SubscribeThis weekend I watched Glee for the first time.
All 22 episodes. Back to back.
Haven’t done that with a show in a while.
I now completely understand why everyone has been quoting Jane Lynch’s Sue Sylvester at me. But for me the real breakout character is Brittany as played by Heather Morris.
She gets perhaps the least lines* per episode and none of those episodes in the first season hinge on her character, but every single line she does get out (“When I pulled my hamstring, I went to a misogynist“) absolutely floored me. It’s an utterly charming performance.
Glee is easily dismissed as an opportunity to tap into the High School Musical/Normals Have Talent audience but the writing, especially the dialogue, is first rate. It’s not quite in the same league as The Gilmore Girls (which I still rate higher than The West Wing) and it’s no Veronica Mars, but I was only half joking when I described it as Battle Royale with Journey songs instead of sickles.
Odd that the Joss Whedon episode was only luke-warm and it’s a shame that the Lady Gaga/KISS episode slipped a little on one of the central character’s big moments, but overall it was a stupendous run. I guess I’ll catch the second season in more conventional sized bites with interest. The way an audience chooses to consume media does effect the experience. I think I would have enjoyed the final season of Lost a lot less if I’d allowed it to be spoon fed to me rather than saving the entire season and then watching it in three hour chunks (more on this subject later).
I seem to be the last person on the planet to catch up on this, but if you’ve yet to visit William McKinley High School do give it a whirl. Like Ugly Betty it carves out a new niche for itself effortlessly.
Oh, and here’s the real thing for any Fugazi fans out there:
*and thanks to @robertbrook for this link.
Mike, I’m only halfway through, but you’re completely right about Heather Morris. I’ve been sampling around the ancillary clips (www.fox.com/glee; every single one of them charming in their glee-fulness), and somewhere in there is the story that she was brought on board only to teach them the dance for Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies.’ The casting people were geniuses to keep her. Best airhead evah! – L.
I am happy to see that you and I both spotted the one liner gems that were Brittany.
I have taken to using her lines for all webforms that request ‘any other information’
It also leads me to wonder where the Rory Gilmore gets a job as Whitehouse press secretary spin off went.
Wow. You must really hate The West Wing..
No blogging in a month? Totally unacceptable, Mr. Sizemore.
I’m shocked that you like Glee! You are nothing if not predictable. Love Brittany and love Sue Sylvester. Still say that Safety Dance was the best dance/song of the season.