Modern Family is one of the best sitcoms currently on air and we are sad to have learned that it is currently airing its last season. This show not only manages to be both larger than life and oddly relatable, but it has also nailed the truly precarious yet all so important balance between heartfelt moments and light comedy that good sitcoms need to achieve in order to win over audiences.
Today we will be ranking the twelve main Modern Family characters on how funny they are. This can include their hijinks, deliberate jokes, or the amount of humorous situations in which we find said characters. Note, we do recognize that comedy is completely subjective and that different fans of the series may rank these characters differently based on their own sense and definition of humour.
12. Joe
We have nothing against this character, he just doesn’t seem to tickle our funny bone in the way that other characters on this list does. Though he is much younger than the rest of the cast, he does not seem to add much to the plot and his comedic moments are rarely character/personality specific.
Meaning that these humorous moments could have easily been given to another character and it would make no difference in the final product that was seen by the audience. Though adorable and not without his odd comedic moments, Joe just doesn’t do it for us.
11. Manny
Manny is truly a comedic figure. However, the more questionable elements of his character tend to overshadow his more funny moments. While the idea of him being a pint-sized adult was truly comedic at the start of the show, this characterization veered towards creepy very quickly when the showrunners decided to make him infatuated with Haley.
His soft nature, mature outlook, and dramatic flair are truly hilarious. But his obsession with Haley honestly just makes us uncomfortable and it truly overshadows his more comedic moments.
10. Gloria
Gloria is not without her own comedic moments, but something that doesn’t really sit right with us is the reliance that the writers have placed upon stereotypes while creating her backstory and her spoken jokes.
We love her over-the-top personality, the passion she has when defending her family, and her ability to playfully let those around her know when they need to be knocked down a peg/have gone too far without ruining the light-hearted mood of the moment. However, we are just not a fan of the sheer number of jokes that rely upon unfair and out-dated stereotypes.
9. Lily
Lily has some of the best one-liners in the show and her attitude can leave audiences in stitches. However, sometimes it goes a bit too far. We all love the sassy child character. Every sitcom has one and they are often given the best lines and comedic moments.
But as the seasons go on and Lily grows up, it seems like her jokes have grown meaner over time and aren’t really jokes anymore. And we get it, growing up can be rough and hormones can make you do and say crazy things. But Lily is the master of roasting those around her but sometimes it goes too far and crosses that line between playful humour and outright bullying.
8. Jay
The thing we love about Jay is that he is the grumpy grandfather that we all know and grew up with. We love how he realizes the mistakes he made in his youth and is trying to make it right in his old age. His character spends a large portion of the show unlearning some of the more negative habits and assumptions he absorbed during his life and learns how to be more open-minded, vulnerable, and kind.
We are rather split on his comedic moments. Sometimes they focus on outdated and awkward stereotypes that can be rather uncomfortable to watch. But they often focus, instead, on puns, old age jokes, and silly “grandpa” things that we can all relate to and laugh about.
7. Claire
Though Claire can be rather harsh in her blunt honesty, she is one of the more comedic adults in the show’s main cast. However, her humour comes in a less conventional form and can easily be overlooked if one is not paying attention.
Claire’s humour comes in the form of oneliners, subtle jokes, and reactions to her family members antics. When surrounded by a family of over-the-top eternal children, it is important to have a straight man that can react to the situations in which they find themselves in.
6. Haley
The brilliance of Haley’s comedic moments lies in the fact that we can truly relate to her foray into adulthood. Watching Haley try and fail at different goals helps us laugh at our own silly moments and mistakes.
We have all cried in our car after a bad day, hid a more wild moment from our parents- even into adulthood, and wondered if we were ever going to make it in this life on our own. We laugh with Haley as she navigates the ups and downs of her early 20s because we have all been there.
5. Alex
The beauty of Alex lies in her tendency to over-react to the situations that happen around her. She is the golden child and is used to life coming easy to her, so when life starts to knock her around and things don’t pan out how she expects; Alex loses it just a little bit.
We have all wanted to lose it every now and then; especially when things don’t go our way/according to plan. Alex is not the kind of girl who keeps her feelings/thoughts to herself and seeing her lose it in moments where we had to hold it together is truly refreshing and hilarious.
4. Luke
The secret to Luke’s comedic moments is the fact that he is rarely in on the joke himself. Yes, he is the daft character of the show. But all sitcoms need a character who is just there for the ride and hasn’t a clue what is really going on.
The daft character is a hit or miss role and can easily come across as forced or cartoonish if the writers go too far. But they’ve managed to strike gold with Luke via their blend of comedic and heartfelt moments.
3. Mitch
Our favourite thing about Mitch is not how truly dramatic he is, but the fact that he does not think he is dramatic at all. He is one of the most theatrical and over-the-top characters in the series, but he is utterly convinced that he is level-headed, rational, and the only one in the family that has it all together.
The continued contrast between his cartoonishly dramatic actions and the interviews in which he claims that he does not have a dramatic bone in his body is one of the best moments in the show.
2. Cam
The best thing about Cam is the fact that he is who he is. He is over-the-top, dramatic, theatrical, and passionate. And we love him for it.
From his obsession with providing clown-based entertainment for all family gatherings and events to his love for musical numbers, the thing that makes Cam one of the funniest characters in the show is the fact that he is a real-life cartoon character.
1. Phil
Phil is, by far, the funniest character on the show. And the best part of his character is the fact that his serious moments are often his funniest moments. His attempts to show his children how much he loves them by “memorizing” the lyrics to their favourite musicals, his real estate alphabet, and his dramatic reactions to both painful and happy emotions are all equally hilarious.
Though his puns, intentional jokes, and attempts to create humour are funny as well, the true humour comes from his unintentionally comedic moments. We love his slapstick, his awkward conversations, and his constant attempts to impress Jay.
Next: Modern Family: 10 Times Claire Was A Bully
