Modern Family?

As one would guess from the name, Modern Family touts itself as a progressive representation of the American family. The ABC sitcom definitely does a good job of portraying realistic familial relationships, but that doesn't mean they're necessarily progressive. At first glance, the cast and families portrayed seem diverse enough. Claire and Phil are the white middle class, cookie cutter family, Jay and Gloria are mixed-race couple with an age gap and Cam and Mitchell are the gay couple. Except that they hardly act like a couple. And I'm not talking about last year's campaign to get them to kiss on screen. Despite the unnecessarily long time that took to happen, their relationship has far more problems than a simple lack of PDA. Obviously in a sitcom about relationships, conflict between couples is inevitable. However, while the other couples bicker, at least their love for each other is apparent. Cam and Mitchell often make me wonder why they're even together. In one episode last season, Mitchell spends a whole episode devising a plan to get out of taking care of Cam, who is sick with the flu, so he can go to a concert. What stands out in this scenario is how little Mitchell seems to care about Cam. Their attitude towards each other is often disdainful or even competitive in one instance when they compete for the attention of one of Mitchell's co-workers. And while Claire is often fed up with Phil, or Jay with Gloria, their frustration is usually accompanied with fondness and attraction on some level. This is not the case for Cam and Mitchell and they end up reading more like a flamboyant Odd Couple than a married couple. In my opinion this is ABC's way of quieting anyone who advocate for LGBT inclusion without making the other side uncomfortable by portraying them as a real couple. This exploitation of a minority is hardly progressive or "modern" in any way.