Ep. 7~I kissed a girl

After that cliff-hanger ending with Santanna slapping Finn, she almost gets suspended for her display of violence, but Finn decides to let it slide because he wants to help her accept herself. I thought it was nice that he made a reference to the It Gets Better videos, and sweet that he didn't want Santanna to kill herself.

Finally Santanna accepts herself for liking herself and seems a better person for it. She announces her parents took it well (excellent!) but her grandmother sadly... well, didn't. Her coming-out speech to her was really beautiful and strong, but her abuela just couldn't accept her. ~,~

I couldn't believe that Kurt could be down in the polls for class president. How can he be down in any poll? So unfair! ~,~ I'm glad that a lot of people in Glee club voted for him, but it's still sad. That Rachel was forced to stuff the ballot boxes with that many extra votes (how did she sneak them in for him?) for him is just ridiculous. It broke my heart to see Kurt so torn up, since he didn't win the lead for West Side Story or the election. (Yay for his dad getting elected for congress instead of Sue, though! At least one of the Hummels got to win something.)

Personally, I'm glad the little romance between student and teacher, Puck and Shelby, seems to be through. No doubt it will come back to haunt him, (WHY did he go and tell Quinn about it?) but at least I don't have to be disgusted anymore. I'm glad that Puck addressed first how selfish and nasty Quinn could be, but then how much of an emotional mess she was later. I like seeing that he has a conscience, and is at least sorry that he knocked her up.

Also there's the tiny side-plot about Coach Bieste and her crush Cooter the recruiter. It's sweet how she's head over heels for him, but all the sadder when she finds him and Sue Sylvester on a date! She shouldn't have been sending him mixed messages. I like how in the end she stands up and tells him how she really feels, and promises that she won't let Coot go without a fight. I want to see that happen.

Ep. 6~Mash Off

Looks like it's time for song mashups. I remember last season's mashup episode very well... After all, it led to Kurt meeting Blaine. ^_^ But this year, it wasn't boys against girls (what a relief!), because there's another Glee club in McKinley, the Trouble Tones. So they have a little friendly competition against each other. No one said it had to be a clean one, though...

Sue's political ads against Burt Hummel were absolutely hilarious. It's funny how there is also the political race at McKinley for senior class president being run at the same time... Could this be meant to reflect the real political race being run by the republicans for president-elect against Obama next year? I wonder...

I thought the class president debate was extremely funny. As you will see later, I put Rick the Stick and Brittany's entire speeches in my best lines post. ^_^ Kurt's speech was totally inspiring and clean. He is the only candidate totally worth voting for. It's a good thing Rachel bowed out of the race. There was no way she could compete with him. And it brought them back together as friends! Yay. ^_^ I'm glad about that, because all I know is that if I were best friends with Kurt, I would not want to be on the receiving side of his cold shoulder.

I wish I knew the reasoning behind Finn antagonizing Blaine. What gives? He offered a solo part to the new guy, Rory. But Blaine's cool, not affected by it...

Santanna's so mean to Finn for absolutely no reason, except perhaps he's the "leader" of New Directions... so instead of trash-talking, which she is too good at, they decide to have a dodge-ball game? Okay, whatever... I liked how Santanna was absolutely on a roll with the insults! Especially when she was "apologising" to him. She's almost like Sue Sylvester herself! Sometime I would like to see them come head to head and have them have a verbal fight to the death. But Finn certainly delivered the fatal blow by outing her.

Okay, I don't like the thought of Puck and Shelby together at all. It's just plain weird, to me personally. But I do have to admit: little baby Beth in his arms and him making baby talk at her is really cute! I'm glad he came clean and told the truth about his and Quinn's plans to steal Beth. I wonder how Quinn will pay him back later... The face-off between Quinn and Shelby was harsh. I hope she gives up on the stealing Beth plan, it's just totally stupid.

Finally, the cliff-hanger ending. My goodness, that campaign ad that was attacking Sue Sylvester was mean! She wouldn't have been phased by it, had it not been for the fact that it also attacked Santanna personally, and flat out called her a lesbian. It may be true, but to be outed publicly like that seems infinitely worse than a spat in the school hallway. She was in tears! It was the first time i truly felt sorry for Santanna. Then she had to go and perform that mashup with the Trouble Tones. What an emotional toll that must have taken on her performance. And that slap she gave Finn? Ouch!

Can hardly wait for next week's episode, to see how this story continues to unfold...

Ep. 5~The First Time

Oh my goodness! This episode was simply amazing!!! I don't know how I could have ever doubted that glee wouldn't take this topic and make it awesome. "The First Time" has gone right into my top favorite episodes of the season, up there with "Asian F". I will explain to you now what exactly happened last night and why I fell in love with this episode.

First, I like that we got to get inside Artie's head a tiny bit, how he really takes his role as director of the school musical seriously. It wasnt much, but it was nice for his character to have a share of the spotlight. Also, without him, Rachel and Blaine wouldn't have started thinking about how they haven't yet experienced what it's like to... er, do it... And as the lead roles of Maria and Tony, it would be good to have some world experience to tap into with their acting. Lucky for them, they both have boyfriends with which they can potentially "do the deed": Finn and Kurt. (Guess which couple I was most interested in? ^_~)

Don't worry, I'll get into that later. Artie also plays match-maker with Coach Beiste (who, along with Emma, ran away from his sex talk :P), who has her eyes on Cooter the Football recruiter (I bet they gave him that name just because it was fun to say), but is too shy and insecure about her looks to act on her feelings. I liked how seeing the Beiste vulnerable like that reminded me that, under that tough, macho exterior, she is really a sensitive woman on the inside. Happily it turns out that Cooter likes her too and, with a little prodding from our handicapped cupid, gets the courage to flat out ask her out on a date. Yay!

I liked the Finchel interaction a ton better than I have in the past. They truly seemed like a couple in love, with no back-stabbing, hidden agendas, or big break-up arguments. Well, actually... Argh, just when it seemed as if they were about to get it on (safe and protected, no worries), Rachel HAD to open her big mouth and say one of her reasons for doing it now and not after winning an award was so she was better prepared for the musical. Total turn-off for Finn, naturally. Not to worry, though. In the end, Rachel sees the error of her ways and fixes things with her boyfriend.

I thought it was interesting that Rachel called a meeting of the old celibacy club to order (was it the celibacy club? It looked like they were using a similar empty classroom) to ask her girlfriends for advice. Quinn, talking from experience, said it would be good to wait before losing her virginity, to save herself regret. Santanna, from her own experience, said she should wait for someone better at it than Finn to come along. I liked Tina's advice best, though. She didn't tell Rachel what to do, but talked about how her first time with Mike was so beautiful and special, and that's how Rachel's first time should be.

Speaking of Mike, I liked that they continued a bit with his story arc and had his dad confront him, but was so sad that Mike was basically disowned by him. :( Yeah, it's great that his mom fully supports him, but hopefully Mr. Chang will eventually come around. (btw, I wonder when Tina will get a story arc of her own in this season. She's the sweetest, least dramatic girl in the whole show, and sadly under-used. I want to see her come out and shine!)

Okay, I saved the best sub-plot for last. ^_^ So what's the Klaine story? Well, Blaine swings by Dalton to check in on the Warblers and invite his friends to see McKinley's West Side Story. While there, he meets this new guy, named Sebastian, who seems even more smooth-talking than Blaine was when Kurt first met him. He agrees to meet Sebastian for coffee (noooooo!), and it is clear that Sebastian (gay, by the way) wants him. I never thought I'd get to see Blaine look so flustered around someone hitting on him. He's so freaking adorable. ^_^

On their next meeting, Blaine makes it clear to him that he has a boyfriend, though Sebastian doesn't seem too bothered by that fact. Until Kurt appears, by pure coincidence. I liked how protectively he held onto Blaine's arm, his body language plainly saying, "You can't have him. He's all mine, got that?" Then Sebastian invites them to kick it back at a gay bar, which Kurt... strangely agrees to? 0_o Blaine certainly didn't see that coming. Lol.

It was cool seeing the inside of a gay bar. Yeah, the dudes in drag were a little weird, but it looked like a fun, harmless place. The big surprise, though, was that Kurt actually met up with Dave Karofsky, his old bully, and they had a civil conversation. Kurt! And Karofsky! Together! He seemed much happier, much mellowed down, and has apparently found acceptance in his new school and in that gay bar. I'm glad about that. I never thought, when introduced to Dave in season 2, that I'd see him turn into a good character, but Glee demonstrates that no one, not even Sue, is made of pure evil.

Later, when they exit the bar totally drunk (well, Blaine much more than Kurt), Blaine comes on a little too strong and tries to make out with Kurt in the car, but Kurt doesn't want to do it if he's not going to remember it the next day. I was really shocked at how (understandably) mad he was at Blaine, and agreed that they should both be sober so the moment would be special, but was heartbroken when Blaine just left in a huff. !,! I really almost cried! Since he kissed Rachel, Blaine and Kurt have NEVER had a reason to fight. (Huh, that also came about because Blaine was drunk. You know what this means, don't you. Lay off the bottle, Warbler. :P)

But after the opening night of the musical, which seemed like a big success (but I sorely wish there could have been more West Side Story scenes! Santanna was awesome!!! Well, it was only the first night. Perhaps they'll show the other performances?), Blaine apologizes for his boorish behavior, and they're back together. Just like that. I don't know... It would have been interesting if they hadn't made up so quickly and had to wait until next episode, so the audience would get some tension. But like the kissing Rachel storyline, they didn't give viewers a chance to feel too sad for too long,...which I'm happy about, don't get me wrong! Still, it's not bad to keep people guessing...

Okay, for an episode about sex, I thought this was masterfully handled. The intimacy between both Finchel and Klaine was, I thought, very PG, but also really juicy at the same time. ^_^ Of course, you really don't see them do much besides lie in bed and stare lovingly into each other's eyes, but your imagination fills in the blanks. (That scene near the beginning, when Blaine was dancing for Kurt in his bedroom, was totally hot! If only Kurt didn't have on so many layers all the time! >_< And I love it whenever they kiss. Lol.)

Strangely, watching the whole episode made me feel as if it had come from the imagination of a glee fan-fic author, with all the awesome drama that came out of this. The writing was pure genius, I loved it, and... There's really nothing much else to say.

Ep. 4~Pot O' Gold

After a 3 week break from new Glee, it's time to jump back in the saddle and take a look at what the heck's going on, because at first viewing, the story is slightly overwhelming.

First off, we are introduced to the new foreign exchange student from Ireland, the adorable Rory Flanagen. For most of the episode though, I didn't know his name was Rory because I hadn't caught it, so in my head I referred to him as Irish guy. Rory is a really sweet character. I love his smile. ^_^ It's extremely hard to be the new kid in town, though. He gets bullied and shoved at lockers even worse than Kurt used to, it seems! Just because he's different. High school is so cruel. ~,~ He has a friend in Brittany, at least, because he lives at her house as part of the exchange. Being Brittany, she thinks he's a leprechaun and asks for silly wishes. Not wanting to break her illusion, Rory decides to play along because... I don't know, he wants to hook up with her? Okay, whatever.

Also, Sue Sylvester is back and mean as ever. She gets Figgins to stop funding West Side Story, so New Directions has to raise the money on their own. (Man, they have to do that a lot, don't they?) They decide to sell ad-space in the musical programs, and in an unexpected turn of events, when Kurt asks his dad to contribute, Burt Hummel goes the whole hog by generously funding the entire musical along with 3 funeral parlors. (Wha?! Okay, whatever.) And later on he steps on Sue's toes quite a bit more by campaigning as a write-in candidate for Congress, so that Sue won't be able to wreak havoc on Washington. Wow, things are so simple and easy on Glee, aren't they?

It's really sad that Mercedes is no longer part of New Directions. She transformed into a character I no longer like (though I still love her singing). She tries to recruit more people into the alternate glee club that she has joined (such a weird idea, 2 glee clubs in a school who doesn't even like glee), which makes New Directions slightly nervous. Santanna considers joining Mercedes, but only if she can convince Brittany to join with her. Brittany is more loyal to New Directions, though... I'm not sure why it was important, but when she learns about Rory and his feelings for Brittany, Santanna gets fiercely jealous and territorial. She can be very scary when she wants to be. 0,o

Finn finally gets a little character development when he starts acting like the leader again, trying to keep everybody's heads in the game. I like that he stood up for Rory when it seemed no one else in the school would. I didn't like how snappy he was to Blaine, though. >,< Also calling Brittany stupid and dashing her beliefs in Santa Clause and leprechauns in one fell swoop. Nice going, Finn. He still seems largely clueless about his future, so I liked it when the Hummel/Hudson family gathered together to talk about the future, especially since there's a chance Burt could be a congressman if people vote for him. That would mean they would move to Washington. Kurt will (hopefully!) go to some New York college, so that would leave Finn... Possibly taking over Burt's auto shop? Did he look like he actually liked the sound of that? Okay, whatever.

Lastly, there was my least favorite storyline of the episode, with Quinn, Puck, Shelby and the baby drama. I have no idea what Quinn is thinking. She's finally lost it. She is such a mean, scheming, extremely short-term thinking girl. What will taking Beth, her daughter, back from Shelby solve?! Puck I like a little better, but this episode has shown him to be a really enigmatic character. He still has that pool cleaning business from the first season, though since he has a baby, the cougars are less interested in him. He seems to truely care about Beth and wants to be a good father, though it creeps me out how close he ends up getting to Shelby. Eww!

So yeah, you can see that this episode, for me at least, was quite full of okay, whatever moments. Not my favorite episode this season. Still, I'm glad things wrapped up the way they did. Finn apologized to Brittany, Sue slinks off to fight another day, and Rory joins New Directions to partially fill the void left by Mercedes, Santanna and Brittany, who all joined and conquered Shelby and Sugar Motta's club and became the Trouble Tones. (I actually felt sorry for poor Sugar. 0,o)

Now we have next week to look forward to... And boy, I'm nervous about this episode! Titled "The First Time", the sneak peek prominently featured Finchel and Klaine talking about taking the next step in their respective relationships... I am counting on you, Glee. Please don't mess this up next Tuesday.

Coming up: Ep. 4~The songs.

Ep. 2~I Am Unicorn

Alright, I'm going to do it and review this episode before I delay it another day. I re-watched it the other day to help with writing my favorite quotes, so it's a little bit fresh in my head...

This started off a little strangely, with Brittany offering to help with Kurt's campaign for class president, which was nice of her, only she calls him a unicorn (a weird compliment, to be sure) and wants everyone else to know it with his posters. Kurt is initially afraid that this will portray him as much too gay, but in the end he uses a toned down version of Brit's poster that uses the pink, rainbow unicorn theme. Of course, it turns out Brittany's going to run against him for president now... I don't know whether Kurt should be concerned or not. I mean, this is Brittany we're talking about... O,o

So that's the unicorn part out of the way. Mr. Schue, keeping with his new make it or break it attitude, starts a thing called Booty camp to amp up certain people's dancing abilities. Also, Rachel's biological mother, Shelby, is back at McKinley, because Sugar Motta's (remember, terrible singing Asberger girl?) dad bribed the principal to start a new glee club with Sugar as the star, and they needed the best glee director. Since I never saw the end of Season 1, I'm not too familiar with Rachel's mom, but I know she adopted the baby that Quinn had. She seems like a good character. Of course, she's competing with New Directions, so it's hard to get friendly with her.

While she was there, Shelby offered Quinn and Puck the chance to be a part of the baby, Beth's, life, since they are the real parents. Quinn tries to act neutral, but you can tell she wants to see her daughter again. I was a bit surprised how sensitive Puck was in this episode, but I liked it (and Beth was so cute!). I remember how he started out in the beginning of the series, a total bad-boy football bully, but now he's really evolved into a character I actually like. Of course, I still don't like Quinn at all, but I at least feel sorry for her.

In addition, auditions for the school play, West Side Story (yay!) get under-way, directed by the unlikeliest trio, Emma Pillsbury, Coach Bieste, and Artie. Though unexpected, I think they will do a decent job. Funny enough, all the songs that were performed this episode were specifically for auditions. I'll get to each one later, but they were all great, Rachel, Kurt and Blaine. Kurt in particular. He really wants to get the role of male lead, Tony, but sadly, none of the directors think he's manly enough for the part, so what does he do? He tries to re-audition, with Rachel's assistance, using a scene from Romeo and Juliet... wearing tights. Nice try, but I don't think that will help your cause, Kurt.

In the end, we close with a brilliant audition from Blaine, who is so sweet. He kind of wants to play Tony, but he wants Kurt to get it more, so he tries out for a minor character. Of course, he does so well that the directors ask him to read for Tony, so what can he say? I think he will make a fantastic job with the role. If only Glee would let me know when the West Side Story episode will air...

I'm sorry if this review feels kind of rushed. I hereby promise never to delay reviewing an episode of Glee again. Which kind of makes my job easy, seeing as I'll have a couple of weeks off... Yes, it is so sad that we have to wait until November 1st for the next new episode. =( Why Glee?! Why? You come back on, and then you make us all wait again! >,< Ah, never mind. You're still an awesome show.

Coming up: Ep. 2~The songs.

Ep. 3~Asian F

It seems I have certainly failed this week, in that I never got to post my reviews for the 2nd Glee episode and it's songs. I have been extremely busy, and now a week later I find I have to review #3! Madness! But here is my solution: I'm going to review this episode + the songs right now, before I forget or get distracted, and tomorrow, since I'm going to re-watch episode #2 anyway, for it's best lines, I'll be able to review it properly, since it will be fresh in my mind. Please forgive me for backsliding on my promise to bring you glee reviews, and giving them to you slightly out of order. >,<

Anyway, back to our scheduled post.

What a fascinating episode this was! I liked how we got a little focus on characters that haven't had a lot of the spotlight lately, like Mercedes and Schuester, and even a character who hasn't really had the spotlight before. I'm talking about Mike Chang.

I loved getting to know him a little better as a person, meeting his parents, finding out about his dreams. Of course, getting an A- in chemistry and calling it an "Asian F" is a little harsh and nonsensical, but it demonstrates what a tough guy Mike's dad is, how much pressure he's putting on his son. Mike didn't get one of those inner dialogues like some characters get, to narrate what he's thinking, but that was totally fine, because you could tell what he was thinking. All he wants to do is dance. Plus there are the warring parts of his brain, personified: his dad wanting him to give up his dream and fulfill his family's expectations and plans, and Tina encouraging him to keep dancing, because it's his passion, and it's why she fell in love with him. Brilliant acting job, Harry Shum Jr. (Not to mention his singing, but I'll get to that later...) Also, the part where he talks with his mom. Just aww. ^,^

Mercedes also had an awesome character arc here, thanks to her boyfriend pushing her to triumph over Rachel. (I'm not sure if I caught it right, but is his name Shane or something? *quick wiki search* Yeah, it's Shane.) She showed a lot more confidence and drive, and that made her sing awesomely! My god, I've missed her voice, and here she goes and does 3 songs in one episode! But... She did act a little like a selfish diva, which has happened in the past, and is getting a little old. Rachel isn't completely blameless, just assuming she'll get the part of Maria in West Side Story (which I can't wait to see performed!). But I never predicted that Mercedes would just walk away from New Directions like she did! That was what was great about this episode. It surprised you a little

I liked the Will + Emma storyline okay. Meeting Emma's parents was a little weird, though. I mean, really? These were the people who raised her, these ginger obsessed people who only seem to care about keeping red hair in the family bloodline? That is just too strange. O,o

I loved all the other characters minor plots and lines. While they don't get a lot of focus in the episode, you do see stuff happening. Like Kurt, who is still campaigning for class president, but Brittany is giving him some stiff competition. I also adored Kurt and Blaine's little moment on the staircase, with the flowers. ^_^ I've been reading a few fan-fics on Klaine recently, and a scene like this wouldn't have been out of place in the stories I read. As another example, Finn has got to decide what he wants to do with his future, and soon. Also, Coach Beiste rules with her one-liners! Lol.

It's interesting how Will is trying to push everyone to be better than they've ever been before, so they can win Nationals. It's almost like a metaphor for how Glee is pushing itself this season to be the best. I don't want to play favorites early on in the game, but as I'm sure most people will say, this was simply all around a brilliant episode, possibly the best I've ever seen, in the entire series. Just in terms of story and character development, not to mention the performances. Which I will get to, in the very next post!

Coming up: Ep. 3~The Songs.

Ep. 1~The Purple Piano Project.

Welcome back to McKinley High, fellow gleeks! It looks like we're in for a wonderful year with New Directions.

I made it just in time from my Toastmasters meeting to miss only the first minute of the beginning, but I liked the interview style in which I learned what my favorite characters had been up to over the summer. It was just like catching up with old friends! (Mercedes has a boyfriend! You go, girl! I hope we get to see more of him.) Kurt and Rachel seem like really close friends, since they both intend to make it big in NYC when they graduate. They're so cool together. I loved Brittany's one-liners! She is the funniest! The writing was fantastic, and she gives such spot-on delivery.

It's sad that some people dropped out of glee club. Trouty-mouth Sam is gone, but they gave a good explanation for that (dad got out of state job). Puck's fat-bottomed girl, Lauren, left because she'd rather not be at the bottom of the high school food chain. Thanks, Zizes. And uh, Quinn? WTH?! What made you stop singing? More importantly, how do your parents let you live like that, all tattooed and nose-ringed and punk hair? (I like the pink hair, tho.) Poor Finn. He seems to have lost his direction as well...

Will and Emma are living and sleeping together?! Wow, that threw me for a loop. But they're a pretty cute couple together. Making each others' lunches. Awww. I just wish I'd gotten more of an explanation before-hand...

Jane Lynch as coach Sylvester is awesome. Sue is evil and in full-on villain mode, running for congress. Her dastardly mission? To get rid of arts programs in every school in the country. Ha, I'd love to see her try. Still, since it's Sue, I'm nervous for the glee kids and Mr. Schue.

I don't know about you, this is only my opinion, but every scene with Kurt and/or Blaine in it was pure gold. Chris Colfer is one of the main reasons I love to watch this show so much. As for Darren Criss... I have a major crush on him, so of course I'm going to be heavily biased and say that everything he does is brilliant, no matter what you say. Just thought you should know that for future posts. Anyway, I was really happy when Blaine transferred from Dalton to McKinley, just so he could be with Kurt. So romantic. The look on Kurt's face and the gleeful hug he gave him was well worth it. ^_^

I was surprised with Santanna's character. I thought for sure she would turn good, and stop working for evil coach Sylvester. I know in my gut that she's a much better person than that. Or at least I hope so. I don't think she had to get kicked out of the club. Will was a little harsh on that decision. But hey, maybe it will teach her a lesson in loyalty.

Speaking of which, I like how Will is much more firm and decisive. He'll do what it takes for the glee club to win, and not be as wishy-washy as he's been in the past. Which is why he didn't let the tone-deaf Asberger's syndrome girl, Sugar, join in New Directions. I mean it, she was horrible! Even worse than Mike Chang! >_< I'm glad she's not in the club. She's more stuck-up than Rachel used to be, and doesn't have a tenth of her talent. I doubt we've seen the last of her, though.

Btw, about the purple pianos... I didn't really get why they were needed. Sugar's dad apparently donated them and Mr. Schue decided to locate a few of them around the school so that if the kids saw them they had to break into song so they could attract new members. Besides that, they didn't have much to do with the plot, so I don't know why they had to out it in the episode title... But oh well. They looked really pretty. It's sad that by the end they were all pretty much ruined...

Enough of my ramblings about the plot. I want to talk about the songs now! Ah, but this post is already an awfully long one... I know, I'll put that in a separate post altogether!

Coming up: Ep. 1~ The songs.