Sofia Vergara - the new Latin face on ABC's

ABC cancelled the George Lopez sitcom but apparently it did not completely abandon the idea of including the Latino demographic in at least one of its shows.

Modern Family premiered Wednesday night with Colombian actress Sofia Vergara in its cast as the much younger wife of an older looking Ed O’Neill, the actor best known as Married with Children’s Al Bundy.

The half-hour sitcom shows the interaction between an extended family composed by three sets of living arrangements that are becoming more and more common in our modern American society: a gay couple that adopts a child from a far away country, parents over 40 that do what they can to remain “cool” despite their children’s opinion, and a new family made up of leftover parts of old ones. While highlighting the dysfunctional moments that putting those relationships together creates, Modern Family becomes a story that is actually entertaining and has development potential.

As a bonus, those of us who are bilingual get to hear a Spanish word or two. The first show had Vergara deliver a full sentence: “Quiero ser brisa en tu espalda, no escupa en tu frente.” (I want to be breeze on your back, not spit on your face.) Part of the joke was precisely that the adage sounds much prettier before translation.

Modern Family in just one episode set up the stage for what could be a weekly 30-minutes worth watching. Certainly it has much more potential than the un-funny and tiring show that follows it, Cougar Town.

Hopefully, when the latter goes out the door, it won’t take Modern Family down with it.

source