| "Undeck the Halls" | |||
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| Modern Family episode | |||
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 10 |
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| Directed by | Randall Einhorn | ||
| Written by | Dan O'Shannon | ||
| Production code | 1ARG11 | ||
| Original air date | December 9, 2009 | ||
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| Season 1 episodes | |||
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| List of Modern Family episodes | |||
"Undeck the Halls" is the tenth episode of the ABC series Modern Family. It premiered on ABC in the United States on December 9, 2009. In the episode, Claire (Julie Bowen) and Phil (Ty Burrell) threaten to take away Christmas when the kids get in trouble; Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) take Lily (Jayden and Ella Hiller) to get her first picture with Santa. Fred Willard guest stars as Phil's dad, Frank Dunphy.
The episode was written by Dan O'Shannon and directed by Randall Einhorn.[1] The episode also received positive reviews from critics and had a 3.8. in the 18–49 demographic.
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Fred Willard makes an appearance as Phil's dad as the family shows Grandpa the Christmas decorations via webcam. Discovering a burn mark on the arm of the couch, Phil and Claire draw the conclusion one of the kids was playing with matches or possibly smoking a cigarette. Phil, as usual, reacts in an extreme manner, threatening to take Christmas away for everyone if no one confesses.
Jay introduces Manny to some Pritchett Christmas traditions, such as watching Miracle on 34th Street. However, Gloria and Manny want to incorporate some of their Colombian practices into Jay's holiday traditions, including practical jokes and fireworks. Jay doesn't react very well.
Meanwhile Cameron and Mitchell take Lily to the mall for her first picture with Santa, however this Santa isn't very jolly. Complaining to management, they are responsible for getting the guy portraying Santa fired. Feeling guilty, they take him home to share dinner - with nerve-wracking results.
In its original American broadcast, "Undeck the Halls" was viewed by an estimated 9.666 million households and received a 3.8 rating/10% share in the 18-49 demographic with a 5.6 rating/6% share Nielsen rating in the Nielsen Media Research.[2] "Undeck the Halls" finished 23rd place in the weekly ratings with.[3] The episode was the 6th highest rated show on ABC in overall viewership for the week, and was second in the 18-49 ratings for the week (following the Disney special Prep and Landing).[3]
Robert Canning gave it a 8.6/10 saying it "set the bar for hopefully many more Christmas episodes to come" saying the most fun came from Cameron and Mitchell's subplot and says he looks forward to more Christmas episodes.[4] Jason Hughes of TV Squad stated in his review "This holiday episode was lighter on the funny moments than most episodes of Modern Family, which isn't to say that it wasn't plenty funny. It substituted those with more heartfelt moments.". He also stated the best moment of the episode was when Jay surprised Gloria and Manny with fireworks.[5] TV Fanatic gave the episode a positive review saying "The episode might not have been as funny as previous installments, but it certainly had some very sweet heart, especially when it came to Jay's storyline." But the episode was criticised for not featuring Fred Willard saying "Fred Willard is comedic genius and could have added a lot to the already amazing Modern Family cast, but was for some odd reason underused."[6]
At the end, the ornament that Phil's father gifted to the Dunphy's burns a hole in the same place as the old one, vindicating the kids. In actuality, after Phil moves the tree out of the room, the likelihood that the ornament would be in the exact same place is very low.
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