I’m going to preface this by saying I’m a huge Gleek. I watch the show faithfully and I love it. I also really liked a lot about last night’s episode (big ups to Heather Morris on the Brittany/Britney numbers. You go girl!).
However, a couple things are sticking in my craw today and so, while I’m not really ranty, I thought I’d toss ’em out.
1) Will Schuester is danger of becoming “that drama teacher”. You know the one I mean. The one who wasn’t good enough to make it out in the real world so he lives through his students and inserts himself into any production possible to show off. Last night’s episode was another example and, while I know it was part of the story, it’s not the first time.
Here’s the problem/ Will actually is talented. There’s no reason he can’t be a teacher who decided to teach instead of going through all of the ups and downs of trying to be in the industry. Steady jobs are sexy these days and so is someone who wants to encourage others to follow their dreams. But I think it means that Will has to be okay with the choice he made. There are lots of ways to work Matthew Morrison’s skills into the show. But if the writer’s aren’t careful, Will’s going to look more pathetic than positive.
2) Why are there no geeks in Glee Club?
Think about it. We have jocks and cheerleaders and goths and the flamboyant gay kid. We have a Diva and even a kid in a wheelchair. But you’re telling me that there’s not a bookish, geeky, DnD, gamer kid in Glee?
While reminiscent of high school and the AV nerds we all knew and loved, the closest thing to a geek Glee gives us is a couple kids who are socially below the Glee kids (and when you go with the premise that the Glee kids are low on the totem pole, that’s pretty low.)
3) Speaking of which, why are the Glee kids as “lame” as they are within the McKinley High social strata? I’m not saying drama and Glee kids weren’t considered strange when I went to school, but plenty of kids went to the shows when I was in school. Plus, in this case, the Glee kids are talented. You’re not talking about an assembly in which the rest of the school is subjected to off-key harmony and bad breakdancing.
Let’s have a little reality. The Empire State Of Mind number last week was really good and you’d have a hard time convicing me that an entire school would have watched that and then just sort of said “meh.
Which means, the Glee kids have to suck less or the school may have to give them just a bit more standing. One less slushy to the face would be a nice start ;-)
4) Finally. I’m sorry, I’m gonna say it. Rachel Berry has no redeeming qualities.
She’s neurotic, she’s selfish, she’s a Diva, she’s a brat and — say what you want — I don’t remember a kid in my drama classes who sat and watched our local Diva sing and smiled. We dealt with her, we tolerated her, but we didn’t like her and we didn’t hang out with her.
Personally, I wish Quinn hadn’t done her the favor of that little locker trick last night. I wish Quinn had told her to go screw herself. Because it was a crappy thing to make Quinn do and, seriously, I’d be okay with a little open animosity on the show.
In my opinion, Rachel needs something to make her likable. Otherwise, I’m gonna start rooting for Mercedes and Kurt to get all the solos and hope that Quinn and Finn get back together.
Hm. Guess I did have a few things to say ;-)
Oh P.S. I like Emma with Carl. And John Stamos was rather adorable. I hope he can sing.
Edit: Twitter informs me he can ;-)
I totally, totally agree, especially about Will & Rachel. I thought Will was totally incredible last season, but this season he’s just whiny and insecure and bleh.
Rachel was annoying last season too, but this season she is even more so. Her insecurity and demanding nature were at least believable last season, as obnoxious as they were…but this season she is just ridiculous.
On a semi-tangental note, Rachel’s new look is horrid too. Who the heck thought she would look better with bangs and straightened hair?
I totally agree about both Will and Rachel. They’ve been driving me nuts! I’m sure it’s fun for the writers to write one more outrageous thing for Rachel to say, giving us the cringing humor that many comedies today rely on, but sometimes she just seems…not human, or something. Like when she was talking with the fake Asian accent to the girl who was clearly speaking English to her. They were going for laughs, but it was just so unbelievable that it was like breaking the fourth wall for me.
As for Will, he’s been as bad–or worse–than a high schooler in the past two episodes. First being a lame bully, then the jealous ex-boyfriend/drama teacher who performs with the kids (and to make things worse, makes himself one of the featured performers). It’s so embarrassing. Maybe they decided he seemed too likable last season and needed to be taken down several notches? Ugh.
McKinley High school is definitely a really weird school in regards to the way they treat the glee kids. My high school didn’t have a glee club/show choir, but we we had a choir and we had a drama club that did musicals. Drama and choir may not have granted the same status as the football team, but no one ever made fun of us, and people liked our shows. And the Britney assembly riot was totally wacky.
That said, I really love Glee still. It’s just an exaggerated, wacky kind of a world. And I’m so glad to hear that John Stamos can sing.
I haven’t seen that much Glee, but from what I have seen, I completely agree with you. For me, those things are involved in making Glee impossible for me to watch. The other problem is that I lived Glee in high school, only I was the crazy, nerdy, scifi geek in the group. I also had a lot of horrible things happen and I don’t like even thinking about reliving it all. Anyway, nice to know others can see the faults in Glee.
Rosalind
Girls Are Geeks
I agree with EVERYTHING. I had a similar conversation (with myself) after watching the last episode.
Brittany’s dancing was incredible and this was the first episode I didn’t think her existence on the show completely useless.
Rachel was not only annoying but her musical contribution was flat, off key and unnecessary. Brittney Spears is not her forte and her “Hit Me Baby” wasn’t necessary for the plot. Is it in her contract that she must sing every episode?!
I agree she is becoming less and less likable and way more a stereotype.
I also don’t understand why they can’t keep Will Schuester the foxy musical sage. The forced personal crisis they seem to be hinting at is boring and unnecessary. Glee writers, please keep him the rock that all the other characters cling to… please?
And now on to the real rant:
The stereotypes are tired and unnecessary. The boiled down message of every episode is empowerment and I think they discredit that message by making the characters one-dimensional. We are rich and interesting people, not solely one thing (geeks, hee) Glee members should reflect that.
I would also love to see a bit more diversity in the culture. There are some beautiful and talented people of color on the show, but they are often secondary to the story. Bring Sunshine was amazing and it was so nice to have a Filipina – not just generic Asian X. To Glee’s credit, they are doing better than many other shows on diversity, but it could be better.