Glee Season 2, Episode 20: Prom

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

There’s nothing more cliché than a television show episode about a prom, yet somehow, Glee found a way to make their prom totally fresh. Maybe it’s because I was able to avoid spoilers of the newly minted prom king and queen, foolishly tweeted by an on-set extra, but I found the episode to be a solidly good one.

I laughed at the sharp writing, I felt proud of Brittany where she stood up for herself and her beliefs and articulated them incredibly – and shockingly – well to Artie when he asked her to prom and apologized for calling her stupid for the umpteenth time. I was thankful that Mr. Schuester had minimal on-screen time, and Sue Sylvester had more on-screen time than usual, this time with a dental interrogation kit, and an inappropriate yet hilarious joke about John McCain.

I even felt a surge of emotion over the relationship between Kurt and Blaine, a relationship I consider to be the best and purest relationship currently on television. (For anyone curious, my other favorite television relationship is Coach Eric and Tami Taylor on Friday Night Lights.) I think that everyone should hope that one day they find a partner who loves and supports him or her as much as Blaine loves and supports Kurt.

However, I found the prom episode’s weakest point to be the music, unfortunately. Though to be fair, given the episode’s premise, I wasn’t expecting the best musical performances of the season. I expected this episode to be one where plot and drama took a priority to music, even though a prom is all about dancing (although, to a high school student, it’s really all about the accompanying melodrama).

In an on-stage practice, Rachel decided to sing Adele’s ubiquitous #1 hit, “Rolling in the Deep.” I’ve said it before: I love Adele, and I love this song, but I am so ridiculously sick of everyone thinking that they should cover it now. I wish there could be a moratorium on the song, so that I don’t become so painfully sick of a song I loved the very first time I heard it. That being said, Rachel and Jesse didn’t bring a particularly new or interesting spin to the song.

I happened to absolutely love Artie’s prom proposal of “Isn’t She Lovely” to Brittany, who stood up for herself and said no. In all fairness, with such a beautifully sung and performed song, it must’ve been rather hard. To me, this song proved that Artie has the vocal chops to take on some serious meaty solos, and that the Glee club guys are so musically talented that they can create a rhythm section with found household items common to a kitchen or home economics classroom.

Perhaps my favorite song of the night was very shockingly, the rendition of Rebecca Black’s surprise hit, “Friday.” I knew this song would be covered in the episode, but being true to avoiding spoilers, I had no idea who would cover it. So when Puck, Trouty Lips and Artie took the stage with electric guitars and started to rock out to some song, I just figured that it’s some pop punk hit that I’m unfamiliar with… until it got to the chorus. By that point, I was already loving the performance too much to care that I love something that Rebecca Black created. These things are somewhat painful to admit.

I fast-forwarded through Rachel’s ballad of “Jar of Hearts,” pausing only to see the dialogue between the other characters. In all fairness, once you see one Rachel Berry ballad, you’ve seen them all, and I’ve seen enough to know that I don’t like them. From what I ascertained through my fast-forwarding, there were some endearing moments between Finn and Rachel (stolen glances during romantic ballads is a little trite for my tastes, but then again, this is high school), but the moment worth pausing for was Sam telling Mercedes that she looks beautiful and asking her to dance. That was one of the best moments of the episode.

While I was glad to see Blaine sing lead, I really missed him with the backing of the Warblers, and didn’t care too much for his version of the Black Kids’ “I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You.” The song was appropriate for the episode: fun and totally dance-able, but it wasn’t anything interesting or musically special.

For much the same reason, the version of ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” wasn’t that great either. I was far too invested in the plot that had just unfolded before it: Kurt was crowned Prom Queen to Karofsky’s Prom King, which brought Santana to tears and Quinn to a tearful nervous breakdown wherein she slapped Rachel across the face. However, being the strong guy that he is, and having the unwavering support of Blaine, Kurt decided to accept his title. That was great, but having “Dancing Queen” as the song playing when two guys (one in the closet and one out of the closet) were supposed to take their first dance seemed a bit much for me.

Glee Season 2, Episode 20: Prom

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

There’s nothing more cliché than a television show episode about a prom, yet somehow, Glee found a way to make their prom totally fresh. Maybe it’s because I was able to avoid spoilers of the newly minted prom king and queen, foolishly tweeted by an on-set extra, but I found the episode to be a solidly good one.

I laughed at the sharp writing, I felt proud of Brittany where she stood up for herself and her beliefs and articulated them incredibly – and shockingly – well to Artie when he asked her to prom and apologized for calling her stupid for the umpteenth time. I was thankful that Mr. Schuester had minimal on-screen time, and Sue Sylvester had more on-screen time than usual, this time with a dental interrogation kit, and an inappropriate yet hilarious joke about John McCain.

I even felt a surge of emotion over the relationship between Kurt and Blaine, a relationship I consider to be the best and purest relationship currently on television. (For anyone curious, my other favorite television relationship is Coach Eric and Tami Taylor on Friday Night Lights.) I think that everyone should hope that one day they find a partner who loves and supports him or her as much as Blaine loves and supports Kurt.

However, I found the prom episode’s weakest point to be the music, unfortunately. Though to be fair, given the episode’s premise, I wasn’t expecting the best musical performances of the season. I expected this episode to be one where plot and drama took a priority to music, even though a prom is all about dancing (although, to a high school student, it’s really all about the accompanying melodrama).

In an on-stage practice, Rachel decided to sing Adele’s ubiquitous #1 hit, “Rolling in the Deep.” I’ve said it before: I love Adele, and I love this song, but I am so ridiculously sick of everyone thinking that they should cover it now. I wish there could be a moratorium on the song, so that I don’t become so painfully sick of a song I loved the very first time I heard it. That being said, Rachel and Jesse didn’t bring a particularly new or interesting spin to the song.

I happened to absolutely love Artie’s prom proposal of “Isn’t She Lovely” to Brittany, who stood up for herself and said no. In all fairness, with such a beautifully sung and performed song, it must’ve been rather hard. To me, this song proved that Artie has the vocal chops to take on some serious meaty solos, and that the Glee club guys are so musically talented that they can create a rhythm section with found household items common to a kitchen or home economics classroom.

Perhaps my favorite song of the night was very shockingly, the rendition of Rebecca Black’s surprise hit, “Friday.” I knew this song would be covered in the episode, but being true to avoiding spoilers, I had no idea who would cover it. So when Puck, Trouty Lips and Artie took the stage with electric guitars and started to rock out to some song, I just figured that it’s some pop punk hit that I’m unfamiliar with… until it got to the chorus. By that point, I was already loving the performance too much to care that I love something that Rebecca Black created. These things are somewhat painful to admit.

I fast-forwarded through Rachel’s ballad of “Jar of Hearts,” pausing only to see the dialogue between the other characters. In all fairness, once you see one Rachel Berry ballad, you’ve seen them all, and I’ve seen enough to know that I don’t like them. From what I ascertained through my fast-forwarding, there were some endearing moments between Finn and Rachel (stolen glances during romantic ballads is a little trite for my tastes, but then again, this is high school), but the moment worth pausing for was Sam telling Mercedes that she looks beautiful and asking her to dance. That was one of the best moments of the episode.

While I was glad to see Blaine sing lead, I really missed him with the backing of the Warblers, and didn’t care too much for his version of the Black Kids’ “I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You.” The song was appropriate for the episode: fun and totally dance-able, but it wasn’t anything interesting or musically special.

For much the same reason, the version of ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” wasn’t that great either. I was far too invested in the plot that had just unfolded before it: Kurt was crowned Prom Queen to Karofsky’s Prom King, which brought Santana to tears and Quinn to a tearful nervous breakdown wherein she slapped Rachel across the face. However, being the strong guy that he is, and having the unwavering support of Blaine, Kurt decided to accept his title. That was great, but having “Dancing Queen” as the song playing when two guys (one in the closet and one out of the closet) were supposed to take their first dance seemed a bit much for me.

Glee Season 2, Episode 19

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

Normally I’m not a fan of Glee episodes that are entirely devoted to one artist (although, if memory serves, I feel I did enjoy this season’s Britney Spears episode). By that logic, I should have hated an episode centered around not only one artist, but around one album.

When that artist is Fleetwood Mac, and that album is “Rumours,” I really can’t find anything to complain about.

A musical highlight of the season thus far was when Santana, Brittany and Gwyneth tackled “Landslide,” which to me was ‘Glee’ at its most tender and poignant, so I was excited to see how the cast handled a legendary album of justly deserved classics. In short: I was very impressed.

Plot wise, I liked this episode of ‘Glee.’ I liked the return of Kristin Chenoweth’s drunk and hilarious April, I liked seeing Sue donning her costumes from every walk of pop culture to scheme at the local coffee shop, and I liked how Brittany started a video blog, Fondue for Two, with her obese cat. The humor was there this episode, and for me, even with a musically top-notch episode, if the writing isn’t sharp, the episode as a whole falls flat.

As hilariously perfect as April is, the best part of her ‘Glee’ appearances are not her one-liners, but the fact that we get to hear Kristen Chenoweth sing. Although I couldn’t imagine an alternative, April and Mr. Schue’s duet of “Dreams,” was, of course, amazing.

As happens with all high school romances, Brittany and Artie’s came to an end, as he realized that Brittany might be reciprocating Santana’s love. Of course, the only appropriate tool to cure heartbreak on ‘Glee’ is by singing, so he sang a lively version of “Never Going Back Again.” I felt it showed Artie’s depth, and that he really is a vital character: in comedic moments, and musically as well.

My favorite song of the night was Santana’s secret love song to Brittany, “Songbird.” I love to see Santana being vulnerable, and this was such a perfect continuation of her brilliance during “Landslide” earlier in the season. Clearly, Fleetwood Mac helps bring forth a gentle – and really, really talented – side to Santana.

Finn and Quinn sang “I Don’t Want to Know,” in a highly awkward choir-room performance. They were perhaps appropriately angry, but it just seemed so forced and painful to watch when you factor in quizzical reaction shots from Mr. Schue and the rest of the glee club. Musically, I wish we got to hear Quinn sing a bit more, since she has the better voice out of the two, and I feel the quality of her voice should lend itself well to Fleetwood Mac’s music.

Rachel sang an amped up version of “Go Your Own Way,” putting a female spin on a song performed by a male, which is my very favorite thing about good covers. I didn’t really care for the premise of the performance – Rachel using her song as an excuse to flirt with Finn in front of Quinn, who forbade the two from singing duets, saying their relationship is worth more than the glee club winning nationals – but she sounded fantastic.

The episode ender was a fun, cute version of “Don’t Stop.” In the night’s heavy and depressing moment, we learned that Sam and his young siblings are living in a cheap motel room with their parents, who can’t find work. It was nice seeing his character get developed – and explanation given to all the motel room rendezvous that were fostering all the rumors in the episode – but I really hate when Glee gets so heavy. Sam got to sing a solo, and the entire cast danced and played with his younger siblings, making everyone feel a little better about something.

Glee Season 2, Episode 19

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

Normally I’m not a fan of Glee episodes that are entirely devoted to one artist (although, if memory serves, I feel I did enjoy this season’s Britney Spears episode). By that logic, I should have hated an episode centered around not only one artist, but around one album.

When that artist is Fleetwood Mac, and that album is “Rumours,” I really can’t find anything to complain about.

A musical highlight of the season thus far was when Santana, Brittany and Gwyneth tackled “Landslide,” which to me was ‘Glee’ at its most tender and poignant, so I was excited to see how the cast handled a legendary album of justly deserved classics. In short: I was very impressed.

Plot wise, I liked this episode of ‘Glee.’ I liked the return of Kristin Chenoweth’s drunk and hilarious April, I liked seeing Sue donning her costumes from every walk of pop culture to scheme at the local coffee shop, and I liked how Brittany started a video blog, Fondue for Two, with her obese cat. The humor was there this episode, and for me, even with a musically top-notch episode, if the writing isn’t sharp, the episode as a whole falls flat.

As hilariously perfect as April is, the best part of her ‘Glee’ appearances are not her one-liners, but the fact that we get to hear Kristen Chenoweth sing. Although I couldn’t imagine an alternative, April and Mr. Schue’s duet of “Dreams,” was, of course, amazing.

As happens with all high school romances, Brittany and Artie’s came to an end, as he realized that Brittany might be reciprocating Santana’s love. Of course, the only appropriate tool to cure heartbreak on ‘Glee’ is by singing, so he sang a lively version of “Never Going Back Again.” I felt it showed Artie’s depth, and that he really is a vital character: in comedic moments, and musically as well.

My favorite song of the night was Santana’s secret love song to Brittany, “Songbird.” I love to see Santana being vulnerable, and this was such a perfect continuation of her brilliance during “Landslide” earlier in the season. Clearly, Fleetwood Mac helps bring forth a gentle – and really, really talented – side to Santana.

Finn and Quinn sang “I Don’t Want to Know,” in a highly awkward choir-room performance. They were perhaps appropriately angry, but it just seemed so forced and painful to watch when you factor in quizzical reaction shots from Mr. Schue and the rest of the glee club. Musically, I wish we got to hear Quinn sing a bit more, since she has the better voice out of the two, and I feel the quality of her voice should lend itself well to Fleetwood Mac’s music.

Rachel sang an amped up version of “Go Your Own Way,” putting a female spin on a song performed by a male, which is my very favorite thing about good covers. I didn’t really care for the premise of the performance – Rachel using her song as an excuse to flirt with Finn in front of Quinn, who forbade the two from singing duets, saying their relationship is worth more than the glee club winning nationals – but she sounded fantastic.

The episode ender was a fun, cute version of “Don’t Stop.” In the night’s heavy and depressing moment, we learned that Sam and his young siblings are living in a cheap motel room with their parents, who can’t find work. It was nice seeing his character get developed – and explanation given to all the motel room rendezvous that were fostering all the rumors in the episode – but I really hate when Glee gets so heavy. Sam got to sing a solo, and the entire cast danced and played with his younger siblings, making everyone feel a little better about something.

"Glee" Season 2 Episode 18

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

There’s a reason why Glee is normally an hour long--any longer than that and it starts to get stale.

The episode got off to a great start. The writing was especially sharp, and the episode had a good thematic focus, which is something I worried about. This week’s episode was billed as a Lady Gaga episode, and I feared every song would be Gaga, and that’s overkill that I can’t handle. Thankfully, the Gaga theme was very abstract: Ms. Pillsbury used the phrase “born this way” to describe her OCD, and Mr. Schue instantly thought of the Lady Gaga hit.

The first song of the episode was a duet of TLC’s “Unpretty” between Rachel and Quinn, regarding Rachel’s broken nose and desire to have a nose like Quinn’s. I absolutely loved it. The vocals were so tender and delicate, and reminded me of just how beautiful the song is. In all honesty, I think I liked the Glee version more than the original.

When Finn sang Sammy Davis Jr’s “I Gotta Be Me,” I was more distracted by Mike Chang’s fantastic dance moves – and how poorly Finn dances – than the singing. It’s nice every so often when Glee brings such a classic song into an episode with such mainstream hits from today, and this was one of those instances. I don’t think Finn is the best singer of the show, but he’s certainly endearing, and I felt this performance came across well, even if it wasn’t the best.

Another musical highlight was when the Dalton Academy Warblers fronted by their fearless leader Blaine sang Kurt adieu with Keane’s “Somewhere Only We Know.” In a selfish effort to become prom queen, Santana brokered an agreement with bully Dave to be the other’s beard. She figured this would make McKinley High a safer place for Kurt, and he’d transfer back, and the glee club could have a better shot of winning nationals. Kurt is back, and the moment his transfer became official, Blaine and the Warblers came out to sing a beautiful rendition of Keane’s hit, in one of my favorite moments of the night.

It’s no secret I love Blaine and the Warblers, and think they’re the best musical part of Glee. I’m worried now that Kurt is happily back at McKinley High and the Warblers are out of the vocal competition world for the school year, that it’ll be the end of Blaine and the Warblers. I hope not!

Kurt’s reintroduction song was a beautiful rendition of “As If We’ve Never Said Goodbye” from Sunset Boulevard, which reminded me of how utterly talented the kid is, but how much I prefer him in his non-diva role in the Warblers.

I was wondering how Glee would fit the Duck Sauce hit “Barbra Streisand” -- a song so far from the world of Glee – into this episode, but I think it was actually pretty fantastic. In an episode where Rachel’s aspiration to become her hero, Barbra Streisand, was mentioned with decent regularity, along with the overarching message to love yourself (in this case, her natural nose), Kurt combined the two themes with an upbeat, techno flash mob to the Duck Sauce song at the mall. The episode certainly could’ve done without it, but I thought it was fun.

Kurt kicking off the show closing “Born this Way” was especially nice, especially with Mercedes helping him out in taking on the lead vocals. The song was so high energy, but felt so much more homegrown and natural than Lady Gaga’s version, which was especially nice. I like the show closing songs when the cast looks like they’re having fun, and this was one of them… even if I found trying to read their shirts to be a bit distracting.

"Glee" Season 2 Episode 18

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

There’s a reason why Glee is normally an hour long--any longer than that and it starts to get stale.

The episode got off to a great start. The writing was especially sharp, and the episode had a good thematic focus, which is something I worried about. This week’s episode was billed as a Lady Gaga episode, and I feared every song would be Gaga, and that’s overkill that I can’t handle. Thankfully, the Gaga theme was very abstract: Ms. Pillsbury used the phrase “born this way” to describe her OCD, and Mr. Schue instantly thought of the Lady Gaga hit.

The first song of the episode was a duet of TLC’s “Unpretty” between Rachel and Quinn, regarding Rachel’s broken nose and desire to have a nose like Quinn’s. I absolutely loved it. The vocals were so tender and delicate, and reminded me of just how beautiful the song is. In all honesty, I think I liked the Glee version more than the original.

When Finn sang Sammy Davis Jr’s “I Gotta Be Me,” I was more distracted by Mike Chang’s fantastic dance moves – and how poorly Finn dances – than the singing. It’s nice every so often when Glee brings such a classic song into an episode with such mainstream hits from today, and this was one of those instances. I don’t think Finn is the best singer of the show, but he’s certainly endearing, and I felt this performance came across well, even if it wasn’t the best.

Another musical highlight was when the Dalton Academy Warblers fronted by their fearless leader Blaine sang Kurt adieu with Keane’s “Somewhere Only We Know.” In a selfish effort to become prom queen, Santana brokered an agreement with bully Dave to be the other’s beard. She figured this would make McKinley High a safer place for Kurt, and he’d transfer back, and the glee club could have a better shot of winning nationals. Kurt is back, and the moment his transfer became official, Blaine and the Warblers came out to sing a beautiful rendition of Keane’s hit, in one of my favorite moments of the night.

It’s no secret I love Blaine and the Warblers, and think they’re the best musical part of Glee. I’m worried now that Kurt is happily back at McKinley High and the Warblers are out of the vocal competition world for the school year, that it’ll be the end of Blaine and the Warblers. I hope not!

Kurt’s reintroduction song was a beautiful rendition of “As If We’ve Never Said Goodbye” from Sunset Boulevard, which reminded me of how utterly talented the kid is, but how much I prefer him in his non-diva role in the Warblers.

I was wondering how Glee would fit the Duck Sauce hit “Barbra Streisand” -- a song so far from the world of Glee – into this episode, but I think it was actually pretty fantastic. In an episode where Rachel’s aspiration to become her hero, Barbra Streisand, was mentioned with decent regularity, along with the overarching message to love yourself (in this case, her natural nose), Kurt combined the two themes with an upbeat, techno flash mob to the Duck Sauce song at the mall. The episode certainly could’ve done without it, but I thought it was fun.

Kurt kicking off the show closing “Born this Way” was especially nice, especially with Mercedes helping him out in taking on the lead vocals. The song was so high energy, but felt so much more homegrown and natural than Lady Gaga’s version, which was especially nice. I like the show closing songs when the cast looks like they’re having fun, and this was one of them… even if I found trying to read their shirts to be a bit distracting.

Glee Returns with a Night of Neglect

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

When Glee goes on a hiatus, their first episode back is usually an incredible one. I guess the producers feel the need to throw the fans a bone, and have a huge episode to make the absence of Glee for so many weeks seem worth it.

This episode reminded me of why I didn’t really miss Glee much over the hiatus.

In theory, this could’ve been a stellar episode. Brittany turned out to be the veritable MVP of an academic decathlon team and Sue had assembled a League of Doom – a team of henchmen – to find a way to bring down Mr. Schuester and the New Directions. The brief scenes introducing Brittany’s shocking success as an academic decathlete and Sue leading a meeting with the coach of Vocal Adrenaline, the former glee club teacher, Sandy, and Mr. Schue’s ex-wife Terri, were the funniest of the episode. Unfortunately for me, they were also some of the briefest scenes.

Mr. Schue found himself in a pickle--he needed to raise money to send his glee club to Nationals in New York, and also send the academic decathlon team to compete in Detroit, and his plans to raise money were weak, at best. Holly suggested he throw a benefit concert, and it seemed like the right move. When he suggested that they perform songs from neglected artists, I started to feel unsure. Sure, thematically, it was appropriate, but I wasn’t sure how good it’d be.

Shockingly, Sunshine Corazon, played by the young phenom Charice, came back to Glee for this episode, as she volunteered to sing in the show, and bring her army of Twitter followers. This would sell out the show, and give New Directions all the money they’d need to travel. Of course, Charice is on the rival team, and it didn’t quite work out well for New Directions, but at least we got to see Charice sing. Thankfully, she sang a powerful version of Celine Dion’s “All By Myself,” which was especially lovely because she has a ridiculously incredible voice. Thank you, Oprah, for finding her.

The other highlight of the episode wasn’t even a song! It was a dance! That’s how… off this episode was. Mike Chang choreographed a super fun and interesting dance to Jack Johnson’s “Bubble Toes,” which not only reminded me of how much I like Jack Johnson, but also how talented a dancer he is.

Tina sang a tearful version of “Follow Rivers” before getting booed off the stage by the team of hecklers in Sue’s League of Doom. It was good, but the vocals took a backseat to all the heckling, which wasn’t even as funny as it could have been.

Holly sang her swan song, which also made me sad, because somehow Gwyneth Paltrow became one of my favorite parts of Glee. As all substitutes must, Gwyneth is leaving McKinley High to teach French at another high school in Ohio, in part because she realized that her boyfriend, Mr. Schuester, is in love with another woman. She sang Adele’s “Turning Tables,” and it was fine, and looked beautiful with her on a stage with a backing band and a long gown, but it wasn’t as good as songs in Glee tend to be. Yet this was one of the best musical points of the night.

Closing out the show – both the benefit show and the episode – was the newly minted diva, Mercedes. Her storyline this episode was funny, but very forced. She wanted to close the show and be a diva, and with tough as nails Lauren Zices as her manager, Mercedes started flinging some diva demands worthy of Mariah Carey. After a pep talk from Rachel, Mercedes realized she loves to sing, and loves the glee club, and closed out the night with “Ain’t No Way,” which was performed lovely, but still came across as just average to me.

The worst part of the episode? Blaine did not sing. Forget about a disjointed, weird plot about a failed benefit concert, the only Blaine I got in this episode were simple cutaway reaction shots during the concert. Not cool, Glee. Not cool.

Next week will be a “huge” hour-and-a-half long episode of Lady Gaga songs, which frankly, I’m not excited for. But hopefully the fact that it’s a themed episode will mean the writing is tight and funny.

Glee Returns with a Night of Neglect

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

When Glee goes on a hiatus, their first episode back is usually an incredible one. I guess the producers feel the need to throw the fans a bone, and have a huge episode to make the absence of Glee for so many weeks seem worth it.

This episode reminded me of why I didn’t really miss Glee much over the hiatus.

In theory, this could’ve been a stellar episode. Brittany turned out to be the veritable MVP of an academic decathlon team and Sue had assembled a League of Doom – a team of henchmen – to find a way to bring down Mr. Schuester and the New Directions. The brief scenes introducing Brittany’s shocking success as an academic decathlete and Sue leading a meeting with the coach of Vocal Adrenaline, the former glee club teacher, Sandy, and Mr. Schue’s ex-wife Terri, were the funniest of the episode. Unfortunately for me, they were also some of the briefest scenes.

Mr. Schue found himself in a pickle--he needed to raise money to send his glee club to Nationals in New York, and also send the academic decathlon team to compete in Detroit, and his plans to raise money were weak, at best. Holly suggested he throw a benefit concert, and it seemed like the right move. When he suggested that they perform songs from neglected artists, I started to feel unsure. Sure, thematically, it was appropriate, but I wasn’t sure how good it’d be.

Shockingly, Sunshine Corazon, played by the young phenom Charice, came back to Glee for this episode, as she volunteered to sing in the show, and bring her army of Twitter followers. This would sell out the show, and give New Directions all the money they’d need to travel. Of course, Charice is on the rival team, and it didn’t quite work out well for New Directions, but at least we got to see Charice sing. Thankfully, she sang a powerful version of Celine Dion’s “All By Myself,” which was especially lovely because she has a ridiculously incredible voice. Thank you, Oprah, for finding her.

The other highlight of the episode wasn’t even a song! It was a dance! That’s how… off this episode was. Mike Chang choreographed a super fun and interesting dance to Jack Johnson’s “Bubble Toes,” which not only reminded me of how much I like Jack Johnson, but also how talented a dancer he is.

Tina sang a tearful version of “Follow Rivers” before getting booed off the stage by the team of hecklers in Sue’s League of Doom. It was good, but the vocals took a backseat to all the heckling, which wasn’t even as funny as it could have been.

Holly sang her swan song, which also made me sad, because somehow Gwyneth Paltrow became one of my favorite parts of Glee. As all substitutes must, Gwyneth is leaving McKinley High to teach French at another high school in Ohio, in part because she realized that her boyfriend, Mr. Schuester, is in love with another woman. She sang Adele’s “Turning Tables,” and it was fine, and looked beautiful with her on a stage with a backing band and a long gown, but it wasn’t as good as songs in Glee tend to be. Yet this was one of the best musical points of the night.

Closing out the show – both the benefit show and the episode – was the newly minted diva, Mercedes. Her storyline this episode was funny, but very forced. She wanted to close the show and be a diva, and with tough as nails Lauren Zices as her manager, Mercedes started flinging some diva demands worthy of Mariah Carey. After a pep talk from Rachel, Mercedes realized she loves to sing, and loves the glee club, and closed out the night with “Ain’t No Way,” which was performed lovely, but still came across as just average to me.

The worst part of the episode? Blaine did not sing. Forget about a disjointed, weird plot about a failed benefit concert, the only Blaine I got in this episode were simple cutaway reaction shots during the concert. Not cool, Glee. Not cool.

Next week will be a “huge” hour-and-a-half long episode of Lady Gaga songs, which frankly, I’m not excited for. But hopefully the fact that it’s a themed episode will mean the writing is tight and funny.

"Glee" Episode 16 Review

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

I’ll admit it--I was nervous to see an episode of ‘Glee’ that focused on original songs. To me, part of the show’s charm is in how they over-do a hit song or reintroduce a classic hit into today’s Billboard charts. But more importantly, I was worried of how cheesy ‘Glee’ original songs could be.

Fortunately, music-wise, tonight’s episode was totally on point. The original songs were funny, candid, high energy and they really impressed me. I was still thankful to see The Warblers sing a cappella versions of current pop hits, because we needed something to ground the episode to some sort of musical reality.

Perhaps my favorite part about the original songs was that it helped to move the plot along, and it did something by way of plot dimension. My biggest issue with ‘Glee’ is that I think the characters are largely underdeveloped and at times, extremely one-note. Through original songs, especially the more heartfelt and anthemic “Loser Like Me” and “Get It Right,” we got to see an emotional core to characters, most notably Rachel Barry, who I consider to be the most one-note of them all.

The worst musical moment of the night was the duet between Kurt and Blaine to kick off The Warblers’ Regionals performance. I think The Warblers are so talented, and so high energy, and this was just so sleepy. However, when the entire group got involved in a spirited rendition of Pink’s “Raise Your Glass” – hilarious, considering Kurt had already criticized Blaine for singing too many Pink songs earlier in the episode – I thought they were at their best.

It seems typical for an a cappella group to perform a Maroon 5 song, but hearing the episode immediately kick off with The Warblers singing Maroon 5’s “Misery” was a great mood for people who, like me, were worried about an episode entirely comprised of original songs. I got the hint that originals were geared solely for New Directions, and got to enjoy one of my favorite Warbler songs to date.

I also loved the opportunity for Kurt to sing lead on a heartfelt, more emotional song, since those seem to be conspicuously absent from The Warblers’ repertoire of up-tempo Top 40 hits. In mourner’s black, Kurt sang “Blackbird” to honor his Burberry cage dwelling canary, Pavarotti, who died this episode, presumably of stroke (according to Kurt). The song showed Kurt’s talent and his sensitivity, two things I feel ‘Glee’ has been lacking ever since Kurt enrolled at Dalton Academy.

As far as the original songs go, I felt that Rachel’s ode to being an only child was annoying, offensive, and downright stupid. Sorry, Rachel, as a fellow only child, I really beg to differ with your feelings.

The other character’s songs were funny, energetic and totally fitting to their personalities; Puck’s was hilarious and a little inappropriate, Santana’s was too sultry for a classroom and funny, and Mercedes’ centered around her catch phrase “Hell to the no.”

Musically, Rachel’s regionals solo “Get It Right” wasn’t my cup of tea – I’m never a big fan of her ballads – but the raw emotion behind it brought forth a rare endearing side to Rachel, and really developed her character in a positive direction. I understood her heartache, and I found myself rooting for a character that I so often roll my eyes at.

The finale number of “Loser Like Me” was fun, it was high energy, and most of all, this original song can be a pop hit. I loved it. I was impressed by it. I saw the cast having fun, which is always my favorite part of the big finales. They deserved that regionals victory.

However, the highest point of the episode had little to do with music, but everything to do with timely impressions. Comedienne Kathy Griffen made a way overdue ‘Glee’ cameo as a Sarah Palin-esque Tea Party member, who was judging the Regionals competition. It was so unexpected, but a great reminder of how sharp the writing on ‘Glee’ truly is.

"Glee" Episode 16 Review

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

I’ll admit it--I was nervous to see an episode of ‘Glee’ that focused on original songs. To me, part of the show’s charm is in how they over-do a hit song or reintroduce a classic hit into today’s Billboard charts. But more importantly, I was worried of how cheesy ‘Glee’ original songs could be.

Fortunately, music-wise, tonight’s episode was totally on point. The original songs were funny, candid, high energy and they really impressed me. I was still thankful to see The Warblers sing a cappella versions of current pop hits, because we needed something to ground the episode to some sort of musical reality.

Perhaps my favorite part about the original songs was that it helped to move the plot along, and it did something by way of plot dimension. My biggest issue with ‘Glee’ is that I think the characters are largely underdeveloped and at times, extremely one-note. Through original songs, especially the more heartfelt and anthemic “Loser Like Me” and “Get It Right,” we got to see an emotional core to characters, most notably Rachel Barry, who I consider to be the most one-note of them all.

The worst musical moment of the night was the duet between Kurt and Blaine to kick off The Warblers’ Regionals performance. I think The Warblers are so talented, and so high energy, and this was just so sleepy. However, when the entire group got involved in a spirited rendition of Pink’s “Raise Your Glass” – hilarious, considering Kurt had already criticized Blaine for singing too many Pink songs earlier in the episode – I thought they were at their best.

It seems typical for an a cappella group to perform a Maroon 5 song, but hearing the episode immediately kick off with The Warblers singing Maroon 5’s “Misery” was a great mood for people who, like me, were worried about an episode entirely comprised of original songs. I got the hint that originals were geared solely for New Directions, and got to enjoy one of my favorite Warbler songs to date.

I also loved the opportunity for Kurt to sing lead on a heartfelt, more emotional song, since those seem to be conspicuously absent from The Warblers’ repertoire of up-tempo Top 40 hits. In mourner’s black, Kurt sang “Blackbird” to honor his Burberry cage dwelling canary, Pavarotti, who died this episode, presumably of stroke (according to Kurt). The song showed Kurt’s talent and his sensitivity, two things I feel ‘Glee’ has been lacking ever since Kurt enrolled at Dalton Academy.

As far as the original songs go, I felt that Rachel’s ode to being an only child was annoying, offensive, and downright stupid. Sorry, Rachel, as a fellow only child, I really beg to differ with your feelings.

The other character’s songs were funny, energetic and totally fitting to their personalities; Puck’s was hilarious and a little inappropriate, Santana’s was too sultry for a classroom and funny, and Mercedes’ centered around her catch phrase “Hell to the no.”

Musically, Rachel’s regionals solo “Get It Right” wasn’t my cup of tea – I’m never a big fan of her ballads – but the raw emotion behind it brought forth a rare endearing side to Rachel, and really developed her character in a positive direction. I understood her heartache, and I found myself rooting for a character that I so often roll my eyes at.

The finale number of “Loser Like Me” was fun, it was high energy, and most of all, this original song can be a pop hit. I loved it. I was impressed by it. I saw the cast having fun, which is always my favorite part of the big finales. They deserved that regionals victory.

However, the highest point of the episode had little to do with music, but everything to do with timely impressions. Comedienne Kathy Griffen made a way overdue ‘Glee’ cameo as a Sarah Palin-esque Tea Party member, who was judging the Regionals competition. It was so unexpected, but a great reminder of how sharp the writing on ‘Glee’ truly is.

"Glee" Episode 15

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

‘Glee’ has been so good lately that I was expecting Tuesday’s episode to be a continuation of the great. I’m sad to report that it wasn’t.

If you wanted a tearjerker of an episode dealing with heightened emotions and super sensitive issues, this may have been the episode for you, but I’m not someone who tunes into ‘Glee’ for extra-saccharine after school specials with song and dance routines.

Even The Warblers, with their over-the-top rendition of Neon Trees’ “Animal,” just didn’t do it for me, and I love The Warblers. I can’t wait for The Warblers to release an album in June (Seriously—it’s happening)! But the reason why I view The Warblers as such a treat on ‘Glee’ is that their performances are inherently so much more different than New Direction’s. They don’t need theatrics and cheesy arrangements because they’re so talented, and they’re best when they’re singing in a traditional, laid back a cappella horseshoe formation. Instead, The Warblers were climbing on scaffolding, trying to dance sexily, and playing with a foam machine. The singing wasn’t their best, but it was still good – it just isn’t nearly as memorable as anything else they’ve done.

The highlight of this episode, however, was the return of Holly Holiday. I loved Gwyneth Paltrow’s first appearance on ‘Glee,’ but to me, this episode was even better. I love her on-screen dynamic with close friend in real life, Matthew Morrison’s Mr. Schuester.

Her first performance of the episode was leading the glee club in a high-energy, all-black leather clad performance of “Do You Wanna Touch Me.” I loved seeing her take the lead with Brittany and Santana, and any excuse for the glee club to get up, dance, and have fun is fine. Vocally, it wasn’t the strongest, which I guess is appropriate given all the dancing and carousing around.

Holly’s second performance was with Mr. Schuester in a falsetto-filled version of Prince’s “Kiss,” and it was fantastic. I loved the dancing, I loved the music, I loved that it seemed to be a little different for ‘Glee’ in my eyes. I really love the connection between Holly and Mr. Schuster.

However, Holly’s shining moment was when she played an acoustic guitar and sang a stripped down version of Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” with Santana and Brittany. I like seeing some numbers with hard choreography, but I really appreciate when ‘Glee’ can dial it back to show just how vocally talented the cast is. This is an emotional song, and the way it was presented was a real special moment for characters who have never really shown their vulnerable side before. Santana shed real, honest tears, and that makes this song one of the most special moments in ‘Glee’s’ history for me.

I think the Celibacy Club’s cheesy performance of “Afternoon Delight” was fantastic – but I can see a lot of people not liking it. Here is an instance with ‘Glee’ where I think the cheesier the better. The gaudy, 70’s style polyester costumes, the massive backdrops of cherry pie, John Stamos on drums, Puck rocking out on guitar… everything about this was hilarious.

As much as I’m glad that there was a ton of character development in this episode and a ton of vulnerability, I really hope the next episode is a return to sharp dialogue, and truly excellent music.

"Glee" Episode 15

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

‘Glee’ has been so good lately that I was expecting Tuesday’s episode to be a continuation of the great. I’m sad to report that it wasn’t.

If you wanted a tearjerker of an episode dealing with heightened emotions and super sensitive issues, this may have been the episode for you, but I’m not someone who tunes into ‘Glee’ for extra-saccharine after school specials with song and dance routines.

Even The Warblers, with their over-the-top rendition of Neon Trees’ “Animal,” just didn’t do it for me, and I love The Warblers. I can’t wait for The Warblers to release an album in June (Seriously—it’s happening)! But the reason why I view The Warblers as such a treat on ‘Glee’ is that their performances are inherently so much more different than New Direction’s. They don’t need theatrics and cheesy arrangements because they’re so talented, and they’re best when they’re singing in a traditional, laid back a cappella horseshoe formation. Instead, The Warblers were climbing on scaffolding, trying to dance sexily, and playing with a foam machine. The singing wasn’t their best, but it was still good – it just isn’t nearly as memorable as anything else they’ve done.

The highlight of this episode, however, was the return of Holly Holiday. I loved Gwyneth Paltrow’s first appearance on ‘Glee,’ but to me, this episode was even better. I love her on-screen dynamic with close friend in real life, Matthew Morrison’s Mr. Schuester.

Her first performance of the episode was leading the glee club in a high-energy, all-black leather clad performance of “Do You Wanna Touch Me.” I loved seeing her take the lead with Brittany and Santana, and any excuse for the glee club to get up, dance, and have fun is fine. Vocally, it wasn’t the strongest, which I guess is appropriate given all the dancing and carousing around.

Holly’s second performance was with Mr. Schuester in a falsetto-filled version of Prince’s “Kiss,” and it was fantastic. I loved the dancing, I loved the music, I loved that it seemed to be a little different for ‘Glee’ in my eyes. I really love the connection between Holly and Mr. Schuster.

However, Holly’s shining moment was when she played an acoustic guitar and sang a stripped down version of Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” with Santana and Brittany. I like seeing some numbers with hard choreography, but I really appreciate when ‘Glee’ can dial it back to show just how vocally talented the cast is. This is an emotional song, and the way it was presented was a real special moment for characters who have never really shown their vulnerable side before. Santana shed real, honest tears, and that makes this song one of the most special moments in ‘Glee’s’ history for me.

I think the Celibacy Club’s cheesy performance of “Afternoon Delight” was fantastic – but I can see a lot of people not liking it. Here is an instance with ‘Glee’ where I think the cheesier the better. The gaudy, 70’s style polyester costumes, the massive backdrops of cherry pie, John Stamos on drums, Puck rocking out on guitar… everything about this was hilarious.

As much as I’m glad that there was a ton of character development in this episode and a ton of vulnerability, I really hope the next episode is a return to sharp dialogue, and truly excellent music.

"Glee" Episode 14: “Blame It On the Alcohol”

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

Last week, I honestly started to doubt why I’ve been steadily becoming a fan of ‘Glee’ – I didn’t feel the writing was as sharp as it could be, I didn’t think the musical numbers were anything special. Last week, I felt that ‘Glee’ was missing its spark. This week, all that had changed dramatically. This week might have been the best episode of ‘Glee’ I’ve seen in a while.

I wasn’t a fan of ‘Glee’ in its first season since I felt it was far too cheesy for my tastes. People got me to give the show a chance because the writing is sharp, witty and funny, and I don’t think there’s enough brilliant writing on television.

This week’s episode of ‘Glee’ was one of the best-written episodes I’ve ever seen. The jokes seemed effortless and witty, the situational anecdotes seemed appropriate, relatable and hilariously comical.

The music was also appropriately themed and well executed. At your pop culturally cliché quiet-get-togethers turned ragers when the parents are out of town, after the glee club got drunk and played spin the bottle, Rachel and Blaine sang a great duet of “Don’t You Want Me.” Kudos to ‘Glee’ for staging the drunken sing-along to an 80’s hit. Of course Rachel’s dads would have this song in their karaoke repertoire. That being said, seeing Rachel and Blaine let loose and still sound incredible just shows their talent and depth of range.

After some appropriately witty dialogue over bloody marys, Artie busts out into singing Jamie Foxx’s hit “Blame It.” I’ve really been a huge fan of Artie lately, and I think he’s been taking lead on the best songs each week. Seeing Artie become the go-to R&B guy is also wonderfully hilarious.

The harmonies were so great, the choreography was well stylized and not too over-the-top cheesy, and as always, I really like seeing the glee club sing a song that you wouldn’t expect a high school glee club to sing.

Proving that even adults can have an embarrassingly drunk night themselves, Coach Beiste brought Mr. Schuester to her favorite honky tonk bar, which reminded me way too much of my favorite college hangout. Country music isn’t my forte, but I felt that Coach Beiste and Mr. Schuester’s rendition of “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer” was theme appropriate and sounded nice. Country music doesn’t seem to be either of their strong suits vocally, but it fit the episode, and it made me wish that live music existed at Shooters.

The big school assembly was a cover of Ke$ha’s ubiquitous hit “Tik Tok.” And honestly, this episode would’ve been less believable without a drunken rendition of the party girl du jour’s hit about getting drunk. Never mind the fact that Brittany taking lead looked like a prettier, cleaned-up version of Ke$ha (until the blue vomit, of course), this song was just well done.

It’s hard to critique the vocals of a Ke$ha performance, because the songstress herself isn’t exactly known for being a good singer, and Brittany is more talented in dance than she is in song. It would’ve been wrong to have someone turn a Ke$ha song into a diva moment, so kudos again to you, ‘Glee.’

The one quasi-complaint--if this was supposed to be an episode on alcohol awareness as a preventative measure, I think it missed the mark a little.

"Glee" Episode 14: “Blame It On the Alcohol”

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

Last week, I honestly started to doubt why I’ve been steadily becoming a fan of ‘Glee’ – I didn’t feel the writing was as sharp as it could be, I didn’t think the musical numbers were anything special. Last week, I felt that ‘Glee’ was missing its spark. This week, all that had changed dramatically. This week might have been the best episode of ‘Glee’ I’ve seen in a while.

I wasn’t a fan of ‘Glee’ in its first season since I felt it was far too cheesy for my tastes. People got me to give the show a chance because the writing is sharp, witty and funny, and I don’t think there’s enough brilliant writing on television.

This week’s episode of ‘Glee’ was one of the best-written episodes I’ve ever seen. The jokes seemed effortless and witty, the situational anecdotes seemed appropriate, relatable and hilariously comical.

The music was also appropriately themed and well executed. At your pop culturally cliché quiet-get-togethers turned ragers when the parents are out of town, after the glee club got drunk and played spin the bottle, Rachel and Blaine sang a great duet of “Don’t You Want Me.” Kudos to ‘Glee’ for staging the drunken sing-along to an 80’s hit. Of course Rachel’s dads would have this song in their karaoke repertoire. That being said, seeing Rachel and Blaine let loose and still sound incredible just shows their talent and depth of range.

After some appropriately witty dialogue over bloody marys, Artie busts out into singing Jamie Foxx’s hit “Blame It.” I’ve really been a huge fan of Artie lately, and I think he’s been taking lead on the best songs each week. Seeing Artie become the go-to R&B guy is also wonderfully hilarious.

The harmonies were so great, the choreography was well stylized and not too over-the-top cheesy, and as always, I really like seeing the glee club sing a song that you wouldn’t expect a high school glee club to sing.

Proving that even adults can have an embarrassingly drunk night themselves, Coach Beiste brought Mr. Schuester to her favorite honky tonk bar, which reminded me way too much of my favorite college hangout. Country music isn’t my forte, but I felt that Coach Beiste and Mr. Schuester’s rendition of “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer” was theme appropriate and sounded nice. Country music doesn’t seem to be either of their strong suits vocally, but it fit the episode, and it made me wish that live music existed at Shooters.

The big school assembly was a cover of Ke$ha’s ubiquitous hit “Tik Tok.” And honestly, this episode would’ve been less believable without a drunken rendition of the party girl du jour’s hit about getting drunk. Never mind the fact that Brittany taking lead looked like a prettier, cleaned-up version of Ke$ha (until the blue vomit, of course), this song was just well done.

It’s hard to critique the vocals of a Ke$ha performance, because the songstress herself isn’t exactly known for being a good singer, and Brittany is more talented in dance than she is in song. It would’ve been wrong to have someone turn a Ke$ha song into a diva moment, so kudos again to you, ‘Glee.’

The one quasi-complaint--if this was supposed to be an episode on alcohol awareness as a preventative measure, I think it missed the mark a little.

‘Glee’ Episode 13

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

After two solidly stellar ‘Glee’ episodes, I’m not surprised that Tuesday’s episode was lackluster. I felt that too much was going on in this episode--a diva-off, the Justin Bieber Experience, Sue joining glee club, Sam+Quinn+Finn’s love triangle.  And so on. Add some pretty mediocre music, and Tuesday’s ‘Glee’ was unfortunately not as stand out as last week's.

The glee club learned that the theme for regionals will be anthems, and to prepare themselves for the competition, each of them had to perform an anthem as an assignment.

Proving that there’s no escaping Bieber-Fever, Sam tried to impress his estranged girlfriend Quinn by forming a one-man cover band called The Justin Bieber Experience. Now, I know teen girls go bonkers over the Bieber, but aren’t these girls a little too old to be swooning?

Maybe not. I for one really liked Sam’s rendition of “Baby” as it was totally refreshing to hear that inescapable guilty pleasure pop song performed by someone of age. Seeing the girls swoon for the Bieber, all the other guys minus Finn lined up to drink the Bieber Kool-Aid and join the Justin Bieber Experience.

I felt the other Justin Bieber song of the night, “Somebody to Love,” was a bit over done. While I do certainly love any performance that showcases Mike Chang’s incredible dance moves, I felt the jump shots to the girls behaving like teeny boppers was a bit much.

Meanwhile, I was totally excited to see that Sue was forced to join the Glee club as a means of combating her Cheerios-fallout depression. It provided for some excellent Sue Sylvester one-liners, and an opportunity to see Sue scheme and pit Mercedes and Rachel against each other in a diva-off.

In an attempt to one-up Mercedes, Rachel demanded that the diva-off be set to Broadway tunes, and the girls belted out Rent’s “Take Me or Leave Me.” I really liked it. I like hearing the two most powerful voices one-up each other in a song that’s really recognizable, current and fun. And high school girls singing Rent for fun really seemed appropriate and memorable from my own high school days, which made me appreciate the moment.

In her solo debut, Lauren Zizes sang a solo of The Waitresses’ “I Know What Boys Like” complete with imagining the entire glee club in their underwear (nice Power Rangers tee-shirt, Finn) and serious booty dancing from Brittany. I know that this wasn’t supposed to be vocally groundbreaking, but I was almost disappointed that Lauren can’t really sing at all. However, it was the most fun moment of the episode by far, so I hope she comes up with inventive routines to keep us viewers on our toes.

The big finale was the group all clad in flannel – even Sue had a plaid Adidas track suit – singing My Chemical Romance’s “Sing,” which was appropriate, because it finally seemed like the most anthemic song of the night. I don’t particularly care for the song, but to be honest, I really liked Rachel Barry taking lead at first. As Broadway as her voice sounds, I really like when she dials it downs and sings something more restrained and contemporary. It put a likable spin on a song that’s otherwise overplayed and not equated in my mind with vocal excellence. The rest of the routine was your typically saccharine ‘Glee’ performance, and the group vocals weren’t too stand out.

‘Glee’ Episode 13

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

After two solidly stellar ‘Glee’ episodes, I’m not surprised that Tuesday’s episode was lackluster. I felt that too much was going on in this episode--a diva-off, the Justin Bieber Experience, Sue joining glee club, Sam+Quinn+Finn’s love triangle.  And so on. Add some pretty mediocre music, and Tuesday’s ‘Glee’ was unfortunately not as stand out as last week's.

The glee club learned that the theme for regionals will be anthems, and to prepare themselves for the competition, each of them had to perform an anthem as an assignment.

Proving that there’s no escaping Bieber-Fever, Sam tried to impress his estranged girlfriend Quinn by forming a one-man cover band called The Justin Bieber Experience. Now, I know teen girls go bonkers over the Bieber, but aren’t these girls a little too old to be swooning?

Maybe not. I for one really liked Sam’s rendition of “Baby” as it was totally refreshing to hear that inescapable guilty pleasure pop song performed by someone of age. Seeing the girls swoon for the Bieber, all the other guys minus Finn lined up to drink the Bieber Kool-Aid and join the Justin Bieber Experience.

I felt the other Justin Bieber song of the night, “Somebody to Love,” was a bit over done. While I do certainly love any performance that showcases Mike Chang’s incredible dance moves, I felt the jump shots to the girls behaving like teeny boppers was a bit much.

Meanwhile, I was totally excited to see that Sue was forced to join the Glee club as a means of combating her Cheerios-fallout depression. It provided for some excellent Sue Sylvester one-liners, and an opportunity to see Sue scheme and pit Mercedes and Rachel against each other in a diva-off.

In an attempt to one-up Mercedes, Rachel demanded that the diva-off be set to Broadway tunes, and the girls belted out Rent’s “Take Me or Leave Me.” I really liked it. I like hearing the two most powerful voices one-up each other in a song that’s really recognizable, current and fun. And high school girls singing Rent for fun really seemed appropriate and memorable from my own high school days, which made me appreciate the moment.

In her solo debut, Lauren Zizes sang a solo of The Waitresses’ “I Know What Boys Like” complete with imagining the entire glee club in their underwear (nice Power Rangers tee-shirt, Finn) and serious booty dancing from Brittany. I know that this wasn’t supposed to be vocally groundbreaking, but I was almost disappointed that Lauren can’t really sing at all. However, it was the most fun moment of the episode by far, so I hope she comes up with inventive routines to keep us viewers on our toes.

The big finale was the group all clad in flannel – even Sue had a plaid Adidas track suit – singing My Chemical Romance’s “Sing,” which was appropriate, because it finally seemed like the most anthemic song of the night. I don’t particularly care for the song, but to be honest, I really liked Rachel Barry taking lead at first. As Broadway as her voice sounds, I really like when she dials it downs and sings something more restrained and contemporary. It put a likable spin on a song that’s otherwise overplayed and not equated in my mind with vocal excellence. The rest of the routine was your typically saccharine ‘Glee’ performance, and the group vocals weren’t too stand out.

"Glee" Episode 12: “Silly Little Love Songs”

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

I didn’t believe that a Valentine’s Day themed episode of ‘Glee’ could become my favorite episode of the season. I also never would’ve guessed that an episode noticeably lacking Sue Sylvester could also become my favorite episode of the season.

Boy, was I wrong.

The reason why this simple episode topped all others for me – most importantly being Sunday’s big budget Super Bowl episode – was that this episode was completely driven by plot. The interactions and the relationships of the high school kids was front and center, and flashy performances really didn’t have much of a place here. Things seemed as genuine as they could possibly seem on an episode of ‘Glee.’ And bonus points that this episode focused on two of the funniest, most interesting characters outside of Sue Sylvester: Santana and Lauren.

Another reason why I enjoyed it so very much: two Dalton Warblers performances in one episode. I’m even willing to look past the fact that one of those performances was a totally cheesy and highly embarrassing performance at the Gap.

In hopes of wooing Lauren, Puck decided to serenade her with Queen’s “Fat Bottomed Girls,” his pick for the love song assignment. Whether things work out between them or not, to me it really doesn’t matter: Puck is my favorite male character at McKinley High, and the fact that the always-funny Lauren just isn’t feeling him makes his courtship even more unexpectedly hilarious.

Over at Dalton Academy, we learned the not-so-shocking truth that Blaine does not reciprocate Kurt’s feelings toward him. Blaine performed his love song, Robin Thicke’s “When I Get You Alone,” for his crush, a Gap manager, at the Gap store during the day. It was as close to a flash mob as ‘Glee’ will ever get, and while this is something that normally would have had me rolling my eyes, I can’t disapprove of any Dalton Warblers performance. I’m sure that I don’t have to tell you that Blaine’s performance did not wind up in him getting a date with his crush, but at least we know there might be some hope down the road for Blaine and Kurt--the two are going to take things slowly as friends.

Back at McKinley High, Finn was acting like the big man on campus after winning the big football game, so he felt it appropriate to open a $1-per-kiss kissing booth to raise funds for the glee club. While his revenue won’t be a tremendous help for New Directions, his booth effectively ended things with Rachel and started things up again with Quinn. I really don’t care what happens with this little love triangle, although I do like Rachel best when she’s single, so maybe this will all work out.

Another musical standout was Artie singing yet another Michael Jackson song, this time one of my favorites, “P.Y.T” accompanied by Mike Chang’s slick dance moves. To me, this was significantly better than Sunday night’s “Thriller” rendition.

Tina sang a tearful version of “My Funny Valentine” to Mike, which deteriorated into an awkward, embarrassing mess, which leads me to believe that you have to be really talented to make yourself sound that bad.

Given 'Glee'’s love for Katy Perry, and Rachel’s love for the extravagant and the obvious, her love song was Katy Perry’s “Fireworks,” presumably sung in honor of her new totally single status. It may have been an obvious choice, but I really enjoyed it. I think she sang it incredibly well, and I think she needed a moment with a contemporary pop hit and this was a great one.

To close out the episode, Kurt threw a party at Breadsticks for lovers, single friends and those in between, which – no surprise – was everyone, where the Warblers sang their second song of the night, Paul McCartney’s “Silly Love Songs.” Beautifully done. I know that the backing vocals of the Warblers are really the Tufts Beelzebubs a cappella group, but their harmonies are so tight and perfect, and the actors genuinely look like they’re having a great time performing. They’re the musical breath of fresh air ‘Glee’ desperately needed.

"Glee" Episode 12: “Silly Little Love Songs”

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

I didn’t believe that a Valentine’s Day themed episode of ‘Glee’ could become my favorite episode of the season. I also never would’ve guessed that an episode noticeably lacking Sue Sylvester could also become my favorite episode of the season.

Boy, was I wrong.

The reason why this simple episode topped all others for me – most importantly being Sunday’s big budget Super Bowl episode – was that this episode was completely driven by plot. The interactions and the relationships of the high school kids was front and center, and flashy performances really didn’t have much of a place here. Things seemed as genuine as they could possibly seem on an episode of ‘Glee.’ And bonus points that this episode focused on two of the funniest, most interesting characters outside of Sue Sylvester: Santana and Lauren.

Another reason why I enjoyed it so very much: two Dalton Warblers performances in one episode. I’m even willing to look past the fact that one of those performances was a totally cheesy and highly embarrassing performance at the Gap.

In hopes of wooing Lauren, Puck decided to serenade her with Queen’s “Fat Bottomed Girls,” his pick for the love song assignment. Whether things work out between them or not, to me it really doesn’t matter: Puck is my favorite male character at McKinley High, and the fact that the always-funny Lauren just isn’t feeling him makes his courtship even more unexpectedly hilarious.

Over at Dalton Academy, we learned the not-so-shocking truth that Blaine does not reciprocate Kurt’s feelings toward him. Blaine performed his love song, Robin Thicke’s “When I Get You Alone,” for his crush, a Gap manager, at the Gap store during the day. It was as close to a flash mob as ‘Glee’ will ever get, and while this is something that normally would have had me rolling my eyes, I can’t disapprove of any Dalton Warblers performance. I’m sure that I don’t have to tell you that Blaine’s performance did not wind up in him getting a date with his crush, but at least we know there might be some hope down the road for Blaine and Kurt--the two are going to take things slowly as friends.

Back at McKinley High, Finn was acting like the big man on campus after winning the big football game, so he felt it appropriate to open a $1-per-kiss kissing booth to raise funds for the glee club. While his revenue won’t be a tremendous help for New Directions, his booth effectively ended things with Rachel and started things up again with Quinn. I really don’t care what happens with this little love triangle, although I do like Rachel best when she’s single, so maybe this will all work out.

Another musical standout was Artie singing yet another Michael Jackson song, this time one of my favorites, “P.Y.T” accompanied by Mike Chang’s slick dance moves. To me, this was significantly better than Sunday night’s “Thriller” rendition.

Tina sang a tearful version of “My Funny Valentine” to Mike, which deteriorated into an awkward, embarrassing mess, which leads me to believe that you have to be really talented to make yourself sound that bad.

Given 'Glee'’s love for Katy Perry, and Rachel’s love for the extravagant and the obvious, her love song was Katy Perry’s “Fireworks,” presumably sung in honor of her new totally single status. It may have been an obvious choice, but I really enjoyed it. I think she sang it incredibly well, and I think she needed a moment with a contemporary pop hit and this was a great one.

To close out the episode, Kurt threw a party at Breadsticks for lovers, single friends and those in between, which – no surprise – was everyone, where the Warblers sang their second song of the night, Paul McCartney’s “Silly Love Songs.” Beautifully done. I know that the backing vocals of the Warblers are really the Tufts Beelzebubs a cappella group, but their harmonies are so tight and perfect, and the actors genuinely look like they’re having a great time performing. They’re the musical breath of fresh air ‘Glee’ desperately needed.

"Glee" Super Bowl episode

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

For "Glee"’s big post-Super Bowl return, they promised their biggest episode yet, and I think they might have delivered.

The show started with a firework bang or two, as the Cheerios practiced their routine to Katy Perry’s hit “California Gurls” while wearing blue wigs, bikini tops and fire sparklers on their bikinis. It sure was attention grabbing, but most of all, it introduced Sue Sylvester as a key player in this episode. She was bored by a totally un-boring performance, and since she wanted her Cheerios to win the big cheerleading competition, she needed to think of something bolder than fire-shooting bras and BMX bikers on ramps. She needed to shoot the lovably dimwitted Brittany out of a human cannon.

The back-and-forth between the two funniest characters on "Glee" was priceless. Brittany rightly feared for her life (she doesn’t want to die before the cancellation of “One Tree Hill”), and Sue had to get on Brittany’s level to reason with her. Think lots of handwritten notes in crayons from the cannon to Brittany, and ploys to make Brittany feel like she was preventing the cannon from providing for its ill cannon offspring. Finally, Sue convinces Brittany to sign the consent form and allow herself to be shot out of the cannon, only before my favorite moment of recent “Glee” history: Brittany being unable to figure out how to sign her name, and Sue brashly telling her to sign an X.

Well done, Sue.

My favorite musical performance was the entirely random, and seemingly out of place rendition of “Bills, Bills, Bills” by the Dalton Academy Warblers. I’m not quite sure why this song was featured in this football and McKinley High centered episode, but I liked it. As always, Blaine and the boys were vocally amazing, and had a fun, energetic, casual performance. I like the Warblers a lot. I like their song choices, I like the fact that they always look like they’re having fun--I don’t like the fact that they’re not always relevant.

I have mixed feelings on the big halftime show performance, where the glee club and the football team dressed like zombies and performed a mash-up of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Heads Will Roll.” I love both songs. I appreciate new slants on Michael Jackson classics, and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are one of my favorite bands, so hearing their hit on such a mainstream show was pretty cool, but musically, it just didn’t do it for me. I’ve been worried about this number since I heard which two songs would be mashed up a few weeks ago, and I was still a little let down.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it was really amazing for Artie to be singing the lead on the Michael Jackson track, because he never really gets to take center stage on anything, especially something this big. Vocally, I thought he was pretty great, and hope that he gets more lead vocals on songs soon. My issues are more with the arrangement of “Heads Will Roll.” That’s such a good song, and Karen O has such a unique voice, and such an outrageous stage presence, that I don’t think anyone can come close to doing justice to one of her tracks. Good try, "Glee," for taking such a cool song choice, but I just wish it had been done better. The dancing and zombie makeup in the halftime show, however, was incredible.

Like with the “Bills, Bills, Bills” performance, I felt the rest of the music didn’t seem to fit in well with such a plot and character heavy episode. All of our favorites and not-so-favorites – I’m looking at you, Karofsky – were in this episode. The Cheerios interacted with New Directions, who interacted with the football team (and Coach Beiste!), who battled with the hockey team. And to me, this is what made this episode so special. Everyone was there – even Burt Hummel, one of my favorites, had a cameo in the stands at the big football game – and there even was a cameo from Katie Couric, interviewing Sue for her “Losers of the Year” television segment.

I’m very over the played out Lady Antebellum hit “Need You Now,” but Rachel and Puck’s duet sounded eerily like the original – in a good way. And while musically, I wasn’t too excited by the football team singing the Zombies’ hit “She’s Not There,” I very much enjoyed seeing all of the guys sing and dance together.

"Glee" Super Bowl episode

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

For "Glee"’s big post-Super Bowl return, they promised their biggest episode yet, and I think they might have delivered.

The show started with a firework bang or two, as the Cheerios practiced their routine to Katy Perry’s hit “California Gurls” while wearing blue wigs, bikini tops and fire sparklers on their bikinis. It sure was attention grabbing, but most of all, it introduced Sue Sylvester as a key player in this episode. She was bored by a totally un-boring performance, and since she wanted her Cheerios to win the big cheerleading competition, she needed to think of something bolder than fire-shooting bras and BMX bikers on ramps. She needed to shoot the lovably dimwitted Brittany out of a human cannon.

The back-and-forth between the two funniest characters on "Glee" was priceless. Brittany rightly feared for her life (she doesn’t want to die before the cancellation of “One Tree Hill”), and Sue had to get on Brittany’s level to reason with her. Think lots of handwritten notes in crayons from the cannon to Brittany, and ploys to make Brittany feel like she was preventing the cannon from providing for its ill cannon offspring. Finally, Sue convinces Brittany to sign the consent form and allow herself to be shot out of the cannon, only before my favorite moment of recent “Glee” history: Brittany being unable to figure out how to sign her name, and Sue brashly telling her to sign an X.

Well done, Sue.

My favorite musical performance was the entirely random, and seemingly out of place rendition of “Bills, Bills, Bills” by the Dalton Academy Warblers. I’m not quite sure why this song was featured in this football and McKinley High centered episode, but I liked it. As always, Blaine and the boys were vocally amazing, and had a fun, energetic, casual performance. I like the Warblers a lot. I like their song choices, I like the fact that they always look like they’re having fun--I don’t like the fact that they’re not always relevant.

I have mixed feelings on the big halftime show performance, where the glee club and the football team dressed like zombies and performed a mash-up of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Heads Will Roll.” I love both songs. I appreciate new slants on Michael Jackson classics, and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are one of my favorite bands, so hearing their hit on such a mainstream show was pretty cool, but musically, it just didn’t do it for me. I’ve been worried about this number since I heard which two songs would be mashed up a few weeks ago, and I was still a little let down.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it was really amazing for Artie to be singing the lead on the Michael Jackson track, because he never really gets to take center stage on anything, especially something this big. Vocally, I thought he was pretty great, and hope that he gets more lead vocals on songs soon. My issues are more with the arrangement of “Heads Will Roll.” That’s such a good song, and Karen O has such a unique voice, and such an outrageous stage presence, that I don’t think anyone can come close to doing justice to one of her tracks. Good try, "Glee," for taking such a cool song choice, but I just wish it had been done better. The dancing and zombie makeup in the halftime show, however, was incredible.

Like with the “Bills, Bills, Bills” performance, I felt the rest of the music didn’t seem to fit in well with such a plot and character heavy episode. All of our favorites and not-so-favorites – I’m looking at you, Karofsky – were in this episode. The Cheerios interacted with New Directions, who interacted with the football team (and Coach Beiste!), who battled with the hockey team. And to me, this is what made this episode so special. Everyone was there – even Burt Hummel, one of my favorites, had a cameo in the stands at the big football game – and there even was a cameo from Katie Couric, interviewing Sue for her “Losers of the Year” television segment.

I’m very over the played out Lady Antebellum hit “Need You Now,” but Rachel and Puck’s duet sounded eerily like the original – in a good way. And while musically, I wasn’t too excited by the football team singing the Zombies’ hit “She’s Not There,” I very much enjoyed seeing all of the guys sing and dance together.

"Glee" Episode 2

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

Tuesday night was the long-awaited Britney Spears centric episode of "Glee," and for the most part, it was another great episode. While there was little to do with Sue Sylvester and Coach Beiste (a story arc I imagine will be one of my favorites), tonight seemed to focus on the next best thing – dim cheerleader Brittany and the Cheerios.

Last season, Brittany was responsible for some of the most memorable "Glee" lines, most notably, “Dolphins are just gay sharks” – so I was almost as excited for a Brittany episode as I was for the Britney episode.

Pretty much everything that came out of Brittany’s mouth made me actually laugh hard out loud. She sang well, but her dancing was impeccable. Heather Morris, the actress who plays Brittany S. Pierce, has been a backup dancer for Beyonce’s world tour, and she absolutely killed it as Britney in her videos. Britney Spears should be proud that someone did her choreography just as well as her, if not better. Here’s to hoping there are more episodes that feature Brittany’s ditzy one-liners and her serious dance skills.

What made this episode so stand out was how they incorporated the Britney Spears routines into the plot of the episode. I was worried "Glee" producers would use the tired approach of having dream sequences, but their interesting spin on the dream sequence was very welcome.

Using the show’s other guest star of the night, John Stamos playing Dr. Carl, a dentist dating Emma and Will’s new rival, the two plot lines merged. All of the glee club members got dental treatments with laughing gas done, and in their unconscious state, they were reenacting Britney Spears videos. I’m not sure what this says about the state of Britney Spears, but I’m sure a critic can read into it. However, I thought it was great.

My two complaints with the episode not surprisingly have everything to do with Lea Michele’s Rachel Barry. While her rendition of the iconic “Baby One More Time” video was totally accurate, I didn’t think it was very good. The singing was off, and I just think Lea Michele overacts with everything she does. However, because of the uncanny accuracy with the cinematography – was she using the exact filming locations from the original video? – I considered this performance to be significantly better than her show ending "Paramore" number. I wasn’t even certain it was "Paramore," but I’m not a fan. Lea Michele singing "Paramore"? There’s no way I was liking it.

"Glee" Episode 2

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

Tuesday night was the long-awaited Britney Spears centric episode of "Glee," and for the most part, it was another great episode. While there was little to do with Sue Sylvester and Coach Beiste (a story arc I imagine will be one of my favorites), tonight seemed to focus on the next best thing – dim cheerleader Brittany and the Cheerios.

Last season, Brittany was responsible for some of the most memorable "Glee" lines, most notably, “Dolphins are just gay sharks” – so I was almost as excited for a Brittany episode as I was for the Britney episode.

Pretty much everything that came out of Brittany’s mouth made me actually laugh hard out loud. She sang well, but her dancing was impeccable. Heather Morris, the actress who plays Brittany S. Pierce, has been a backup dancer for Beyonce’s world tour, and she absolutely killed it as Britney in her videos. Britney Spears should be proud that someone did her choreography just as well as her, if not better. Here’s to hoping there are more episodes that feature Brittany’s ditzy one-liners and her serious dance skills.

What made this episode so stand out was how they incorporated the Britney Spears routines into the plot of the episode. I was worried "Glee" producers would use the tired approach of having dream sequences, but their interesting spin on the dream sequence was very welcome.

Using the show’s other guest star of the night, John Stamos playing Dr. Carl, a dentist dating Emma and Will’s new rival, the two plot lines merged. All of the glee club members got dental treatments with laughing gas done, and in their unconscious state, they were reenacting Britney Spears videos. I’m not sure what this says about the state of Britney Spears, but I’m sure a critic can read into it. However, I thought it was great.

My two complaints with the episode not surprisingly have everything to do with Lea Michele’s Rachel Barry. While her rendition of the iconic “Baby One More Time” video was totally accurate, I didn’t think it was very good. The singing was off, and I just think Lea Michele overacts with everything she does. However, because of the uncanny accuracy with the cinematography – was she using the exact filming locations from the original video? – I considered this performance to be significantly better than her show ending "Paramore" number. I wasn’t even certain it was "Paramore," but I’m not a fan. Lea Michele singing "Paramore"? There’s no way I was liking it.

"Glee": Episode One

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

I must come clean: I am not a Gleek. I’m actually very late to the game of "Glee" – it wasn’t until the release of Season 1 on DVD (and countless urges from friends) this summer that I came to appreciate the show for the zinger lines that leave you laughing minutes after their delivery, everything Sue Sylvester, and oh yeah, the music’s pretty great, too. I’m not ruling out the potential of becoming a Gleek – maybe after chronicling this season I’ll be hooked – but being a new fan makes me comfortable with being critical of the show when I feel they miss the mark.

Tuesday night’s premiere was great television, end of story. Sue Sylvester came out with one of the best lines of the night within the first five minutes, and that set the momentum for the remainder of the episode. With the addition of her new nemesis, Coach Beiste (pronounced “Beast,” of course), an even taller, bigger and exponentially more manly alpha-female, Sue Sylvester has finally met her match, which is good for those of us, like myself, who love her witty attacks. How can you hate the, “a female football coach is like a male nurse – a crime against nature” line? Sure, her conversation about implants later on in the episode was slightly uncomfortable, but I’ll give her a pass.

The music from the show featured inescapable Top 40 hits from this past summer with a "Glee" twist on them. Quite honestly, I was impressed – and I thought I’d be hating hearing songs that have become so ubiquitous and annoying. The “Empire State of Mind” had a cheesy performance (dancing in a high school courtyard in New York tourist teeshirts with enormous '80s rapper gold chains), but sounded amazing. The awkwardness was worth it when no one on campus seemed to notice the production. Expect New York to be central to this season of "Glee," as the glee club’s goal is to make it to Nationals in New York City.

The Lady Gaga number between Rachel Barry and Sunshine in the girls restroom was flawless. I can only anticipate that song selling many times over on iTunes. Is it just me, or was their “Telephone” better than anything in the Lady Gaga tribute episode last season?

The new additions to the cast had their solo songs this episode and both new stars deserve huge introductions. I was excited to see Charice, playing Sunshine Corazon, after seeing her perform on Oprah (yes, Oprah discovered Charice on YouTube, gave her instant fame, Charice landed a dream role on "Glee" and got botox in anticipation – the American dream come to life). Her voice outshines everyone else on the cast and I am excited to see what she does, even if she is now a member of rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline. (She chose to join because they gave her mother a green card and a condo, naturally).

"Glee" embraced its awkwardness with the discovery of Sam Evans, singing the Poison hit “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.” I like when "Glee" gives a nod to all its critics who call it cheesy and awkward (two words I foresee using with great frequency moving forward with this season) by doing something so overtly uncomfortable that it seems cool. Sam’s real audition set to Travie McCoy’s hit “Billionaire” was a high point of the episode for me.

All in all, a great episode. Great one liners, great renditions of current pop hits and lots of potential for the rest of the season. You want a favorite show to come back strong, so as to cement its footing as solidly good television and not beginner’s luck.  Last night, "Glee" proved it's good television.

Expect this season to only get better. The race to Nationals will make performances heat up and become more contemporary, the new cast members are super talented, and there will be loads of celebrity cameos. Next week is the Britney Spears episode, which I have personally been anticipating all summer. I wasn’t expecting it to come so soon in the season, but upon further reflection, I feel this only means that everything to come later will only get bigger and better.

"Glee": Episode One

Television Review

By our guest blogger, Catherine Fuentes

I must come clean: I am not a Gleek. I’m actually very late to the game of "Glee" – it wasn’t until the release of Season 1 on DVD (and countless urges from friends) this summer that I came to appreciate the show for the zinger lines that leave you laughing minutes after their delivery, everything Sue Sylvester, and oh yeah, the music’s pretty great, too. I’m not ruling out the potential of becoming a Gleek – maybe after chronicling this season I’ll be hooked – but being a new fan makes me comfortable with being critical of the show when I feel they miss the mark.

Tuesday night’s premiere was great television, end of story. Sue Sylvester came out with one of the best lines of the night within the first five minutes, and that set the momentum for the remainder of the episode. With the addition of her new nemesis, Coach Beiste (pronounced “Beast,” of course), an even taller, bigger and exponentially more manly alpha-female, Sue Sylvester has finally met her match, which is good for those of us, like myself, who love her witty attacks. How can you hate the, “a female football coach is like a male nurse – a crime against nature” line? Sure, her conversation about implants later on in the episode was slightly uncomfortable, but I’ll give her a pass.

The music from the show featured inescapable Top 40 hits from this past summer with a "Glee" twist on them. Quite honestly, I was impressed – and I thought I’d be hating hearing songs that have become so ubiquitous and annoying. The “Empire State of Mind” had a cheesy performance (dancing in a high school courtyard in New York tourist teeshirts with enormous '80s rapper gold chains), but sounded amazing. The awkwardness was worth it when no one on campus seemed to notice the production. Expect New York to be central to this season of "Glee," as the glee club’s goal is to make it to Nationals in New York City.

The Lady Gaga number between Rachel Barry and Sunshine in the girls restroom was flawless. I can only anticipate that song selling many times over on iTunes. Is it just me, or was their “Telephone” better than anything in the Lady Gaga tribute episode last season?

The new additions to the cast had their solo songs this episode and both new stars deserve huge introductions. I was excited to see Charice, playing Sunshine Corazon, after seeing her perform on Oprah (yes, Oprah discovered Charice on YouTube, gave her instant fame, Charice landed a dream role on "Glee" and got botox in anticipation – the American dream come to life). Her voice outshines everyone else on the cast and I am excited to see what she does, even if she is now a member of rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline. (She chose to join because they gave her mother a green card and a condo, naturally).

"Glee" embraced its awkwardness with the discovery of Sam Evans, singing the Poison hit “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.” I like when "Glee" gives a nod to all its critics who call it cheesy and awkward (two words I foresee using with great frequency moving forward with this season) by doing something so overtly uncomfortable that it seems cool. Sam’s real audition set to Travie McCoy’s hit “Billionaire” was a high point of the episode for me.

All in all, a great episode. Great one liners, great renditions of current pop hits and lots of potential for the rest of the season. You want a favorite show to come back strong, so as to cement its footing as solidly good television and not beginner’s luck.  Last night, "Glee" proved it's good television.

Expect this season to only get better. The race to Nationals will make performances heat up and become more contemporary, the new cast members are super talented, and there will be loads of celebrity cameos. Next week is the Britney Spears episode, which I have personally been anticipating all summer. I wasn’t expecting it to come so soon in the season, but upon further reflection, I feel this only means that everything to come later will only get bigger and better.

By our guest blogger, Kristen Lopez

The ending of "Glee" was bittersweet. Now starting its four-month hiatus to make way for "American Idol," the series ended on a strong note, leaving audiences with a smile and a tear. In the few episode reviews that have appeared on this site, it's been mentioned before that “[Insert episode title] was the best of them all,” but it can be said with all certainty that “Sectionals” is THE best episode of the "Glee" canon.

Since there is no way to discuss the events of this episode without revealing spoilers, readers should know that going forward.

It's finally arrived--New Directions has made it to Sectionals, albeit without their intrepid teacher Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison), who was removed as adviser after the events of last week's installment. The effects of Sue (Jane Lynch) leaking the set list leave the kids depressed with no songs to perform, and Will stuck listening to the aftermath through Emma's (Jayma Mays) cell phone. Finn (Corey Monteith) finally learns the truth about Quinn (Dianna Agron) and Puck's (Mark Sallin) relationship, and that Finn is not the father of the cheerleader's baby causing him to abandon the club in their hour of need.

Last week's episode, “Mattress,” was a tad heavy-handed with drama, but it allowed the episode to start off with a raw nerve--one ripe for irritation. Will is forced to remove himself from leadership of the club, and the kids are left on their own for the first time. Rachel (Lea Michele) attempts to become de facto president in Schuester's absence, but in the evening's first performance, in which Mercedes (Amber Riley) sings “And I Am Telling You,” the choir's star singer is forced to admit she isn't the best to lead. And so, she hands over the reins to Emma.

This is the first of many realizations the group discovers during Sectionals, and Rachel is forced to confront that she needs to spread the wealth in order to have everyone unify as a team. Finn learned that Puck was the father of Quinn's baby, in an event that mirrored Will finding out about Terry last week. The young quarterback's been put through the wringer this season and finding out that all this time his best friend was the father just destroyed him--he really wanted the baby.

Will had to confront Sue after she leaked the set list and it was easy to feel for him as he was so angry, he wanted to punch something--maybe Sue herself. These two moments led to an insightful conversation with Finn asking the question of why the nice guys always have to be the bigger man? Will simply says, “You can't always get what you want.” The two men have probably grown the most in the series' run, and they both share some deep-rooted similarities. They are both forced to confront the women they love, and they're also the two good guys who always seem to get the short end of the stick. It was a deep moment that allowed both men to vent their frustrations and come together to help the team as a whole.

The actual events of Sectionals is where the episode's heart and soul came from. Audiences have followed these kids from social outcasts to a group of underdogs from different social hierarchies who became friends. In fact, “Cherrio” Santana (Naya Rivera) admitted that Glee Club was “the best part of her day.” The fact that they all come together to performance a rousing set list that moved their teacher to tears was particularly affecting.

The songs from this episode were beautifully performed. Mercedes has been hot on Rachel's tail as the best singer of the group, and her stirring performance of the "Dreamgirls" ballad “And I Am Telling You” might have given Jennifer Hudson a run for her money. Ironically, the song mirrors the dynamic between the two big-voiced singers in the club as Mercedes has played backup to Rachel throughout the season. To have her sing a song about not giving up and making people love and respect her conveyed more weight than standard dialogue.

Equally good was the Broadway theatrics of Rachel's rendition of “Don't Rain On My Parade.” Actress Lea Michelle is a Broadway vet herself and her performance was pure theater--she worked the room. It's the last song that fans will probably remember most--the group's rendition of Kelly Clarkson's “My Life Would Suck Without You,” which was a tribute to Scheuster. The kids made it a point to include famous dance sequences used throughout the season. Examples include the kids wearing cowboy hats to memorialize star Kristin Chenoweth's cameo performance of Carrie Underwood's “Last Name,” and having Kurt do his Beyonce “Single Ladies” dance. This was intercut with scenes of Will sprinting down the hallways to catch Emma before she left the school for good, and sharing that romantic kiss that fans have been waiting for since the two were introduced.

Now, the questions are piling up. What is Sue going to do to get back her coaching position? How is Terri (Jessalyn Gilsig) going to react now that Will and Emma are a couple? Since the show is on hiauts until April, audiences will need to wait.

By our guest blogger, Kristen Lopez

The ending of "Glee" was bittersweet. Now starting its four-month hiatus to make way for "American Idol," the series ended on a strong note, leaving audiences with a smile and a tear. In the few episode reviews that have appeared on this site, it's been mentioned before that “[Insert episode title] was the best of them all,” but it can be said with all certainty that “Sectionals” is THE best episode of the "Glee" canon.

Since there is no way to discuss the events of this episode without revealing spoilers, readers should know that going forward.

It's finally arrived--New Directions has made it to Sectionals, albeit without their intrepid teacher Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison), who was removed as adviser after the events of last week's installment. The effects of Sue (Jane Lynch) leaking the set list leave the kids depressed with no songs to perform, and Will stuck listening to the aftermath through Emma's (Jayma Mays) cell phone. Finn (Corey Monteith) finally learns the truth about Quinn (Dianna Agron) and Puck's (Mark Sallin) relationship, and that Finn is not the father of the cheerleader's baby causing him to abandon the club in their hour of need.

Last week's episode, “Mattress,” was a tad heavy-handed with drama, but it allowed the episode to start off with a raw nerve--one ripe for irritation. Will is forced to remove himself from leadership of the club, and the kids are left on their own for the first time. Rachel (Lea Michele) attempts to become de facto president in Schuester's absence, but in the evening's first performance, in which Mercedes (Amber Riley) sings “And I Am Telling You,” the choir's star singer is forced to admit she isn't the best to lead. And so, she hands over the reins to Emma.

This is the first of many realizations the group discovers during Sectionals, and Rachel is forced to confront that she needs to spread the wealth in order to have everyone unify as a team. Finn learned that Puck was the father of Quinn's baby, in an event that mirrored Will finding out about Terry last week. The young quarterback's been put through the wringer this season and finding out that all this time his best friend was the father just destroyed him--he really wanted the baby.

Will had to confront Sue after she leaked the set list and it was easy to feel for him as he was so angry, he wanted to punch something--maybe Sue herself. These two moments led to an insightful conversation with Finn asking the question of why the nice guys always have to be the bigger man? Will simply says, “You can't always get what you want.” The two men have probably grown the most in the series' run, and they both share some deep-rooted similarities. They are both forced to confront the women they love, and they're also the two good guys who always seem to get the short end of the stick. It was a deep moment that allowed both men to vent their frustrations and come together to help the team as a whole.

The actual events of Sectionals is where the episode's heart and soul came from. Audiences have followed these kids from social outcasts to a group of underdogs from different social hierarchies who became friends. In fact, “Cherrio” Santana (Naya Rivera) admitted that Glee Club was “the best part of her day.” The fact that they all come together to performance a rousing set list that moved their teacher to tears was particularly affecting.

The songs from this episode were beautifully performed. Mercedes has been hot on Rachel's tail as the best singer of the group, and her stirring performance of the "Dreamgirls" ballad “And I Am Telling You” might have given Jennifer Hudson a run for her money. Ironically, the song mirrors the dynamic between the two big-voiced singers in the club as Mercedes has played backup to Rachel throughout the season. To have her sing a song about not giving up and making people love and respect her conveyed more weight than standard dialogue.

Equally good was the Broadway theatrics of Rachel's rendition of “Don't Rain On My Parade.” Actress Lea Michelle is a Broadway vet herself and her performance was pure theater--she worked the room. It's the last song that fans will probably remember most--the group's rendition of Kelly Clarkson's “My Life Would Suck Without You,” which was a tribute to Scheuster. The kids made it a point to include famous dance sequences used throughout the season. Examples include the kids wearing cowboy hats to memorialize star Kristin Chenoweth's cameo performance of Carrie Underwood's “Last Name,” and having Kurt do his Beyonce “Single Ladies” dance. This was intercut with scenes of Will sprinting down the hallways to catch Emma before she left the school for good, and sharing that romantic kiss that fans have been waiting for since the two were introduced.

Now, the questions are piling up. What is Sue going to do to get back her coaching position? How is Terri (Jessalyn Gilsig) going to react now that Will and Emma are a couple? Since the show is on hiauts until April, audiences will need to wait.

By our guest blogger, Kristen Lopez

"Glee" is gearing up for the fall finale, and it stands to reason that a few major stories need to be wrapped up until the show's return in April. The road to Sectionals is fast approaching, a phrase that seems to be repeated with every episode, but this week we see the group's morale take a nosedive. Our weekly entry into the "Glee" universe, entitled "Mattress," wasn't the strongest or the best, but it provided some much-needed catharsis for a few characters and set the group on a road filled with emotional baggage.

Will (Matthew Morrison) desperately wants to get the Glee kids into the yearbook, but since their lack of funds prohibits them from getting a full page, they're forced to elect two students to represent them. Unknown to Will, the kids don't actually want to be in the yearbook upon viewing past defiled Glee club photos, so they choose Rachel (Lea Michele) as captain. In an attempt to convince Finn (Cory Monteith) to be her “co-captain,” she gets the club a spot in a mattress commercial to reduce the ridicule they normally receive. Emma (Jayma Mays) has to tell Will she won't make it to Sectionals since it's the day of her wedding while Quinn (Dianna Agron) tries to convince Sue (Jane Lynch) to let her back onto the Cheerios for the yearbook picture. Will finally finds out about Terri's (Jessalyn Gilsig) false pregnancy and things do not end well.

"Mattress" addresses a huge story point that's continued since the first episode--Terri's fake pregnancy. Not only did Will learn she wasn't with child, but she was forced to confess about her plan to adopt Quinn's baby and have them raise it. Will finally stood up to his wife, but he was forced to accept that the only way the two would ever have a functioning marriage would be if he remained a doormat. Props go out to Morrison and Gilsig for giving powerful performances, the former had to assert dominance (and feel hurt) while the latter was forced to confront her flaws and fight to save her marriage. Nothing was resolved outright, but it brought up the question of where do the two go from here? Will might have told Emma that he wasn't considering divorce just yet, but will he be able to get past the fact that he won't be having a child, and his wife just isn't the woman he wants? It looks as if it will lead down some strange paths but we won't be getting much resolution until after the return from show's hiatus.

The songs this week were diverse--out of the three, two hit the mark. The big mattress commercial, with the group performing Van Halen's “Jump,” was nothing short of hilarious. All the kids jumping on mattresses and playing up to the studio cameras was a moment of levity--the kids were allowed to let loose and have fun after a lot of stress leading up to Sectionals, and who didn't laugh out loud every time the camera cut to Kurt mugging incessantly? At the very end of the show, the other song, “Smile,” originally performed by Charlie Chaplin, was beautiful. The song is performed during a scene where Glee Club is despondent at unintentionally getting disqualified for their participation in the mattress campaign, and Will takes the fall by giving up his right to go with the club to Sectionals as adviser. “Smile” worked as the perfect ending performance as the tune is all about perseverance and being able to smile no matter the circumstances. The final scene had a feeling of apprehension but being able to “smile” and pretend everything is fine is the only way to do Will proud.

What's odd is that this episode seemed to ring a bit hollow. The serious nature of Terri's revelation was shocking and really brought down the tone of an episode that seemed to revolve around that one argument. Glee always has taken an optimistic stance on things, wanting to focus on the light at the end of the tunnel, and this was the first time audiences saw that things can't be wrapped up in a bow. Terri started the series as the typical unsupportive wife, but in last week's episode, the audience saw her breaking down her facade with Quinn and realizing she loves her husband while being terrified she'll lose him at the same time. To have the two go their separate ways had them face some ugly truths and the audience was left wondering if Terri is worthy of redemption. Don't get me wrong, it was a well-executed scene and raised questions that need answers but it seemed that everything else felt a bit strained and weighed down under the weight of that rift.

Emma and Sue seemed pointless this week, although we did get to see Quinn finally stand up to her former coach, which mirrored Will's emancipation from his wife's grasp. As previously noted, there were only three song this week and the second song seemed completely out-of-place in the context of the scene, which is a first for the series. As for Rachel and Finn, the weakest aspect seemed to be the Glee Club this week. The mattress ad was cute, but the focus didn't seem to be on them and their troubles. It seems that the otherwise somber nature of everything leading up to the confrontation took a lot out of the writers--and this episode needed to be downbeat to have the kids make a glorious comeback at Sectionals.

Overall, "Mattress" was a cookie-cutter episode that focused on a major squabble but the Club itself got lost in the shuffle. Next week is the big fall finale, code for “American Idol is more important,” so let's hope the show goes out swinging because the music stops until April.

By our guest blogger, Kristen Lopez

"Glee" is gearing up for the fall finale, and it stands to reason that a few major stories need to be wrapped up until the show's return in April. The road to Sectionals is fast approaching, a phrase that seems to be repeated with every episode, but this week we see the group's morale take a nosedive. Our weekly entry into the "Glee" universe, entitled "Mattress," wasn't the strongest or the best, but it provided some much-needed catharsis for a few characters and set the group on a road filled with emotional baggage.

Will (Matthew Morrison) desperately wants to get the Glee kids into the yearbook, but since their lack of funds prohibits them from getting a full page, they're forced to elect two students to represent them. Unknown to Will, the kids don't actually want to be in the yearbook upon viewing past defiled Glee club photos, so they choose Rachel (Lea Michele) as captain. In an attempt to convince Finn (Cory Monteith) to be her “co-captain,” she gets the club a spot in a mattress commercial to reduce the ridicule they normally receive. Emma (Jayma Mays) has to tell Will she won't make it to Sectionals since it's the day of her wedding while Quinn (Dianna Agron) tries to convince Sue (Jane Lynch) to let her back onto the Cheerios for the yearbook picture. Will finally finds out about Terri's (Jessalyn Gilsig) false pregnancy and things do not end well.

"Mattress" addresses a huge story point that's continued since the first episode--Terri's fake pregnancy. Not only did Will learn she wasn't with child, but she was forced to confess about her plan to adopt Quinn's baby and have them raise it. Will finally stood up to his wife, but he was forced to accept that the only way the two would ever have a functioning marriage would be if he remained a doormat. Props go out to Morrison and Gilsig for giving powerful performances, the former had to assert dominance (and feel hurt) while the latter was forced to confront her flaws and fight to save her marriage. Nothing was resolved outright, but it brought up the question of where do the two go from here? Will might have told Emma that he wasn't considering divorce just yet, but will he be able to get past the fact that he won't be having a child, and his wife just isn't the woman he wants? It looks as if it will lead down some strange paths but we won't be getting much resolution until after the return from show's hiatus.

The songs this week were diverse--out of the three, two hit the mark. The big mattress commercial, with the group performing Van Halen's “Jump,” was nothing short of hilarious. All the kids jumping on mattresses and playing up to the studio cameras was a moment of levity--the kids were allowed to let loose and have fun after a lot of stress leading up to Sectionals, and who didn't laugh out loud every time the camera cut to Kurt mugging incessantly? At the very end of the show, the other song, “Smile,” originally performed by Charlie Chaplin, was beautiful. The song is performed during a scene where Glee Club is despondent at unintentionally getting disqualified for their participation in the mattress campaign, and Will takes the fall by giving up his right to go with the club to Sectionals as adviser. “Smile” worked as the perfect ending performance as the tune is all about perseverance and being able to smile no matter the circumstances. The final scene had a feeling of apprehension but being able to “smile” and pretend everything is fine is the only way to do Will proud.

What's odd is that this episode seemed to ring a bit hollow. The serious nature of Terri's revelation was shocking and really brought down the tone of an episode that seemed to revolve around that one argument. Glee always has taken an optimistic stance on things, wanting to focus on the light at the end of the tunnel, and this was the first time audiences saw that things can't be wrapped up in a bow. Terri started the series as the typical unsupportive wife, but in last week's episode, the audience saw her breaking down her facade with Quinn and realizing she loves her husband while being terrified she'll lose him at the same time. To have the two go their separate ways had them face some ugly truths and the audience was left wondering if Terri is worthy of redemption. Don't get me wrong, it was a well-executed scene and raised questions that need answers but it seemed that everything else felt a bit strained and weighed down under the weight of that rift.

Emma and Sue seemed pointless this week, although we did get to see Quinn finally stand up to her former coach, which mirrored Will's emancipation from his wife's grasp. As previously noted, there were only three song this week and the second song seemed completely out-of-place in the context of the scene, which is a first for the series. As for Rachel and Finn, the weakest aspect seemed to be the Glee Club this week. The mattress ad was cute, but the focus didn't seem to be on them and their troubles. It seems that the otherwise somber nature of everything leading up to the confrontation took a lot out of the writers--and this episode needed to be downbeat to have the kids make a glorious comeback at Sectionals.

Overall, "Mattress" was a cookie-cutter episode that focused on a major squabble but the Club itself got lost in the shuffle. Next week is the big fall finale, code for “American Idol is more important,” so let's hope the show goes out swinging because the music stops until April.

By our guest blogger, Kristen Lopez

The definition of "Hairography," as defined by Rachel Berry (Lea Michele), is as follows: "Eye-catching hair--swinging, shaking--that masks a mediocre and lackluster performance." That episode-specific detailing of the phrase is seamlessly integrated into the eleventh episode as the theme this week focused on the kids being confident that they could succeed in something but learning it only covered their own insecurity and lack of knowledge in whatever problem they were dealing with. It's hard to say this might be "Glee's" best episode, as every episode ends up being better than the last, but it'll be hard to top it.

This week's "Glee" followed Will (Matthew Morrison) as he attempted to invite a few neighboring schools over to show off their skills while trying to figure out if Sue (Jane Lynch) is trying to divulge the details of their set list to the competition. Quinn (Dianna Agron) tells Terry (Jessalyn Gilsig) she wants to keep the baby, and tries to spend more time with the real father, Puck (Mark Salling), by babysitting Terry's nephews. The pregnant cheerleader enlists the help of Kurt (Chris Colfer) to convince Rachel to distract Finn (Cory Monteith) in the meantime, but Kurt's ulterior motives end up hurting Rachel's chances with the quarterback.

As mentioned above, this episode was all about masking insecurity via one's appearance and it led to a lot of side-splitting moments.

The Jane Addams Academy's rendition of "Bootylicious" kicked everything off and caused Will to make the group sing a mash-up of "Hair" and "Crazy in Love." The choreography in this episode was amazing--it also showed that intricate dance routines have been missing from this show as of late. The Jane Addams Academy and Haverbrook, the school for the deaf, stole the episode. I mentioned the "Bootylicious" number but the Haverbrook schools' rendition of "Imagine" was inspiring. While a school for the deaf singing might sound like an unusual experience, the McKinley kids, led by diva Mercedes (Amber Riley), turned the song into a beautiful and inspiring rendition of it.

The series has really made a statement about including kids with disabilities and this sequence proved that they really want to include everyone, regardless of their abilities. It was a downright beautiful moment, and John Lennon's “Imagine” always delivers.

On the humor side Rachel attempted to seduce Finn by dressing like Sandy at the end of "Grease." Kurt instructed her to dress “like a ho” and while it was painful to watch Rachel crash and burn, Finn turned out to be a decent guy who loved a girl that dressed normally. Kurt also got to show off his heartbreak by realizing that he and Finn never will be together, even if Quinn wasn't pregnant. Dianna Agron continues to dominate as Quinn, coming a long way from her throwaway role as the evil cheerleader. She wants to give Puck a chance and the two share a sweet moment singing “Papa Don't Preach” for Terry's nephews. In the end it was all for naught as Quinn learned her baby daddy was “sexting” another girl, who openly threw it in her face. When Quinn went to Terry to ask if Will would be a good dad, both women came together to realize what a great guy Will is. Terry hasn't been the best character--especially since she's pretending to be pregnant--but even she realizes Will would be a perfect father.

Beyond the fact that after only a few more episodes, the show will take a hiatus until April, the only minor gripe here is that Will seemed a bit stupid by giving the set list to Sue. He seemed overly confident that she wouldn't reveal it but she did so immediately. It could be said that Will makes his own misplaced judgment with a form of “hairography,” but it just seemed like a means to move the plot forward. Other than that, this episode was perfect and it'll be hard to top it this week.

Check out behind-the-scenes footage of the "Hairography" episode here:

By our guest blogger, Kristen Lopez

The definition of "Hairography," as defined by Rachel Berry (Lea Michele), is as follows: "Eye-catching hair--swinging, shaking--that masks a mediocre and lackluster performance." That episode-specific detailing of the phrase is seamlessly integrated into the eleventh episode as the theme this week focused on the kids being confident that they could succeed in something but learning it only covered their own insecurity and lack of knowledge in whatever problem they were dealing with. It's hard to say this might be "Glee's" best episode, as every episode ends up being better than the last, but it'll be hard to top it.

This week's "Glee" followed Will (Matthew Morrison) as he attempted to invite a few neighboring schools over to show off their skills while trying to figure out if Sue (Jane Lynch) is trying to divulge the details of their set list to the competition. Quinn (Dianna Agron) tells Terry (Jessalyn Gilsig) she wants to keep the baby, and tries to spend more time with the real father, Puck (Mark Salling), by babysitting Terry's nephews. The pregnant cheerleader enlists the help of Kurt (Chris Colfer) to convince Rachel to distract Finn (Cory Monteith) in the meantime, but Kurt's ulterior motives end up hurting Rachel's chances with the quarterback.

As mentioned above, this episode was all about masking insecurity via one's appearance and it led to a lot of side-splitting moments.

The Jane Addams Academy's rendition of "Bootylicious" kicked everything off and caused Will to make the group sing a mash-up of "Hair" and "Crazy in Love." The choreography in this episode was amazing--it also showed that intricate dance routines have been missing from this show as of late. The Jane Addams Academy and Haverbrook, the school for the deaf, stole the episode. I mentioned the "Bootylicious" number but the Haverbrook schools' rendition of "Imagine" was inspiring. While a school for the deaf singing might sound like an unusual experience, the McKinley kids, led by diva Mercedes (Amber Riley), turned the song into a beautiful and inspiring rendition of it.

The series has really made a statement about including kids with disabilities and this sequence proved that they really want to include everyone, regardless of their abilities. It was a downright beautiful moment, and John Lennon's “Imagine” always delivers.

On the humor side Rachel attempted to seduce Finn by dressing like Sandy at the end of "Grease." Kurt instructed her to dress “like a ho” and while it was painful to watch Rachel crash and burn, Finn turned out to be a decent guy who loved a girl that dressed normally. Kurt also got to show off his heartbreak by realizing that he and Finn never will be together, even if Quinn wasn't pregnant. Dianna Agron continues to dominate as Quinn, coming a long way from her throwaway role as the evil cheerleader. She wants to give Puck a chance and the two share a sweet moment singing “Papa Don't Preach” for Terry's nephews. In the end it was all for naught as Quinn learned her baby daddy was “sexting” another girl, who openly threw it in her face. When Quinn went to Terry to ask if Will would be a good dad, both women came together to realize what a great guy Will is. Terry hasn't been the best character--especially since she's pretending to be pregnant--but even she realizes Will would be a perfect father.

Beyond the fact that after only a few more episodes, the show will take a hiatus until April, the only minor gripe here is that Will seemed a bit stupid by giving the set list to Sue. He seemed overly confident that she wouldn't reveal it but she did so immediately. It could be said that Will makes his own misplaced judgment with a form of “hairography,” but it just seemed like a means to move the plot forward. Other than that, this episode was perfect and it'll be hard to top it this week.

Check out behind-the-scenes footage of the "Hairography" episode here: