Gettin’ my “Glee” fix…
Posted by emperorbananaketchup on October 25, 2009
Yes, my name is Peter…and I am now a Gleek.
Gleek, the Wonder Twins' pet space chimp from Challenge of the Superfriends
Nope, not that Gleek…but a fan of that hot new show from Fox, Glee (Tue, 10pm ETC; replays on Sunday at 2am and 8pm).
"Gleek" top
Is it because of the show’s snarky, subversive look at glee clubs (as glamourized in Disney’s High School Musical franchise)? One can say that glee clubs have somewhat become refuges for school misfits and outcasts, but when you see social “pariahs” as cheek-pinchingly beautiful as Lea Michele’s Rachel…
Lea Michele
…you’d wonder what has she ever done to deserve such a fate?
For those who have been still living under a rock (or without a cable subscription – well, they’re just about one and the same here) Glee follows the efforts of William McKinley High School’s Spanish teacher Will Schuster (Matthew Morrison) as he (initially, reluctantly) is handed the thankless task of overseeing New Directions, the school’s glee club, which has…well, I just mentioned it a couple of paragraphs up. As he sees that task as yet another way of saving up for impending fatherhood, he brings about bold new changes into the glee club while galvanizing the esteem of the motley crew within – apart from Rachel, there is Finn (Cory Monteith, “Kyle XY”) the jock, Kurt (Chris Colfer) the well-heeled, fashion-savvy gay, the chubby African-American diva, the mute Asian, the “wheelchair guy” (who kinda reminds me of a much much younger Stephen Hawking), among others.
Meanwhile, his continued involvement with New Directions brings along temptation in the form of WMHS’ germaphobic guidance counselor Emma (Heroes’ Jayma Mays) as well as jealousy and consternation from the Adidas tracksuit-clad sourpuss trainer Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch), captain of WMHS’ “Cheerios” squad.
Interview with Matthew Morrison
Interview with Chris Colfer
BTS, photo shoot with Jayma Mays
"Glee" cast
Awww, don’t Lea Michele and Diana Algron (Quinn) look awful cute when they do the “L” sign???
More "Glee" cast
A recent episode delivered a number of show-stopping performances not just from Rachel (who at that time decided to bail out of the glee club to star in a faculty presentation of Cabaret) but also from returning student April Rhodes (guest star Kristin Chenoweth – this girl deserves another Emmy, dammit) who offers to fill in for Rachel in exchange for finishing her credits. Yet another one saw Schuster whip the boys and girls into shape by channeling their competitiveness, only to find himself in a bind as his pregnant wife Terri (Jessalyn Gilsig) joins the school board and pitch in her own solution (much to his consternation). Future episodes promise us the involvement of rapper/actress Eve (who coaches the rival glee club of Jane Adams Academy, a reform school) and cult-favourite Joss Whedon (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, “Firefly”, “Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog”)
More than just openly satirizing a franchise ready for parody, Glee rings true with its message of hope and can-do optimism.
Kudos to ETC for snagging local rights to this (along with the 3rd season of Gossip Girl)…looks like they’ve got the jump over Star World this time around (yay!!!). By adhering to the “days/weeks after the US air date” promise, they aim to beat the bit-torrent brigade with this one. In a recent interview for Entertainment Weekly, show creator Ryan Murphy sees the show eventually going global with its mixture of snappy, catchy musical numbers, slightly subversive comedy and relevant drama.
The “Glee” cast performing the US national anthem at Game 3 of the World Series at Citizens Bank Park
One baby step at a time, it is getting there…
