The Bicycle Thief

Season 1, Episode 2, Aired

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7.1
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EPISODE RATING: Good
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As Phil helps his son in showing Claire that he can be trusted with a brand new bike, Phil turns out to be the irresponsible one when he notices a hot neighbor. Meanwhile, Mitchell and Cameron bring Lily to their Mommy & Me class while Manny and Jay uncomfortably spend some father and son time together.moreless
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Fan Episode Reviews (7)

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  • Good Job on the Second Episode

    8.0
    "Great"
    By modernfamily120, Jan 31, 2012
    12.6 million people watched the Pilot episode on Sptember 23, 2009. A week later comes another episode. A lot of those 12.6 million were going to watch. And those 10 million people who did watch saw a funny episode.
    Phil had SO MANY funny moments in this episode!
    The plot with Mitchell and Cam was hilarious because Mitchell's perfectionism meets Cam's energy and non-conformism.
    The plot with the Pritchett-Delgados was interesting, but not very funny.
    If there had been a hilarious plot with the Pritchett-Delgados, then I would give this episode a 10, but it wasn't funny, so this episode gets an 8 from me.moreless

  • Phil gets Luke a bike

    8.5
    "Great"
    By Lostindharma, Dec 14, 2011
    Before I start, I think was the second episode but it's the third episode of the Season 1 DVD. A very funny episode that focused on parenting, relationships and limits. A continuing theme was Phil missing up but trying to fix it without Claire finding out and even lieing about it as not to make her more mad. When Phil does this, I think he does it because not because he is a bad husband, but he is trying to be a perfect husband. The scene with the attractive neighbor are great. Obviously he is attracted to her, but doesn't want to be. Another good part was seeing Jay and Manny together. In these scenes, I can see a little Al Bundy in Jay. One of my favorite parts of the episode was seeing Jay lieing to Manny to protect not only Manny's view of his father but his feelings as well. At the end of the show, it seemed like the realtionship was starting to improve. I also enjoyed seeing Cameron, Mitchell and their daughter together at the kids play thing. Seeing Cameron talk "normal" was great. When the flamboyant couple come in and Cameron's reaction was laugh out loud funny. A very solid episode.moreless

  • What a great plot.... Too Bad Its Stolen

    1.0
    "Abysmal"
    By PIEGUYRULZ, Dec 06, 2011
    How funny is it that a father steels a bike that he thought was his sons only to find out that it wasn't his sons at all Ha Ha Ha It seems like a good plot... and it is but there's one small issue: Full House Did It A Few Decades Ago!!!!!. (Am I the only one who remembers full house?) Come on abc is this what you call a "fresh" new sitcom: A lame mocumentary angle and twenty year old plot lines? And while I'm on the topic of the mocumentary style, I have many complaints about it. Mainly the fact that it is Lazy!!, I mean you could try to get exposition out through natural dialogue between the characters but nope thats too hard for these brain dead writers who would rather just have the characters explicitly tell us crap that they were to lazy to write into the story. Its like if every episode has a long star wars text scroll explaining all this. This is the last episode of modern family I am going to watchmoreless

  • The Bicycle Thief

    6.5
    "Fair"
    By thefanof, Apr 15, 2011
    Okay episode of Modern Family here. The premise was good and as usual Phil was funny, but the rest of the episode was pretty forgettable. Jay's hatred toward Manny just feels so forced, scripted and just not believable.

    What I do like are the "serious" moments at the end of the episode, the feel good, morals during the final scene or two where the cast learns something. They actually do not mess up the flow of the show like they do when How I Met Your Mother tries them. Definitely a step up from the pilot, but that is not saying too much.moreless

  • AWESOME follow up to the pilot.

    9.0
    "Superb"
    By JaCkKbAuEr2424, Aug 16, 2010
    If the pilot was the show attempting to find its footing, than this is Modern Family finding its footing and providing some of the funniest moments I've seen in the past couple of seasons.

    It's easy to point out the flaws in Modern Family.. Sure, maybe it drags a little sometimes (though this episode barely had ANY) and it's similar to other mockumentaries on TV right now, like The Office and Parks and Recreation. But I think Modern Family uses this the best (although an argument can be made for The Office). The camera work is subtle, never making it feel like they're trying to shove in your face "THIS IS A DOCUMENTARY!" Instead, you get some casual looks to the camera (Phil's quick glance over when he sees Desiree was priceless) and some talking heads that don't overdo it.

    As I said before, this episode felt like a giant step forward for the show. The whole bicycle storyline was hilarious, and watching Phil dig himself further and further into a hole in order to cover up what happened was amazing to watch. It was like watching Michael Scott crash and burn, but not as awkward and sometimes familiar, mostly because we haven't had six seasons to get to know Phil yet.

    Even the side stories were good, with Cameron and Mitchell having an awkward time at the baby place. Mitchell stealing the kids blocks and then realizing there was a security camera was also worth some huge laughs and Cameron's Meryl Streep talking head was good. The fact they brought it back for the tag took me completely off guard, in the best way possible.

    The follow up to the pilot was a pleasant surprise. I hope the ratings can stay up and not fade away like a lot of great sitcoms. Modern Family and Community are the best new comedies right now on TV.. it's definitely a good year for comedy so far.

    Phils look to the camera
    Jay's awful attitude
    Mitchell
    The tagmoreless
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  • TRIVIA (1)

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  • QUOTES (10)

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    • Jay: Manny thinks his father is like Superman. Truth: he's a total flake. In fact, the only way he is like Superman is that they both landed in this country illegally.

    • Jay: Hey, hey, hey, nice bike Sally. Claire: Dad. Jay: Oh come on, he looks like Little Bo Peep on that thing. Phil: Actually, not for long. He's getting a new bike this afternoon. Luke: I am? (Phil nods) Claire: He is? (At his one-on-one with the camera at home) Phil: Sometimes a man has got to put his foot down and do what a man's gotta do. And if the old lady don't like it... (turns around to make sure that Claire's not around) Honey?!... (looks back into the camera) ...that's too damn bad.

    • Jay: Sometimes things work out just the way you want. Sometimes they don't. You gotta hang in there. Because when all is said and done, ninety percent of being a dad is just showing up.

    • Mitchell: Wow, paisley and pink. Was there something wrong with the fish net tank top? Cameron: Obviously not, I'm wearing it underneath... Kidding. Just chill, please.

    • Phil: Don't scratch anything while I'm gone... unless it itches. That's different.

    • Phil: (About what's the key to being a great dad) Well, be their buddy. Claire: That's your answer? Phil: ...and stay in school. Claire: No. Phil: ...and don't do drugs. Claire: No. Phil: Just give me the answer. Claire: Oh god!

    • Gloria: It makes me so happy to see my two boys working together. Manny: Jay shocked himself twice. Jay: Okay, Manny. Manny: Well, I warned him. Jay: Yep, he's been a big help. Gloria: Look at you two with your private jokes already. You're a regular Salazar and El Oso.

    • (Anton and Scott enter) Cameron: Are you kidding me? Mitchell: I am so sorry. Cameron: Look at those queens. I would have killed with this crowd, but you had to clip my wings, which you used to be the wind beneath.

    • (after Luke buys a bike) Phil: So listen, buddy, certain members of this family don't think you can take care of this bad boy. Luke: You mean Mom? Phil: Your words, not mine.

    • Manny: My dad once got struck by lightning! That's why he can drink as much as he wants

  • NOTES (1)

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    • Original International Air Dates:
      Canada: September 30, 2009 on Citytv
      United Kingdom: October 22, 2009 on Sky1/Sky1 HD
      Sweden: April 23, 2010 on TV4
      Czech Republic: April 27, 2010 on HBO Comedy
      Australia: May 25, 2010 on Channel Ten
      Latin America: August 17, 2010 on FOX
      India: November 9, 2010 on Star World
      Finland: April 14, 2011 on MTV3

  • ALLUSIONS (1)

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    • Cameron: (on Meryl Streep) ...whether she's divorcing Kramer, whether she's wearing Prada. Cameron is referring to Meryl Streep's films Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), wherein she plays divorcee Joanna Kramer who fights for custody against Ted Kramer (Dustin Hoffman) over their son, and The Devil Wears Prada (2006).

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