Search for:
Catchy tunes and intriguing characters of Glee captures audiences
4:00 am Nov 5 - by Alyssa Schoeneman – buzz Writer
Up until about two months ago, I had thought it was impossible to love and hate something with equal fervor. Then I started watching Glee.
The musical comedy-drama series center around a fictional Ohio high school show choir, or as it is better known, glee club. After a heavily publicized pilot episode aired last May, the series was picked up by Fox for a full season that began in early Sept. Though the plot is overtly dramatic, the performances bastardize established dance forms and the dialogue is often politically incorrect, I still find myself tuning in every week. So the question is, why?
The show boasts a cast of exceptionally talented singers, including actress Lea Michele as the pretentious Rachel Berry, a high school student with stars in her eyes. Michele debuted the lead female role of Wendela in the Tony Award-winning musical “Spring Awakening”; she and her fellow all-star cast members create a soundtrack that is as catchy as the swine flu. In addition to toe-tapping tunes, the rivalry between glee club coach Will Schuester (actor Matthew Morrison) and head coach of the school’s cheerleading squad Sue Sylvester (actress Jane Lynch), is incessantly intriguing. The two engage in an epic power struggle weekly; Schuester recruits some of Sylvester’s “Cheerios” for glee club, wounding their social status and impinging on their availability to attend cheerleading practice.
The social hierarchy that exists at the fictional William McKinley High School stretches beyond simple stereotype and caricature, making it jokily relatable. The glee club is composed of a Paraplegic, an Asian-American Goth, a gay boy and a token black girl, among other potentially offensive stereotypical outcasts. In a highly dramatized, difficult to stomach act of supremacy, members of the popular crowd throw grape slushies in the face of the kids in the glee club daily. The extreme nature of the situation makes all viewers feel better; whether they sympathize with the bullies or the outcasts, their own high school experience most likely pales in comparison.
The off-color subject matter also gets graphic: Shuester finds inspiration from his wife’s fake pregnancy, a deceitful situation that parallels that of a couple in the glee club; a girl in the club misleads her boyfriend about the paternal genes of her unborn child, causing the alleged teenage father unnecessary strife. In one episode, a party animal that never completed high school (played by Kristen Chenoweth) returns to sing with the club only to intoxicate one member and to get others hooked on shoplifting. And the fun doesn’t stop there — the glee club also gets hooked on pseudo ephedrine in an episode thanks to an uncertified school nurse with ulterior motives.
The creators of Glee know what viewers are interested in, and they capitalize on a fusion of those ideas. The amount of sex, drama and deception that permeates Glee makes it comparable to popular primetime shows like Gossip Girl and 90210, while the singing and dancing draws in audiences from shows like American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance. Episodes of Glee hinge on moments with shock factor that may offend or inspire a hearty laugh, a tactic that has been seen in shows like 30 Rock and Parks and Recreation.
Whether viewers love it or hate it, the fact remains that Glee evokes strong responses out of its audience and for that, it should be recognized and applauded.
Sound Off
No comments yet!
Add your comment:
Put a name to your comments! Sign In or Register. Registered users can track their comments in their profile, use avatar images, and participate in forum discussions.