So, another episode down as we enter the final season of the trailblazing show, Glee. What did you all think? There were definitely few messages reminiscent of the old Glee and a huge reveal that simply reminded me why I love this show so much.

Let’s dig in.

We get our first real taste of Rachel and Kurt as the new teacher’s for the New Directions and it goes just about as bicker-y as one would imagine. They want to be able to share older artists and music that the new kids maybe hadn’t discovered yet. This ultimately leads to compromise of mash-up week with Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill and Carole King’s Tapestry. So, Mr. Shuester’s famous marker board is labeled: Jagged Little Tapestry.

The point of the assignment is to mix together the sounds of both iconic break-up albums. That is the dark and edgy sounds of Alanis with the lighter Carole King with a partner of their choice. Luckily, the old glee kids are there to help as well. And, since this is Glee and almost everything is ridiculous I just go along with the fact that everything else in their lives could be simply put on hold. Although it was funny when one of the new kids simply asked, “Yea, how did you do that?”

While ironing jock straps in the men’s locker room, Sam has a brief conversation with Coach Beiste regarding the fact that she has been missing some practices and isn’t acting like herself. She lets him know that her bum knee is acting up and that he will have to step up to the plate in the coming weeks. Shortly after, the new kid Spencer comes in asking Coach if he could try out as quarterback. She strictly tells him no, since he is the best receiver and without him no one would be able to catch the passes he made as the new QB. It’s a tough break and Sam said that if he were in charge he probably would have given him a shot at it. Spencer immediately is in mastermind mode.

We get a really nice Becky storyline this week. There were some themes/issues planted throughout the episode and her’s held a couple of them. Becky is in a little bit of a dilemma. See, she has started dating this great guy named Darryl. However, she wants to impress him and has told him a couple lies in order to do so. It’s actually a very common thing that we’ve all probably done from time to time in initial stages of relationships. She told Darryl that she’s president of all sorts of clubs and is also a member of New Directions. Tina and Quinn are happy to help her with the glee club stuff, but both of them and Sue all have major doubts when they see that Darryl is a tall and cute guy with no disabilities.

This revelation puts them all in mama bear mode, questioning Darryl about his intentions and making sure that he is dating Becky for the right reasons. Also, the fabulous NeNe Lekes is there too… I love her! Sue has to ask the difficult question of whether or not he and Becky are having sex. Darryl says they are not but that someday when they are both ready he would like to. He then goes into a wonderful dialogue about the issue. It’s really worth watching and certainly shares a powerful message about the stigmas placed on those kinds of relationships. I hope this kid sticks around.

 

Volunteering to show the new kids what mashup week is all about, Santana and Brittany go into a lovely duet of “Hand in my Pocket” and “I Feel the Earth Move.” It’s a cute number with an even cuter finale. Santana wants to “mash-up” with Brittany for the rest of their lives, proposing to her. Brittany says yes and celebration ensues. That is until bitter Kurt breaks in and rains on the parade, telling them that they are all too young to be getting married. Had they learned nothing from him and Blaine? He gets some major shade from Santana, who later confronts him in the hallway as “Rantana” with probably the harshest and long-winded rant in Glee history. It’s too good to type out…you just have to watch.

Her words clearly struck a chord with Kurt though as he later apologizes to Brittany. She forgives him and tells him that he needs to move on from Blanie, who is moving in with Kurofsky. He agrees that it’s time he starts trying to move forward and let Blaine and Kurofsky be. I have faith in Kurt and Blaine. I really do feel that if there had to be a choice, they are now the core couple of this show and they will find happiness in the end.

We get a new kid mashup! Jane and Jane’s hair join Mason to sing a mashup of “Will you Love Me Tomorrow” and “Head Over Feet.” I really liked both of their voices and find it very impressive the clarity with which Mason’s voice comes out even though his mouth doesn’t open very much. The song is mixed in with some clips of Blaine and Kurt throughout their relationship. Kurt is clearly struggling with letting a relationship that he ended go. It’s a very hard thing to do and is much easier said than done.

When Jane and Mason are finished Rachel is all good cop and applause whereas Kurt is grumpy and bad cop, telling them that they have to do better if they want to succeed in Glee. Rachel doesn’t like Kurt’s harsh review of their first performance and asks him to leave. I know they will find their balance teaching, but I hope they do it soon. I really don’t like when they argue…it bothers me.

Going back to my favorite storyline of the evening, Sue Sylvester confronts Beiste about something Spencer told her. That she had been taking a lot of pills and missing a lot of practice. Sue, not shockingly, dug through Beiste’s desk and found all of the pills and asked her the same question I was thinking… “Do you have cancer?” Beiste responds yes and Sue vows to do everything in her power to help her. It was a touching moment.

They both call Sam in to tell him that he will be taking on more responsibility and Sue tells him it’s because Coach has cancer. Well, turns out she lied to Sue. Coach Beiste is actually in the process of transitioning to a man. She has never felt like she belonged in her own skin and wants to finally be who she truly is, and be someone that she loves. Sue promises her that her job will be there when she is finished with her journey. It is also a truly touching and brave scene. Glee has always shined light onto taboo topics that many shows tend to overlook and I love that. I am looking forward to this storyline progressing.

In the choir room, everyone including Sue and Darryl are there to watch Becky perform with Quinn and Tina. She gets nervous and runs out of the room. Tina, Quinn, Santana, and Brittany run after Becky and engage in a very necessary yet well-natured conversation with her.

Santana, our queen of brutal honestly this evening tells Becky that she is lazy and toxic and that she needs to learn to be nicer and let people get to know her for who she really is. She said that if Darryl doesn’t like her for everything that she is then he isn’t the guy for her. It’s very astute advice and she takes it to heart. Over dinner at Breadsticks, Becky comes clean and Darryl being the gentleman takes it in stride and promises to always have her back.

It turns out that Kurt’s tough words to Jane and Mason actually did some good. After watching old videos of the New Directions at competitions, Jane and Mason realized that they need to be pushed like Kurt was pushing them. Rachel tells Kurt this and they seem to find some common ground in their teaching styles. They can work together and find a way to succeed with these kids if they try.

Overall, it was a good episode and definitely laid down some groundwork for the coming season. However, I do hope that it gets moving soon. I missed Blaine this week, but more importantly there was no Roderick! He’s so good and I want to hear him sing basically all of the time. I love seeing the quirky old Glee pop up in these new episodes, whether it be the messages or just old character traits that we haven’t seen in a while.

Even though Glee has been pushed to Friday’s, I feel like the show is thriving in this new environment and will take us on a really great ride.

Song Recaps:

“It’s too Late” by Carole King

This Blaine and Kurt song was a nice choice. They are one of my favorite duos to sing together, not just because they were a couple but because of their relationship as a whole. Blaine helped Kurt become strong and proud even before they dated and I always thought they had a strong connection on many levels. It was a mellow yet upbeat performance. I could not find the video for it on YouTube.

“Hand In My Pocket” & “I Feel the Earth Move” by Alanis Morissette  & Carole King 

I love this Alanis song. It was pretty much the only one that I recognized by her. Brittany and Santana had a fun time performing this with this. I loved Brittany’s shirt, I would never be able to wear something like that seriously but she is such a free spirit and totally pulled it off. They showed those new kids how to mash-up!

 “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” & “Head Over Feet” by Carole King  & Alanis Morissette 

Brad the piano man isn’t there anymore! Sad day. I really like the new glee kids this season and while this song was a little on the slower side, their voices are so new that I enjoyed listening to it and getting to know their styles. I’m still so impressed by Mason’s ability to sing with such a closed mouth. Also, I always love a good flashback and we got to see some cute Blaine/Kurt moments that we haven’t seen in a while.

“So Far Away” by Carole King 

 This was a pretty quick one and there’s not too much to say about it. Quinn’s dress is adorable and her voice seems like it has gotten much stronger over the years. I felt really nervous for Becky in this scene, I can’t imagine how hard that must have been for her, about to be caught in a lie with the guy she likes.

“You Learn” &  “You’ve Got a Friend” by Alanis Morissette  & Carole King 

Ending group numbers will ALWAYS be my favorite type of Glee performance. This starts with all of the original New Directions members singing and then the new members join in. It’s a really nice moment and a great performance. I wish Puck could have gotten to do more this episode, but hopefully his time will come! It looked like they had a lot of fun with this one.

See you next week!