Modern Family (TV Series) My Funky Valentine (2010) User Reviews

Valentine's Day meets Modernity

[gizmomogwai · 8/10 · 14 February 2010]

Will Modern Family end 30 Rock's winning streak at the Emmys this year? They'll rival each other, at any rate. Season 4 of 30 Rock had an all right Valentine's Day episode but I think I prefer this one. In it, the married couple Claire and Phil (I had to look those names up, I don't have them memorized yet) go to a hotel where they engage in role playing. There's also some stuff about Jay and Gloria seeing a comedian and the gay couple taking Manny to a restaurant.

All three of these stories provide some good humour- the comedian has some funny observations, though I'm not sure if Modern Family's writers came up with this or if it's the comedian's actual act. In the restaurant, Mitchell getting a chance to give the speech that he couldn't give in court is good, even if it felt a bit like typical sitcom humour.

But the role playing/escalator subplot was the definite highlight. Phil walks into serious land mines in coming up with a reason for why he's pretending to cheat on his wife. Claire getting naked under a coat- and then getting the coat stuck in the escalator- was good, funny because it's embarrassing and slightly sexy. Guys on the message board wanted her to lose the coat, and that's understandable. Alas, this isn't R-rated film, it's TV. It's TV worth watching, though.

My Funny Valentine

[jotix100 · 8/10 · 2 February 2012]

February 14th arrives. Claire and Phil exchange cards early in the morning. Phil wants to do something different this year. They have always gone out to dinner at Fratelli's, but he wants to change that. How about spending the night in a hotel? Phil proposes to add some spice to their time together by engaging in role playing. What if he would be an Englishman in town to play polo? Or how about pretending he is a Hong Kong businessman? All Claire has to do is to look sexy.

At Cam and Mitchell's the atmosphere is different. They exchange cards too, but Mitch is too involved in a case for which he has been preparing as today is the time for final arguments before the jury decides. Cam is dressed in one of his red shirts and he has dressed Lily as an angel. Manny is supposed to stay with them.

Jay and Gloria exchange gifts. Jay has an added surprise: he wants to take her to the David Brenner show at a local spot, while Gloria would have preferred a night of salsa dancing. Gloria does not even know the comedian, whom Jay has described as having been featured in the Johnny Carson show. Gloria has not even a clue as to who the famous man was!

The evening starts promising for Phil and Claire as they meet at the bar of the hotel for cocktails. Phil comes with a name tag on his jacket; he is pretending to be a salesman on a convention. Claire wearing a raincoat, has an sexy black outfit under the coat, which matches her all black underwear. Claire excuses herself and goes to the ladies' room. She comes back holding her underwear and dress. She is naked under the raincoat!

The trial in which Mitch was to give his great presentation ends in a settlement, so all his work went for nothing. Since they have Manny and Lily, they decide to go to a local joint. Manny is crushed when he spots Fiona, the girl he is secretly in love. What irritates him is to watch another kid, Ted Durkas, sitting opposite her. Ted is the guy who stole his poem, showing to Fiona as his own. Cam decides to distract Ted with an inane excuse to go to the phone. Manny and Ted have words about the poem. Mitchell, who is wound up, gets up and delivers the speech he had set for the trial telling Ted it is a shame he stole someone else's poetry.

Gloria and Jay's night starts great. She even likes David Brenner's jokes, but Jay becomes the target of the comedian's repartee. Jay gets irritated and walks out. Gloria follows him out. Jay decided they should have gone dancing. As they leave, they meet Claire and Phil on the hotel escalator. Claire's raincoat got stuck in one step and she is naked under the coat. A few people they knew passed them by and offered to help, but she is too embarrassed. Gloria has the perfect solution: she takes off her own coat and covers Claire with it, saving the night for the Dunphys.

Michael Spiller directed the episode written by Jerry Collins. "My Funky Valentine" delivers nonstop fun. Claire shows a sexy streak in her character that is not often seen, while Phil is playful in his approach to role playing. Jay is a sore loser; he did not take the comments David Brenner directed at him too well. Another good show in this amazingly good sitcom.

Entertaining

[honegm · 10/10 · 7 August 2022]

Loved this episode so much, it has it all. Wholesome , funny, and awkward. Luke is probably one of the best dads out there, he knows how to ease things around in his own way. Also loved how everyone had a different kind of valentines day!