105 Ways to Give a Book

What Happens on Wednesdays...

Did you use “stays on Wednesdays” to finish the phrase? Me too. And I have done so ever since I read a picture book by the same title. So, I’ve decided to use this phrase to set aside a day to talk about non-book stuff. Maybe not every week, but who knows?

Can we talk about last night’s episode of Glee yet? If it’s still on your DVR, this would be the time to leave. Just go. Come back later.

First I should mention that I have a love/hate relationship with this show. Love the music. Hate the fact that every song is a solo with back-up — not very “glee club” in my book. It irks me to no end, yet I can’t deny that I love hearing these singers. Love the witty dialogue, hate the sloppy plot writing. Yes, in a musical everyone knows the song and performs it perfectly with accompaniment standing at the ready. I’ll give them a lot of leeway with that format. But Sue taking over the glee club from another school? Couldn’t we have accomplished the same thing with her bullying or manipulating the director? If it was only one ridiculous thing, I could accept it more than the piling-on of crazy while still trying to be realistic and relatable.

I have a love/hate relationship with the characters also. Sometimes I think that the writers are so, so very good with what they’re giving us. Other times they go in the wrong direction, away from the baseline of who the character is. I’m sick of Rachel talking about how she just wants to be noticed, when she had always presented as this confident chick. Maybe this mooning over Finn is giving her some depth, but it seems at odds with who she is as a person. Honestly, she’s just getting on my nerves.

But the character I root for most is Kurt. And I mean that I’m rooting for the writing of the character as much as I get lost in the fictional world of the show. We’ve gotten some of the best development and sharpest, boldest writing in this character. We’ve also had some missteps in making him too perfect, too untouchable in the careful dance to portray his sexual orientation and yet not let it become a joke or even too real.

Well, all that is forgiven with last night’s episode where Kurt and Blaine kissed. They kissed! And it was adorable! Squee-worthy! Like the best couple to kiss on the show since Will and Emma at the very beginning when we thought they would be so awesome together before it all fell apart... Anyway, I was happy for Kurt in the show and was excited that the producers/writers dared to Go There. Thank you, thank you! This is the kind of thing we need to see on TV because this moment, this kiss was sweet and real and — hey, what do you know? — not at all uncomfortable. Hopefully as more people get this — whether through their own friends/family/neighbors or characters on TV — we can approach a place where judgment for one’s sexual orientation can be a thing of the past.

Okay, perhaps that’s a lot of expect from one show, one character, one kiss. But if it were to start with one, it would be this one.

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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was so happy that Kurt and Blaine finally kissed too after Blaine realized he had feelings for Kurt. I thought the way Blaine talked to Kurt's dad in last week's episode was so sensitively handled that the lead up to the kiss did seem normal, which it should have seemed anyuway. Also, Rachel's speech at the end of the show irked me to no end For heavens sake, the entire school and all of Lima, Ohio should know by now that the girl has a special gift for singing and now writing. I'm not entirely sure that Finn is someone she should want back. That is starting to irk me, also.

Pat from Ohio

Anonymous said...

I'm also irked that I can't type "anyway".

Jennie said...

Last night I *loved* Kurt's storyline and hated the other one. YAY! Kurt finally got kissed! YAY!

I've written on Geek Buffet about my their arrangement issues. I haven't written up yesterday's episode yet.

Also, can I express my joy that I can download "Hell to the No" and my extreme disappointment that I can't download "My Headband" "Only Child" "Big-Ass Heart" and, most importantly, "Trouty Lips?" I really want a MP3 "Trouty Lips."

MotherReader said...

Jennie, I read your post at Geek Buffet and agree that the writers need to perhaps get a better understanding of "teamwork" or even "glee club."

Though at this point I'm pretty sure that a specific number of solo songs must be in the actors' contracts. How else to explain Darren Criss getting two solos per show? Must have been negotiated that way.

Michelle said...

You've verbalized my thoughts so well in this post. I feel like Glee has gone totally off the rails (plot wise) this season. It's just a series of PSA's with cameos of guest stars. The conssistency from the first season is almost entirely gone.

I like some of the characters more than others but very few of them are appealing anymore. I stick it out to be entertained by the songs/performances and hope that some stability of story will eventually pop back up. :)