Chirp

Phil is home for the day because a few of his real estate appointments fell through. To make matters worse his wife and daughter are at home sick, he can’t find the beeping smoke detector, and his son is making him feel bad about how poorly work is going.  Definitely not a good day. It was interesting to see Phil in a slightly more serious light .  He really does want to provide for his family and even something as simple as changing the battery in a smoke detector takes on a greater meaning to him. You really feel for him. It was nice to see his serious side, but I’m glad the writers didn’t make it too sappy (he was still being goofy: frustrated with the beeping smoke detectors he starts whacking all of them with a baton).

While Claire and Haley are at home together, Claire takes this time to try to convince Haley to see other boys.  Claire just doesn’t like Dillon and thinks her daughter should try to see who else is out there.  Instead of just coming out with her feelings, Claire attempts to talk about the failed relationship of a woman on the soap opera they are watching.  She hopes that Haley will see herself in this relationship. Claire’s plan fails as Haley thinks that Claire is actually comparing this failed relationship to her mother’s marriage. The mix-up is not only understandable but also hilarious. Haley becomes the mature adult, telling Claire she owes it to this family to give her marriage another try.

Jay fires one of his employees after he lets Manny drive a forklift by himself….into a wall.  Manny is so upset by the dismissal that he stops talking to Jay. However, once Jay explains that he wouldn’t ever work with someone who harmed his kid, Manny has a change of heart. This is the first time Jay has referred to Manny as his son.  We all know how hard it is for Jay to show emotion, so this is a pretty big deal to Manny. Sweet storyline, but I must say that I’m a little disappointed that Manny wasn’t funnier.  I’m used to him being so mature, but this episode proved that he is still a kid who seeks the affection of his step-father.

Best storyline involves Mitch, Cam, and Lily.  Against Mitch’s wishes, Cam has decided to make an actress out of Lily.  It was only a matter of time before he tried to rub his love for theater off on his daughter. Despite Mitch’s objections (which Cam brushes off as jealousy of “theater folk”), Cam gets her a role in a furniture commercial.  Unfortunately the commercial ends up being a racist parody of Godzilla, complete with stereotypical Japanese voiceovers. It’s clear the only reason Lily was chosen for the role is because she’s Asian.  Cam finally comes to his senses and tells the director off.  He also informs the director that his kid is Vietnamese, NOT Japanese and how dare he assume that all Asians look alike.  Right after he says this he grabs the wrong Asian kid. Pure comedy.