By: Alexander Hutt

Half of Glee's first season has now passed and already it has taken primetime TV audiences by the collar and glued to their seats. Unfortunately, now begins a four month Glee withdrawal, as the next new episode is not going to be released until April 2010. To pass some of that time, let’s count down the top 5 best and worst plot points of the premiere season of the show so far.

The Worst

Number 5: Artie and Tina’s short-lived romance

It seemed that the “spark” between them was just created at the beginning of the episode “Wheels”, and the one scene dedicated to them within the episode was unsatisfying at best. Artie’s reasoning behind his rejection of Tina seems too harsh for his character, though to be honest, it was pretty understandable since Artie has to live with his disability while Tina can take it or leave it whenever she wishes.

Number 4: Will is banned from Regionals

It is not so much that Will could not go to Regionals with New Directions, which allowed for some humourous moments with Emma Pillsbury chaperoning the Glee club, it is the way in which Will could not accompany the team. Somehow sleeping on a mattress that was part of a corporate deal that the kids made without him seems an odd objection to him not joining the club, especially in light of the fact that Sue Sylvester and the Cheerios pull similar stunts all the time.

Number 3: Rachel’s crush on Will

Immensely weird and slightly scary, this plot slapped us in the face out of nowhere. There was no prior indication in the motivations of Rachel’s character to suggest she was going to randomly develop a crush on Will or pursue it to the length of domestic labour at his home. Though it did have some funny moments, it seems much too far fetched to fly as a serious plot development and many of us breathed a sigh of relief when it was resolved at the end of the episode. It didn’t advance the plot any further or define Rachel’s or Will’s character; even the storyline of Emma Pillsbury did not develop with this distraction of a plot, as we already knew that she is madly in love with Will. In the end, it just comes off as filler in an episode with more important happenings (such as Quinn’s parents discovering her pregnancy).

Number 2: Anything Involving Sandy

“Sandy, we voted, and when you’re in the group, it’s creepy.” We echo Will’s sentiments. From the sexual harassment of students, the stalking of Josh Groban, or the plot to destroy the Glee club by stealing Rachel with a fake play, the character of Sandy was something we wish was a much more minor character then he already is. Besides the uncomfortable storylines around him, Sandy was an ultimately ineffective villain, as he did not really distract Rachel from continuing her dream with Glee for an extended period of time. A walking gay antagonist stereotype, he made us cringe whenever he was on the screen.

Number 1: The Baby Plot

Try to follow this. A pregnant teenage girl whose baby isn’t her boyfriend's but her boyfriends' best friend's is going to give her baby to the wife of the Glee director who is pretending to be pregnant so that her husband doesn’t leave her. Even for Glee, this plot is highly convoluted and ridiculous. Will’s wife blackmailing the doctor was especially unenjoyable and there was a collective sigh of relief when the whole “scandal” was uncovered near the end of the mid-season. There is, however, one exception to this: seeing Will’s angry reaction to the news his wife wasn’t pregnant really showed off Matthew Morrison’s acting prowess.

The Best

Number 5: Sue Sylvester’s “Romance”

Another development from the “Vitamin D” episode, Sue and news anchor Rod Remington have a short-lived romance; broken off after she discovers Rod is fooling around with fellow anchor Andrea Carmichael. It was worth seeing Sue dressed up in a stylish “monkey suit” as well as seeing her lash back at Rod and Andrea in the subsequent episodes.

Number 4: Terri as the School Nurse

When Will’s wife takes the job as the school nurse during the mash-up episode, we knew great laughs would be ahead. From misdiagnosing students to getting the Glee kids high before their mash-up performances, Terri’s misdemeanors were hilarious to watch. Her moment alone with Emma Pillsbury was excellent as well because it gave us empathy for both characters, in their fight to keep or catch Will Schuester. Plus, watching the New Directions girls sing "Walking On Sunshine" hopped up on pharmaceuticals made the episode.

Number 3: Will and Emma’s Romance

It was most definitely a cheesy, predictable storyline, but we still loved in anyway. That was part of its charm, along with the funny moments between Emma and Will. We also empathize with Ken Tanaka, the gym teacher and football coach because he only wants to be happily married to Emma, but knows that she will always choose Will over him. Two exemplary moments of this great relationship where their rendition of My Fair Lady's “I Could Have Danced All Night” and of course, the final moment of the Glee half-season (which we won’t ruin for you here).

Number 2: Sue Sylvester’s Softer Side

A good antagonist always has elements of an anti-villain. Sue Sylvester is definitely in opposition of the Glee club, but she often has good, solid points. For instance, when she tells Will that she would rather show off her cheerleader’s talents than hide behind “hairography.” One of the sweetest moments is when she gives a spot on the Cheerios to to Becky, an disabled student at McKinley High. It is later revealed that she has a personal connection to this, as her older sister is also a special needs person. This showed us that even Sue can have her soft spots, adding a new dimension to her rivalry with Will. Apparently Sue doesn’t euthanize everything that gets in her way.

Number 1: Anything Involving Kurt Hummel

Recently there has been an influx of positive gay characters in primetime television and Kurt is one of them. Kurt’s storylines were some of the most thoughtful and well written in the show, as show producer Ryan Murphy specially created the character for Chris Colfer once he was cast. Kurt’s coming out conversation with his Dad was taken from Ryan Murphy’s own life, and Kurt’s wish to sing “Defying Gravity” is one that Colfer held himself during high school. Kurt coming out to Mercedes and later his Dad was so heartfelt and showed us that Kurt may appear to be strong and ruthless, but is also vulnerable and emotional. His turn on the football team brought the most uproarious scene of Glee, as a whole football team danced and shook to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies.” Kurt can make us smile, laugh and cry, all in the same episode, and that is why he is one of the strongest characters in the ensemble cast. Show us your ring finger, Kurt!

Written by :

alessandro

 

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written by Alexander Hutt, January 06, 2010

Aaron: Will and Rachel crush was hilarious I do have to say, but as a plot it didn't really sail for me. It's a little too unbelievable, even in Glee!

Miriam: I've been listening to the first 2 cds on my ipod for the last week :) But they're not really plot points so I couldn't throw them in here. I would have to say my favorite version of Defying Gravity is the Kurt solo version. :)

Kindah: Stephen Tobolowsky is a great actor I have liked him ever since I saw his cameo in Spaceballs! I just feel that the character of Sandy wasn't a great reflection on the gay community, as well as an ineffective bad guy.
I actually threw my arms up in the air when he started running down the hall hahaha. But I do like how happy the moment made me! Having them together this early probably means, like you say, that there is going to be some problems on the way :)

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written by Kindah Mardam Bey, January 06, 2010

Great article Alex! I agree, this is a fantastic show that has both some exceptional moments and some plain exceptionally tedious moments as well. One thing I love about GLEE is how all the characters are so likable. Even Sue, who "euthanizes everything that gets in her way" (Love that comment!) is so much fun to watch in her callousness! I agree the Kurt plot line, especially with his Dad has been a great highlight of the show, as was the football dancing Beyonce scene!

Artie and Tina's "loves" episode did tend to not accomplish a whole lot, and I am sick of the baby plot - although the plot gave Terri her full reign as a morally ambiguous persona. I do kinda like Sandy though, perhaps I have seen the great character actor Stephen Tobolowsky for so long, I just enjoy any part he plays.

I thought Will going after Emma at the end of the last episode was very weak - he could have sung a line or two to her, or really run down the hall to actually kiss her (as opposed to run down the hall and then meander over for a weak lip lock like one of his students), they could have even left it pending as a cliffhanger, but I just felt the ending was the easy way out on that relationship. I have high hopes we will come back to the show and the kiss will be less leading towards a relationship and more towards....hey, remember when Buffy slept with Angel and he turned evil....anyways, you get the idea.

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written by Miriam Cross, January 05, 2010

Loooove this show! I agree with Aaron - that whole student-teacher crush storyline was worth it for Will's mash-up of "Young Girl" and "Don't Stand So Close to Me." I also agree with the baby storyline being over - it was just way too hard to buy that Will could go months without touching his wife's fake-pregnant stomach. I'm not crazy about the Finn-Rachel pairing because I feel like I'm watching the same scenario repeat every episode, and I'd like to see Rachel get involved with someone else other than Finn or Puck. For highlights, I would add Sue and Will's showdown in the season finale and basically all the musical numbers - they're all so great I can't pick one, but I especially loved the "Imagine" number with the deaf kids, the mattress commercial, "Don't Stop Believin'," Rachel and Kurt's diva-off, and the song the kids perform for Will at the end of the mid-season finale.

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written by Aaron Bala, January 05, 2010

Preach it! Good article. Thank goodness all that baby drama is done, although I don't like the pairing of Will and Emma so soon. I feel like they rushed it because they knew the long break was coming up. And I agree that Rachel's crush on Will was creepy, but I thought they handled it pretty well, I mean we hear about things like that happening at regular schools all the time. Plus the scene of Matthew Morrison singing to her and Emma is drop dead hilarious.

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