Modern Family: Season 5, Episode 5

Modern Family: Season 5, Episode 5

ABC, Wednesdays 9:00pm

By Nicole Sandoli

“The Late Show” is one of the most relatable and sentimental episodes of Modern Family.  Besides the regular hilarity we see every week, this episode has an element that can make every family say, “Yes, we’ve done that.”  Jay Pritchett and his children are supposed to meet up for a nice dinner at one of his favorite restaurants. They all eventually meet up at the restaurant, but the key word is “eventually.”

            What better way to start of the episode than with quirky Phil Dunphy trying to “look seductive” for Claire? Immediately, you can tell why that’s not working – he’s wearing a suit that is 2 sizes too small.  As he moves around the house and goes up and down the stairs, his actions resemble that of Frankenstein.   Determined to impress Claire, he never contemplates taking the suit off.  Claire doesn’t notice his outfit as she gets home from work and goes straight to the fridge for some wine before dinner.

            Naturally Haley has something to say about Alex's looks, which is standard in every episode.  Luke wants to stay home alone while his parents go out to dinner. Uptight Claire goes into freak-out mode, but is swayed by Phil that Luke is old enough to stay home without an adult. Right as Phil is done convincing her, Luke falls back in his chair and his chips go everywhere – classic Luke.

            As Jay patiently waits for Gloria to be ready, Manny tells him that she isn’t home because she’s getting her hair done. Jay tries to stay calm and not yell at her when she gets home because he’s convinced that wastes more time. On the other spectrum, Cam and Mitch are getting ready as they wait for Alex to babysit Lily. Right as they are about to leave, Cam comes out wearing the same exact outfit as Mitch.  They argue over who should change, thus delaying the leaving process even more.

            Jay makes finishes a drink he made and finally thinks they are ready to go, until Haley shows up to babysit Joe.  She comments on Gloria’s dress, but tells her she should change her earrings.  The two venture upstairs to try on earrings and other clothes, leaving Jay sitting downstairs with another drink.  Claire and Phil are the first to be on their way, but Claire calls Luke while driving.  He doesn’t pick up after a handful of calls, so Claire is convinced they must go back to check on him.  As Claire whips open the front door, Luke shoots her multiple times a paintball gun saying, “Die pizza man, die.”

            Meanwhile, Mitch gave in and said he would change his outfit.  When he finally changes he hands Cam a coke from the fridge, but it sprays all over Cam.  Now, they fight that Mitch shook the can before he handed it to him. Cam, being the diva that he is, now is forced to change while making a big scene about it.

            Despite Gloria’s excessive prepping, Jay and Gloria make it to the restaurant first.  The hostess says they can't be seated until the whole party is present.  By the time all the couples get there, their table is given away.  When Jay is let down because all he wanted was the “drunk cow” he kept talking about, Gloria yells at the hostess threatening her to give them the table.  After they get kicked out, they eat tacos from a Taco truck across the street, and they end up having the best time ever.  The tension vanishes, and Phil’s suit finally rips after almost making it through the entire night.

            This episode I feel sums up family in general.  Everyone has that person that takes the longest to get ready, as well as the person who waits for the last minute.  We’ve all been left home alone for the first time, and our parents have freaked out just as much as Claire did.  Jay tries to be calm and patient, but he gets restless when he’s ready so much earlier than his wife.   Regardless, at the end of the day everyone is family and still loves each other – no matter how long it takes for everyone to get ready.   Also, Jay makes it very clear that he had an awesome time, even though he didn’t get to eat at his favorite restaurant.  Sometimes the best memories are made when things don’t go according to the plan.

How I Met Your Mother

How I Met Your Mother

Starring Josh Randor, Jason Segal, Alyson Hannigan, Cobie Smulders & Neil Patrick Harris

CBS, Mondays 8pm

By Nick Palumbo

Eight years and eight seasons later, “How I Met Your Mother” is in its final stretch as a television show. An American sitcom, that started in 2005 is now on its ninth and final season. Written by Carter Bay and Craig Thomas, the series follows the main character, Ted Mosby, played by Josh Randor, and his group of friends in Manhattan. Ted, in the year 2030 recounts to his son and daughter all the events that led up to how he met their mother.

The cast includes:

Ted Mosby is an architect and the central character of the series. He moved to New York City with his friends Marshall and Lily after graduating from Wesleyan University.

Marshal Erikson (Jason Segal) a small town kid from St. Cloud Minnesota who is Ted's best friend. Marshall is dating Lily, with whom he has been in love since his freshman year of college, and they serve as an inspiration for Ted to find his true love.

Lily Aldrin (Alyson Hannigan) is a kindergarten teacher and Marshall's girlfriend. Lily is the group's moderator, always there to resolve a conflict or to offer a shoulder to cry on.

Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris) is a serial playboy, using his relative wealth and an array of outrageous strategies to seduce women for sex with no intention of engaging in a relationship. He is also one of Ted’s best bro’s. do you mean for that B to be capitalized??

In the Pilot episode, the story of how Ted met the mother begins in 2005, with Ted's best friend and roommate Marshall proposing to his girlfriend Lily. Ted is freaking out about the state of his life and begins his search for his own soul mate. At a bar, with one of his other friends, Barney Stinson, Ted sees Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders), the girl of Ted’s dreams and is introduced to her with a little help from Barney. The simple and iconic catch phrase of, “Have you met Ted”, introduces Robin and Ted for the first time.

            Ted eventually asks Robin out on a date, which goes really well. But upon dropping her off at her apartment Robin is called away for a news story. Ted eventually heads back to his own apartment to tell his friends of the amazing date. After the conclusion of the story, his friends tell Ted he should have kissed her before she left. In the spur of the moment Ted decides he is going back to her apartment and is going to kiss her.

            Ted and the gang hop in a cab and head to Robin’s, but along the way they have to make a pit stop. Ted stops the cab at the restaurant where he and Robin had eaten earlier that night to steal something that had become an inside joke between the two, Once Ted has arrived, Robin opens up her window and invites him up. Things begin to heat up between the two, until Ted drops the “I think I’m in love with you” bomb. After an awkward goodbye and a lingering handshake, Ted leaves. Once again, Ted missed out on the kiss and the gang spare no expense in showing Ted the error of his ways.  As the episode comes to an end, we learn that this is the story of how he met their Aunt Robin.

To be fair I feel that I should state that I am a huge fan of this show, with that being said I highly suggest that if you get the chance to watch How I Met Your Mother, you should. When I first started watching, as a freshman in college, HIMYM was already in its 6^th season on TV.  My friend at the time had made me watch a few episodes, and I was hooked! So much so that I spent the entirety of my finals week binge watching the first five seasons, and doing no studying at all. That’s how good this show is people! It takes precedent over whatever else you have going on in your life. Ultimately I caught up on my episodes within a month and haven’t looked back since!

What makes this show a must see, is how it becomes a part of your life. You’ll find yourself adopting their inside jokes and catch phrases as if you were a part of this legend-WAIT FOR IT-dary show. You grow with the characters. You start developing relationships with the characters and ride the ups and downs of their life, feeling their pain and their happiness along side them. The characters are really what make this show so great, they are the glue and what keep viewers coming back for more week after week.

Nine seasons later and we are almost done with the journey to find out how Ted meets his bride to be. This show will never get old and years from now I will still be watching re-runs, laughing at Marshall’s antics and admiring Barney’s game. How I Met Your Mother is a great show and I hope that you guys can enjoy this show as much as I do.