Glee is all about the highs and lows, you know?
Low: They sang not one but two Justin Bieber songs on last night’s episode. Thanks a lot, Glee! I was fine only knowing the one “baby, baby, baby, ohhh” line from that one annoying song.
High: At least Chord Overstreet is a better singer than Justin Bieber. (Yeah, I said it. Start sending your hate mail, tweens.) And to be honest, I can get over Glee doing a couple Bieber songs. I’m sure they’ve performed some tunes before that I liked though others didn’t, so I shouldn’t gripe about this.
High: Hats! So many hats!
Low: Can the wardrobe department please find something better for Lauren to wear?
High: Emma was back last night!
Low: Barely.
You get my drift. Anyway, last night’s episode “Comeback” saw Sue trying to commit Sue-icide, Rachel trying to stage a comeback, and Sam trying to hang on to Quinn’s heart. While I don’t think it was quite as strong as the past two episodes, those were pretty hard to top. I still really liked this episode – and luckily it featured lots of great clothes, because I’m going to be writing my first fashion recap for You Know You Love Fashion.
He’s Like, Baby, Baby, Baby, Ohhhh
Do sixteen and seventeen year old girls like Justin Bieber? I thought he was reserved for the fourteen and under set, so Sam’s plan to use the rock ‘n’ roll stylings on The Biebs to win back Quinn felt a little off from the start. I could believe that Sam would be so out of touch with current pop culture that he’d think “The Justin Bieber Experience” would be a success with Quinn, but I didn’t buy that Quinn or any of the other girls would find it particularly attractive.
Luckily, the whole thing – Sam re-imagining himself as a blond Bieber, only to be joined by Artie, Mike and Puck (in a wig, no less!) when they realized that girls dug it – was saved in a couple of ways. One was Lauren’s biting comment to Puck that Justin Bieber looks like he’s twelve, and therefore is not attractive to her at all. Another was the way the girls seemed, in reality, to be more laughing and enjoying themselves rather than screaming in passion the way the boys interpreted it. And the last way it was saved for me was when Quinn told Finn that the reason she was so into Sam’s Bieber impression was because he just went for it. Intentionally or not, Sam wasn’t as caught up in trying to be cool as Finn has been, and that’s what won her over.
Let’s talk a little about the Finn/Quinn/Sam love triangle. I’ve always liked Quinn, but I have her in this situation. In fact, this love triangle has made three characters I like come across as quite annoying. Quinn is just being mean, cheating on yet another boyfriend. Finn is being a hypocrite – taking part in the very thing that tore two of his relationships apart, and with no remorse – and he’s being a real jackass too. The way he smirked at Sam when he reassured him that he and Quinn had not made out was not the Finn I know. And Sam is just coming across as desperate and weak. When he finally did dump Quinn, it was only because Santana told him to. I’m glad the love triangle has splintered, and hopefully these characters can get back on the right track.
Baby, I’ll Take You
OK, let’s discuss the highlight of the episode – Mercedes and Rachel blowing the roof off the Rent classic “Take Me Or Leave Me”. I love Rent. I love this song. And Lea Michele and Amber Riley could not have done a better job.
In yet another one of Sue’s attempts to fracture the glee club once and for all, she manipulated Rachel and Mercedes into taking part in a diva-off. But little did she know, these two have been engaging in frequent slumber parties – hair braiding at all.
Everything about this little subplot worked. I loved the descriptions of how to be a diva that Mercedes and Rachel each gave. I loved how they both put so much passion and power into their performances. And I loved how they laughed and hugged at the end, because rather than wanting to compete with each other they now find singing together fun. Sue was disappointed, but I was thrilled.
This wasn’t Rachel’s only great moment of the night. She also tried to stage her own comeback (was she ever popular?) and every moment of that was pure hilarity. She paid Brittany to make the Rachel Berry look (sexy schoolgirl librarian chic) popular, but it completely backfired. First Brittany wore her legwarmers on her arms, and started a huge trend. Then she successfully made the Rachel look super popular – everyone was in a pony sweater, plaid mini and tights! – but she got all the credit.
Rachel’s final moment, when she urged New Directions that the only way they can have a shot at Regionals is if they perform an original song, was classic Rachel even though I think the idea sucks. I want to watch Glee do original music like I want to see Will Schuester in a pony sweater (OK, that would actually be pretty awesome) but the way Rachel made her case felt like a new and improved Rachel. She was passionate, but not as obnoxiously egotistical as she’s had a tendency to be. There’s not denying that her character did kind of go off the rails and into annoying-land for a while, but my gosh – I think I’d say Rachel Berry has made a comeback!
Sue-Icide Missions
Feeling blue after losing Nationals with the Cheerios, Sue made a weak attempt to take her own life using gummy vitamins. At the suggestion of Emma, she joined the glee club for a week to lift her spirits. The storyline, obviously, was a little contrived and is what held this episode back from measuring up to the last two weeks.
The problem is, we’ve seen this before. Sue pretends to change, we see a glimpse of her true soft side, and then quicker than you can say “plaid Adidas track suit” she’s concocted yet another plan to take down glee. In an effort to cheer Sue up, Will took her with him on his weekly trip to sing to kids who have cancer. Has he mentioned this before? No. Does that make it completely implausible and ridiculous? No. After all, it’s not like we see a ton of Will’s life outside of McKinley High during the episodes. Who’s to say he doesn’t do this every week? It does seem like a very Will Schuester thing to do.
There was a lot of discussion on Twitter during the episode last night about the cancer ward scene being manipulative. While it was obviously designed to both tug at our heartstrings and show us the softer side of Sue before reminding us once again how evil she is, I don’t think it was that big of a deal. Is it any more manipulative than when we see Sue with her sister, or during some of the more tender moments she shares with Becky? I don’t think so. I wasn’t bothered by the cancer ward scene so much as I was bothered by the idea that once again, Sue sucked in Will only to be able to yell “Psych!” and announce her new plan for taking down New Directions. (This time, the plan is that she is the new coach of Aural Intensity.)
I Know What Gleeks Like
OK, let’s talk about the rest of the episode. While it was sweet to see Puck help Lauren overcome her nerves in order to sing in front of the other glee kids, that performance was entirely lost on me. It felt like it didn’t fit in with the rest of the episode, her outfit was horrendous, and she’s not that good of a singer. Yeah, Mike Chang can’t sing either, but he can dance. What, exactly, is Lauren bringing to the group other than acting as a weird love interest for Puck and ensuring that New Directions has enough members to go to Regionals? If this character is going to stick around, I’d like to see the writers make better use of her. The Puck storyline can’t last forever.
Meanwhile, the final performance where Sue sang the “anthem” “Sing” was good, but puzzling. Why was everyone dressed like a lumberjack? Why would they let Sue choose their song for Regionals? Why didn’t anyone agree with Rachel that the tune is cleary not good enough? I don’t agree that they need to write their own ditty, but they definitely need something more epic.
What did you think of “Comeback”, Gleeks? Did you think it was a good showcase for the new and improved Rachel Berry? Have you ordered your pony sweater yet? Do you think Samtana is the new It couple? There were a lot of incredibly funny lines and moments this week, so check out these highlights:
- “I just stopped my own heart. That’s my CIA training.” – Sue
- “Will, you have more grease in your hair than the guy behind WikiLeaks.” – Sue
- “Who’s more rockin’ than Justin Bieber?” – Sam
- “I wore tank top today because I thought it was summer. No one ever taught me how to read a calendar.” – Brittany
- Can we just take a moment to discuss all the awesome hats this week – particularly two of Brittany’s? They were amazing. I’ll be focusing more on this over at You Know You Love Fashion.
- “Dude, that haircut makes your mouth look even bigger.” – Puck, to Sam (obvs.)
- “I’m gonna need that girl for the Cheerios.” – Sue, about Sam (again, obvs.)
- Will: “Who can tell us what an anthem is?”
Brittany: “The bottom of an ant’s pant.”
Will: “So close.” - “For a brief period, I was a tambourine player for Wilson Phillips.” – Sue
- “Most teachers think by cutting class I could improve my grades.” – Brittany
- “And William, I don’t care how adorable those kids are, if I hear one song from that classic rock outfit Journey, I will start pulling catheters.” – Sue
- “my carousel horse sweater should make me look like an institutionalized toddler. But no, I look hot and smart. I feel like Michelle Obama.” – Santana
- “When people look at you, they don’t see what you’re wearing. They see a cat getting its temperature taken and then they hear it screaming.” – Brittany, to Rachel
- Sam: “That’s my James Earl Jones impression.”
Santana: “That is offensive. He shot Martin Luther King.” - “Every time you open your humongous mouth to do an impression or moisten an enormous stamp for a lazy giant, you get one step closer to everyone seeing you’re actually a dork.” – Santana (that girl was on fire last night!)
- Merecedes’ lesson on being a diva: “It’s all about sassy fingers and shaking that weave and generally, taking no nonsense from nobody.”
- Rachel’s lesson on being a diva: “Being a diva is all about emotion. In fact, you feel so much emotion that it cannot be physically contained. Sometimes you have to close you eyes, turn your head, and push – push your feelings away they’re that big!”
