GLEEwind: Episode 1.22 "Journey"

QUICKIE OVERVIEW


The Glee kids go to Regionals for their showdown with Vocal Adrenaline...with Sue as one of their "celebrity" judges.  Quinn has her baby.   The final fate of the Glee Club is determined.





WHAT I LIKED

There was very little humor in this episode, which was appropriate for the subject matter...high school kids are usually that tense about a competition, and add to the fact what was on the line...yeah.

New Directions' performance was spot on and a TON of fun to watch, and the reactions from the crowd...and the judges...were believable.

Although I wish Vocal Adrenaline was more than the Jesse show....I refuse to believe VA are the be-all end-all of show choirs with only one lead vocalist...the juxtaposition of their performance with Quinn's labor and birth did have some nice moments.

Quinn wanting Mercedes in the birth room.   Good payoff to their building friendship over the course of the second half of the season.

Quinn not keeping the baby.   That felt right.

In an evening with little humor, the judges room had some really funny moments.   And the end of the scene...especially the words from Ms. Newton-John...planted the seeds for what was to come.

New Directions losing.   The only believable way to end things.  As a former producer of a vocal competition, the judging and how it played out is entirely believable to me.   And it gives New Directions somewhere to go for the coming year.

The auditorium scene.   A final thank you for what Will tried to do (at least at the time).   Unlike many, I didn't cry during the episode, but that scene came close.

The Sue/Will scene.  Perfect sense...both the grudging respect Sue showed and the fact that, well, there's be no Coyote without the Road Runner.   It gave them the story reason to keep Glee together without the Glee kids winning/placing.

The end scene.   It really displayed, wordlessly, the connections and friendships that have developed over the course of the past year, along with hints of what's to come.




WHAT I WAS 'MEH' ABOUT


Pretty much everything involving Emma tonight.  I'm not actively hoping Will doesn't end up with her...especially after that hall scene that really felt forced.  Really not an Emma fan at the moment.

The scene with Quinn's mom felt WAY too conveniently timed, and I didn't buy the attempted reconciliation.   The well-timed water breaking allowed the writers to avoid that question for right now.

That was a really fast delivery...especially since most of the moms I know talked about being in labor for nearly 24 hours or more.   Even assuming Vocal Adrenaline did untelevised numbers, that's really pushing believability...

WHAT I HATED
 
...but not nearly as much as Shelby adopting Quinn's baby.  In a word, bulls&#t.  The adoption process is nothing like that, it's too convenient an ending, and it really shows how selfish and heartless Shelby is by avoiding the daughter she gave birth to just because they didn't "grow up together" in favor of this new bambino.   Bull cookies.   I defend a lot of the plot holes and outlandishness of the show ("Seinfeld" suspended disbelief just as often, if not more, than this show), but that was just too over the top.

LINE OF THE NIGHT





 Tie: 

"Your hair looks like a briar patch. I keep expecting racist, animated Disney characters to pop up and start singing about living on the bayou." (Sue)

and...

"Kiss my ass, Josh Groban..." (Sue)   (I don't care what was said after, that just makes me giggle every time I hear it.)

THE MUSIC




The Journey songs were very well sung, and I liked the interplay between the singers during both the mash-up and the "Don't Stop Believing" revisit...that key change was really cool.


"Bohemian Rhapsody" was...dull.   Well sung, yeah, but nothing different than what I'd hear from Queen.   Jonathan Groff has a good voice, but I really don't get the love for him as a performer, at least not based on what he did here.


"To Sir With Love" was one of the five best tracks of the year.   Appropriate to the story, and really well sung...the arrangement made the song seem not dated, which is hard for music from that era.


"Somewhere Over the Rainbow" was the version originally performed by Hawaiian singer Israel "Iz" Kaʻanoʻi Kamakawiwoʻole.   I liked the singing, but didn't love it except for Matt's harmonies with Mark.   But it, again, got the point across for the scene.

MY FINAL THOUGHT

It's going to be a long summer.


Until next time, don't stop believin'


(NOTE:  With Fox's reruns of the series this summer from Episode 1, I will probably do reviews as they air, although they'll obviously have the benefit of what's going on later in the series to draw from.)

GLEEwind: Episode 1.20 "Funk"

(PROGRAMMING NOTE:  This episode was chronologically filmed BEFORE last week's episode "Theatricality", but the programming decision was made to exchange the order - thus the reason for my misnumbering)

QUICKIE OVERVIEW


Jesse rejoins Vocal Adrenaline, crushes Rachel's heart, and puts the Glee kids in a massive level of depression.  Mr. Schu tries to use funk music to re-energize the group, while also giving Sue some payback.  After vandalizing Vocal Adrenaline's Range Rovers, Puck and Finn go to work for (now former) Mrs. Schuester at Sheets 'n Things

WHAT I LIKED/FOUND INTERESTING

• Why does Jesse's galpal in Vocal Adrenaline remind me of Charlene "Cha-Cha" DiGregorio?  (aka the hoochie dancer in the movie "Grease")
   
• The first seduction scene between Schu and Sue was cute (and well sung), but the office scene later was hysterical.  I needed a massive suspension of disbelief to get through this plotline, but that comes with the territory of liking this show.
• OK, with two eps left, they finally justify Jessalyn Gilsig's paycheck enough to make the divorce final.  That said, if the scene with Terri and Finn sets up hijinks for Year 2, it could make for some fun.
•  The "Unwed Mothership Connection"?  Hilarious, even if the preggers dance routine was highly, highly creepy.
• OK, Quinn didn't exactly evoke memories of Aretha.  But the bile about Dianna Agron's inability to sing and act just isn't accurate.  She needs material that fits her, and no one's expecting her to star in a remake of "Sophie's Choice", but her character has really, really grown on me, and I hope the "changes" stick next season once the bambino pops out.
• Nice pearls, Sue.   With the TRACKSUIT.
• Brittany, with the backwards Cheerio's outfit, chasing after the newspaper nerd...that was her one moment this episode but it was funny and creative...it took a 2nd watch to catch the backwards outfit.
• "Mr. Chooster."  *heh*  And nice, subtle reminder in that scene that he's a Spanish teacher since it wasn't brought up recently.
• Wow, the Rachel parking lot scene was cruel.   But it did what it was supposed to do, which is rally the troops...
• ...and rally they did in the final number.  Really, really fun to watch. Before anyone goes off on Quinn dancing like that at the end pregnant, please see this video.  "See you punks at Regionals" indeed.
  

WHAT I WAS 'MEH' ABOUT

• Cory Monteith needs to stop rapping.  Mark Salling...marginally better.  But it's not as funny as when Matt Morrison does it.
  
• It was curious to me why, after complaining about only being brought out to wail like a black girl and after having relationship issues with Puck, why she would be out there doing her best Martha Wash imitation on "Good Vibrations".   Guess she's a better sport than we thought...
  
• Here's hoping Mr. Schu starts learning not to stoop to other levels...I understand wanting to "get some back" after everything Sue had done, but what he actually did just really struck me as beneath him, and I hope Emma calls him on it next week, as by the previews those two are going to be going at it.
  
• Sue keeps bringing up Will having to "win" at Regionals.   This is incorrect...I distinctly remember Figgins' saying Will had to "place" at Regionals earlier in the season.  That said, it might just be part of Sue's mentality that she's not remembering things correctly.
  
• People complaining about how "sudden" the Jesse betrayal was.   Consider two things.   The first being that this and "Theatricality" was filmed out of order, so if you didn't know that, I get how folks were surprised, but really, if you put the two eps in properly filmed order, Jesse makes more sense...but I think the producers really wanted to pimp NewDirs vs. VocalAs the week before the finale, so I get why they did it.
  
  The second is that it makes sense if you look at the full timeline.   Jesse felt betrayed by Rachel in "Bad Reputation", goes off with his VA pals in "Laryngitis", comes back to Rachel...to make sure the tape from his director, aka Rachel's Mom, gets delivered, then, in the original timeline, he leaves New Directions, mission accomplished.   Technically, it could be seen as Jesse only intimating that things were fine between him and Rachel to complete his original mission for Shelby, and that once that was finished, he was done, after feeling betrayed by Rachel.   Yeah, it's not Shakespeare, but it does make linear sense.   You can call "Glee" out on a lot of story issues, but I feel this isn't one of them.

WHAT I HATED

We're good here this week...some annoying stuff as listed above, but nothing truly stupid.

LINE OF THE NIGHT

 "Oh, you know what Wednesday is, right?  Hump day." (Schu to Sue.   SO wrong, but so funny...)






(Honorable Mention:  "I have this compulsive need to crush other people's dreams."  "Yeah, that's what Mr. Schu said." - Terri & Finn, in that order)


THE MUSIC


Very mixed bag this week, focusing on "funk" as a theme, either in style or in name, except for one instance.  "Another One Bites the Dust" wasn't all that, especially as something geared to intimidate New Directions, as they've done more impressive numbers than that in the past.  "Tell Me Something Good", with Schu rolling that perfectly coiffed hair over Sue's shoulders...ye gods.   It was however, well sung.  "Loser" was funny, especially when everyone in the store starts singing along. 

"It's a Man's, Man's, Man's, Man's World"...OK, James Brown and Dianna Agron have no business being in the same zipcode under normal circumstances, but she did the best she could with what she had, and the writers really should try to find material that better suits her niche.   She's not untalented, but she had as much business singing that song as Aretha Franklin does singing emo rock.

"Good Vibrations" was fun for what it was, and Mark Salling carried it OK, but it was a throwaway number to hammer the joke of how clueless Terri really is.   Fortunately, the show was saved musically by "Give Up The Funk", which was absolutely a hoot to watch and listen to, even if they had to censor the lyrics a bit.  The song really showcased just how much fun that cast is having in what they do.

MY FINAL THOUGHT





 As I said before, I get why they switched this show and last weeks...to really pump up the ultimate showdown for next week's finale, and in that realm, it got the point across.   But other than that, the show seemed to be a bit all over the place, with Will's divorce getting roughly two minutes of airtime and a new subplot of Terri possibly going Mrs. Robinson on Finn introduced a bit late in the season for anything to come of it soon.   But not every week can be a home run, and I'm hoping that the season finale really does hit it out of the park.

PREDICTION:  New Directions doesn't WIN regionals, but it places, satisfying Figgins' edict from earlier in the season.

Until next time, don't stop believin'.

GLEEWind - Episode 1.21 "Theatricality"

(PROGRAMMING NOTE:  This episode was chronologically filmed AFTER next week's episode "Funk", but the programming decision was made to exchange the order - thus the reason for my misnumbering)

QUICKIE OVERVIEW

After Figgins threatens Tina with expulsion due to her goth-style dress, Mr. Schu assigns the class to show theatricality through performance of Lady Gaga...however the boys, minus Kurt, have different plans.   Finn and his mom move in with Kurt and his dad.  Rachel figures out that Shelby Corcoran, Vocal Adrenaline's director, is her biological mother.

WHAT I LIKED

• Did they just do an entire episode without one peep out of Sue Sylvester? Really?
  
• Figgins is afraid of vampires.  That was amusing.
  
• Lea Michele did some very nice, subtle acting in this episode.  Her realization that Shelby was her mother played out on her face as Shelby sang on stage, and the emotional issues from both sides through the show felt real, if a bit rushed.
  
• You know who has the best shot at an Emmy?   Mike O'Malley as Burt Hummel.  The scene in the bedroom was intense, powerful stuff that should leave no doubt in anyone's mind that Burt Hummel loves his son, no matter what.  Even if he doesn't understand what his son is going through, he understands pain and someone being hurtful, and he took no quarter with Finn in that situation.   Although the setup was a bit forced (more later), Mike's work in this series should at least give him consideration for Best Supporting in a series.
  
• Will's scene with Shelby.   The unspoken subtext is that there is a respect between them as educators that can become a friendship over time if the writers allow it.  And Will demonstrates that he's definitely looking out for the kids as students before singers.
• Puck's musical apology...I liked that it wasn't a plea to keep the baby, which would have been too http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=1353013062898353221much...but just to be a part of the birth of his son.   I was touched...as was Quinn, I'm sure.
  
• The boys as KISS - fantastic. 
• Tina's rant on Principal Figgins...she's funny when she gets worked up enough to go off on someone.  Wonder if that's going to be a standard "quirk" of hers.
  
• The end scene in the hallway.  Both the show of compassion towards Kurt from Finn, and the togetherness of Glee...remember, there's three other guys that this could have repercussions for that are on the football team...I really dug it.  And I hope its the start of Kurt and Finn finding a middle ground.

WHAT I WAS 'MEH' ABOUT

• Well, that was a quick wrapup of the Rachel's Mom sitch.   I know, Idina isn't a regular, but the plot felt forced, and I think it would have been more effective leaving it more open and asking Idina back for next season.  Also, it's kind of jarring to go from that scene in the rain with Jesse of Shelby really wanting to reconnect to wanting to DISCONNECT.   Not sure how I feel about that yet.
• As I read the "big scene", much of Finn's anger was about Kurt's romantic advances moreso than about Kurt as a person.   Add to that that Finn was basically backslapped into this situation (I'm sorry, this is a discussion mom and son should have had on their own, not the way they did it here), and I get Finn's frustration.   What Burt saw as pure homophobia was Finn deliberately using those words to get his point across to Kurt...which is the completely wrong way to do it, but I at least understand Finn's anger, and I don't think the situation is as black and white as it was portrayed here.
• Where was Jesse?   I think the producers missed this when they swapped episodes, which tells me Jesse rejoins VA next week.
• OK, they got the GaGa out of the way, and the scene with Rachel and the stuffies was kinda funny, but again, a little too gimmicky.

WHAT I HATED

• Nothing, really.

LINE OF THE NIGHT


"My mom won't even let me watch Twilight. She says she thinks Kristen Stewart seems like a bitch" - Tina.  PREACH ON SISTER!!!!!

(HONORABLE MENTION:  "She changes her look faster than Britt changes sexual partners." - Kurt.  "It's true." - Brittany)

THE MUSIC

"Funny Girl" really showcased Idina Menzel well even though the song itself didn't really fit the story much, to my ears.  "Bad Romance" (Which I had bet would have closed the show on a normal week) worked, and it was neat to see the performance come off as a bunch of high school kids paying tribute to Gaga rather than it being really polished, which was nice.  "Shout It Out Loud" was the most fun song of the night to me (editors note, I can't stand Lady Gaga, so that's probably affecting my outlook), watching everyone in Kiss regalia.  "Beth" was really nice with Mark Salling on the lead (with Cory taking a snippet of the lead to reference his situation a bit with Kurt).   And I've heard a lot of folks question "Poker Face" as the duet between Lea and Idina, but for me it worked.  It took the tension out of what they were going through emotionally, and both relaxed into a really nice musical moment that gave both of them, in a way, a sense of closure.

All told, not their strongest episode musically, but nothing was overly bad.



MY FINAL THOUGHT

The memory of this episode was the Kurt/Burt/Finn scene, in much the same way as Will discovering Terri's lie was the memory of that episode...intense, uncomfortable, and hard-hitting in what you're left with.  I think that this isn't the end of the tension between Kurt and Finn, but I do think Finn realized he spoke too soon in anger and is legitimately trying to be better.

I'm not sure how I feel about Rachel/Shelby wrapping so quickly...both know, yet both realize that it's too late to get what both wants out of a relationship...so they decide to just go seperate ways?  I hope that this isn't the last time this is referenced.

With two episodes left until Regionals (and with this having originally meant to be the penultimate episode), I really don't know what to expect yet for the finale...which is cool, being kept guessing isn't a bad thing.   Next week looks interesting...Will and SUE?!?  Uhhhhh...

Until next time, don't stop believin'.

GLEEWind - Episode 1.19 "Dream On"

QUICKIE OVERVIEW

An old high school rival of Mr. Schu, embittered about his failures in the music business after being 'the man' in Glee Club back in the day, is threatening to cut Glee from the school budget in his role as member of the school board.  Tina tries to help Artie with his handicap.  Rachel and Jesse attempt to find out who Rachel's birth mother is.

WHAT I LIKED

• The duets were spectacular.  More on that in "The Music".
  
• Granted, it took a daydream sequence to do it, but Kevin McHale (Artie) tore it up, and the dance scene in the mall was a LOT of fun to watch.
  
• It was nice to see the Artie/Tina relationship get some significant screen time, as well as some growth.  The show now needs to give Tina slightly more backstory to flesh this out a bit more.
  
• With NEIL PATRICK F'N HARRIS on board this week, they backgrounded Sue, but the one scene they did have against each other was the definition of a small dose really packing a wallop.
  
• Wait a minute, Terri Schuester still exists?  I wasn't sure until the bar scene.
   
• I knew another shoe was going to drop with Jesse being in New Directions, and they finally dropped it, but I was glad they didn't go with the obvious "spy" route.
  
• With one simple touch of the shoulder, the writers have convinced me that Quinn has palpably changed in outlook and personality.   Now watch them screw with me in the finale (where it's been confirmed that Quinn has the baby in that episode).
  
• The community theater director is the Stewart's obnoxious neighbor on early seasons of "Hannah Montana".   I know that because I have a seven year old daughter, but I like this particular character actor, so that's cool.   And at least it wasn't Sandy Ryerson, that would have been too obvious.

WHAT I WAS 'MEH' ABOUT

•   The overall story involving Bryan Ryan was OK, but I'm not clamoring for a character return anytime soon.  Yes, NPH can sing, and that was his best contribution for the show, but the rest was just "a'ight".
  
• Well, they went there with Rachel's mom.  I'm sure many, many Gleeks are in a quivering joyful puddle over this, especially the Broadway babies.   I'm feeling like I wish the producers had the guts to NOT go that direction with it.  Yes, I'm positive I'm in the minority with this one.
  
• The de-emphasization of much of the Glee kids this episode didn't seem a fair tradeoff for the glory of NPH in this episode, but again, with such a large cast, folks can't be front and center every week.
  
• Gaga next week.  *sigh*

WHAT I HATED

• OK, I'm convinced the writers are trying to make Emma unlikeable.   I'm sorry, but there's no guidance counselor on this planet that would have crushed Artie like that.   Yes, it's TRUE...but it could have been a lot more tactful than that.   And knowing the spoilers about what...or in this case, who...is coming up in Emma's life, I wonder if the writers aren't trying to get fans to realize that Emma Pillsbury isn't the white fluffy cloud she's seemed to be all season. 

LINE OF THE NIGHT

"I have a secret room upstairs.  Like Letterman" - Sue  (Thanks for that image of NPH and Jane Lynch doing the dirty.   Newsweek guy can kiss it about gay actors not playing straight very well...)

THE MUSIC

This episode had two of the best duets yet - Will and Bryan on "Dream On" and Rachel and Shelby on "I Dreamed a Dream".  Both blended really well together and were "moments" for the show overall.   "Safety Dance" was more for the group dance than the number, but Artie did it capably (and the group dance was pretty sweet, especially the differing camera angles).  "Dream a Little Dream of Me" was downright sad despite its lilt, and while not the best performance on the show ever, it drove the point it was supposed to drive.   


MY FINAL THOUGHT

This was as much an "event show" as the Madonna show earlier this season, but there's some plotty goodness in the mix that still managed to find its way out.  As much as the "poor Artie" episodes tend to run towards the mauldin, Kevin McHale makes the best of his Afterschool Special material and is consistently entertaining in what he does.  And his romance with Jenna Ushkowitz's Tina is sweet and, as a counterpoint to most relationships in this show, relatively stable.  And the revelations with Rachel's mom will no doubt impact Regionals, when it comes, in some fashion.

However, just like "Home" seemed to wedge Kristen Chenoweth into an excuse to be on the show and sing, this felt somewhat like they did the same with NPH.  Yes, his singing was fantastic, and him and Matt Morrison really need to do a Broadway show together (revival of "City of Angels" anyone?).  But the character didn't make me want to see him *back* at some point, and I just feel like he was there to get the non-Gleeks to peek in and see what the fuss is about. 

But all in all, it gave the Gleeks what they wanted in spades, and with the viewing numbers the show is getting right now, that's what they're looking for.  Three shows left in the season...and I'm wondering how they're getting to Regionals given that they've barely addressed it to this point in the season.  

Until next time, don't stop believin'.

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Welcome to my blog.   The purpose of this blog is to talk about...well, whatever's on my mind at the time.  Mostly, though, it will be about music and pop culture and how they affect my thoughts and life.

I hope you enjoy it.  Grace and peace.