GLEE Almost Done Being "Built"

Article originally published as TV Review: 'Glee' - "We Built This Glee Club" on Blogcritics.

FOX’s Glee takes the team to Sectionals in the penultimate episode of the series, “We Built This Glee Club.” Like in the previous week, it mainly ignores the alumni who have been featured prominently for six years and keeps the cast small. The exception to this is Rachel (Lea Michele), who gets a visit from an old friend and finally decides whether to return to school or Broadway.

If Sectionals were a culmination of Rachel’s journey, or Rachel, Kurt (Chris Colfer), and Blaine’s (Darren Criss) journey, or even Will’s (Matthew Morrison) triumphant return, “We Built This Glee Club” would be a great episode. Instead, it’s only a pretty good episode. That’s because this close to the end of the entire series, there are few stakes and little payoff, no matter how enjoyable the hour may be. Yes, technically the glee club might be disbanded if they don’t win, but that’s not a threat brought to the forefront here. It would be so easy to build this installment into something, given where the season starts, and yet Glee stops short of doing so.

My problem is not so much with the Sectionals themselves. The Falconers doing “Broken Wings” is ridiculously silly, as is the judging panel made up of Rod Remington (Bill A. Jones), Butch (stand up comedian Fortune Feimster) and her poodle, and a cranky comptroller (Patricia Forte), and the uneven number of songs that each group performers is stupid, if practical, but that’s par for Glee‘s Sectionals episodes, and it’s fun they bring back the comptroller from their very first competition. Given how over-the-top showy Vocal Adrenaline’s “We Built This City” / “Mickey” piece is, focusing on pizzazz over vocal quality, it’s no wonder that the New Directions win.

I am a little disappointed by the New Directions, not because of their song choices, but because of who is featured. Powerhouse Jane (Samantha Marie Ware) is the lone newbie that doesn’t get a solo, which seems a massive waste, and while I get that the Warblers provide the dance moves, some of them should have gotten to sing out front, too, no? But it’s hard to argue about the effectiveness of the “Take Me to Church” / “Chandelier” / “Come Sail Away” set, which is well executed and delightful. I don’t completely excuse the faults, but it’s a solid enough performance to make the trophy feel earned.

I have no problem with Glee showing a Sectionals win with no promise of following the group to Regionals and Nationals, either. Viewers aren’t emotionally invested enough in this cast yet, and so this basically just lets fans know that the tradition will continue, long after our television screens stop showing it. That’s a nice thought.

Afterwards, Sue (Jane Lynch) tells Will she ensures New Directions will win as payback for him defending her, and her exploits of poisoning the school and sending glitter bombs to the glee club are merely her having fun and motivating them. I sort of buy this. Sue has many times in the past exhibited a tough love strategy. However, it just doesn’t quite add up, given how she blows Will off last week, and her continued persistence in trying to kill the club this year. This is almost a pay-off for Sue, but like the Sectionals themselves, falls a little short of that.

The best plot in the hour finds Jesse St. James (Jonathan Groff) returning to McKinley to urge Rachel to say yes to the Broadway show. She would be starring opposite him. She chooses school, but doesn’t close the door on a romance with her ex, and their “Listen to Your Heart” duet is full of sparks. I never really bought into a Rachel / Sam (Chord Overstreet) pairing, and Jesse makes way more sense for her. The song makes up for not seeing them on stage together in New York, and if they can date despite their hectic schedules, they could make for a fitting Glee endgame.

“We Built This Glee Club” isn’t very focused on the conclusion, and that is definitely the reason it fails to meet expectations. As mentioned, it doesn’t concentrate on earned wins, nor does it satisfactorily tie up arcs, despite ample opportunity to do so. Kurt, Blaine, and Rachel’s impending return to the Big Apple without pay-off makes the entire final season feel like a bit of a waste, even if it teases tantalizingly for the spin-off that should have replaced the mother ship a couple of years ago, and that we’re not likely to get at this point. It also makes no use of the alumni contracted full-time this season, both those currently working in the school and those absent. Too bad, as a few tweaks would have made this a very worthy penultimate airing, especially in the touching throw-back involving the trophies and glimpses of deceased Cory Monteith as Finn.

Glee concludes its six-season run with a two-hour episode next Friday at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.

Glee competes in "Sectionals"

      This summer, I'll be going back to review the season one episodes of FOX's Glee. These are fresh reviews, not reposts, and I hope you will enjoy reliving the first season with me.

     We continue with season one episodes of FOX's Glee, this week, "Sectionals." This episode is iconic for a number of reasons. Coming as a winter finale just before a four-month hiatus, it is the first hour to feature the New Directions in performance competition, something the initial thirteen episodes all build towards. "Sectionals" not only finds the group having to come together as never before. With the outing of Quinn's (Dianna Agron) baby daddy, Finn (Cory Monteith) must find his heroic qualities to save his friends. Plus, Will (Matthew Morrison) and Emma (Jayma Mays) make big decisions about their romantic lives. And Sue (Jane Lynch) suffers her first significant defeat. 
     Glee is a music show, and in an episode like "Sectionals," the songs are front and center. While there are campy portions of the other competing clubs doing "Don't Stop Believing," "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going," and yes, even "Proud Mary" in wheelchairs, "Sectionals" is a chance for our main characters to shine. Given the stakes in the episode, and the emotional heft that those scenes carry, every New Directions number is top notch, and among the best the series offers. For the primary group, there is not a single weak number among their set list.

     The first example is Mercedes's (Amber Riley) rendition of "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going." It comes early in the episode, likely both to space out some of the bigger singing numbers, and also to feature Riley, who the writers have scant time for later in the episode. It's nice that she gets to shine at all, considering Mercedes isn't as central as some of the other characters. This performance proves she can hang with the top dogs. Besides being just as exciting as the other characters' reactions indicate, it also makes viewers long for more from the powerful diva, who often gets overlooked more than she should be.

     "Don't Rain On My Parade" does something similar for Rachel (Lea Michele), though, of course, Rachel never has any shortage of opportunities to showcase her talent. Still, it's an awesome moment, as she strides down the aisles and captivates the audience with her ballad. The song is a perfect example of the girl's talents, and is staged in an interesting way. Though one does wonder how appropriate lighting is arranged so quickly, but only if one nit picks, which one tries not to do with such a great scene.

     "You Can't Always Get What You Want" solidifies the New Directions predictable first place trophy. Since the group's third and final piece is not shown in this episode, even though it is mentioned to be a repeat song from an earlier installment, the second number has to prove that the group deserves the win in very little time. Though some arguably corny dialogue from Will spurs Finn to choose the particular song, it is still quite effective, showcasing a number of the group members in Glee, as well as being a very enjoyable performance. Simple choreography helps it come off as believable for a last minute fill-in, but at the same time, is also appropriate for the piece.

     Finally, "My Life Would Suck Without You," despite boasting cheesy, uneven choreography, including line dancing with cowboy hats and fair flipping, is both effective and moving. Some of the lyrics are quite appropriate, and it's hard not to tear up. For the teenage characters, Will makes a very important impact in their lives by forming this glee club. Even Santana (Naya Rivera), while admitting to being a spy for Sue, says she is glad to be there. It's a fitting ending for the initial batch of episodes.

     Despite the glowing evaluations of the musical selections performed, there are a few things wrong with the Sectionals competition. First and foremost, setting aside that this system doesn't actually exist, at least in present day Ohio, why are only three groups performing? It's not economically sensible. Many choirs in the state compete for ratings, but these are days long events, with dozens of schools coming together. Putting on such a big thing for only three small groups seems unrealistic, especially considering the current state of budget cuts. And the auditorium audience is full for three dozen kids? Nope. Never going to happen. Not to mention, none of the parents shown in Glee so far are at the event.

     Not only that, but there would never be long lulls between the groups, so much so that the New Directions can put together an entire new set. The audience just sits for long silences staring at an empty stage? It just doesn't make any sense at all, the way it is portrayed. To accept what is shown, belief must be suspended, and one must look at Glee's competition system as operating by its own rules, strictly for the purposes of the series. Which is possible to do, but it does take one out of total immersion, reminding us that Glee doesn't actually take place in the real world.

     The scene with the Sectionals judges is out of sync with the rest of the episode. Perhaps it's kind of fun to see Rod Remington (Bill A. Jones) in this unexpected setting. Patricia Forte (Happy Endings) and True Blood's Anna Camp are not unwelcome as the other judges, either. But their scene debating the winners is fluff. It makes no sense to include it in the episode from a storytelling perspective, and serves no purpose to do so. Should Glee want to feature Sectionals judges, give them something to do, as in done in other episodes, or just don't do it.

     Even more bizarre is Will being reinstated as head of the New Directions at the end of "Sectionals." While it's unfair that Will must quit, the rule he breaks to be taken away from New Directions is not caused by anything that Sue does. Even exposing the Cheerios' coach's manipulative, cheating ways would not lead to Will being allowed to work with the kids again. The two have nothing to do with each other, and the explanation given just doesn't hold up.


     "Sectionals" features some pivotal moments for principal characters. Finn really gets a chance to shine as an heroic lead. He's still flawed, of course, as he cannot bring himself to forgive Quinn and Puck (Mark Salling). But really, who would in his shoes? It's enough that he steps up as a leader and helps the group win the competition. Monteith handles several pivotal moments better than expected, and shows he has real acting chops for a wide range of emotions, including anger and disappointment.

     Agron also continues her trend of making a complicated Quinn sympathetic. Her torn feelings between her two men, as well as not being truly angry at Rachel, someone Quinn always seems to hate, make for a very good performance for the young actress.

     Rachel's plot reveals some fundamental truths of her character. She is able to overcome her own personal desires for the good of the group when stepping aside to let Mercedes sing the ballad. Initially, anyway. But when it comes to the Finn situation, Rachel is OK with risking the glee club's chances in order to sabotage the relationship between Quinn and Finn for her own possible gain. This is a duality that will come back later in Glee. Rachel can be kind and work well with others, probably because it also helps her own goals in a way. But her feelings for Finn cloud her judgment, and ultimately put her future as a performer in jeopardy. The seeds are planted for an arc that is not yet finished, a year and a half later.

     Will's love life is now a full-blown triangle, as he leaves Terri (Jessalyn Gilsig), and Emma professes the depth of her feelings. Again, Gilsig makes the character slightly sympathetic, reminding Will (and viewers) that she didn't always act so crazy, she's seeking professional help, and the couple once had a real relationship. Will can't be with her, though, because her betrayal is too deep. At the same time, although Emma wants very much to be with Will, and thinks of Terri as repulsive, she is smart in recognizing that Will is still upset over his wife, and this is a bad time to start a relationship. Sure, there's the cheesy, predictable kiss at the end as Will seeks to stop Emma from quitting her job. But overall, the trio is handled very well here.

     Sue touches on being out of character in "Sectionals." This is because her revulsion for, and efforts to destroy, the glee club are later explained as a personal vendetta against Will. While not being kind to the glee kids, Sue is not usually nice to the students she likes, either. But Sue does care about kids, or so we're told down the line. Yet, in "Sectionals," Will is no longer part of the New Directions, and she still tries to screw up their Sectionals performance. Perhaps this is because Sue knows Will will eventually be reinstated, or it will hurt him to see them fail, but both seem a bit far fetched.


Random Bits:

• Rachel claims to be a little psychic. Really? How so? Just because she senses that something doesn't feel right between Finn and Quinn? As enjoyable as Rachel's eccentricities usually are, it's good that this one is not explored further in future episodes.

• Brittany (Heather Morris) actually admits to many members of the group that she and Santana have sex in "Sectionals." Talk about a bombshell spoiler that is treated as a throw away line! Which works because of how insane many other things that Brittany says are.

• Having the various New Directions members talk on a party line in their cell phones in school, with many walking right beside each other, is silly and insipid. Yet, it allows many minor characters to get small bits in a busy episode, and it funny enough that it can easily be forgiven.

• When Rachel is lecturing the glee club, she mentions trying out for community theater productions. Kurt (Chris Colfer) puts her in her place by pointing out that Rachel never wins those parts. Seriously? Someone with Rachel's immense talent cannot score a role in community theater? I don't believe it.

• Why is Emma in her wedding dress when Will arrives to the empty reception? Glee shows before that Ken (Patrick Gallagher) is furious at her for postponing the wedding slightly. Does she really not know he's not coming until she arrives?

• Plus, where are all the guests? They might have gone home, but it seems unlikely some family members wouldn't stay to offer comfort. A kitchen worker is still there waiting. Why?

• And Emma knows Will is still coming and waits just to tell him they can't yet be together? Setting the dialogue aside, the entire scene is full of plot holes.

     Check back for another season one Glee review soon!

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Article first published as TV Review: Glee - "Sectionals" on Blogcritics.