We got our first real peek at Glee back in May 2009. Since then, the show has skyrocketed to major popularity – with accompanying concert tours, merchandise and performances at the White House. On September 14 the complete first season of Glee was released on DVD. This follows on the footsteps of the Glee: Journey to Sectionals DVD that was released earlier this year.
The Show
I love Glee. I loved it from the pilot and I continue to love it even if some of the episodes are much better than the others. But there are times when I wonder if the show’s star burned too bright too fast. Can they possibly sustain this level of popularity, quality and demand? Fox is so sure of it that they’ve already renewed it for seasons 2 and 3 (before season 1 even finished).
I think we all remember the complaints that seemed to follow the show – the long mid-season hiatus, the pretty ridiculous fake pregnancy storyline, the fact that many episodes in the second half of the season didn’t really match the quality of the first half. Of course, the second half of the season did contain the spectacular Madonna and Lady Gaga episodes, not to mention the episode Joss Whedon Director. Then there was the finale. I LOVED the season 1 finale. The Bohemian Rhapsody performance by Vocal Adrenaline, cut with the birth of Quinn’s baby, was so brilliant I can watch it over and over to this day.
Sometimes I’m torn between my fear that Glee can never really live up to my expectations and my love for the show. Fortunately, with the things we have in store for season 2 – a Rocky Horror Picture Show episode and a Britney Spears-centric episode – I’m 99% confident that this show will continue to entertain me like no other show does.
The DVDs
The packaging for the Glee: The Complete First Season DVD is colorful and bright – just like most promotional materials for the show. Tucked inside was a little card with directions to obtain a $10 rebate if you had already purchased the mid-season DVD (Glee, Volume 1: The Road to Sectionals) and the Complete Season 1 DVD (I hope that it’s offered to everyone!).
But you really want to know about the special features. The box boasts over 2 hours of special features spread out among most of the 7 DVDs that make up the box set. Some of you will realize, however, that several special features were already contained on the Glee, Volume 1: The Road to Sectionals DVDs, including Audition Pieces and the Dance Book Camp features.
However, there are still plenty of bonus features left over to interest you. Among my favorite is the Glee Music Jukebox features, which contain the song and dance numbers (edited out of the episode overall) for many, many episodes, including Laryngitis, Theatricality, Dream On, Hello, The Power of Madonna, Bad Reputation, Home and Funk, to name but a few. Several songs, including “Alone” and “Somebody to Love” are part of the Glee Sing-Along Karaoke feature.
The DVDs also contain a few featurettes, including one about the costumes and another entitled Unleashing the Power of Madonna, which contains interviews with the cast and crew about the first single artist-centric episode of Glee. Ryan Murphy also leads the cast and crew in a featurette call Making of a Showstopper, which is a detailed behind the scenes look at the coordination of the Bohemian Rhapsody performance from the finale. Finally, there’s the Staying in Step with Glee feature, which is a step-by-step dance tutorial of the Rehab performance by Vocal Adrenaline from the series premiere.
The Bottom Line
Any real Glee fan (including people like myself who also buy the CDs) will want to purchase the Complete First Season box set. While some storylines may fall flat, the sheer majority of the performances are almost always worth watching again and again.
Glee season 2 is set to premiere on September 21. Until then, go read Jordan’s “Previously On…Glee” to catch up on how season 1 ended and learn a few things about what’s in store for season 2.
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