Synopsis: The Dunphys head off to Cal Tech for Alex to have a college visit. While there, the duller members of the family get very confused and dramatic when they sign up as subjects for a scientific experiment. Meanwhile, Claire pushes Alex towards Cal Tech because she wants to keep her close to home. When Jay and Gloria celebrate their anniversary, Jay steps out of his comfort zone by giving Gloria a clay bunny he made in a ceramics class. When Mitch and Cam try to take a new family picture including Lily, they are upset to find that Lily has a hideous smile for pictures.
Review: This was a very solid, very typical episode of Modern Family, the kind that leaves me totally satisfied. As far as humor goes, Phil, Haley, and Luke Dunphy took the top spot with the research test they signed up for. In waiting a room with just the three of them and a red button labeled "do not push," they began to have violent debates over what they ought to do. Quite hilariously, the tension was wiped out when it was revealed that the room was just a waiting room for a survey they were taking, and the red button just started a faulty vent.
It was fun to watch Alex explain her desire to go to the east coast for college to get away from her family, only to be convinced otherwise when an equally nerdy and attractive boy expresses his plans to attend Cal Tech. Their awkward flirting was quite humorous.
On Jay and Gloria's anniversary, it was nice to see a softer side of Jay in his attempt to break away from the materialistic gifts that he and Gloria usually exchange like jewelry and watches. The fact that he made Gloria a ceramic bunny made it that much more adorable. This situation nicely addressed one of my general criticisms of the show that Jay and Gloria fight too much to be a happy couple, especially considering their age difference. Jay trying for Gloria in such a sweet way makes it make some sense that they're together.
Cam and Mitch got another lame story this week. They had a boring problem-solution plot where Lily's creepy smile was solved by them deciding to hang the picture up anyway. There was nothing creative about that one.
I've seen some amazing episodes of Modern Family, this one is just good.
My Grade: B
Reviewers Quotes: "'Do Not Push' is the type of episode Modern Family just can’t get away with anymore, at least without alienating its long-time viewers. The problem with the show’s stubborn policy of producing stand-alone episodes is that there’s never any sense of momentum or any consequence to anything we’re seeing." -Joshua Alston (avclub.com)
Nielsen Rating: 3.7 (10.56 Million Viewers)
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