The two-year anniversary of the last Modern Family episode was on April 8. The longer a series runs the more likely it is that there will be some inconsistencies and after a whopping 11 seasons, Modern Family is no different. Fans spotted some inconsistencies in Phil and Claire's relationship history as it was shown throughout the show. Another area where fans noticed some plot holes was in Manny's life before Jay.
While some plot holes are minor, others are still bothering fans even today. These inconsistencies have caused some confusion over what is true in Modern Family versus what is being used as a plot device for one episode.
Cameron's Dog Allergy
In Season 6 Episode 13, Jay gives Stella to Cam and Mitchell to take care of while Joe has a rash. Once Cam is given the dog, he immediately starts cuddling Stella with no signs of allergies. In Season 7 Episode 2, Cam has an allergic reaction to dogs. He continually sneezes and shows signs of congestion.
Stella joins the cast in Season 2 and multiple times every season Cam is seen at Jay's house with no allergy issues. However, since Cam's allergy is only mentioned in that one episode, it is more plausible that his allergy is used as a plot device in that episode. Cam and Mitchell's storyline in Season 7 Episode 2 is that their relationship is strained because of all the stress in their lives. Mitchell forgetting to mark "no pets" shows how worn their relationship is.
How Phil And Claire Met
In one episode in Season 5, it was revealed that Phil and Claire met at a concert. Yet in Season 8 Episode 12, when Alex asks Phil how Claire found a guy like him, Phil tells her that Claire hit him with her car while he was break dancing in a KFC parking lot.
Phil and Claire meeting at a concert is a very normal way people end up meeting their significant other, but it does not match the tone for the rest of Phil and Claire's unconventional and funny relationship. It is possible that Claire ended up hitting Phil in the KFC parking lot while they were both on the way to the concert where the two then ended up formally meeting. However, the writers could have just thrown the concert storyline in during Season 5 and then later on decided to revamp how Phil and Claire met during their anniversary episode in Season 8.
Phil And His Tightrope Walking Ability
In Season 1 Episode 20, during a confessional, Phil talks about how he learned how to walk a tightrope in trapeze school. In Season 3 Episode 3, Phil's entire character arc is learning how to walk on a tightrope.
The obvious answer to this plot hole is that Phil did in fact know how to walk on a tightrope during his time at trapeze school and just forgot. However, when Phil starts practicing with Luke the rope is only a foot off the ground and Phil is shaking in fear which makes that theory less likely. The writers probably used the trapeze school and the tightrope walking as a way to show the audience how playful Phil is against the Pritchetts in Season 1.
Where Phil And Claire Had Their First Kiss
During Season 1 Episode 8, Claire talks about the first time her and Phil kissed in her car while a specific song was playing. However, 7 seasons later in Season 8 Episode 12, Phil gifts Claire a wooden swing for Valentine's Day where he claims they had their first kiss.
Way back in Season 1, Claire and Phil still have a seemingly normal relationship to the audience which is why Claire and Phil's first kiss would be in some normal place like Claire's car. The more Season 1 and the rest of the show go on, the silliness of Phil and Claire's relationship is shown which could be why the location of their first kiss changed. It may have also changed to the wooden swing in order for Phil's gift of it to Claire to seem more thoughtful and romantic.
How Many Kids Pepper Has
In Season 4 Episode 14 while Phil, Jay, Mitchell, and Pepper are playing golf, Pepper mentions having a son who is a Navy Seal. In Season 6 Episode 15, Pepper mentions how he's always wanted a kid when him, Cam, and Mitchell are discussing who should take care of the baby they thought Sal abandoned.
When Pepper mentions his son being a Navy Seal during the golf game, Jay is impressed because of his own military service. The use of Pepper's son in Season 4, shows that Pepper and Jay are not all that different even though Mitchell has very different relationships with the pair. In Season 6 when Pepper mentions that it's his turn to raise the baby, he could have meant it is his turn to raise a child with his new partner Ronaldo, not that he didn't have a kid.
Earl Chambers Real Last Name
In Season 5 Episode 20, Claire and Jay are working during the family vacation to Australia where they mention Earl Norman being in charge of their rival "Closets, Closets, Closets, Closets." The following season, Season 6 Episode 5, Earl is then introduced as Earl Chambers of "Closets, Closets, Closets, Closets."
Earl's last name, whatever it is, has no real significance impact to the storyline of the series. It is possible that the writers originally wrote it as Norman and when it came to introduce Earl to the show that they felt like the name did not have enough power to it.
Phil And Claire's Wedding
In Season 1 Episode 8, Claire gets a member from the band she thought played the song her and Phil listened to during the first kiss. Phil then tells her that she had the wrong band and song because he sang the right one to her during their wedding. Towards the end of the season, Season 1 Episode 23, it is revealed that Claire and Phil never had a wedding because they eloped when Claire got pregnant.
Claire getting the song and band wrong that played during her and Phil's first kiss was probably an easy way to show how romantic Phil is and how unromantic Claire is while the audience is still getting to know the pair and their relationship. However, Claire and Phil eloping fits with their unconventional love story. The eloping also explains why Jay is so hard on Phil.
Manny Living In Colombia
During Season 1 Episode 6, Manny gets freaked out when he is pulled out of class thinking someone died. Gloria explains that while Manny was at Pablo Escobar Elementary School in Colombia the only reason someone got pulled out of class is because someone died. In Season 5 Episode 3, it is revealed that Manny was born in Florida.
Manny and Gloria could have moved back to Colombia after he was born in Florida or that Manny and Gloria moved to Florida after he finished elementary school. However, the main issue is that later in the series that only Gloria had to take a citizenship test to become an American citizen. The comment about Manny attending elementary school in Colombia was likely used to show how different Manny's childhood was before he became a part of Jay's family.
Jay's Middle Name
During the Mother's Day episode, Season 2 Episode 21, Phil reads out the gift recipe Jay gave his mother which ends with "by Jay Francis Pritchett." In Season 7 Episode 15, Gloria begins yelling at Jay where she refers to him as "Jay Kennedy Pritchett."
Similar to Ed's last name change, Jay's middle name change could just be because Kennedy sounded better than Francis. The middle name Francis softens Jay's rough and tough exterior while Kennedy fits the self-made businessman persona. Another theory could be that Jay lied to Gloria about his middle name in order to appear more masculine.
Luke's First Time Drinking Beer
During Season 2 Episode 24, the family makes a video for Jay for his birthday where Luke talks about Jay letting him sip his beer once. However, in Season 5 Episode 17, Luke asks for a sip of Jay's beer saying it would be his first.
The video for Jay's birthday in Season 2 was a disaster so Luke mentioning Jay giving him a sip of his beer was just meant to add fuel to the fire. It fit with the Season 5 episode that Jay would stop Luke from drinking his beer because that is a typical father son moment that Jay didn't want to steal.