I confess: I was late to appreciating GLEE. Diane loved the FOX show from the start. She kept telling me how much fun it was to watch this rag-tag group of misfits who would suddenly burst into song until she wore down my resistance. The first couple episodes I watched didn’t grab me, but I slowly got involved with the high school student characters and their hapless (but earnest) teacher, Will Schuester, played by Matthew Morrison. My favorite character is the sadistic Sue Sylvester, played by the talented Jane Lynch. Lynch, as head coach of the “Cheerios” cheerleading squad, is the Glee Club’s arch-nemesis. Guest stars include Kristin Chenoweth, Josh Groban, Olivia Newton-John, and Idina Menzel. There is so little innovation or creativity on television right now, GLEE manages qualify as “cutting edge” in these frivolous times.
Yes, Sue is the role of a lifetime for Lynch. She is obviously having a ball playing her. And now somehow she finagled her way into judging the regionals.
And Idina Menzel was perfect casting as Rachel’s real mom; the two look like sisters!
The show improved greatly when they dumped Will’s appalling wife and her fake pregnancy storyline.
We saw Morrison on Broadway a couple of years ago as Lt. Cable in South Pacific and he has a terrific voice.
The producers of GLEE made a number of good decisions, Jeff. One was dumping Will’s wife so he could have some romantic interests. And, I agree, Morrison has a great voice. Jane Lynch’s antics keep me tuning in. I can’t wait to watch “The Regionals” tonight!
I want to like it but haven’t found my way into it yet. I think that type of “selling the song” singling gets on my nerves. But I will give it another try.
It took me four or five episodes to get into GLEE, Patti. Yes, the commercialism of the series is extreme: there have already been four best selling CDs of GLEE music. A friend of my mine who’s NOT a fan says GLEE is “glorified karaoke.”
Guess I figured this was just high school version of Fame, but about rah-rah cheerleading instead of acting, dancing and musicianship. Not my cuppa, though I did like Fame when it was on. I’m amazed by the number of CDs that are available, what a half dozen? Six CDs of “Go, Team, Go!, Fight, team, fight!”, Push ’em back, push ’em back…” No thanks. I suppose that not really what’s on them, but I don’t have the time to investigate further, and we hardly watch TV except for local and national news, 60 Minutes, and the like.
GLEE is a twisted, sardonic, dark version of FAME, Rick. I was listening to a Canadian radio station that plays the TOP 40 hits from England. Four GLEE songs were in the TOP 10. So apparently GLEE is an international hit, too.
As one who couldn’t tolerate any version of FAME (two films at least, two tv series, all abysmal), and who found the bad sitcom writing around the wife a particular irritant in what I caught of of the pilot for GLEE, I doubt I’ll be a fan, but am glad that they’ve shown some respect for their audience.
The hard core GLEE fanatics, the “Gleeks,” have made the GLEE musical tour stops Stand Room Only events, Todd. Someone is raking in a ton of money!
Television worth catching now includes THE GOOD WIFE, TREME, PARTY DOWN, THE BOOK GROUP (edited for content on Ovation, intact on Hulu), DEXTER, HOUSE, JUSTIFIED, SONS OF ANARCHY, and then it does get pretty frothy, from TRUE BLOOD (red froth) on over to CHUCK and back to HUNG. A real shame that the only regularly-scheduled drama on PBS is now the MASTERPIECE umbrella, though the syndicators are still busily importing some interesting stuff. Ion picks up a few interesting scraps from time to time, amidst their slew of other-network repeats and infomercials.
I’m waiting for THE CLOSER to start, Todd.
That the consistenly best drama on right now is a CBS offer croggles me slightly. THE GOOD WIFE, that is.
My wife considers THE GOOD WIFE the best program on television, Todd.
I must admit I’ve never heard of (let alone seen) Party Down or The Book Group and I don’t watch Sons of Anarchy, though I tried a couple of times. I do agree with Todd on The Good Wife and Treme. I’m hoping True Blood improves over last season; the whole Maryann subplot I found unwatchably stupid.
But that’s just me.
We’re in a TV drought right now, Jeff. THE CLOSER and MAD MEN don’t start until July. June looks like a vast wasteland for television. Time to watch some movies in Blu-ray!
If Maryann hadn’t been played by Michelle Forbes, I might’ve let it bother me more, as well, Jeff.
Indeed. I let BREAKING BAD and (to a lesser extent, for me) MAD MEN slip my mind. But there are all those pleasant USA and TNT series, from BURN NOTICE on over (and perhaps that comic series about middle aged men, name slipping my mind but it stars Andre Braugher and Ray Romano, will be back soon…never did take the opportunity to catch that one–MEN OF A CERTAIN AGE?).
I gave up on BURN NOTICE, Todd, even though I liked the cast a lot. The story arc seems to be stalled and too many episodes meandered aimlessly. Plus, I didn’t like the chain-smoking mother or the goofy brother.
Pretty much all we watch in the summer is on TNT, FX, SyFy or USA.
There’s just not that much to watch on TV in the summer, Jeff. Diane and I catch up on a lot of reading in July and August.
Is THE CLOSER baseball drama?
No, Rick, THE CLOSER is a cop show. Deputy Police Chief Brenda Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) of the LA Special Crimes Task Force has the talent to close cases with her brilliant interrogation technique. And she doesn’t even use water-boarding!
I must admit that between one thing and another, I’ve missed most of the last season of BURN NOTICE, myself, so I might’ve let it go intentionally, too, if I saw it all…and, yes, they sure should’ve given Sharon Gless more of a chacracter.
I’ve been playing catchup on movies…finally saw IN THE LOOP on Showtime, ADORATION on Starz, and any number of things on IFC and Sundance, including the engaging, till the hokey ending, TURN THE RIVER.
IN THE LOOP was a hoot…as far as I could understand them, that is.
The latest GLEE CD just came out and I’m sure IN THE LOOP is on it, Jeff. Diane predicted Sue would save the Glee Club.
I think we speak of at least two IN THE LOOPs here…Jeff and I refer to the film parodying the US/UK entry into the current wars…
Oops! Sorry I confused the IN THE LOOPS, Todd.