(S01E02) After the terrific premiere episode of Glee last May, it was probably inevitable that the second episode would have a hard time recapturing that euphoria. For the first few minutes, however, Glee had succeeded. As Will made his entrance into McKinley High, high on the joy that the New Directions had brought back to his life and seeing it reflected in the lives of the students in the club, I related to the euphoria. I love that euphoria.
As the music to Dean Martin's "Ain't That A Kick in the Head" played (sans vocal) in the background, it seemed that Glee was sailing. More on the rest of the show after the jump.
Somewhere along the way, the four letters that spell Glee went from "g-l-e-e" to "s-o-a-p." Complications were expected, but too much angst has gripped the group and it's happened really fast. Will's marriage is turning into Jon and Kate Plus One, all happy on the outside but covering up a nest of nastiness. And the inconsistencies in their relationship made my head spin.
Initially, Will was suckered into the overpriced tract house, taking a demeaning second job as the school's night janitor to afford the "grand foyer." But later, Terri gives the house up when her bun in the oven turns out to be a hysterical pregnancy and she doesn't tell Will about it. Is this The Young and the Restless or Glee? One scene has Will and Terri sharing a bath, then she's lying to him about the baby?
Meanwhile, Emma continues to pine for Will, but opts to accept a date from Ken when he gives her an honest, but grim look at why she should go out with him. I understand Emma's longing, especially when Will continues leading her on; doesn't he know what he's doing to her? Still, Emma's been out with Ken and knows that he will never make her happy.
Then there are the students and the problems they're facing. While performing "Le Freak," "Golddigger" and "Push It" they were pretty upbeat, but once the music stopped, oh the drama. I expected the celibacy club would be a funny premise, but it wasn't. It did set up a wry bit about how Finn keeps from bursting below the belt when he gets sexually aroused by using the image of a postal worker splashed across his windshield! Lea Michele's solo "Take A Bow" was beautifully done, but kind of a downer way to end the show.
Another downer was Sue Sylvester. I love Jane Lynch. I love the idea of her heading up the Cheerios and plotting their success at all costs. I don't buy her morphing into Snidely Whiplash. She did everything but twirl a mustache! Sue has to have more of a comic tone. She can't seem to be losing it in her desire to destroy the glee club.
Finally, there's one thing missing from Glee that needs addressing. Where are the parents? Surely Rachel's two dads would be there for every performance, even an assembly. That's a ripe comic vein that should be mined.
I still have faith in Glee; I'm not giving up. I'm just hoping for more.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
9-09-2009 @ 10:43PM
Jimmy said...
> Somewhere along the way, the four letters that spell Glee went from "g-l-e-e" to "s-o-a-p."
It's called "p-l-o-t."
I thought this week's episode was good -- consistent with the pilot, anyway.
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9-09-2009 @ 10:50PM
Scott H said...
I agree with you. Lots of things about the show worked, but the wife continues to grate, they've gone too far with Emma's cleanliness obsession (she's a GUIDANCE COUNSELOR with such a glaring psychological problem?), and Jane Lynch's character is much farther over the top than she needs to be. And that's not where Lynch's talent lies.
It seems like we're headed more for a cartoony show than I had reason to believe from the pilot. I was hoping Ryan Murphy had matured a little from "Nip/Tuck". I still hold out hope, but tonight was disappointing.
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9-10-2009 @ 12:10AM
Justin said...
I thought it was a great episode and very good selection of music There has to be some story; can't just show them practicing their numbers for 40 minutes.
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9-10-2009 @ 12:17AM
pinsleric said...
I agree with many of your points, but not how you feel about Will's marriage. It seemed from the first time we saw Terry and Will interact, their relationship wasn't right. They always tried to cover up the fact that they had a fractured relationship, and this episode showed that even a baby wouldn't help, even if Terry thought so. That's how we've seen them, and it didn't seem inconsistent to me.
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9-10-2009 @ 1:42AM
Man said...
The music was off, it felt less like kids singing and more like bad video lip-singing. Still funny.
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9-10-2009 @ 2:00AM
David said...
Agreed. Much moreso than in the pilot, whenever they started singing I was distracted by the fact that it looked and sounded like actors lip-syncing to a studio recording. Sometimes it even sounded like someone else's voice, and that completely ruined what was left of the effect for me.
9-10-2009 @ 9:58AM
Jake said...
Could not agree more. "Golddigger" was just awful. They got the audio right in the pilot, and "Push It" was a bit better, so I'm really hoping they can figure it out. The studio-smoothness was jarring and apparent, and I had trouble believing that was even Matthew Morrison singing.
9-10-2009 @ 3:19AM
Virgin Cosmo said...
Worth the hype and the wait! There's still time to mix-in Winona from "Heathers," Regina from "Mean Girls," Ferris, etc. Yes, add the parents, competing schools, the dungeons & dragons freaks, the geek squad, etc. Outstanding writing -and- the music hit 3-4 generations. That's pretty smart!
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9-10-2009 @ 5:26AM
Creep said...
Rachel (Lea Michele), superhot.
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9-10-2009 @ 10:01AM
Jake said...
I'm not sure I agree with you about Terri. She's a conniving pill who would have no moral qualm about lying to her husband, even about something as important as her pregnancy -- remember her secret Pottery Barn stash from the pilot? Surely not the same caliber of offense, but a sign of the kind of person they are writing her to be. And it ain't far off. I've known plenty of conniving, lying, selfish suburban princesses who would give Terri a run for her money.
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9-10-2009 @ 10:26AM
Parl said...
I watched the pilot and enjoyed it. I watched this episode and enjoyed it. I guess I'm not really expecting much from Ryan Murphy after the cesspool Nip/Tuck turned into after the Carver storyline.
As far as some characters being too over the top...what did you expect? Everything is dialed up a notch. The pilot itself was like a caricature of high school and its cliques. Jocks. Check. Cheerleaders. Check. Nerds. Check. Etc.
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9-10-2009 @ 11:03AM
Mark said...
Overall I enjoy the show. Two things grate - the wife is just a dimwit, too much so.
Also, I am decades out of high school and so are my kids, but most faculty at any school I've ever been around would have stopped that performance in mid-note and seriously considered major punishment.
As they say, "What's next? The Andes plane crash cookbook?"
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9-10-2009 @ 3:46PM
AngryManSteve said...
Mark - I'm not sure you understand the show. Yes, the assembly performance was inappropriate. That's why it was *funny*. The fact that the principal enjoyed it so much made it funnier. The writers have obviously been studying The Office.
Did you have a problem with the dinner scene where the kids were running around the table throwing pillow stuffing into the air? Would that have happened IRL? No, of course not, but it was awesomely cringeworthy.
9-10-2009 @ 3:44PM
Mike said...
"I don't seem to have a gag reflex"
"When you're older that will be (sic) looked upon as a benefit"
LMAO - funniest thing I've heard in a LONG time on television.
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9-10-2009 @ 3:49PM
AngryManSteve said...
No doubt :) This episode had some awesome one-liners. Hope they keep it up.
"This is where our daughter or gay son will sleep."
lol
9-10-2009 @ 3:54PM
Mike said...
"And I'll get my boyfriend back."
"I don't care so much about that"
9-10-2009 @ 7:38PM
jm said...
Hilarious from start to finish.
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9-10-2009 @ 9:53PM
Elisabeth said...
The problem was that the pilot was too good. But come on, this episode wasn't that bad. I expected a minor let-down, and yes, it wasn't quite as good as the pilot, but, overall, they continued the storylines that were started.
This show is still in my top 5 for this season, I'm sticking with it.
As for the one-liners, the previous commenters caught the best ones. Loved them!
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9-11-2009 @ 2:19PM
R. Reed said...
the brochure: "So You Want To Throwup"
9-11-2009 @ 10:39PM
KevinInChains said...
its only the 2nd episode, relax.
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