Mythology: Modern Family
By Martin Felipe
February 17, 2011
BoxOfficeProphets.com
That will be my next piece, however. I’d like to take a more positive approach this time out. A few columns back, I said that I’d be talking comedy mythology more often, especially since comedies on the networks are going through a bit of a renaissance, even as the good dramas migrate to cable.
Part of the reason for this comedy boom is the explosion of the single-camera sitcom. The more traditional model is the three-camera, shot-in-front-of-a-live-studio-audience variety. This form is the closest thing to televised theater that TV has come up with, and certainly many great shows have come out of the tradition.
Nevertheless, a burst of comic inspiration is evident on TV these days, this being in the wake of the latest of dozens of predictions of the death of the sitcom. And perhaps the most relevant of this new wave of comedies from a zeitgeist perspective also happens to be the best show on TV according to this website, Modern Family.
There is a subset of the one-camera sitcoms to which Modern Family belongs, the mockumentary. Like The Office and Arrested Development before it, the camera on Modern Family is a character itself, an observer. There is a person always watching the action and we see it through this person’s eyes. The effect of this is that it makes the viewer the straight man. The Office has Jim and Arrested Development has Michael, but there really is no other audience surrogate on Modern Family than that of the audience.
The effect of this is that it allows the show to become one of the purest character pieces in sitcom history. The Calvins’ write-up makes much mention of the strength and depth of the show’s cast and, while this is true, the benefit is that all of the characters are so well drawn, that it’s almost the embodiment of character driven comedy.
You see, the mythology of the show is pretty reality based. It takes place in Southern California, and there are three intertwined families that form a larger collective family. It lacks the broadness of an Arrested Development, the punch lines of a Cheers, or the epic sweep of a Simpsons. So the comedy comes straight out of the characters and their relationships. Not that these other shows don’t as well. Cheers in particular has strong characters, but Modern Family has nothing but its characters and the mockumentary form in its corner.
And that mockumentary form only goes so far. Bottom line, it’s window dressing to the main event. We love to see these characters thrown into a situation and see how their predictable traits both bounce off of one another, and push the boundaries of their individual points of view.
Having said that, the mockumentary approach does free it up from becoming a vehicle for one-liners as even the best traditional sitcoms tend to be. Not that there’s a problem with one-liners - Modern Family has its share of great ones. But the form treats us to other brands of comedy - physical, farce, satirical, and so on - that are often beyond the limitations of its three camera counterparts.
This, of course, gives the writers many more options in which to explore the possibilities of those great characters. And they are great. Not just great, but so well defined. Bear in mind, this is a relatively new show, only halfway through its second season, and we know the characters so well that we gain much pleasure in seeing…knowing how they’ll react in any given situation.
The problem with many sitcoms is that there is often a breakout character, the proverbial Fonzie, who draws so many laughs, so much attention, that the writers, over time, start to write more and more for them, until they are the de facto star of what was once an ensemble, throwing off the balance of the entire project. Look no further than Big Bang Theory’s Sheldon for a recent example of this.
It’s a testament to Modern Family’s character strength, and the brilliance of the cast, that from week to week the standout character changes. Just when I think Phil is poised to become the star, along comes Gloria stealing the spotlight. Just when you think it’s the Gloria show, you fall for Cam. And so on. This is the very definition of a balanced ensemble.
Just like most breakout hits, Modern Family is suffering a minor sophomore season backlash. To this I say nonsense. It’s the same great show it was in its first season. I would venture to guess that it would remain so, due to the character-based nature of the comedy. It doesn’t rely on gimmicks, premises or stunts. Its success springs from the most lasting of story telling elements, character. This will give the show a long life and a lasting legacy. Yes, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I love me a good show mythology, but the key to any great story is the characters.