Oh well. Can't win 'em all, can you?
Glee has always been a show with an identity crisis. Last week, I thought maybe they had figured out the balance between being outrageous and being a down to earth show about people in a singing club. It was absolutely a step in the right direction, with some great guest stars and storylines to boot. Excuse the pun, but I thought this might have been a 'New Direction' for the show.
Then comes along 'Brittany/Britney', an episode of television so self-indulgent, I couldn't take it seriously. I suppose you could argue that you're not meant to take it seriously, but when the show can achieve things like we saw in 'Wheels', or even last week's 'Audition', it just disappoints me that Ryan Murphy and company don't mind settling for what was nothing more than a collection of music video homages.
It felt like they were just looking for an excuse to hobble together a few Britney Spears songs (and I suppose this is where the argument against merchandising can be formed) to sell loads of copies of an EP. It's particularly annoying because I actually quite liked the music and will probably still buy it, but I much prefer it when the musical numbers compliment the story that's being told. Here, the Britney fantasies were quite literally disconnected from reality and I wasn't invested in it at all, except to an extent the performance of 'Stronger', because that tied in with Artie's B-story of wanting to win Tina back.
And it's certainly not the fault of the cast, in particular Heather Morris. She's a great dancer and she got to showcase a lot of that. The 'Brittany is stupid' schtick wore a little thin, though. Brittany lines should be there to compliment a scene, not be the focus of it, and it doesn't work when the main point of the scene is for Morris to spout Brittany-isms. John Stamos was fine as the dentist, and had some perfectly okay scenes with Will where they discussed Emma and their little triangle. I very much enjoyed Matthew Morrison in this episode, as he struggled to deal with all the stresses in his life.
But really, this episode was so 'meh' for me that I don't even really feel bothered to talk about the other points of the episode that didn't set me alight, including Rachel's feelings of inadequacy, a complete re-hash of the 'Push It' scene from Season 1, Jacob masturbating in the library, and Kurt acting like a whiny brat because he couldn't sing Britney Spears songs. Just, 'meh'.
Hopefully this is just a hiccup, and not an indication of what the rest of the season will be like.
What did everyone else think?
I didn't mean the dancing, that I didn't care about. When I say they went to far, I mean the finding Jacob masturbating was to far, which, in my opinion it certainly was
ReplyDeleteWhat I loved about the episode was how disconnected from reality it was.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with you completely. People kept telling me it was going to be just like Madonna, but this version is so much better. It's bringing Britney back. Plus it wasn't all that sexy. Heather Morris was super great and deserves to be featured in more songs. This showed that these kids aren't proud of who they are. IF you start taking the show more serious, then it's not a comedy. GLEE IS A COMEDY!!
ReplyDeleteI think that Glee shouln't be taken so seriously, it's suposed to be very disfunctional and that's why i like it so much. I love it when they do serious stuff, like Artie's dreams and Kurt's relationship with his father, but honestly i laughed hard with this episode, and as Finchel shipper i couldn't be more happy with aaaaall the drama!
ReplyDeleteBrittany and Britney were both amazing, so was Stamos, but i'm done with Terri! Enough with that divorce drama already! And Coach Beist has a very special place in my heart for letting Artie in the team, 'cause he do need abs!
I see a lot of people complaining about the music numbers not complimenting the story and i agree that was a little off in Slave 4 U and Me Against the Music (maybe they should have done only one of them, i don't know...) but the others were very well placed, in my opinion.
I agree that the musical numbers were disjointed and didn't add to the storyline, which is a bit disappointing. One of the things I enjoy most about Glee is when the music contributes to the story. While I enjoyed the music in this week's episode, all but two songs weren't related to storylines.
ReplyDeleteI can't fault the producers for wanting a Britney/Brittany episode after the huge success of the Madonna episode and the series is still trying to find its stride. I love how they highlighted Heather Morris's dance skills and didn't focus on the Brittany-isms so much (although they are a guilty pleasure of mine).
Overall I chalk the episode up to entertainment (as they all should be) and apart from the final number not terribly deep. But they don't all have to be deep - it's a dramedy.
Am I the only one who thinks Rachel is becoming a teen version of TerrI? I mean... last week there was a new sweet girl and Rachel used lies to get her out of her life, like Terri tried with Emma. And this week Finn told her that he is allowed to feel good, that's basically what Will told Terri in their break-up scene in season 1. I mean... it was strange.
ReplyDeleteThe episode was so-so, but it was nice seeing the real Terri, I have always loved her! Do you guys know if she will be in the next episode?
Thanks to everybody for the comments - it's interesting to see how split down the middle people are with this episode. If you liked this review, check out my other two reviews from last night:
ReplyDeleteChuck:http://www.spoilertv.com/2010/09/chuck-chuck-versus-suitcase-shes-got.html
How I Met Your Mother:http://www.spoilertv.com/2010/09/how-i-met-your-mother-cleaning-house.html
I agree with *everything* you said. I couldn't have said it better myself. This episode was beyond self-indulgent, one of those episodes where they work who the characters are around the songs they want to sing that week. It works so much better when they have a wider range of music to work with, instead of limited to one artist's repertoire. The Finn-Rachel stuff has all been done before, the Artie football thing is just too awkward, and Kurt's outburst was interesting, but with no context or pretext or follow-up it was just pointless. And Heather Morris IS awesome and really got a chance to shine outside of her ordinary character here (and damn did she ever look good!), but I'm not quite convinced yet that Brittany isn't best in small doses...
ReplyDeleteHey! Not cool!
ReplyDeleteAs I said, I loved Heather Morris. It's the writing I have a problem with.
This was one of my favorite Glee episodes so I could not disagree more! The hallucinations were HILARIOUS! The Artie subplot of wanting to play football needs to die already. The only negative thing about this episode is that it showed off how badly Rachel/ Lea Michelle needs to eat a cheesebuger STAT! Personally I find Brit S. Pearce to be so underused and ludicrously funny, it was about time she got highlighted for an episode. In addition, it was nice to have new blood and dare I say ... new directions to the show since evolving is the key to not getting stale. DEFINATELY in my top 5 Glee Ep list.
ReplyDelete"Hopefully this is just a hiccup, and not an indication of what the rest of the season will be like."
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I agree. Maybe because I am not a Brittany fan and only recognized one song. The Artie joining the football team is hilarious. Glee's Brittany rocks with the one-liners. I wish the Filipino girl would have joined the main cast, but it didn't go that way (yet?). Kurt's meltdown was priceless. I'm sure next week (from the previews) will be a better episode.
I think for ony of Glee problems, this is the only one i wouldn't say.
ReplyDeleteReally "less sexual" ? It wasn't sexual, i would say sensual or even sexy, but not sexual.
This is what they were trying to say when they cover "Push It", that people need to open their mind. You didn't expect them to cover "Push It", "Toxic" or even "I'm a Slave 4 U" and don't get "sexy". It would be really fun to watch, i have to say ahahahahah. And so strange.
I like this episode, the dance numbers were over the top! But i do agree with you at some points, i don't get the main reason of this episode. I would say it was funny and enjoyable, but that's only.
However, i'm really excited about next week episode! They choose a very controversial theme, but i do believe in Glee, especially when they talk about that specific themes.
The ep was great, your lame and Heather Morris Rocks!!
ReplyDeleteI actually liked the episode, I liked the songs they did because they did older songs, and the older ones are the best. What I don't like is how dirty the show is getting. Sure, it's meant for a more mature audience, but I think Ryan Murphy is starting to go to far, like he does with Nip-tuck. I just hope next weeks isn't as sexual as this one was, and teaches a better lesson.
ReplyDeleteI seriously could not disagree more. I felt that this episode was everything that is right with Glee. Of course they stressed the Britney-factor, but it wasn't over the top. This episode got people excited about watching Glee again... I mean, just look at twitter! And it showcased people like Heather Morris, who doesn't always get much attention but deserves it so much. Not to mention, the music was phenomenal! As a proud gleek, this was one of my favorite episodes, and I doubt I am the only one.
ReplyDeleteUgh I expected alot more from the episode as well. It was cute but definitely didn't live up to any of the hype. I'm sure the ratings will be killer though.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't disagree more! I never take Glee too seriously. it's there for fun and enjoyment and that's what last night gave us. It was something new that they've never done before. The writing did lack a bit but Glee, for me, has never been a show I watch for the 'amazing writing'. I watch it to be entertained, to laugh and to enjoy, and last nights episode more than did that for me :D
ReplyDeleteI loved this episode, I actually shed a tear just thinking of the way Britney used to be. <3 Glee isn't meant to be serious, and that's probably the main reason why I can't get enough of it, I get so fed up of all these shows being serious all the time, I love having a sing along with the Glee Cast! And I congratulate them on this episode! Hope they do more!
ReplyDelete