When a new series is announced, the attention always focuses on the leading actor(s). They can show off on the posters and serve as a magnet to make many potential viewers curious. However, it often happens that during a series you see another character steal the show and that person turns out to be an audience favorite. Reason enough to give these characters the attention they deserve. In this fifth edition, I talk about Modern Family and the character that is my favorite: Phil Dunphy.
Modern Family follows the families of Jay Pritchett (Ed O'Neill), his daughter Claire Dunphy (Julie Bowen) and his son Mitchell Pritchett (Jesse Tyler Ferguson). Claire is a real housewife, Jay is married to a younger woman and has a teenage son, and Mitchell and his boyfriend have adopted a Vietnamese baby.
I have to admit that I found this edition a difficult one. There are two favorites for me, but Ty Burrell's inimitable performance as Phil Dunphy stands head and shoulders above the rest for me. In addition, you may be of the opinion that actually all family members play a leading role. Still, in my opinion, the better-known names Ed O'Neill, Sofía Vergara and Julie Bowen were the crowd-pullers when this series was announced. All in all, the character of Phil Dunphy deserves a moment of glory. It's difficult to make people laugh and he succeeds like no other.
Phil is a father anyone would like to have. He is such a touching and sweet man, but at the same time incredibly clumsy. He is the husband of Claire and father of three children named Haley, Alex and Luke. Phil often approaches everything in a positive way. He tries to have a good relationship with his children by talking like a peer, but at the same time acting like a parent. That combination regularly goes wrong, causing hilarious moments. What is also fantastic are the comments that Phil makes. He unintentionally makes comments that can have an ambiguous meaning and that creates awkward moments.
These ambiguous comments come in handy when he is around his father-in-law Jay. Jay has a much younger wife named Gloria. Phil secretly has a crush on her. This is otherwise very innocent in nature, but throughout the seasons the makers ensure that these characters share moments with each other that are extremely funny. One of the many nice moments, for example, is when Phil compliments Gloria on her dress. Gloria speaks English with a considerable Colombian accent, which can sometimes cause confusion. Gloria answers with 'thank you Phil', but Phil thinks she is saying 'thank you, feel'. This makes Phil want to touch her without any embarrassment. Claire then quickly pulls her husband away from this situation. It is one of the many gems that you must see to experience how funny it is.
Phil also has many interests. He likes science fiction, the concept of robots taking over part of life and role-playing games. The latter is beautifully reflected in various Valentine's Day episodes. Phil and Claire want to stir up some tension in their relationship. They decide to spend the night in a hotel and role-play. Phil poses as Clive Bixby, a businessman, and Claire as Julianna, a local housewife. The two meet in the hotel bar and he seduce her with his charms. She goes to the bathroom and comes back without any clothes on and only covered in a long coat. They get ready to go upstairs, but her coat gets caught in the escalator. This puts them in an awkward position with all the hilarious consequences that entails.
There are countless moments to highlight what a performance Ty has made. The character Phil Dunphy has become an iconic character. The members of MySeries also call him by far their favorite actor and I can only agree with that. Maybe next issue I'll cover my other favorite character. No one said you can only have one per series, right? Until the next one!