- An adoption closing within 2 days of a child's birth to an adoptive parent who had never before expressed interest in adoption?
- Quinn back in school (and singing her bit of "To Sir, With Love" very nicely) the day after giving birth?
- What exact voting method led to the results we were shown, given what we know about how Sue and Josh Groban apparently voted?
- No mention that some of these kids are (I would assume) graduating?
- When did
SectionalsRegionals become a cross-state thing (we had a team from Indiana as well as the two from Ohio)? - What, exactly, prompted Quinn's mother's change of heart? (And where exactly is Quinn living at the end of the episode? Still with Mercedes? With her mom? Moving in with adoptive baby mama?)
- Whatever happened to the "ballad rule" that we had an entire episode about earlier this year?
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
IT'S ABOUT THE JOURNEY, NOT THE DESTINATION: There are two self-evident truths about Glee. The first is that it is frequently incredibly entertaining. The second is that it is maddeningly inconsistent. Last night's finale epitomized both of those things at once. The musical numbers--particularly the bad-ass Journey medley (and that's the last time that phrase will ever be written) where they wisely didn't have Cory Monteith attempt to carry all the male vocals, and Jonathan Groff ripping through "Bohemian Rhapsody"--were damn fine. On the other hand, the plot twists, while not wig-rippingly ludicrous on their face, failed to hold up to even a moment's worth of scrutiny. Let's see here:
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I agree with most of the above. FYI, though, the competition was Regionals in this episode, not Sectionals. My question would then be how New Directions and Vocal Adrenaline were not at the same Sectionals competition earlier, but just add that to the list of plot twists not holding up.
ReplyDeleteFor the Quinn being back in school thing: Regionals competition (and the birth) was Saturday, so we can infer that the conversation between Puck and Quinn in the hospital happened Sunday, and To Sir With Love happened Monday or Tuesday. It's possible (and likely, given no c-section) that she'd be out of the hospital inside of 48 hours. For her to be back in school, it's a stretch, but given that Beth was adopted and Quinn doesn't have a newborn to care for, it's possible.
ReplyDeleteOops (correcting). Apparently, Sectionals is a "random draw" system--recall the happiness when they got the deaf school and the delinquents rather than Vocal Adrenaline? And in a show that prides itself on getting away with murder on the decency line, "Aural Intensity" was just awesome.
ReplyDeleteIn response to your bullet points:
ReplyDelete1. To be fair, we don't know that Shelby hadn't been pursuing adoption for a while, but that only takes care of one of the problems you mentioned.
2. Regionals were on Saturday, so it's two days after giving birth. I don't have a uterus myself, but I'm sure the extra day was all she needed. (Actually, it could be a week - McKinley's Spring Break has been delayed an awfully long time)
3. The only explanation is that Groban was convinced someone else was first, but unless he suddenly put them third, I still have trouble conceiving of a voting system that gives that result.
4. While it makes no sense that the captain of the football and cheerleading squads, as well as the school's #1 "power couple" were juniors, that was apparently the case - there have been subtle implications throughout the season that the only senior we've seen is Jesse. Maybe Dave and Mike are graduating.
5. This is Regionals, not Sectionals, although one wonders how big this region could be.
6. Mom kicked Dad out of the house (for having an affair - I'm making the early call of Puck's mom). Quinn is probably moving back in with her mom, though nothing is explicit.
7. That was a Sectionals rule?
My thoughts on the whole pregnancy plot line are up at the Preschool.
As a nit, the Puck-Quinn scene would still be Saturday, unless Puck really liked the black shirt/gold tie combo.
ReplyDeleteMy bad - didn't notice his costume - either way, they wouldn't have performed To Sir until they were back in school anyways, so the Monday/Tuesday theory stands.
ReplyDeleteForget about how quickly Quinn got back to school after giving birth. How about Nude Erections performing at Regionals, leaving after their performance to go to the hospital, sticking around at the hospital through the entire birth, and then getting back to Regionals (minus Quinn) in time for the announcement of the results? Were Regionals held at the hospital?
ReplyDeleteAnd look. I think this was one of the stronger episodes, mainly because nobody was asked to do too much acting. But when they were asked to act, hoo boy, what a disaster. The whole Mr. Holland's Opus thing with Schue was embarrassing enough, but they have got to learn that if they cut to Matthew Morrison for more than one reaction shot in a scene, they are asking people to burst out laughing. That is the most cringeworthy character/actor combination on television. Every time he says anything serious, attempts to rap or sing soul, dances in a non-Broadway way (especially his funk-stance, which is exactly how my older son used to stand and arrange his face when he was soiling his diaper back in the day), or tries to convey emotion, it is a holy hell disaster. Watching seventeen reaction shots of him trying to do a slow build to full-on Steel Magnolias tears was torture.
And that's not to mention his storyline this episode. 1. It's unfair; I give up. 2. The love of my life just reminded me of a fact that I had forgotten long (i.e., several episodes) ago: we're in this because we love it, not for the winning! Never give up! 3. Kids, it's not about the winning! It's about who we are! 4. I am crushed and completely defeated by our not winning. As it turns out, winning really was what was important. 5. I give up! I give up so hard! 6. These children who I love just reminded me of a fact that I had forgotten long (i.e., at least two commercial breaks) ago: we're in this because we love it, not for the winning! We triumphed! 7. But still, I'm sad and depressed because we lost and I give up. 8. Sue Sylvester, you are a wonderful person for giving us another year while still promising to do your best to break my students' spirit.
Forget about how quickly Quinn got back to school after giving birth. How about Nude Erections performing at Regionals, leaving after their performance to go to the hospital, sticking around at the hospital through the entire birth, and then getting back to Regionals (minus Quinn) in time for the announcement of the results? Were Regionals held at the hospital?
ReplyDeleteAnd look. I think this was one of the stronger episodes, mainly because nobody was asked to do too much acting. But when they were asked to act, hoo boy, what a disaster. The whole Mr. Holland's Opus thing with Schue was embarrassing enough, but they have got to learn that if they cut to Matthew Morrison for more than one reaction shot in a scene, they are asking people to burst out laughing. That is the most cringeworthy character/actor combination on television. Every time he says anything serious, attempts to rap or sing soul, dances in a non-Broadway way (especially his funk-stance, which is exactly how my older son used to stand and arrange his face when he was soiling his diaper back in the day), or tries to convey emotion, it is a holy hell disaster. Watching seventeen reaction shots of him trying to do a slow build to full-on Steel Magnolias tears was torture.
And that's not to mention his storyline this episode. 1. It's unfair; I give up. 2. The love of my life just reminded me of a fact that I had forgotten long (i.e., several episodes) ago: we're in this because we love it, not for the winning! Never give up! 3. Kids, it's not about the winning! It's about who we are! 4. I am crushed and completely defeated by our not winning. As it turns out, winning really was what was important. 5. I give up! I give up so hard! 6. These children who I love just reminded me of a fact that I had forgotten long (i.e., at least two commercial breaks) ago: we're in this because we love it, not for the winning! We triumphed! 7. But still, I'm sad and depressed because we lost and I give up. 8. Sue Sylvester, you are a wonderful person for giving us another year while still promising to do your best to break my students' spirit.
I just happened to be watching the episode right then. And, given my particular area of obsession with this show, outfit changes are something I pick up on almost immediately now.
ReplyDeleteI just happened to be watching the episode right then. And, given my particular area of obsession with this show, outfit changes are something I pick up on almost immediately now.
ReplyDeleteEveryone needs John Stamos.
ReplyDeleteSTAMOS!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EztNGFC4hQ
If he has this effect on Will, I totally approve. With regards to Quinn's Mom, the way she spoke to Quinn was really interesting- it was clear she felt guilt and regret about being away from Quinn, but was still kind of clueless and judgemental ("I didn't miss that many performances, right?" and "He cheated with a tattoed freak"). If she does go back with her mom, I got the vibe that it won't last long.
Give me a kick-ass Journey medley, and I'm happy. Seriously, I watched that part three times.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all of the annoying and inconsistent and unlikely points Matt mentioned in this post. But I think I've made my peace with Glee's inconsistent plot and tone. I can't fall in love with the show because the tone veers so much between ultra-sincere reality and ultra-campy fantasy, with snark and satire in the middle somewhere. There are parts I like about both extremes, but the juxtaposition drives me crazy, and whenever something truly unbelievable happens (Shelby adopting Quinn's baby, or Sue being allowed to judge a competition in which a team from her school participates, or Quinn's labor lasting the length of Bohemian Rhapsody), I just shrug my shoulders, say "It's Glee" and wait for the parts I really like.
Team Isaac.
ReplyDeleteOne more thing - I really wish they'd give other kids in the group a chance to sing, especially during the competition scenes. Rachel is great and Finn is... okay... but let's give Mercedes, Puck, and Kurt a chance to sing more than one line sometimes. They rock. (Santana clearly has some chops, too.)
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed last night's show, at least partly because I used my "do not think critically about anything" method of Glee-watching. I like to read people's thoughtful opinions later on, but to get the most fun out of watching, I have to do the mental equivalent of plugging my ears and singing "la la la" when thoughts about the birth timeline and adoption logistics try to pop up in my head.
ReplyDeleteAs to the voting, how about this: Sue votes ND/AI/VA. Olivia Newton John (who appreciated AI's tribute to her) votes AI/VA/ND. News guy votes VA/AI/ND. Josh Groban votes VA/ND/AI (as J. Bowman said, he was conviced VA was better than ND but still didn't put ND third). If you wipe out one first and last place vote that each group got, VA ends up with 1/2, AI has 2/2, and ND has 2/3. Does that work out?
I have now spent too much time thinking about this, but I suppose if there is anyplace safe to spend too much time thinking about pop culture, it is this website, right?
Assume we apply a 3-2-1 point system--standard ranked choice voting, and that gives Aural Intensity 8 points, and Vocal Adrenaline and New Directions each 7.
ReplyDeleteWhat killed me is the definition of "place" at sectionals. We only see one "archrival" all season, and then ostensibly, to advance, they don't even have to beat that team?
ReplyDeleteI also question the lesson the McKinley kids learned during this episode--not only shown by Isaac's Schuesterrhythms above, but this: You worked this hard, you weren't good enough, but darn it all, we're still going to hand you what you want on a silver platter. For me, not the happiest of endings,
I am not getting those same #s. I'm not sure if you're giving 3 points for first place and most points wins, or 1 point for 1st place and lowest total wins. But either way when I do the math, the totals come out in the right order. Someone else want to try?
ReplyDeleteThat looks like 9 points for VA, which would give the correct result. It does, of course, assume that Groban changed his vote, which assumes that the judges actually started discussing and defending their choices at some point, instead of just voting.
ReplyDeleteThe second half of this season was significantly better than the first in the manic character/plot whiplash department. As I may have written here before, i feel like much of the first half of the season (especially, although examples abound in the seocond half as well), the songs were driving the plot instead of the other way around. Now, the show should be able to clear just about any song it wants, hopefully leading to more stable and well-developed characters.
ReplyDeleteYou're right about song clearance no longer being as big an issue, though that leads to two problems:
ReplyDelete1. Some of the more interesting/fun performances were of stuff that was likely easier to clear--"Bust Ya Windows," "Don't Rain On My Parade," "Hate On Me."
2. The easy clearance has also led to writing plots/characters to songs they want to use/think will be popular rather than choosing songs to fit character/plot, as we saw in much of the Madonna episode, and (though I love the vocal on it) "Poker Face" made no sense lyrically for the characters (not that its lyrics make a ton of sense anyway, but even so).
Re point no.2: Are you suggesting that Idina Menzel was, in fact, bluffing?
ReplyDeleteI just couldn't read her.
ReplyDeleteBust Ya Windows is probably my favorite track on the 1st soundtrack. I really could listen to Amber Riley sing all day long.
ReplyDeleteI watched this episode with a few of the people I work with in our lab at lunch today, and we were ALL wondering how quickly Quinn had that baby...I mean, Bohemian Rhapsody is a long song, but not baby-having long. Also, the Journey medley was very definitely badass.
ReplyDeleteOff topic, but I'm catching up on the SYTYCD audition episodes, and wondering if you guys are going to be covering/reviewing it this summer? The auditions so far definitely seem better than last summer, and in 1.5 episodes the Combined Adam Shankman-Mia Michaels Crying Total is at approximately 7.
I'm surprised no one has brought up the fact that the entire regional program consisted of each group singing one medley/song, which would have resulted in a show of less than half an hour.
ReplyDeleteAnd the odd "Bohemian Rhapsody"/Birth montage which may have implied that a murderous boy was being delivered.
And what was with Kurt's sailor hat? Has he joined the Navy or the Village People.
All in all, it's jsut more of the weirdness that keeps me coming back for more, although I doubt the show will have a long shelf life. I'm thinking maybe it can get into season three. What say you?
Fox has already picked up the show for two more 22-episode seasons, in large part because the ancillaries (song sales and DVD sales in particular) are so lucrative, as well as to lock down performers (Agron is shooting a big Spielberg-produced movie this hiatus, and Broadway producers now desperately want Lea Michele for quite a few roles).
ReplyDeleteIt's extremely uncomfortable to look back and realize this show is about the sex lives of 14 and 15-year olds.
ReplyDeleteThe more they let Kurt sing, the more convinced I become they need to give him Jimmy Somerville's Smalltown Boy.
While the Journey medley almost had me changing the channel, making John Stamos a regular character would probably drive me away for good.
Based on the way everyone was ganging up on Sue during the voting process, it was easy for me to assume the groupthink mentality caused Groban to vote New Directions third.
ReplyDeleteAnd I believe they've been pretty careful never to mention whether any of these students were seniors.
By the way, what is it about Ryan Murphy and weird pregnancy/baby plot twists?
I'm still hoping Brittany gets a chance to sing sometime. She certainly can dance well enough. I'd like to know whether she has a decent voice.
ReplyDeleteGreat call on Kurt and Smalltown Boy.
ReplyDeletethat would almost make up for the Stamos crap.
ReplyDeleteChris Colfer interview at the AV Club.
ReplyDeletequote:
I think I loved doing “Rose’s Turn” the most, just because it was a really, really late night when we filmed it, and it was just me and the crew and an empty audience. I love musical numbers that take place in movies with an empty audience, because I think there’s a certain power there
Sidetracking the conversation, this reminds me of my favorite scene from White Nights: Baryshnikov
Poker Face made sense to me - it was about Rachel trying to read her mom and figure out if she actually cared about her. No?
ReplyDeleteTotally agree about the ridiculous impossibility of that timeline, though should note that my sister-in-law just had her (second) baby, (actively) laboring, start to finish, well within the running time of Bohemian Rhapsody.
ReplyDeleteI kept repeating "Aural Intensity" over and over and chuckling until my fiancee told me to stop it and unpause the tivo.
ReplyDeleteShe said on an interview clip on hulu that she can sing, and she really wants too.
ReplyDeletePS I only watched her behind the scenes interview because well I love her.
Maybe it was just about how marvelous they both are?
ReplyDeleteWouldn't Agron and Michele already have had the standard five-year contracts before the first season started? I see the pickup more as a vote of confidence and a logistical greenlight for clearances and (much need) plot planning than as an effort to lock down anybody that is already locked down.
ReplyDeletePlease blog SYTYCD! I still watch female contemporary solos thinking of Isaac's post categorizing the various moves from a few years ago (my favorite is Silent Movie Panic).
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of SYTYCD, I'm pretty sure I saw Courtney and Lauren as Vocal Adrenalites on Glee.
I could believe that she'd be there, but not that she'd be comfortably sitting on a stool.
ReplyDelete