Should You Be Worried About Glee?

When Time gave Glee its #8 slot on its list the best TV of the year, virtually every sentence in James Poniewozik's explanation was defensive. "Consistency is overrated," Poniewozik wrote preemptively. "Some of its story lines (especially the fake pregnancy of the choir director's wife) are distractingly implausible...It can be a mess, but it's what great TV should be...When it hits its high notes, nothing else matters."

I can relate to Poniewozik's stubborn defense of the erratic series, because it's what I could have said about creator Ryan Murphy's previous shows, Nip/Tuck and Popular. The thing that worries me, though, is that while Glee can sometimes nail the over-the-top thrills that are Murphy's trademarks, it's already running into some of the problems that sunk his other shows (and trust me, you do not want Glee to become the mess Nip/Tuck currently is). Here are four things I hope Murphy fixes before the show returns next spring:

1. Dumb Central Characters

After suffering through the later seasons of Nip/Tuck, I thought no central characters could be stupider than Sean and Julia McNamara (Dylan Walsh and Joely Richardson), who Murphy appeared to make purposefully dim and naive so that they could, time and time again, fall for the transparently evil machinations of whichever lover/coworker/serial killer decided to take advantage of them. Then, Glee introduced us to Will (Matthew Morrison) and Finn (Cory Monteith). The former has a wife who managed to fake her pregnancy because Will is written to be too stupid to ever touch her, see her naked, or question her story. The guileless latter, in the internet era, believes that he got his cheerleader girlfriend pregnant by sharing a hot tub with her.

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Comments

  • CiscoMan says:

    Rachel's one-episode crush on Will was a particularly big "Wait, what?" development for me. Maybe excepting Sue, Rachel is the most singularly driven character on the show, and they tossed it aside so they could have Will sing the "Don't Stand So Close To Me"/"Young Girl" mashup.
    Which, you know, I liked, but still...

  • Colander says:

    I'm kind of protective of this show, and everything mentioned did make me groan, but I've been thinking all season "Should't they stretch this out a little?" in regards to basically every plot they have going, but: they more or less hit the reset button last night, and a variation of the same plots can essentially happen for the second half of the season (the love quadrant among the straight people, adolescent lusting, Sue being bitch), plus they can introduce and explore new characters (like the Asians, for example).
    Uh, my point is, we're probably good for at least a couple seasons.

  • hellcat says:

    I agree on all these points but especially the Autotune. I understand that the Fin character may not be the best singer (but totally adorable so he gets a pass) but with a showstopping voice like Lea Michele's I want to hear the real thing.
    It is a show about singing. Most of them can sing so let's hear.it I know what Autotune sounds like. I want individual voices. That said, I may never stop watching the show no matter how Autotuned the voices or absurd the the storyline.

  • Victor Ward says:

    I love Glee, but maybe mainly because I think I'm required to love it. The worst thing is that it doesn't seem to know its strengths, which are:
    1. Lea Michele's voice.
    Sister can sing. She does not need autotune. Also, worth noting, if I ever decided I didn't hate children, she is exactly into what I would mold my adopted Eastern European daughter.
    2. Sue Sylvester.
    Sister is hilarious. There have been too many episodes where she's barely appeared. And, really, giving her a "very special episode" type moment with her sister was annoying. Also, more of that guidance counselor lady.
    3. Mark Salling.
    Sister makes me want to take off my clothes. Make him take off more of his.

  • stolidog says:

    Personally, I thought the strangest plot blip was the very brief potential romance between the asian girl with the stutter and the guy in the wheelchair....he goes balistic when he finds out she doesn't stutter, she runs off crying and next episode they're best buds.
    What was that about?
    however, i'm obligated to love the show, and i do.

  • J says:

    As long as Lea Michele is on the show I will watch.
    But yes tone down the auto tune.

  • Matt says:

    Just one pointer.. you do know they didn't know if they were getting a full season pickup right? It was just an initial order of 13 and then they added on the back 9 later. Next season though, we won't have any excuses if the stupidity ensues.