Glee v.2

[Desraelda]

Thanks for that overview, Pops. I haven't bothered to watch the last couple of episodes.

I agree the Christmas episode was better than last year, but considering how awful last year's episode was, that's not saying much.

I haven't been able to find anything I like about the 2.0's (I like that). Jake is not Puck and Marley is not Rachel. Neither have any strength or any character. Ryder is pretty bland as well.

I downloaded Season One music to my Kindle Fire and remembering how much I used to love this show.

Ryan Murphy seems to have lost his love for the show, too, and I think that's the central problem.

[IenjoyAcidPops]

Diva

I didn't like "Sadie Hawkins" because I didn't find any of the storylines appealing. I didn't like "Diva" because I thought it dropped the ball on a few storylines that were appealing - and also because it furthered one that was not.

The unappealing one was Tina's. I wasn't interested in the "Tina's in love with Blaine now" angle in "Sadie Hawkins," I wasn't interested here, and here it turned creepy. I don't need to comment on the Vap-o-rub scene, because the issue seems pretty obvious. Really, my problem with it coincided with what was actually a terrific number, "Hung Up." If that was supposed to be a moment of Tina evolving or growing after being rejected by Blaine, I didn't see it. What I saw was Tina throwing a hissy fit because Blaine - who is still gay - fell asleep sick rather than thanking her for hours and returning her feelings. I didn't think she learned anything not only during this episode, but from "Sadie Hawkins." I see what they're trying to do with this touching, sad "love that can't/won't be returned" storyline, but it's not working for me. Or didn't - hopefully I can use the past tense, after "I Do." Still, her performance of "Hung Up" was awesome. (It was odd that she mentioned Blaine assembling these songs from all these old school divas, but the Madonna song that she performed was "Hung Up," from 2005.)

Considering her recent behavior - mainly moving in her boyfriend without considering is opinion - I was primed for some feuding between Rachel and Kurt. I wanted Brody to be more of an issue between them - I really don't think Kurt would or does like Brody, and I need that to be more of an issue, in no small part because I don't like him - but this episode was called "Diva," and the emphasis was on Rachel being way too much of one again after her victory at the winter showcase. Okay, fine, but...Rachel didn't learn her lesson in this episode. I said Tina didn't really develop in the way that the script meant her to, but she had a lifetime of growth compared to Rachel, who basically moped around after Kurt beat her at their latest "diva-off," then waited for Kurt to give her a pep talk. I didn't even find either one's performance of "Bring Him Home" compelling; frankly, I was bored. I don't know the show, I hadn't heard the song, I don't know if my boredom was from the song or the performances, but...I guess it was fine, moving on, and that was it.

Finn gives New Directions the "diva-off" assignment. We have Kitty and Unique in this glee club. Wouldn't it have been fun to see them show off? Hell, even Sugar! (She still exists, right?) Now, Unique did perform on "Diva," but that song did less than nothing for me. I wanted a good number with Unique - maybe a duet with her and Kitty, kill those two birds with one stone. Instead, Finn brought Santana back, and she had three songs. Three! I love me some Santana Lopez, and that's the only reason this was okay to me. It is ridiculous how much Santana we've had this season...or was until we found out that she dropped out of the University of Kentucky a month prior. She was great on "Nutbush City Limits," "Make No Mistake (She's Mine)," and "Girl on Fire" - this was one of those episodes that further cemented my preference of her voice over, say, Rachel's, because it has so much more color and soul to it. I was really surprised they went for "Nutbush City Limits" - I feel like that's Tina Turner's song more than "Proud Mary" or any other - but Naya worked it.

I was anticipating the "Santana finds out about Brittany/Sam and unleashes" storyline. I was definitely looking forward to seeing what her reaction would be, what would happen there, and...not much did. I wasn't disappointed exactly, because I didn't expect that to be the focus of an episode, but it did kind of leave me cold. There was a moment of, "Does she care that Brittany's with Sam because she used to date Sam or...?" but of course she'd hate whoever Brittany was with after their break-up, and that it was Sam only made it slightly worse. My issue was actually that I didn't get where Santana was in this one. As she was about to graduate, she had this cheerleading scholarship in Kentucky, but she wanted to go to New York (to do...something). Then, Brittany "reveals" that she's being held back. Confusion! Stay in Lima with Brittany for another year, do what's probably the responsible and smart thing and take the scholarship, or follow your vague dream and go to NYC? At the beginning of this season, we find out (sort of) that she did the responsible thing, tried to do the long distance thing with Brittany, but broke it off before it really implode. At the end of this episode, I was asking, "What's Santana's problem?" She wasn't happy in Kentucky. Well, she didn't have to go to Kentucky. Her mother even made a point of telling her to do what she wanted. She's not over Brittany. Well, she chose to end it with Brittany when she did. I do understand that it's not that simple, though - I'm just saying it wasn't a well written scene, because I didn't get exactly where Santana was at that point. She went to New York, though, and moved right in with Rachel, Kurt, and Brody. That moment I liked. Surely there would be follow-up on this. Surely this would get good. Surely this will make for a fun new dynamic. Right?

Well, it didn't come up in the next episode. This is at least the third cliffhanger this season that really should have had some follow-up in the next episode, but didn't. First, Finn knocks on Rachel's door as she's making out with Brody in "Makeover." The next episode opens with no reference to that. Second, Rachel asks Brody to move in with her. It seemed like there might be some drama there, particularly as Kurt also lives there, but nope. Even Santana just showing up and saying "I live here now" had no impact, apparently.

Now, Finn and Emma....I liked this subplot. I didn't like the ending. It aggravated me. It aggravated me because what I saw coming was a love triangle or a rivalry or enmity between Will and Finn, or from Will to Finn, that I didn't want to see. I didn't want to go there. I didn't want the "Will finds out Finn kissed Emma and blows up" arc, I didn't want the, "Is there something between Finn and Emma?" arc. The moment itself wasn't bad; Josh on the Gleeful podcast did put it well when he talked about it feeling like the right thing for Finn to do, the thing he would have done to calm Rachel down, immediately followed by, "Oh wait, they're not supposed to be doing this!"

I didn't dislike this episode, but unfortunately, it didn't work, ultimately.



I Do

I was so with this episode until the very last moment. I actually really liked this one.

In the eighth season of The Simpsons, there was an episode called "A Milhouse Divided." It started off being about Milhouse's parents divorcing, but by the end it was about Homer seeing the failure of that marriage and trying to fix his own with Marge. It's a great episode all the way through, but to this day I, as many other viewers do, wonder if it would have been better if the focus had stayed on Milhouse and his parents. This episode was similar; the focus was on "Wemma" for a while, but by the end not so much. That focus-shifting made sense here, though, because after Emma leaves, there are other things to do with the other characters at the reception, and the Wemma stuff will be saved for an upcoming episode. As for Emma leaving Will at the altar, it wasn't exactly surprising, I'm not sure if I like that it went there, I'm not sure how much I care. Jayma Mays is great, though. It's weird, I felt bad for Will in the first part of season one mainly because Terri was so awful to him (not only because of the fake pregnancy - that was kind of the tip of the iceberg!), and I generally rooted for him, even though he wasn't the greatest teacher (Will Schuester as a character sometimes seemed like a satirical spin on the classic Inspirational Teacher). Since then, he's become sadder and less likable, which is okay in itself, but I feel like the show's never known how to handle him. Emma I've always liked. Wemma I think I rooted for a little bit once, but it's been a while. I don't root against them. They're there, that's basically it. He was right when he said he left her with all the responsibility and stress of planning the wedding, and that was an awkward time to go to D.C. Hence the drama, I guess.

Much as I've hated Brody, it's never been because I want Finn & Rachel back together. I mean, I do think they are "endgame," I do think that if this show ends semi-voluntarily rather than being canceled abruptly, they'll be together. I've always liked them together, I've always disagreed with the idea that he holds her back and that she should be with, say, Jesse, but right now, I don't need them together. What made me happy in this episode actually wasn't their hook-up, it was that Rachel considered herself single. That confused me, because you are not single if your boyfriend (sort of) is living with you, but whatever, that means Brody is not totally locked in, and that makes me happy. The Finchel material in this episode worked to me; no scenes were as clumsily written as the one at the end of "Glease." I'll save my problem for the end of this post.

As with Finn and Rachel, although I've always liked them together (in this case, pretty much everyone has), I don't need or necessarily want Kurt & Blaine together now. Again, though, their stuff in this episode worked. The reveal that Blaine was the one Kurt was making out with offscreen did surprise me - probably shouldn't have, but did - and I got a kick out of it. "Just Can't Get Enough" was fun, and of course it was fun. As all of the couples were racing to their hotel rooms, I did think, "I really hope this isn't the show trying to make amends to Finchel fans and Klaine fans who are still upset at their break-ups." "The Break-Up" remains the best episode of the season, one of the better episodes in a long time, and I don't want them to undo any of what made it powerful. I don't think that's what's happening, though; I'm actually giving the show the benefit of the doubt.

I liked the Jake/Marley/Ryder storyline, too. The only problem with these characters is that there's not enough to them; they're pretty and relatively bland. I feel like the writers made them likable, but forgot to make them interesting. I did like the way this triangle was furthered in this episode, though, and the way this tension between Jake and Ryder looks like it'll be flaring up again. It's nothing captivating or original, but it's fine.

Incidentally, "You're All I Need to Get By" was a song I thought I was familiar with, but I think I only knew the chorus - which is to say the title - because most of it sounded fresh to me.

Oh, and Ryder mentioned that Puck was "dating a sophomore." Now, that seems like an odd way to put it if Ryder and Jake are themselves sophomores, so what grade are they? The other weird thing about that line was hearing that Puck and Kitty are dating. It's still creepy, but I guess that makes it...less creepy? Also, Puck being "kind of creepy" and "dating a sophomore" are not mutually exclusive points.

Quintana! I saw this coming, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. I don't hate that they did it, I don't love that they did it, because those are strong reactions that I would have had instantaneously. It seemed to make sense, I suppose, and every time these two have actually shared a scene (as opposed to just being in the same scene because of course they'd be in the same), I've liked it, because they haven't had scenes together too often since the first thirteen episodes.

This was one of the three episodes a season in which Artie actually gets to do something - and someone, in this case! Unfortunately, that someone is awful. Kevin McHale completely carried this subplot. Completely. He's good, this kid; he has a charm that the show should use more often. Artie's not as underused a character as, say, Sugar, though, so he'll be fine. Okay, obviously wheelchair-girl-whose-name-I-can't-remember (I want to say Betty) was supposed to be horrible right away, and then we were supposed to believe that Artie could see something there. I got the first part, not the second. I've heard people say that Ryan Murphy can only make disabled/handicapped characters interesting by making them incredibly mean. There's something to that, as Glee has demonstrated before. Artie may find this girl "oddly compelling," but I don't. Change my mind, Glee. Change my mind.

So, intercut with an excellent cover of "Anything Could Happen" is the big cliffhanger: Rachel takes a pregnancy test, and is she or isn't she? This is so easy, so frustratingly easy, and so not something I want to see. I don't want to see what happens next with this. I don't want Rachel to be pregnant, I don't want Rachel to maybe be pregnant. I don't want the drama of, "Is it Brody's or is it Finn's?" This may be a natural place to go, but I don't want to go here. "On My Way," which aired about a year ago, was similarly a mostly very good episode that ended on a cheap cliffhanger. I guess this is better, because it's Rachel, not Quinn, and therefore this may actually go somewhere, but I am not happy. Why don't I stop watching, then? Because, that's why! Seriously, though, I'm not even really considering that. It may just be because I have a thing about not giving up on a show in the middle of a season.

I do want to end on positivity, though, and note how many hilarious lines there were in "I Do," lines that made me remember that this show can be laugh-out-loud funny when it wants to be. Lines like...

-Emma telling Finn that, "all of you glee kids have dated so incestuously that I can't even remember who can tolerate who anymore."

-Emma, again to Finn: "I'm really sorry that I don't have a pamphlet to hand you, but I'm pretty sure that if I did, it would say something like, 'Get over it.'"

-Kurt, as someone knocks on the car door: "Tell me that's not Tina again!"

-Mercedes referring to Kurt and Blaine as her "arm gays"

-Sue: "And Will Schuester is a weepy man-child whose greatest joy in life is singing with children. And his best friend? 19."

-Sue, after Emma says she "won't survive" if she marries Will: "Well, don't tell that to Will Schuester; he'll have you singing a stripped-down, acoustic version of 'I Will Survive' in front of a choir room full of teenagers with meaningful looks on their faces." (This is the one that really broke me, because I could SO picture that scene! And I might even like that scene. )

-Kurt: "You Vap-o-raped my ex-boyfriend?"

-Kurt again: "You're a hag. You're hagged out. You're in love with Blaine, and it's creepy. Stop." (That Kurt/Tina/Blaine material was really well handled. I love that the show saw the creepiness and the comedy of her behavior in "Diva," which retroactively made it less irritating. Damn it, Glee, I love the way you apologize.)

-Sue again:"Today is the day we honor St. Valentine, a man publicly beheaded for defying his government by exchanging candies and chocolates to nonsensically render the objects of our affection more fat and less attractive."

-Kurt and Blaine were going to a double feature of All About Eve and Showgirls - that's awesome! And how has Glee not given someone that line before?

A really good episode marred somewhat by an unpleasant ending.
-

[BubblyShell22]

Really liked the latest episode of Glee, except for when Ryder revealed his secret and the boys said that it's every boy's dream to have that happen to them. Uh, did they forget that Ryder was eleven when this happened to him and he wasn't a teen? I was so mad at that part and wanted to smack the boys for that comment. However, I'm glad that Kitty was able to talk to him and share her own story about what happened to her. That was great.

As for this Katie, at first I thought maybe it was Kitty, but now I think maybe it's either Artie or Sam. I hope we find out soon.

Sorry I've been absent on these episodes. I've just been busy with other stuff. Looks like this season will be the last we'll be able to talk about this show since the forums are closing this summer. It's been a good run though.

[Spacecadet]

i liked the latest episode, but I feel like they are trying to draw the katie thing out too long. And I'm kind of sad, that Ryder passed on hanging out with kitty for katie, especially when kitty was actually being nice and trying to relate to ryder.

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, I thought he was being mean to her, too. So unfair. I have a feeling Ryder will have his hopes dashed when he finds out who Katie really is.

So, I'm editing this because I don't know if you can double post here. I've tried it before and it never let me.

Did anyone catch the latest episode? I thought it was very good what with Rachel being nervous about her audition and finally reconciling with Cassandra. I also thought that Mercedes' problem and Kurt's were good, too. Good thing Burt's going to be okay. The songs were great, and I thought it was just awesome.

Can't wait for next week's finale. We finally get to the bottom of the Katie mystery. I'm just surprised they aren't doing a graduation episode like they did last season. Pretty weird.