Glee wants to "Dance with Somebody"

 In "Dance with Somebody," the latest installment of FOX's Glee, the end is nigh for McKinley's graduating seniors, and everyone begins to feel it. Kurt (Chris Colfer) text-cheats on Blaine (Darren Criss), who is pulling away, scared of losing Kurt when he leaves for college. Will (Matthew Morrison) tries to push his wedding up to May, worried that his favorite students won't return for it. Santana (Naya Rivera) admits she's going to miss Rachel (Lea Michele), with whom she has finally become friends. And Quinn (Dianna Agron) gets a lot closer to Joe (Samuel Larsen). All of this happens while singing a loving tribute to the recently departed Whitney Houston.

First of all, there is no way that an entire group of high school kids is mourning Houston's death for two months. Perhaps one obsessed fan might, but not half of the Glee club. And sure, the limitations of a filming schedule mean that there is no way to show their sadness in the weeks after Houston's death, but expecting viewers to believe these kids have been depressed for two months is silly when there's been no hint of it before now.

That being said, "Dance with Somebody" works on a lot of levels, not least of all, musically. The soulful opening of "How Will I Know" is memorable and tear-evoking. McKinley's four top singers, Santana, Rachel, Kurt, and Mercedes (Amber Riley), deliver a slow, sad version that will rank among the best of this year's Glee tunes. This is soon followed by the upbeat "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)," performed by Santana and Brittany (Heather Morris), which is pretty darn good, too, and sends the signal that the episode won't be completely melancholy, thankfully.

It's about time that Kurt and Blaine have a fight. Their romance has been pushed to the background for much of this season, and they don't seem to be all smiles and rainbows lately. Blaine's fears about losing Kurt are valid, though Kurt is being a little too demanding in his need to be appreciated in "Dance with Somebody."

It looks especially bad for Kurt when, instead of maturely talking about it with Blaine, he begins a series of flirtatious tweets. Although, no one ever said that high school boys were mature. Blaine is correct in asserting that this counts as cheating. Though the lines are blurry in some modern technology, the emotions Kurt attributes to his word play are wrong. Rachel says it best when she asserts that if Kurt can't show Blaine the texts, he shouldn't be sending them in the first place.

But they work it out because, gosh darn it, these two belong together! Blaine lets his feelings be known in the somewhat lackluster "It's Not Right but It's Okay," and Kurt asks for forgiveness in the much more moving "I Have Nothing." This leads to a very sweet makeup scene, and leaves fans knowing the couple will last. At least for now.

A new romance is just beginning in "Dance with Somebody." Joe comes along to help Quinn out with her physical therapy because he "wants to be a good Christian." Quinn lets him, and the two grow close. However, when things might get physical, Joe backs off, to Quinn's disappointment.

Despite the gag-me reaction many will have to Joe's beliefs, one can appreciate how Quinn might be attracted to them. After all, when she's not behaving badly, she clings to religion, and she wants to be good. It isn't the strongest foundation for a relationship, but it works for them, even if they do make a strange looking pair. "Saving All My Love for You," which falls somewhere in the middle of this week's musical pack, reveals a touching connection.

Touching on the anti-religion, at least the strict kind of religion, attitude that many characters and fans of Glee hold, Sam (Chord Overstreet) advises Joe that he might need to choose between Quinn and God. It's a stupid argument on Sam's part, because if Joe is serious about his beliefs, he should not compromise them for a girl. Then again, Joe is still young. He could easily change his world view, and definitely should. The argument later made about how many religions need to be updated makes more sense, and definitely rings true.

What's more, with only a few weeks left of the season, and a lot of characters to serve, Joe and Quinn's love story will be short. Whether they end up together or not remains to be seen, but they won't have much time to figure it out before donning a cap and gown. Is Glee making a mistake by starting something new so late in the game? Well, love doesn't happen on a timetable, so it's hard to fault the writers for this. Plus, Joe's character hasn't been around that long.

Quinn should get a happy ending, though. She's been through a lot, much of it, but not all, her fault. She has shown strength of character by coming through it, and even thriving in many ways. It's not the mistakes one makes, but how they deal with them, that matters. In "Dance with Somebody" Quinn is dealing. So let her be happy.

Now the goodbyes begin. "Dance with Somebody" is the first episode in which characters begin to have their closing scenes together, finishing plots the series probably won't have time to address again before the end of the season, which will be probably the last episode a number of central characters will be in, not counting inevitable returning guest spots.

Along these lines, Rachel and Santana's moment and awesome "So Emotional" is fantastic! The two haven't had a lot of story, other than perhaps Santana picking on Rachel, but it still feels deserved that they have this moment. Both have grown, and considering the talent that they share, there should be some type of acknowledgement here, as there is. The picture-in-the-locker bit may be slightly hokey, but fit perfectly within this story. Wonderful!

And Puck (Mark Salling), too, does something surprising, giving his friends shot glasses and leading a locker room toast. Who knew Puck could express his bromantic tendencies in such an eloquent way?

Even better is Burt's (Mike O'Malley) emotional bedroom scene with Kurt. Burt tells his son that they will always have a special connection, but it definitely feels like the closing of an important chapter. Burt has been a source of strength for Kurt through a hard time in his life, and this conversation proves that the relationship is mutual. The two's interactions have been a highlight of Glee, and it's heartbreaking that "Dance with Somebody" may be the last gleeks get of Burt.

Students graduate. That's life. Will's attachment to this particular class is kind of unhealthy. True, they are the first group of students with whom he lives out his true teaching dream. But that doesn't mean they will be his last. And surely he understands that, as much as he will miss them, they need to live their lives. Isn't the point of being a teacher to help them on that path? Sadly, Will doesn't seem to get it, even after Emma (Jayma Mays) talks him down from his crazy rushed wedding. Will's sadness is valid, but he is not dealing with it well.

One gets the impression in "Dance with Somebody" that the kids are very attached to Will, or at least each other in the group he has built. They all show up for his non-mandatory practice, and sing a gleeful, yet tear-jerking, rendition of "My Love Is Your Love." Will they come back for Will's wedding, perfectly scheduled for November sweeps? It seems quite possible.

Five weeks left until graduation! Let the count down begin! You can do so by watching Glee Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.

If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Click here for all of the Glee reviews I've ever written. To purchase Glee DVDs, streaming episodes, music, and more, please click here. Article first published as TV Review: Glee - "Dance with Somebody" on Blogcritics.

Glee considers matters of the "Heart"

FOX's Glee this week focuses on "Heart." Rachel's dads, Hiram (Jeff Goldblum, Jurassic Park, Law & Order: Criminal Intent) and Leroy (Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell) learn of Rachel (Lea Michele) and Finn's (Cory Monteith) plans to marry. They act very supportive, but secretly plot with Burt (Mike O'Malley) and Carole (Romy Rosemont) to derail the ceremony. Unfortunately for them, their machinations backfire, and the young couple decides they will tie the knot this coming May.

Rachel and Finn are too young to marry. They haven't known each other, or been together, long enough to take this step. They are both going into it for the wrong reasons, which have been expounded upon in depth in previous Glee episode reviews. So it's a little disheartening (hehe) that "Heart" chooses to overlook any of these elements, at least in the minds of the central couple, and instead, focuses on how they get along. Which is splendidly, for now. There is a little bit of a rocky start to a night spent together, but they come through it stronger than ever. Unfortunately.

When are parents going to learn that kids will do what they are going to do? Rachel and Finn are making a mistake, true, but it's far too late for their mom and dads to do anything about it. Hiram drops a few passive-aggressive comments, but other than that, both couples seem set on reverse psychology to undo the impending union. This fails, as all such plans do. How will Hiram, Leroy, Carole, and Burt cope with this, and what is their next move? Or will they just get on board, and do what Rachel and Finn want?

"Heart" introduces Hiram and Leroy to Glee viewers (apparently someone forgot that a picture of Rachel's dads was featured in the pilot, though with different actors). It's hard to think of two better men to play these pivotal roles than Goldblum and Stokes Mitchell. Both are fantastically flamboyant, in a way that fits the situation. As they croon "Chapel of Love" and "You're the Top," it's immediately obvious why Rachel is who she is. The two guys also have delightful chemistry, and it feels like a great home setting for Rachel's character.

Love is in the air at school, too. Artie (Kevin McHale) continues to hate being alone, and sets his sights on Sugar (Vanessa Lengies) as his next possible boo, thinking her Valentine's party is the perfect time to hook up. Unfortunately for Artie, Rory (Damian McGinty) has the same idea, and two end up competing over the girl, who doesn't really seem right for either one of them.

Rory wins Sugar, for now, but does so by lying about his upcoming deportation. Rory has had little to no plot all season, and so it's nice to finally get a little story for him, as well as a song when he uses "Home" to woo Sugar. But this plot seems to come out of nowhere, and his sneakiness doesn't exactly gel with the Rory first introduced all those months ago. While, perhaps, his character has changed from the time spent in Ohio, viewers not having been privy to such a change, or the reason for it, are left confused. This is a very weird plot.

The second Glee Project winner finally makes his debut in "Heart." Joe Hart (hehe again) is played by Samuel Larsen. Joe is an odd character, introduced as uber-religious, but also a bit of a live-and-let-live hippy. It's fun to hear him perform "Stereo Hearts" and a mash up of two songs, both titled "Cherish." Yet, it's totally bizarre when he decides not to judge Santana (Naya Rivera) and Brittany's (Heather Morris) relationship, given his character's introduction. Not only does Joe come out of nowhere, but his odd behavior makes him hard to pinpoint. Sadly, it's not in a complicated, deep manner, but rather, it feels like the writer's just aren't sure what to do with him.

Santana is hauled into Figgins's (Iqbal Theba) office for kissing Brittany in the hall. The broken rule isn't a PDA issue, which would be understandable, but rather, because the girls are lesbians. This kind of bigotry is completely intolerable, and thankfully Glee continues to highlight that. In 2012, homophobia is the new racism, and it's pretty darn ugly. Given what happened in New Jersey this week, this is incredibly relevant to the current news cycle.

Kurt (Chris Colfer) gets a surprise secret admirer in "Heart" when Karofsky (Max Adler) returns. Dressed as a gorilla at first, Karofsky makes a play for his former tormentee. Kurt is flattered, but gently lets him down. It's not surprising that Dave latches onto Kurt, given that Kurt is the only out gay teen Karosky knows while dealing with his internal conflict. It's only surprising that it's taken this long for Dave to act on those feelings. But Kurt is very happy with Blaine (Darren Criss), and Kurt and Karofsky just don't seem like a matching pair, anyway. However, hopefully Karosky will find a reason to return to Glee again soon, because his character arc has been neat, and any screen time for him is welcome.

The assignment Will (Matthew Morrison) gives his kids this week is to study the best love songs of all time. Yet, only two are featured in "Heart," which is pretty disappointing. Tina (Jenna Ushkowitz) and Mike Chang (Harry Shum Jr.) kick things off with "L-O-V-E," a great number, if not really being relevant to any of the episode's stories. Then it's not until Mercedes (Amber Riley) delivers a coincidentally timely (given Whitney Houston's recent passing) rendition of "I Will Always Love You" while pining over Sam (Chord Overstreet), that another example of this theme comes along. This is a truly powerful performance, and well appreciated. But that's it. Other songs, such as the guys' "Let Me Love You," are fun, but nothing deserves the "best" title other than those two numbers.

"Love Shack" is a strong ending for the episode, with Blaine returning in top form, to lead the group in a remarkably enjoyable version of the old pop hit. It surely shouldn't be on a "best love songs" list, but Glee turns it into something really fun with great choreography and tongue-in-cheek jokes. The best moment may be Finn's face as he cheesily pops up into frame near the end. The performance is an appropriate ending, even if it's mainly fluff.

Which is kind of what "Heart" is: fluff. The plots glosses over anything serious or real. The episode is amusing and entertaining. It's not bad, but there is so much missed opportunity here for it to be better.
With the impending end of many characters' runs on Glee, things will probably take a more dramatic turn soon. Maybe even next week, which is the winter finale, and features Regionals. Until then, this is a serviceable, if not overly impressive, entry.

Glee airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.

MORE GLEE: If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Click here for all of the Glee reviews I've ever written. To purchase Glee DVDs, streaming episodes, music, and more, please click here. Article first published as TV Review: Glee - "Heart" on Blogcritics.