Slow Down Your Neighbors
Encyclopedia
"Slow Down Your Neighbors" is the eleventh episode of the second season
of Modern Family
and the 35th episode overall. It originally aired on January 5, 2011 on the American Broadcasting Company
(ABC). The episode was written by Ilana Wernick and was directed by Gail Mancuso
, who were also both credited for the previous episode, "Dance Dance Revelation
". The episode features a guest appearance from James Marsden
as Barry, Cameron and Mitchell's new neighbor.
In the episode, Claire
(Julie Bowen
) becomes a neighborhood vigilante hoping to catch and stop a car that speeds through their streets. Meanwhile, Phil
(Ty Burrell
) is busy trying to land an important listing with a difficult client, Jay (Ed O'Neill
) teaches Manny (Rico Rodriguez) and Gloria (Sofía Vergara
) how to ride a bike, and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson
) and Cameron
(Eric Stonestreet
) meet a charming mysterious neighbor (James Marsden).
"Slow Down Your Neighbors" received mostly positive reviews from critics, many of whom praised Nolan Gould
's performance. The episode was viewed by 11.756 million households and received a 4.8 rating/13% share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49 marking a 14% rise from the previous episode, "Dance Dance Revelation". The episode was the second highest rated scripted program of the week behind The Simpsons
which had received abnormally high ratings due to the NFL playoffs
.
becomes a determined neighborhood vigilante hoping to catch and stop a sports car that is speeding through the suburban streets. Meanwhile, Phil
sells a house nearby for a difficult client, Laura (Jami Gertz
), who happens to be the driver of the car. Claire prints out several posters, intending to say "slow down," with the license plate of the car below, signed "your neighbors." However, the rest of her family point out the posters actually state "slow down your neighbors." Regardless, Claire orders Phil to put them up. Later, Claire chases the car on a bicycle
, but loses it. She meets Phil at the open house he has arranged for Laura and is introduced to her. Laura is just about to leave and offers Claire a lift back to her home, she enters the car realizing too late that she is in the car she despises, while Laura critizises the woman that made the posters as a sex-starved woman.
Manny is about to ride his first bicycle to school. However, his stepfather Jay finds training wheels
on the bike, set up by Manny's mother, Gloria. Jay decides to teach Manny to ride without the stabilizers, and comes to realize Manny is a natural at riding a bike by himself. As Gloria has never ridden a bike either, after being traumatized by her mother that riding a bicycle is the best way to getting kiddnapped, Jay tries to teach her, but she is unsuccessful. Gloria turns to Phil for bike riding lessons but he is about to leave for the open house at Laura's, Luke decides to teach her by squirting her with a water gun, and Gloria manages to ride it, which soon goes south after Claire steals her bike while Gloria is still on it. Seeing as this teaching method is a success, Luke does the same to his big sister Hayley to get her to study with Phil's consent.
Couple Mitchell and Cameron
find that they have a charming new neighbor named Barry who has moved to the apartment above. Cameron takes an immediate liking to Barry, though Mitchell is reluctant because Barry is fond of reiki
, which he considers as a bunch of hot air. However, as Mitchell starts to trust him, Cameron hears from his land lady that nobody has moved into the apartment above, and Cameron realizes Barry is living in his daughter's castle. When Cameron tells Barry to leave, they get into a struggle; Cameron gets Mitchell to call the police
but not after affirming that he was right in writing Barry off.
. The episode is the third writing credit for Ilana Wenick after the first season finale, "Family Portrait
" and the previously aired episode, "Dance Dance Revelation
". The episode is also the second directing credit for Gail Mancuso
after the previous episode, "Dance Dance Revelation". "Slow Down Your Neighbors" originally aired on January 5, 2011 on American Broadcasting Company
(ABC). The episode was filmed on October 27, and October 29, 2010. In October 2010, William Keck of TV Guide
reported that James Marsden
would guest star on Modern Family as Cameron and Mitchell's new shirtless neighbor. Marsden filmed his appearance on October 29, 2010 which he described as a great experience saying they have "Really great comedians and writers on the show and it was great to have that behind you". The episode also featured a guest appearance from Jami Gertz
, who played Laura, Phil's new client and the speedy driver.
s episode "Moms I'd Like to Forget
" which had followed the highly rated NFL play-offs. Added with DVR
viewers, "Slow Down Your Neighbors" received a 6.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic, adding a 1.7 to the original viewership.
writer Donna Bowman praised "Slow Down Your Neighbors" for the use of all the characters, writing "Attention to detail may be one of the factors that makes Modern Family such a solid sitcom specimen.". She ultimately rated the episode with an A-. TV Squad's Joel Keller was positive, but noted the episode "felt a little slapstick and predictable". Despite this he said "some pretty funny moments crossing our screens.". Lesley Savage of Entertainment Weekly
complemented James Marsden's performance naming it the second best moment of the episode and commented that the scene of his character and Cameron fighting in the Lily's princess castle "the best moment of the entire show". New York
's Rachael Maddux commented that "the show kicked off its second season's second half in such fine form". Kara Klenc of TV Guide
called the episode "great". Sam Morgan of Hollywood complimented the writers for adding a "twist on a traditional sitcom story" for the Mitchell-Cameron storyline. Morgan also praised the performance of Ty Burrell saying that it "showed that Ty Burrell deserved the Emmy over Eric Stonestreet". Not all reviews were positive. HitFix
reviewer Alan Sepinwall wrote that the episode "didn't really work for me" due to the Claire-Phil storyline although he did compliment Marsden's performance.
Multiple critics praised the performance of Nolan Gould
. Time
contributor James Poniewozik wrote it was a "great episode for his character all around" and called him "the topper in this episode". Joel Keller called Gould's character Luke, "one of the funniest dumb kids ever created for television". He also praised the scene featuring Luke spraying Gloria with a water gun and then later drinking from it saying that "it reminded us that this new hard-ass is still Luke at the end of the day".
Modern Family (season 2)
The second season of the comedy television series, Modern Family premiered September 22, 2010 and ended on May 25, 2011 on the American Broadcasting Company in the United States. The series is produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Lloyd-Levitan Productions with creators...
of Modern Family
Modern Family
Modern Family is an American television comedy series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, which debuted on ABC on September 23, 2009. Lloyd and Levitan serve as showrunner and executive producers, under their Levitan-Lloyd Productions label...
and the 35th episode overall. It originally aired on January 5, 2011 on the American Broadcasting Company
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
(ABC). The episode was written by Ilana Wernick and was directed by Gail Mancuso
Gail Mancuso
Gail Mancuso is an American television director.- Select TV work :* Modern Family * $h*! My Dad Says * 30 Rock * Scrubs...
, who were also both credited for the previous episode, "Dance Dance Revelation
Dance Dance Revelation
"Dance Dance Revelation" is the tenth episode of the second season of the sitcom, Modern Family and the 34th overall. It originally aired December 8, 2010 on the ABC...
". The episode features a guest appearance from James Marsden
James Marsden
James Paul Marsden is an American actor, singer and former Versace model. He is known for playing the superhero Cyclops in the first three X-Men films and for his roles in other commercially successful films such as Hop, Superman Returns, Hairspray, Enchanted, The Box, and 27 Dresses.-Early life...
as Barry, Cameron and Mitchell's new neighbor.
In the episode, Claire
Claire Dunphy
Claire Dunphy is a fictional character on the American television series Modern Family. She is portrayed by Julie Bowen.Claire is the daughter of Jay, Mitchell's older sister, and the overprotective mother of the Dunphy family and its three very different kids...
(Julie Bowen
Julie Bowen
Julie Bowen is an American film and television actress. She played Carol Vessey on Ed and Denise Bauer on Boston Legal. She is best known for playing Claire Dunphy on the sitcom Modern Family, for which she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2011...
) becomes a neighborhood vigilante hoping to catch and stop a car that speeds through their streets. Meanwhile, Phil
Phil Dunphy
Phil Dunphy is a fictional character on the American television series Modern Family. He is portrayed by Ty Burrell.Phil is a real estate agent who lives in California with his family. An Irish American, he has been married to Claire Dunphy for sixteen years and has three children, Haley, Alex, and...
(Ty Burrell
Ty Burrell
- External links :*...
) is busy trying to land an important listing with a difficult client, Jay (Ed O'Neill
Ed O'Neill
Edward Phillip "Ed" O'Neill, Jr. is an American actor. He is best known for his role as the main character, Al Bundy, on the Fox Network sitcom Married... with Children, for which he was nominated for two Golden Globes...
) teaches Manny (Rico Rodriguez) and Gloria (Sofía Vergara
Sofía Vergara
Sofía Margarita Vergara Vergara is a Colombian actress, comedian, television hostess and model.Vergara had been widely known for co-hosting two TV shows for Univisión in the late 1990s. Her TV career opened up for her a window of exposure to North American audiences prior to her first notable...
) how to ride a bike, and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Jesse Tyler Ferguson is an American actor who portrays Mitchell Pritchett on the ABC sitcom Modern Family. Previously he played the role of Richie Velch in the CBS sitcom The Class. He is openly gay.-Life and career:...
) and Cameron
Cameron Tucker
Cameron Scott Tucker is a fictional character on the American television series Modern Family. He is portrayed by Eric Stonestreet.Cameron, also referred to as Cam, is Mitchell's partner of five years, and one of Lily's fathers, who has a very big dramatic personality. His bubbly outgoing...
(Eric Stonestreet
Eric Stonestreet
Eric Stonestreet is an American actor, known for his starring role as Cameron Tucker on the ABC comedy Modern Family. Stonestreet has received critical acclaim for his performance in Modern Family and won the 2010 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his...
) meet a charming mysterious neighbor (James Marsden).
"Slow Down Your Neighbors" received mostly positive reviews from critics, many of whom praised Nolan Gould
Nolan Gould
Nolan Gould is an American child actor best known for his starring role as Luke Dunphy on the ABC comedy Modern Family. He is the brother of Aidan Gould-Acting career:...
's performance. The episode was viewed by 11.756 million households and received a 4.8 rating/13% share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49 marking a 14% rise from the previous episode, "Dance Dance Revelation". The episode was the second highest rated scripted program of the week behind The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
which had received abnormally high ratings due to the NFL playoffs
NFL playoffs
The National Football League playoffs are a single-elimination tournament held at the end of the regular season to determine the NFL champion. Six teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs based on regular season records, and a tie-breaking procedure exists in the...
.
Plot
ClaireClaire Dunphy
Claire Dunphy is a fictional character on the American television series Modern Family. She is portrayed by Julie Bowen.Claire is the daughter of Jay, Mitchell's older sister, and the overprotective mother of the Dunphy family and its three very different kids...
becomes a determined neighborhood vigilante hoping to catch and stop a sports car that is speeding through the suburban streets. Meanwhile, Phil
Phil Dunphy
Phil Dunphy is a fictional character on the American television series Modern Family. He is portrayed by Ty Burrell.Phil is a real estate agent who lives in California with his family. An Irish American, he has been married to Claire Dunphy for sixteen years and has three children, Haley, Alex, and...
sells a house nearby for a difficult client, Laura (Jami Gertz
Jami Gertz
Jami Beth Gertz is an American actress. Gertz is known for her early roles in the films Sixteen Candles, Crossroads, The Lost Boys, Less Than Zero, the 1980s TV series Square Pegs with Sarah Jessica Parker, and 1996's Twister, as well as for her role as Judy Miller in the CBS sitcom Still Standing...
), who happens to be the driver of the car. Claire prints out several posters, intending to say "slow down," with the license plate of the car below, signed "your neighbors." However, the rest of her family point out the posters actually state "slow down your neighbors." Regardless, Claire orders Phil to put them up. Later, Claire chases the car on a bicycle
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
, but loses it. She meets Phil at the open house he has arranged for Laura and is introduced to her. Laura is just about to leave and offers Claire a lift back to her home, she enters the car realizing too late that she is in the car she despises, while Laura critizises the woman that made the posters as a sex-starved woman.
Manny is about to ride his first bicycle to school. However, his stepfather Jay finds training wheels
Training wheels
Training wheels are an additional wheel or wheels mounted parallel to the rear wheel of a bicycle that assist learners until they have developed a usable sense of balance on the bicycle. Typically they are used in teaching very young children to ride a bike, although versions for adults exist...
on the bike, set up by Manny's mother, Gloria. Jay decides to teach Manny to ride without the stabilizers, and comes to realize Manny is a natural at riding a bike by himself. As Gloria has never ridden a bike either, after being traumatized by her mother that riding a bicycle is the best way to getting kiddnapped, Jay tries to teach her, but she is unsuccessful. Gloria turns to Phil for bike riding lessons but he is about to leave for the open house at Laura's, Luke decides to teach her by squirting her with a water gun, and Gloria manages to ride it, which soon goes south after Claire steals her bike while Gloria is still on it. Seeing as this teaching method is a success, Luke does the same to his big sister Hayley to get her to study with Phil's consent.
Couple Mitchell and Cameron
Cameron Tucker
Cameron Scott Tucker is a fictional character on the American television series Modern Family. He is portrayed by Eric Stonestreet.Cameron, also referred to as Cam, is Mitchell's partner of five years, and one of Lily's fathers, who has a very big dramatic personality. His bubbly outgoing...
find that they have a charming new neighbor named Barry who has moved to the apartment above. Cameron takes an immediate liking to Barry, though Mitchell is reluctant because Barry is fond of reiki
Reiki
is a spiritual practice developed in 1922 by Japanese Buddhist Mikao Usui. The teaching was continued and adapted by various teachers. It uses a technique commonly called palm healing as a form of complementary and alternative medicine and is sometimes classified as oriental medicine by some...
, which he considers as a bunch of hot air. However, as Mitchell starts to trust him, Cameron hears from his land lady that nobody has moved into the apartment above, and Cameron realizes Barry is living in his daughter's castle. When Cameron tells Barry to leave, they get into a struggle; Cameron gets Mitchell to call the police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
but not after affirming that he was right in writing Barry off.
Production
"Slow Down Your Neighbors" was written by Ilana Wernick and directed by Gail MancusoGail Mancuso
Gail Mancuso is an American television director.- Select TV work :* Modern Family * $h*! My Dad Says * 30 Rock * Scrubs...
. The episode is the third writing credit for Ilana Wenick after the first season finale, "Family Portrait
Family Portrait (Modern Family)
"Family Portrait" is the twenty-fourth episode and the season finale of the first season of Modern Family. It originally premiered May 19, 2010 on American Broadcasting Company ....
" and the previously aired episode, "Dance Dance Revelation
Dance Dance Revelation
"Dance Dance Revelation" is the tenth episode of the second season of the sitcom, Modern Family and the 34th overall. It originally aired December 8, 2010 on the ABC...
". The episode is also the second directing credit for Gail Mancuso
Gail Mancuso
Gail Mancuso is an American television director.- Select TV work :* Modern Family * $h*! My Dad Says * 30 Rock * Scrubs...
after the previous episode, "Dance Dance Revelation". "Slow Down Your Neighbors" originally aired on January 5, 2011 on American Broadcasting Company
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
(ABC). The episode was filmed on October 27, and October 29, 2010. In October 2010, William Keck of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
reported that James Marsden
James Marsden
James Paul Marsden is an American actor, singer and former Versace model. He is known for playing the superhero Cyclops in the first three X-Men films and for his roles in other commercially successful films such as Hop, Superman Returns, Hairspray, Enchanted, The Box, and 27 Dresses.-Early life...
would guest star on Modern Family as Cameron and Mitchell's new shirtless neighbor. Marsden filmed his appearance on October 29, 2010 which he described as a great experience saying they have "Really great comedians and writers on the show and it was great to have that behind you". The episode also featured a guest appearance from Jami Gertz
Jami Gertz
Jami Beth Gertz is an American actress. Gertz is known for her early roles in the films Sixteen Candles, Crossroads, The Lost Boys, Less Than Zero, the 1980s TV series Square Pegs with Sarah Jessica Parker, and 1996's Twister, as well as for her role as Judy Miller in the CBS sitcom Still Standing...
, who played Laura, Phil's new client and the speedy driver.
Ratings
In its original American broadcast on January 5, 2011, "Slow Down Your Neighbors" was viewed by an estimated 11.756 million viewers and received a 4.8 rating/13% share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49. This means that it was seen by 4.8% of all 18–49 years olds, and 13% of all 18–49 year olds watching television at the time of the broadcast. This marked a 14 percent rise in the 18-49 demographic from the previous original episode, "Dance Dance Revelation". The episode became the highest rated show on ABC and finished 6th in the ratings for the week of January 3 to January 9, 2010. The episode also became the second highest rated scripted show after The SimpsonsThe Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
s episode "Moms I'd Like to Forget
Moms I'd Like to Forget
"Moms I'd Like to Forget" is the tenth episode of The Simpsons twenty-second season. It aired on the Fox Network on January 9, 2011. In the episode, Marge reveals that she used to be in a group called "The Cool Moms" and decides to reconnect with the group. It was directed by Chris Clements and...
" which had followed the highly rated NFL play-offs. Added with DVR
Digital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
viewers, "Slow Down Your Neighbors" received a 6.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic, adding a 1.7 to the original viewership.
Reviews
The episode received mostly positive reviews from critics. The A.V. ClubThe A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
writer Donna Bowman praised "Slow Down Your Neighbors" for the use of all the characters, writing "Attention to detail may be one of the factors that makes Modern Family such a solid sitcom specimen.". She ultimately rated the episode with an A-. TV Squad's Joel Keller was positive, but noted the episode "felt a little slapstick and predictable". Despite this he said "some pretty funny moments crossing our screens.". Lesley Savage of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
complemented James Marsden's performance naming it the second best moment of the episode and commented that the scene of his character and Cameron fighting in the Lily's princess castle "the best moment of the entire show". New York
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
's Rachael Maddux commented that "the show kicked off its second season's second half in such fine form". Kara Klenc of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
called the episode "great". Sam Morgan of Hollywood complimented the writers for adding a "twist on a traditional sitcom story" for the Mitchell-Cameron storyline. Morgan also praised the performance of Ty Burrell saying that it "showed that Ty Burrell deserved the Emmy over Eric Stonestreet". Not all reviews were positive. HitFix
HitFix
HitFix, or the HitFix.com is an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information and providing reviews and critiques of film, music and television...
reviewer Alan Sepinwall wrote that the episode "didn't really work for me" due to the Claire-Phil storyline although he did compliment Marsden's performance.
Multiple critics praised the performance of Nolan Gould
Nolan Gould
Nolan Gould is an American child actor best known for his starring role as Luke Dunphy on the ABC comedy Modern Family. He is the brother of Aidan Gould-Acting career:...
. Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
contributor James Poniewozik wrote it was a "great episode for his character all around" and called him "the topper in this episode". Joel Keller called Gould's character Luke, "one of the funniest dumb kids ever created for television". He also praised the scene featuring Luke spraying Gloria with a water gun and then later drinking from it saying that "it reminded us that this new hard-ass is still Luke at the end of the day".
External links
- "Slow Down Your Neighbors" at ABC.com