to her, it's back and forth and back and forth with Jay/Claire and Claire and the hotel company.... and it all finally comes to a head, when Claire confronts Jay about not having any emotional reaction to her announcement. Lot of emotional confrontation this week, but this one has to have the most hilarious outcome! Of course, what Jay tells her daughter in response to the confrontation is completely genuine and very sweet - also, chock full of background (who knew Claire had a childhood nickname?) and it proves yet again, Jay's a big ol' softee (guess it's just more fun to show him as less put together, huh?) - but who he actually shares the information with (and how it's revealed to him) gave me quite the giggle. Great, too, that Claire teared up; it's nice to see her reciprocate those feelings, where we've seen her otherwise disregard them in favor of badmouthing her father (see April Fool's episode recap for more).

And in the final plot, Cam and Mitch try to teach Lily to be empathetic. Mitch comes up with the hilarious idea (over the lunch with Claire) to watch a sad movie to get him to cry, in hopes that it'll trigger something from Lily when she seems him upset. However, when Cam realizes Mitch only cries at rom-coms and nothing real (like their message) resonates with him on a deep, emotional level, a round of the blame game ensues. Mitch targets Cam as the culprit, for making a huge deal out of everything, and therefore, desensitizing their daughter to feeling normal emotions. So, who's the real one to blame?

I'll also leave this one spoiler-free, 'cause there's really no way to tell you without doing just that, but know it's dealt with hilariously (a la the fast-paced dialogue exchange BETWEEN Mitch and Claire). And it fits itself perfectly into this week's wraparound message: Although parents make mistakes with their children, it's only because they're trying so hard to make them happy and not lead them down the wrong path. They love their kids, and they want to do right by them... no matter what it takes. Well, amen. Now, with that in mind, go hug your mom (like Manny), dad (like Claire or Lily), or sister (like Haley or Alex). Ain't it great that this show touches on so many real-life, relevant family dynamics and relationships?

A solid, forget-your-troubles-and-laugh-out-loud episode. Even made me forget it was the second-to-last one of the season. And that makes me sad. I've enjoyed these recaps. :-( See you next week for the final outing of the season! Maybe they'll finally bring back and resolve Andy. Hmmm....

SOME FAVORITE QUOTES

- Haley: (to Alex) No way you're ditching Ditch Day! It's like the best week of senior year... (notices Claire) day.

- Jay: (re: Claire's hotel job) Higher salary; better benefits; you might have to travel more, which is time away from Phil... nothing but upside.

- Haley: (re: movie) Dad, you know it's not a movie called DEMOLITION NOTICE, right?

- Phil: I built this theater with these two hands. Plus the 28 hands of 14 other guys.

- Gloria: I know what happens at camp. I've seen MEATBALLS.

- Mitch: I feel like Lily's inability to show feelings for other people might be my fault.

Cam: Oh, honey, I think that too, but just take comfort in knowing you got there on your own.

STRAY OBSERVATIONS

- Gotta love Phil's catchphrases! This week? "Sweet Mirna Loy!"

- This week's tag scene is so masterfully written - one of the best I can recall in recent episodes!

- Since we last "met," MODFAM's been renewed for Season 7! Yaaayy!! Bring it, Dunphys/Tuckers/Pritchetts! #ModFamistheNewFriends

Photo Credit: Twitter / ABC