Though Glee topped Tuesday night’s ratings with it’s Rocky Horror Picture Show tribute episode, I’m afraid to say that the series is still showing serious wear. I’m sure that fans of Rocky Horror were thrilled to see the Glee gang perform some of it’s catchy numbers and put on those crazy costumes (Kurt’s was particularly hilarious). And although I’ll admit that this episode wasn’t as bad as the past few, there were still plenty of reminders of how Glee’s sophomore year just doesn’t have the same spark as last season.
Recap: SPOILERS
This week’s Rocky Horror theme comes courtesy of Will’s tiring quest to win Emma back. When Emma tells him about her passion for the musical, Will abruptly decides that the Glee club will take it on. Sue catches wind of the controversial performance and plans an elaborate sabotage. The Glee club casts each part, but soon certain people must drop out for different reasons. Mike Chang’s parents wont allow him to play his character, so Emma’s boyfriend, Carl, fills in. Schuester refuses to let Carl ruin his elaborate scheme to impress Emma, so he too joins the Glee club on stage. Controversy over the Glee club performing Rocky Horror reaches it’s peak at the school, so the kids decide to put on the show without an audience.
Review:
Incorporating Rocky Horror Picture Show was a good way for Glee to work a Halloween feel into the episode as well as take a break from most of the stale drama happening on the show. It was fun to see the gang all dressed up for the show, dancing on that crazy set (where did they get the money for that?), and defecting from the usual assignment of parts. But other than that, there wasn’t too much to sing about.
Emma & Will
There are plenty of problems with this season of Glee and this latest episode was the victim of at least a few of them. First and foremost, the Will / Emma love story needed to be wrapped up ages ago. All last season, the two of them wanted to be together and finally in the last episode they were able to share that long-awaited kiss. But season two started off with trouble for the couple, and in no time their relationship was back in turmoil. At this point, the writers really need to drop it – either put them together or have them apart and happily seeking / being with other people. At the end of this week’s episode Schuester swears that he’s done irrationally pursuing Emma but who knows if that’ll be the case.
Another huge problem with Glee these days is that it has started taking itself so seriously. In the beginning it was a light-hearted, cheery, funny show that was entertaining and amusing to watch each week. But these days, it seems like every episode tries to either tackle a controversial topic or stir up some kind of controversy on its own. In the course of just a few months, the show has gone from mostly upbeat and careless to tackling subjects like religion in schools. A couple of episodes ago, Brittany and Santana were making out with one another and the supposed reason for it was just pathetic. It just seems like Glee now devotes far more time to addressing today’s hot-topics than it does to making the audience laugh and tap their feet to a good tune.
Lastly, so much of the material this season feels old or boring. Like I mentioned before, the Will / Emma drama needs to be ended as soon as possible. Sue’s politically incorrect and crazy ramblings now seem forced, as if the writers are trying too hard to come up with the next quotable Sue line. The Glee club never has any money, which we are sure to be reminded of. Every time without fail, Will falls for Sue’s plans to sabotage his latest project – how has he not learned to completely ignore her yet? A big deal was made about Coach Beast being Sue’s new nemesis, but we haven’t seen much of her at all so far. The list goes on and on, but the bottom line is that Glee’s plots and characters have become predictable, lack-luster, and yawn-inducing.
It seems that each week this season I ask myself why I continue to watch Glee. I think that it’s mostly because with each new episode, I hope to tune in and find that the show has managed to get back the spunk of the first season. I’m not sure how much longer I’ll hold on, but for now, Glee still has my attention.
