It's Thanksgiving eve and no Thanksgiving episode? Too bad... it's a holiday perfectly suited to the theme of the show and would work well. It's especially weird since "Mother Tucker" keeps everyone apart into three distinct groups. Maybe the writers will do one next year.
Anyway, like I said, "Mother Tucker" has three distinct plots with the Dunphies taking the lead. Haley breaks up with Dylan after some encouragement from Claire and the fact that she makes out with her tutor for correct answers. While Phil usually acts as the immature guy, getting along with Luke for the most inane of things, Phil shows that he is also an adult, helping Dylan during the breakup. His execution may not be there, but his message of moving on is not a random trivial Phil-ism, but an actual lesson to take to heart.
Meanwhile, Cam's mom comes home and she really touchy with Mitchell, so Mitchell concocts a plan to let Cam get the idea by letting his mom get too far. Jay has a medical problem, but because of Gloria's insistence that it's not manly, he decides not to go to the doctor, instead relying on Manny who browses the web for medical answers. In the end, Jay actually needs surgery, but it's all fine since it's not serious.
"Mother Tucker" doesn't do too much, sticking with its tried and true formula of lots of comedy punctuated by a couple emotional hooks, and for me, that's enough to keep coming back.
Score: 8.8/10
