I am a Gleek to the bone. I have probably rewatched “Glee” about five separate times in my life, and every single time, I am reminded of a lesson I needed to hear. It’s a show that comes to me when I need it most.
“Glee” first aired in 2009, featuring Rachel Berry (Lea Michele) as a talented yet annoying star-crazed sophomore, Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith) as the cool quarterback, but the first to join the Glee Club, disregarding his reputation, and Artie Abrams (Kevin McHale) as a student in a wheelchair who desires to make movies.
The mean yet sexy Santana Lopez (Naya Rivera), school icon Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron) and the sometimes dumb Brittany Pierce (Heather Morris) play a trio of cheerleaders who join the Glee Club to originally destroy it from the inside, but learn to love the group of weirdos.
Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) plays the cruel and ever-quotable cheerleader coach of the Cheerios team, and her personal destiny is to destroy the Glee club, called the New Directions! founded by Spanish teacher Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison). Their years-long feud is hilarious, but they do have moments when they’re taking care of each other as friends.
And I have to address Chris Colfer as Kurt Hummel – although he is not in the acting spotlight anymore, he played the role of a closeted, scared gay kid in a high school that doesn’t accept him in the best way I could ever imagine (and his voice is amazing).
This representation was rare in 2009: a show that featured gay, lesbian, and handicapped characters, but didn’t just reduce them to that. The plotlines showed who these characters were behind their “identities” that other students stigmatized them for, and we follow many of the same characters throughout seasons and years, watching them grow and mature.
“Glee” tackles important issues that every high school student could experience: school shootings, eating disorders, texting and driving, bullying and much more.
But, while addressing all of these issues, the show manages to stay funny and entertaining (even if they don’t necessarily mean to be humorous).
But do not let me forget the music, oh, the music! I genuinely prefer some “Glee” covers over the original song – this cast is star-studded, talented and passionate, and you can feel that through their performances.
Michele has one of the most beckoning and tear-jerking voices I’ve ever heard; her belting genuinely makes me cry. Amber Riley is even more talented than the show presents her, and, in my humble opinion, she anchors it with her powerhouse vocals.
A recurring theme in this show is that the Glee Club lacks funding, often having to fundraise to attend competitions. However, just in their practices, the club has extensive costumes, wigs, makeup and even pyrotechnics. It makes no sense, but a lot in this show doesn’t – it’s just funny.
I have to mention all of the insane guest stars, such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Whoopi Goldberg, Kristin Chenoweth, Britney Spears, Kate Hudson, Sarah Jessica Parker, Demi Lovato and Ricky Martin – some characters play themselves, and some are just recurring characters.
“Glee” can always make me cry, and sometimes out of pure joy for these made-up characters, and I credit that to the cast’s amazing acting. And, although I pride myself on my hatred for Will Schuester, he does play an outstanding role in this T.V. show.
Of course, like any show, “Glee” isn’t perfect. It’s a little weird and offensive at times – I will never forget the episode that focused on twerking – but I can tell you, the show never gets boring. Even after the original cast graduates from high school and moves on to their respective careers, we still follow their lives, in addition to the new Glee members.
Although I didn’t like the season 4-6 cast as much as the original, they did grow on me after a few rewatches. And, one of my favorite episodes is actually after the original gang has graduated and mostly moved to NYC; it always makes me cry and giggle. Season 5 Episode 19, “Old Dog New Tricks,” will just make your day.
And, the representation is beautiful. From the first to the last season, episodes center around the various disabilities, difficulties of being in public school while being mixed-race and not feeling White or Black enough, bulimia and forced coming outs. Although I do wish they had cast someone who genuinely used a wheelchair for the role of Artie Abrams, and I think the scenes of him walking in dream sequences are a little insensitive.
Most of the critiques of “Glee” focus on the sensationalism of the characters, tropes and plots. Characters would shift personalities depending on what the episode needed, rather than evolving naturally.
One unfortunate example was the decimation of Jake Puckerman’s character growth (Jacob Artist) after months of growth, because behind the scenes, Marley Rose (Melissa Benoist) was allegedly experiencing domestic violence, and her partner did not want her filming scenes with Artist.
Another critique is that the series frequently relied on stereotypes and simplified character types: Mercedes as the “sassy Black woman,” Santana as the “angry Latina,” and Kurt as the hyper-feminine gay character. Although I hate this reduction of a person to a generalization, I do understand why it might have been necessary for the show to be able to run long-term in the 2010s.
While early seasons treated the club as an ensemble of misfits, later episodes focused heavily on Rachel’s ambitions, sidelining (sometimes even more talented) characters like Mercedes. “Glee” also introduced topics such as eating disorders, trauma and school shootings, but usually resolved or dropped them within one episode, which is not necessarily an accurate or fulfilling representation for viewers.
Concerns were also raised about Will Schuester, whose blurred boundaries with students and participation in suggestive performances were frequently played for humor despite being entirely inappropriate.
But, regardless of the critiques, the show is entertaining enough for me to rewatch until the end of time, and it is endlessly quotable.
As Fidd Hudson once said, “The show must … go all over the place … or something.”
