Modern Family Fans Think The Show Could Have Used More Of Sal And Lily
Usually, for a sitcom to be successful, several factors must be in place that raise the quality of the series above the competition. For a show like ABC's "Modern Family," the different relationships between characters were one of the show's strengths. In addition to the individual family interactions were all the minor friendships and romantic encounters. Some of these relationships came as clashes, including one that fans wanted more of.
One of the unique relationships viewers zeroed in on had a surprisingly large gap in age — but not in attitude. In Season 1, Episode 8 ("Great Expectations"), fans are introduced to Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitchell's (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) old friend, Sal (Elizabeth Banks). Sal was the party girl the guys used to hang out with until they expanded their family by adopting little Lily (Aubrey Anderson-Emmons). Wanting a night off from parenting, the guys hit the town with good ol' Sal to recapture the fun days.
However, it's soon apparent that Sal has not taken Cam and Mitch's change in lifestyle too well. As drinks are consumed, her jealousy over Lily is awkwardly laid on the table. As hilarious as this revelation was, the real comedy of Sal's irritation over Lily comes from the interaction between the two characters in later episodes. And according to some fans, the number of times that happened fell short of what they had hoped for.
Banks' successful career may have robbed up of comedy
That Season 1 episode wasn't the last time we see Elizabeth Banks. Banks appears in six more episodes that include hilarious interactions between her and Lily. Sal first expresses her dislike of the girl in her first appearance when she bluntly says, "Oh, you should kill that baby." From there, the comedy happens when Lily and Sal have scenes together.
Between Sal's backhanded comments and Lily's sassy, side-eyed comebacks, each moment is comedy gold. For example, when Sal slyly apologizes for Lily not being invited to her wedding (even though it was clear she didn't want her there), Lily quickly comes back with, "It's okay, I'll go to your next one." For fans, this (and a few more interactions) was not enough. On Reddit, "Modern Family" fan u/Anti_42 gave props to Banks as Sal and pointed out her underuse with the comment, "Her [sic] and Lily dialogues are great and it should have been more." On YouTube, @1234nofear agreed by simply stating, "They should have done more about this rivalry."
Of course, the most common initial reaction to something great like this relationship is to want more of it, but there are some who think scarcity equals enhanced quality. "Sal was used just the right amount," commented u/AnnaK22. "She was not a great person, so they are only entertaining in small amounts." As for a pretty solid opinionated explanation for why Banks wasn't used more in the series, u/AsherFischell gave a satisfying answer with, "Same reason Nathan Lane vanished — in-demand actors have lots of things to be doing other than recurring bits on sitcoms."