Some quality ‘Family’ time

It seems the mockumentary style of television comedies has been done to death, but somehow “Modern Family” manages to avoid any staleness. It’s undoubtedly one of the funniest shows on TV.

The “Modern” part of the title is important. The three families the cameras follow include examples of multi-cultural families and same-sex couples. The show isn’t really about different kinds of families, though; it’s about the commonalities among all families.

Ed O’Neill plays the patriarch of the family. He’s married to a much younger woman, who has a son from her previous marriage. His uptight daughter and her painfully un-hip husband are busy dealing with rebellious children.

The third family is composed of the patriarch’s son and his partner, who have just gone to Vietnam to adopt a baby.

Although there are some overly emotional moments, occasionally, the show mostly sticks with laughs, which are never in short supply.