Family sitcoms are a staple in the television world. Since its creation, we have been watching people who look like and remind us of ourselves live their lives. We have been there for their highs, their lows, their touching season finales, and their after school specials.
Today, we will be comparing two of the most beloved family sitcoms of the modern era: Modern Family and Malcolm In The Middle. Though they both explore the lives of average American families, the lives that these families lead (and the shows that capture them) could not be more different.
Modern Family: It Keeps Things Light
A lot of shows have a tendency to get rather dark, dramatic, and intense as the seasons wear on. In an attempt to captivate wandering audiences, they will raise the stakes until they become so high that the plot becomes a tad ridiculous and weirdly dark in theme.
Despite its lengthy run, Modern Family stayed committed to keeping things light. It is a sitcom that you can watch after having a hard day and know that you will end the episode feeling much better than you when you started it. You can expect a laugh or two, some wonderful family bonding moments, and a fascinating look at the different kinds of love all around us.
Malcolm In The Middle: It Keeps Things Real
One of the annoying thing about many sitcoms is how unrealistic they are. The families live in huge and immaculate homes that they could never afford on the jobs which we are told that they have and every issue can be solved with a nice heart to heart and some emotional string music.
The thing that so many people loved about Malcolm In The Middle was that it felt real to them. It showed a life that they could relate to because it looked like their own. The parents reprimanded the children when they were naughty (which rarely happens in sitcoms,) their homes looked like a real home, and the adults were not always right. It was a refreshingly human sitcom and we loved it for that reason (amongst others.)
Modern Family: More Diverse Stories Were Told
Something that has been really fascinating about Modern Family has been watching it tackle some more diverse stories than we typically get to see in North American sitcoms. Due to its long run, it can be easy to forget that it would have not been legal for Mitch and Cam to have married when the show first premiered.
One might even wonder why they did not marry before adopting Lily without even realizing that it would not have been possible at the time. Showing a queer relationship with the same amount of heart and levity as every other relationship in the show was a wonderful way of normalizing their love story for all audiences.
Malcolm In The Middle: The Chaos Was Delightful
Few television programs have ever been able to match how truly chaotic Malcolm In The Middle was. Every single episode, even the more serious ones, had at least one moment that was utterly chaotic in the most wonderful way.
Be it pranking drill sergeants, setting fire to a car, torturing children by playing irritating music, pushing one’s mother down a waterslide, or fighting the school bully in front of one’s entire class, Malcolm In The Middle never skimped on the chaos.
Modern Family: We Could See Ourselves In (At Least One) Of The Characters
Due to the rather small cast of Malcolm In The Middle and its male dominated nature, many viewers had trouble seeing themselves in the characters that they saw on screen. However, Modern Family’s large cast gives more than enough room for every type of person to find someone that they can see themselves in with ease.
Not only that but viewers may also be able to see other people in their lives in the characters as well. We all know someone with a flair for the dramatic or a love for dancing along to the High School Musical films.
Malcolm In The Middle: The Gender Swap Episode
The Gender Swap episode of Malcolm In The Middle is one of the best 20 minutes of television ever made. From the contrast to their male counterparts, to the twist ending where it is revealed that girls can be just as awful as boys, this episode is gold from start to finish.
Though it can be easy to imagine that things must be better in a world where they are different then they are now, this episode shows viewers that things can just as easily be awful in that different world and that the grass is greener where you water it.
Modern Family: Phil Is An Amazing Father
Don’t get us wrong, we love Hal. He is a truly wonderful father and husband. But in the episode where we see what would have happened had all of the boys been born girls, we see that he is truly overwhelmed by this and unable to cope.
Phil, on the other hand, of Modern Family is an amazing father to both his son and his daughters and does not fall into the typical sitcom father trope of trying to control their dating life and being weirdly possessive of his daughters’ bodies. He doesn’t change how he sees his daughters when he learns about their love lives and does not judge them for exploring that side of themselves.
Malcolm In The Middle: One of The Best TV Marriages
The thing that we love about Hal and Lois is that they genuinely love each other. Hal loves his wife no matter what she wears; whether she is dolled up or dressed down. He supports her when she needs the validation and defends her when his family makes their dislike for her known.
And she is there for him. Many sitcom couples spend the entire runtime of their shows at each others throats and that can put forth a very unhealthy idea of what marriages and relationships should look like.
Modern Family: It Tackled Some Real Issues Families Face
The thing that many viewers love about Modern Family is the fact that it tackled some real issues while also still being a comedy. That balance can be rather difficult to achieve as one can risk ruining an emotional moment with a poorly timed joke or creating a weirdly dark episode in the middle of a rather comedic season.
Some issues that it tackled with grace and a relatable mix of heart and laughter include the fact that modern school systems are truly overloading our kids with impossible piles of homework, dealing with a parent that one feels emotionally neglected them in their youth, and how some people are simply toxic people that will never change and are not worth our time.
Malcolm In The Middle: They Were A Team
Though the Modern Family characters can seem to genuinely despise each other at times when their playful jokes verge on the side of cruel, this family was always a team. Even when they were trapping Dewey in a garbage can or roughhousing in their bedroom, at the end of the day they had each others backs.
And if anyone tried to step to a member of this family, they would have to deal with a whole lot of chaos coming at them from so many different angles. Though they did squabble and sometimes they struggled to see eye to eye, there was genuine love there and that is something that brings a bit of warmth to the show.
Next: Modern Family: Phil Dunphy’s 5 Best (& 5 Worst) Dad Jokes
