I’m on the road on a business trip, so here go some quick thoughts about last night’s episode of Glee. As always, a very enjoyable episode with both hits and misses.
HIT: Music choices! So much old-school Broadway & Tin Pan Alley melodrama here, from the amazing Chris Colfer feature on “A House Is Not a Home” to the really tender heartwarming schmaltz of “One Less Bell to Answer” and its entwined harmonic lines betwixt Kristin Chenoweth and Matthew Morrison. And “Beautiful” is about as close to a real life modern anthem as we’ve had in the last few years, and listen to Ms. Amber Riley blast it out of the park. Even dug the duet on “Fire” in the disco roller rink. Top marks.
MISS: Oedipal plotline! Finn may be a bit dumb, and Kurt might be self-obsessed, but their whole reaction to their parents’ hooking up was a massive UGH: seen it before, boring, meh, etc. Not to say that there weren’t moments there of real pathos (Kurt talking to his dad near the end, clearly upset about not being the right “kind” of son), but come on, the thing with the ashes was horrid, and Kurt looming outside like a vampire was over any top you can think of.
HIT: Amber’s back! Obviously, Chenoweth is ten foot of amazing in a five-foot suit, but I was worried about her cartoony character’s return. I was wrong — she was great BECAUSE she was so cartoony. And vulnerable. And when her self-loathing turned to self-empowerment and generosity, it wasn’t earned by the script, really, but more by the actress. Kudos.
MISS: Disappearing Puck! Dude has had about seven words total in the three episodes back. He’s still in the cast, right?
HIT: I actually really dug the plotline with Mercedes. It was ridiculous, of course, with people turning into cupcakes and ice cream cones, but it’s a very real topic and was dealt with in an honorable way, even if it did accidentally make Sue look like a saint. The guy playing the reporter was pretty good in the role, all pissy and self-righteous: my kind of people.
MISS: Kurt’s hug at the end of “Beautiful,” saying “Thank you” to Mercedes like he’s learned a valuable lesson. What lesson? He’s still all self-loathing, as we learn later. Why can’t his character learn anything, when other people are learning all over the place?
MISS: Speaking of which, when did Quinn turn into Mother Teresa? All these beatific looks, her deep wisdom helping everyone else out, learning lessons from her unborn child and applying it to her life, all that jazz. I’ve known a lot of pregnant ladies and, let me tell you, THEY AIN’T ALL SO SAINTLY, okay?
HIT: Sue and Brittney killing their line readings: “How do you two not have a show on Bravo?” “I’m pretty sure my cat’s been reading my diary.” “You have hips like a pear.” So good.
HIT: The overall tone of the episode – light but packed with nutrients and good taste, deep but not painfully so. Let’s call it a solid B and have done with it.
(PS MISS: I still hate Rachel’s carpetbagger boyfriend. I want to form an indie band called “Jesse St. James and His Smirk.”)
Even though Rachel is my overall favorite character, what I liked so much about this episode was that it gave other people some songs and some room for their characters.
On Quinn Mother Teresa-ing … I think this is one of those examples where they need someone to do something (or say something) for the plot/songs and don’t worry too much about whether or not it fits the character development to date.
Kurt’s very interesting too and has great expressions when Rachel’s saying something Rachel — but, yeah, he doesn’t seem to be developing (and can also be a good friend sometimes and very nasty sometimes … which is also very interesting)!