Rash Decisions

Plot

Mitchell begins to work at Jay's company along with Claire for a few days and decides to behave as best as possible, leaving his snob personality so he will be likable. This works and everybody likes him in comparison to Claire and her relationship with her co-workers. Claire believes they like her but through Mitchell she realizes that they only see her as their boss and not as a friend. When Jay gives Claire a list of things she has to say to the employees that will insult them and she does not feel well to do, Mitchell takes the list and does it himself, not caring if everyone starts disliking him again.

Meanwhile, Jay returns home with Stella and Gloria informs him that Joe is allergic to something (probably Stella) and they have to keep them separated for a week to see if he is indeed allergic to the dog. Though he loves Stella, Jay has no choice but to take her away from home. Stella stays at Cameron and Mitchell's home even though Cameron is afraid that Lily might get attached to her. Later, Jay discovers that Joe's rash was caused by Gloria's new face cream and he goes to get Stella back, making Cameron cry since he is the one who got attached to Stella and not Lily, who is happy that Stella is finally going.

Luke decides to spend more time with his friends rather than with Phil, forcing Phil to hang-out more with Andy, who is now also his assistant at work, and the two start doing things Phil used to do with Luke. Luke, seeing his dad spending so much time with Andy ignoring him, feels excluded and replaced and tries to win his dad back. He finally confronts Phil, telling him that the fact he refuses to practice an activity with his father does not mean that he has to be replaced.

Phil explains that he will never replace his son and the two hug. Alex has an interview with a Princeton recruiter named Vanessa and tries to prepare for it. Haley has to drive her to the interview and in the car, she does not stop talking on the phone with her friends saying the same story over and over again. This gets on Alex's nerves who tries to concentrate to make a good impression.

However, when she arrives she overhears Vanessa complaining about her candidates' lack of personality and Alex decides to imitate her older sister and even steal Haley's story, saving her from an awkward situation.

Reception

In its original American broadcast, "Rash Decisions" was watched by 9.87 million viewers, up by 0.43 from the previous episode. The episode received mixed reviews from critics. Gwen Ihnat of The A.V. Club awarded the episode with a B grade, stating "It’s always valuable to see a different side of a character who, at this point, we believe we know pretty well." Ihnat also praised Sarah Hyland's performance, labeling her the "Performer of the Week" and saying "It’s hard to picture a time when this wouldn’t be Sarah Hyland, but Haley continues to be just a whirlwind of delight."

Leigh Raines from TV Fanatic rated the episode with a perfect 5/5, saying "...that's the beauty of Modern Family: it's relatable to so many people" and closing their review by labeling the episode as "a great return episode after a little hiatus." Lisa Fernandes of Next Projection rated the episode with 7.6/10, saying "This week, the show focuses in on what works better: simple comedy that interconnects the generations. It still feels bland but at least it scares up a laugh or two in the process. [...]

The result is an episode that draws a shrug from the unlucky viewer." Nora Williamson from TV and Film Review gave a mixed review, saying that "...[the episode] had a few good moments, but otherwise I thought the episode could have been a lot funnier. I also don’t like it when the story lines are quite separate. [...] 'Rash Decisions' definitely has some witty lines and funny moments but I just know that Modern Family can do so much better."