DVD: Modern Familing: Season Three (20th Century Fox)

For a sitcom that last week won its third Emmy in a row for outstanding comedy series, this starts slowly, with punchlines that are too transparent and its sentimental streak becoming cloying.

But after the first few episodes (still head and shoulders above most other comedies), it is back to its best, delivering nuanced performances (how has Ty Burrell not won an Emmy yet?), delicious dialogue and beautifully plotted storylines in sending up the absurdities of life.