Why are a bunch of high schoolers in a cubicle? Who cares? The important thing is that they look good.
Loving Glee has been a singularly frustrating experience. When it’s good, it’s brilliant, poignant, hilarious, and like nothing else on television. When it’s bad, it’s so cringe-inducingly awful that it’s embarrassing to admit you’re actually following this show. I keep watching because so far the good has outweighed the bad, and because despite the occasionally horrendous writing, I’ve come to like and care about the characters. But hot damn, this show needs to pull it together.
I’m sick of the repetitive “OMG Glee Club is getting shut down!” storylines, Sue’s decreasingly amusing and increasingly pointless vendetta against Glee Club, the completely unearned moments of treacle, and the ridiculous notion that Will is actually a good teacher. I hate that a breathtakingly talented cast is being wasted in musical numbers that are essentially glorified karaoke– what’s the point of a cover if it sounds exactly like the original? And most of all, I want to tear my hair out every time an episode like “Dream On” reminds me of what Glee could be if it actually tried to be good.
And yet, I am going to tune in tonight, because goddamnit, I’m hoping against hope that Glee will have learned its lessons and righted itself. At its very very best, Glee can make you cry and laugh and cry again in the same episode, and leave you humming a catchy tune that won’t leave your head for days. The effect can be powerfully addictive, and it’s the reason I’ve been willing to tolerate all the dumb parts. So I’m daring to hope that we’ll have more of those sweet Kurt moments and hilarious Brittany/Santana ones, and less of all that absurd shit I listed above. I’m dying for more “Run Joey Run”-style campfests and heartfelt “Defying Gravity”s to replace the lazy “Ice Ice Baby” numbers. Bring back Joss Whedon and Mike O’Malley! I want to spend another season cheering for these crazy kids and fawning over Emma’s cute outfits and quoting Sue’s one-liners. I just don’t know if I truly believe any of these things will actually happen.
If this feels familiar, it’s because this is just how I felt at the start of Season 3 of Heroes– and we all know how that ended. Then again, this is also how I felt about Season 3 of Friday Night Lights– and we know how that turned out, too. If I were the betting type, though, I’d put my money on the former. If the back half of the first season is any indication, it seems the writers have more interest in giving the fans and networks the superficial dazzle they think we want, rather than surprising us by raising the bar. But I’m begging you, Glee– please, please prove me wrong.
Tags: 2010, amber riley, brad falchuk, chris colfer, cory monteith, glee, ian brennan, jane lynch, lea michele, matthew morrison, ryan murphy, tv
