Modern Family - The Complete Fourth Season (2012 - 2013/Fox Blu-ray)

Picture: A- Sound: B+ Extras: A- Episodes: B+

Season 4 of Modern Family has all viewers rejoining the Pritchetts as Jay and Gloria prepare to have new addition to the family. As Phil and Claire get ready to send Haley off to college, Mitch and Cam learns what it is to be fathers. As their family grows they face new challenges, family politics, laughter and tears together to give new meaning to what it means to be a 'modern' family.

This series is a comedy/mockumentary show with the makers reflecting about today's modern family in American, with an extended family, here the Pritchetts. Jay is a wealthy patriarch, remarried to Gloria a beautiful woman young enough to be his daughter/trophy wife and his poetry loving step-son Manny. Jay's daughter Claire is homemaker married to Phil a real estate agent with three children, Haley the oldest a spoiled and vain popular girl, Alex the middle child girl genius, and Luke their youngest son. Their are joined by Jay's wayward gay lawyer son Mitchell and his partner Cameron with their adopted Vietnamese daughter, Lily.

With Ed O'Neil, you can't help but feel this series is like an updated version of Married with Children, with a larger family and cast on some level. The show has monologues in each episode which various characters talk to the audience with their pearls of wisdom. The series explores some of the different things in current families including remarriage, huge age differences between spouses, homosexual families/partners, and adoption. While complications exist in families in today's society, the world in which the series features seem to have a more social acceptance these type of things, but in all it is a heartfelt comedy series about today's diverse multi-cultural families.

The 1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer is an HD shoot with the usual shaky camerawork throughout, but it could not look better for it, while the DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mixes on all episodes are also as good as they can get, but the .1 LFE channel and surrounds are only going to be so active, as it is a sitcom after all. It is well recorded. Extras include A Day with Eric, Commentary tracks on episodes, a Modern Families guide to parenting, addition to the family, Modern Family writers, Rag Reel, deleted and alternate scenes, and season finale director's cut.

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Bringing Up Baby - Gloria has to tell Jay she is pregnant.

Schooled - Phil and Claire sends Haley to college, Jay and Gloria take parenting classes.

Snip - Phil considers getting a vasectomy.

The Butler's Escape - Luke considers giving up magic to Phil's disappointment.

Open House of Horrors - Claire Halloween pranks cause the neighbors to avoid their house.

Yard Sale - The family takes a trip down memory lane with all their old stuff.

Arrested - Hailey gets kicked out of college for underage drinking.

Mistery Date - Manny and Luke tries to pick up some girls at a bar mitzvah.

When a Tree Falls - Mitch and Cam tries to save a tree from being cut down.

Diamond in the Rough - Claire and Cam builds a baseball field and tries house flipping.

New Year's Eve - The adults celebrate the new year, with results they didn't plan for.

Party Crasher - Hailey dates a guy old enough to be her father.

Fulgencio - Gloria's mother and sister comes to visit the new baby.

A Slight at the Opera - Cam's lead for his production of Phantom of the Opera get sick.

Heart Broken - It's Valentine's Day and all the adults are feeling they want some romantic privacy, but...

Bad Hair Day - Cam give's little Joe a bad hair cut and someone has to tell Gloria.

Best Men - Mitch and Cam become best men for their friend from college.

The Wow Factor - Phil, Claire, Mitch and Cam fight over how to do the house flipping.

The Future Dunphys - Phil and Claire meet a couple who looks like their future.

Flip Flop - Phil tries to sell the house they flipped.

Career Day - Phil goes to Luke and Manny's career day and finds his rival.

My Hero - Manny has to write an essay on who his hero is.

Games People Play - Phil takes his family on a road trip from hell.

Goodnight, Gracia - Phil's mother dies and leaves something for all the family to learn and remember her by.

- Ricky Chiang