Mainsprings and maturity: how ‘Modern Family’ found and then lost its magic

An ABC promotional photo for Modern Family. ©ABC

There’s a surely apocryphal story about George Best, the legendary soccer player whose Irish good looks were the perfect counterpoint to his flashing foot skills. As Best’s skills are beginning to wane, he is still a huge hit with the opposite sex. And so it is one morning that he’s waking up in a hotel suite with two Miss World contestants on either side, with…