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Old 11-15-2012, 01:02 AM
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Glease (4x06) - Episode Discussion

Glease
4x06 - episode discussion

ON AN ALL-NEW “GLEE”
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15 ON FOX

Rachel and Kurt pay a visit to Lima as the glee club launches its production of “Grease.” Meanwhile, Cassandra July returns to shake things up in Rachel’s life, and Santana comes back to lend a helping hand in the all-new “Glease” episode of GLEE airing on Thursday, Nov. 15 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. (GLE-406) (TV-14)

Cast: Matthew Morrison as Will Schuester; Jane Lynch as Sue Sylvester; Lea Michele as Rachel Berry; Cory Monteith as Finn Hudson; Chris Colfer as Kurt; Kevin McHale as Artie; Amber Riley as Mercedes; Mark Salling as Puck; Jenna Ushkowitz as Tina; Naya Rivera as Santana Lopez; Dianna Agron as Quinn; Heather Morris as Brittany; Darren Criss as Blaine Anderson; Chord Overstreet as Sam Evans; and Jayma Mays as Emma Pillsbury.

Guest Cast: Kate Hudson as Cassandra July; Dot Jones as Coach Beiste; Vanessa Lengies as Sugar Motta; Samuel Larsen as Joe Hart; Jacob Artist as Jake Puckerman; Melissa Benoist as Marley Rose; Dean Geyer as Brody Weston; Becca Tobin as Kitty; Iqbal Theba as Principal Figgins; Alex Newell as Wade Adams and Blake Jenner as Ryder Lynn.





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Old 11-15-2012, 01:09 AM
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tftnt, Leyla.

I'll be at work while everyone is discussing the East Coast airing. You'll probably see me posting after the episode at some point, though.
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:34 AM
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Can't wait to see the musical!
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Old 11-15-2012, 02:15 PM
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TFTNT Noelle
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Old 11-15-2012, 09:29 PM
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That scene with Tina wanting to be Rizzo but denied for Santana pissed me off so much.
I may not have minded Santana being Rizzo if no one said anything...but she did and...well I hated it. Jenna's never gonna get the spotlight is she?
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Old 11-15-2012, 09:35 PM
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A somewhat choppy episode with some choice sequences and a serious problem at it's core. The serious problem is the one that concerns me. Glee has set up a love triangle for Ryder/Marley/Jake but what happens when there is no chemistry. It would be easy to state it is the acting with both Artist and Jenner giving pedestrian performances. Yet while both are unable to flesh out their characters there is also the problem of the writing. The show's intent to retain viewers by focusing on the "they are hotties" audience will work for a segment of the audience but Glee's success has always come out of relating to characters far more so than wanting to look at eye candy.

That leaves two new female characters having to carry sequences. Melissa Benoist is not a bad actress but she has the albatross of a saint on those shoulders. Rachel was always a character who had her flaws particularly her self-absorbed diva attitude which could bring out the worst along with the best. It made her feel real. Marley suffers in this episode and yet it seems suffering for the sole purpose of making the audience find her sweet and vulnerable. Combine that with the more perplexing plotline that she now has the two hottest guys her age at the school having fallen for her and we have this odd creation. The show Awkward had a similar setup but there the heroine's wants went beyond looks and the suffering felt organic. Here it feels contrived and worse, the show, by not showing Marley as being anything less than sweet in every moment has given us a character that seems lacking in any complexity.

That leaves Kitty from this season's new kids and the one note character steals the show. Becca Tobin may have the easiest role to play but her take on Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee is fun - a spirited romp. The venom works here. Still even here there seems an inability to add layers to the character but, more so than the other new characters, this should be placed on the writers who have yet to give Kitty a scene that may hint at some humanity.

The best sequences fall to the old cast. Michelle and Colfer are strong in confrontations with their characters's ex's. The final scenes between Finn/Rachel and Kurt/Blaine work. Mike and Tina are given a scene but sadly it seems perfunctory. Mercedes and Sam are given no scene. The show seems so intent on getting to Sam and Brittany that it can't be bothered. Which ties in to the most problematic sequences. Santana returns and the moment she is introduced seems odd and out of place (and yet again Glee does not go through with the more intriguing casting of a musical). Then Santana and Brittany get a conversation - something rare since early in season 3. The sequences motivation is clear - it is made evident that Santana is still the one keeping the split going and is giving permission for Brittany to move on. The sequence is there so Brittany will not be blamed for dating Sam (one can already see fans going hey it was Santana who dumped her as Brittany enters possibly the most pandering, superficial romance in Glee's history). This storyline has never made any sense - the notion that Santana would break up with Brittany is among the more ludicrous plotlines Glee has come up and made even worse by a lack of set up. But now Santana is used as a writer's surrogate as an okay for Brittany to have a relationship with Sam.

But Rivera is great here. And so is Morris. And both have more chemistry with each other than just about any couple on tv. So the scene, designed to show Santana giving her thumbs up for Brittany to move on to being with a man ends up being a why the heck did they break up again scene.

As for songs - Kitty knocks hers out of the park. Santana shines singing There Are Worse Things I Can Do (and while at first I'd rather Tina or Unique sing it based on the storylines the reality is Rivera knocks it out of the park). And Rachel/Finn make Marley/Ryder pale in comparison on You're The One That I Want.

Last edited by Inesal; 11-15-2012 at 09:48 PM
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Old 11-15-2012, 09:59 PM
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Tina + Brittany's expression at Finn taking over Glee = GPOY
Actually everything Tina said this episode was spot on. Too bad no one listens.

I'm going to say this so people don't think I'm being prejudiced as a Santana stan. When Wade/Unique was pulled out of the play, they should have upgraded Tina. This continues the trend of Glee holding on the graduated characters at the expense of the younger/newer ones. I don't think I've ever before been angry at having Santana on my screen.

Barring that casting choice which I feel is more the writers assumption that neglecting Tina is some kind of inside meta joke, Finn was pretty great this episode. It's still a little heavy on the Band of Brothers manly-man nonsense, but he was enjoyable this week. While his storyline actually makes no sense and there was still a hefty amount of hero worship, it seemed sort of deserved this time. He was shown to work hard for something and the result was that it paid off well. Cause and Effect, something too often forgotten on Glee.

I honestly didn't realize Rachel cared that much about Brody to cry over it, considering she dropped him like a hot potato when Finn was in town. But I guess it works as a good plot device for Finchel angst. I'm not sure what happened there but I really liked the Finn/Rachel scene.

(Note how Brody is becoming more and more expendable. I'm pretty sure this was the first step into villainizing him into obscurity.)

I could say the same for the Brittana scene. They are clearly not ever each other but unlike Klaine and Finchel there is nothing tangible keeping them apart. Nothing really computes... I just don't know what to do with that scene aside from enjoy its cuteness.

Re: Marley

I love how Glee (tries to) manage(s) to tap into the psyche of an overweight teen girl without actually deigning to cast one. Heaven forbid they would have followed through with this storyline with Mercedes, Lauren, or even post-Born this Way Quinn. This is sarcasm.

Not only did they do it by proxy via a pretty girl whose only real issue is that she is cripplingly naive, this is actually the first time they've taken eating disorders/weight issues seriously on the show ever.

Also it was just overdone. Oh look! New Rachel is experimenting with bulimia just like old Rachel. AND it was caused by bullying! Good thing that even though women are awful to each other there are men around to clean up the messes of female relational aggression. This is also sarcasm.

On a positive note:

"I rode him for six years until he broke my hymen." I can't even with how much I loved this line.

I pretty much liked everything else because Grease is such a fun musical it's pretty hard not to like it, no matter what else is happening. I'll probably find more issues if I get around to watching it again.
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:18 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by quakenbake (View Post)
I'm going to say this so people don't think I'm being prejudiced as a Santana stan. When Wade/Unique was pulled out of the play, they should have upgraded Tina. This continues the trend of Glee holding on the graduated characters at the expense of the younger/newer ones. I don't think I've ever before been angry at having Santana on my screen.
First they should had the guts to have Unique sing it. This reminds me of the Frank-n-furter being played by Mercedes nonsense in Rocky Horror Picture Show and Mercedes not getting to play Maria in West Side Story. The show tries to send a message but the bigger message would be to go through with it.

If Unique had not gone, it should have been Tina. Or better yet, give Tina the Sandy role. Why is she not playing that?

Granted Santana absolutely kicked the hell out of the number. That vocal was superb and was perfect for the moment. The problem here is they can find other ways to assimilate her instead of coming up with contrivances. Why the heck not just have her move to NY. I can watch a Rachel/Kurt/Santana show. The reality is they have possibly their best actress, their best person with comic lines, and one of their best singers, in Rivera and due to the plots they chose are having to figure how to get her in to the show somehow. This could have been solved in season 3 by having her talk to Rachel about her interest in NY. Then we wouldn't be stuck with this problem.

Quote:
I love how Glee (tries to) manage(s) to tap into the psyche of an overweight teen girl without actually deigning to cast one. Heaven forbid they would have followed through with this storyline with Mercedes, Lauren, or even post-Born this Way Quinn. This is sarcasm.

Not only did they do it by proxy via a pretty girl whose only real issue is that she is cripplingly naive, this is actually the first time they've taken eating disorders/weight issues seriously on the show ever.

Also it was just overdone. Oh look! New Rachel is experimenting with bulimia just like old Rachel. AND it was caused by bullying! Good thing that even though women are awful to each other there are men around to clean up the messes of female relational aggression. This is also sarcasm.
It is the same thing with Unique's storyline. They want to tell a message but do so in a way that really keeps from having any power.
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:27 PM
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Originally Posted by Inesal (View Post)
First they should had the guts to have Unique sing it. This reminds me of the Frank-n-furter being played by Mercedes nonsense in Rocky Horror Picture Show and Mercedes not getting to play Maria in West Side Story. The show tries to send a message but the bigger message would be to go through with it.

If Unique had not gone, it should have been Tina. Or better yet, give Tina the Sandy role. Why is she not playing that?

It is the same thing with Unique's storyline. They want to tell a message but do so in a way that really keeps from having any power.
While I prefer to have Santana in college because of ~realism, if this is how they are going to use her, I agree they should send her to New York. Also the Brittana break up would make much more sense if it was more than a 4 hour drive.

I was OK with pulling Unique as it was a parental decision. That actually outweighs almost everything else for minors. I would be singing a different tune if the administration just decided that arbitrarily. And I also agree that Naya was fabulous, but that wasn't my point. I'm 100% sure that Lea would make a better Sandy but I would have been pissed had it happened.

I can't even with how the show treats Mercedes and Tina. It actually boggles the mind. I'm still trying to figure out why they kept her. They aren't even using her for shipper angst. They could have easily written her off as graduating early and made an Asian joke about it. That's almost preferable at this point.
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:36 PM
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Quote:
Heaven forbid they would have followed through with this storyline with Mercedes
They did.

Quote:
but what happens when there is no chemistry
IMO two of the show's core couples (Finn/Rachel, Kurt/Blaine) have this problem. Very little romantic chemistry

And I disagree...Santana breaking up with Brittany made plenty of sense. For reasons stated on the show and reasons not stated (hard for them to be a couple long distance when Santana's busy with school and cheerleading in college, which is MUCH harder there than in HS and the not-stated reason of Brittany losing neurons by the ep)

as for Brittany/Sam...that's all speculation really...we haven't seen any interactions between the two lately
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:47 PM
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What I got out of the episode: Rachel and Kurt stood up for themselves (yAY!) and Brittany and Santana were acting more like a couple than they did while they were actually dating (a cute but emotional stabbing of a scene).

That's literally it.

Also: a surprise Tike scene that gave me feelings. Also: Melissa in that bodysuit. Also: Team Sue.
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:47 PM
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Originally Posted by quakenbake (View Post)
While I prefer to have Santana in college because of ~realism, if this is how they are going to use her, I agree they should send her to New York. Also the Brittana break up would make much more sense if it was more than a 4 hour drive.

I was OK with pulling Unique as it was a parental decision. That actually outweighs almost everything else for minors. I would be singing a different tune if the administration just decided that arbitrarily. And I also agree that Naya was fabulous, but that wasn't my point. I'm 100% sure that Lea would make a better Sandy but I would have been pissed had it happened.

I can't even with how the show treats Mercedes and Tina. It actually boggles the mind. I'm still trying to figure out why they kept her. They aren't even using her for shipper angst. They could have easily written her off as graduating early and made an Asian joke about it. That's almost preferable at this point.
I understand your point and agree with you. Just because one knows someone will kill on a song, as Rivera did, does not mean a scene should be so contrived to have her sing it.

As for Unique, that just felt like a plot contrivance itself to keep them from going there.

Quote:
And I disagree...Santana breaking up with Brittany made plenty of sense. For reasons stated on the show and reasons not stated (hard for them to be a couple long distance when Santana's busy with school and cheerleading in college, which is MUCH harder there than in HS and the not-stated reason of Brittany losing neurons by the ep)
It makes plenty of sense for many people. And many a LTR ends rather quickly when one goes off to college. However, when it comes to writing, the behavior of the character must make sense not based on what occurs for many people but from what we have seen with that character. In this case, it does not make sense when it comes to Santana. There has been nothing to demonstrate why she would break up with someone she is so fixated on despite it being a long distance. Tonight was another example. In trying to set up fans not being mad at Brittany, we had a sweet sequence that left one going why aren't these two seeing this is silly and back with each other. The problem with creating storylines is it is a fine line between creating something authentic in real life and for the character and creating something authentic in real life but not for the character. There just has not shown enough to show Santana would even think of breaking up for a moment.

Last edited by Inesal; 11-15-2012 at 11:02 PM
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Old 11-15-2012, 10:52 PM
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Originally Posted by Wingster (View Post)
They did.
I really don't count one episode as following through. (You're talking about Home right?) Especially as it was juxtaposed with Sue Sylvester's outrageous demands. The story framed the Cheerio diet as tantamount with shooting a girl out of a cannon.

Moreover, at the very beginnings of either Puckcedes or Samcedes (can't remember maybe both?) Mercedes was very confused as to why guys like them would be into a girl like her. I'm pretty sure that was hinting at weight since we all know race is a topic that will never be addressed on Glee.

Very often you see Mercedes putting on her diva front but she is pretty insecure. That was never truly addressed. At all.
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Old 11-15-2012, 11:01 PM
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Well so far with Marley's weight issues...it's just one ep
and handled much better then true

Mercedes was probably more confused when Puck went out with her because he hardly said two words to her before

and she never was confused with Sam...
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Old 11-15-2012, 11:18 PM
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Well so far with Marley's weight issues...it's just one ep
and handled much better then true

Mercedes was probably more confused when Puck went out with her because he hardly said two words to her before

and she never was confused with Sam...
But it still remains, the closest we get to delving into sympathy for girls who feel fat, is with girls who are a. not fat yet, b. not fat anymore, or c. get very little screentime and no time explicitly dealing with said insecurity. Basically, I'm calling Glee superficial. They will cast a thin, pretty lead girl to angst about her fat mom, but will never cast an actual heavyset girl in a position where she can talk about her experience.

I'm not saying eating disorders aren't issues for thin girls as well but it still remains that this is Glee. I'd bet serious money that this was trotted out for this episode and will be completely forgotten next week. There was no indication that this was an issue for Marley until Kitty started sabotaging her. I would probably take it seriously if it was more than a joke or a plot device to bring Ryder and Marley together. Or to make Marley even more sympathetic.

Also please note that a lot of my irritation comes from wasted opportunities and the need for every girl on Glee to have a White Knight rescue her. (often from other girls and/or themselves)

Last edited by quakenbake; 11-15-2012 at 11:39 PM
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