Remember all that faith I had in Glee after its season premiere, that the series could truly get back to its early episode roots and deliver a memorable and entertaining final season? Yeah, that faith is pretty much all gone now after these past two episodes. Picking up immediately where “The Hurt Locker, Part One” left off, “Part Two” is just as pointless, soulless, and stupid. Simply put, for much of its 42-minute running time, “The Hurt Locker, Part Two” is Glee at its absolute worst.
There are brief moments of hope, like when Will encourages Rachel and reminisces about the early days of New Directions, or Kitty’s confesses that she doesn’t want to get left behind by her friends again. These scenes work because their small, quick reminders of what Glee used to be, of what the show even was in its season premiere just three weeks ago; they have heart and authenticity–they make us care.
But the rest of tonight’s Glee? Absolute garbage. It’s all overly snarky, self-aware jokes about the state of the series filtered through the Ian Brennan mouthpiece that used to be the character we called Sue Sylvester, who tells Becky to look at everything they’ve accomplished in the span of these two episodes. Yeah, right; the only thing Glee actually did over both of parts of “The Hurt Locker” was make any goodwill I had for the series disappear.
And it’s not just because I think the idea of Rachel and Sam together is insulting or moronic, or that we’re wasting time with a Jigsaw robot doll of Sue trapping Kurt and Blaine in an elevator instead of enjoying anything resembling a story around the new kids we’ve only just met. It’s not because I think the majority of the Glee‘s current plots are either terribly boring or disgustingly self-indulgent. No, what makes me so angry about “The Hurt Locker, Part Two” and its predecessor is that Glee expects to actually care about these stories and these characters without giving us a single valid reason for why we should.
Seriously, though, why should I care about a possible romance between Rachel and Sam when we’ve seen absolutely zero spark or real emotional connection between the two of them (not to mention Lea Michele and Chord Overstreet have no chemistry whatsoever)? Why should I spend any time worrying about what will happen between Kurt and Blaine in the elevator when it’s all part of some insanely unrealistic plan concocted by Sue, who is suddenly the world’s biggest “Klaine” shipper because the writers simply wanted her to be? And why should I cheer on the new glee club members like Jane, Roderick, and Mason when they’ve all had about 10 minutes worth of screen time combined since the end of the two-hour premiere?
At this point, I’m just ranting because I feel so angry at Glee for wasting what could have been an incredibly compelling story (Rachel and Kurt working together to rebuild the glee club and reconnecting with their underdog roots) and instead giving us nonsensical, over-the-top schlock that isn’t even funny. (I don’t think I laughed once this entire episode, not even at Sue’s True Detective-esque monologue at the end.)
I’ll continue watching the show for its final eight episodes because I’m reviewing it and it’s my job, and also because I’ve already invested so much time into this series over the past five years. However, I no longer have hope that I’ll enjoy the show on a weekly basis anymore; instead, I’ll just sit and watch as a series that was once one of my favorite shows on TV slogs its way to the finish line, leaving the TV landscape an unrecognizable shell of its former self.
Oh well. Here’s hoping there’s at least some good music along the way.
Other thoughts:
– One thing I’m incredibly grateful for from this episode: Kitty returning to the glee club. I’ll never complain about having more Becca Tobin on my TV.
– Joining Kitty as the newest member of New Directions is Spencer, the wide receiver who wants to be a quarterback, and, like the rest of the newbies, he isn’t really much of a character yet–just a lot of ideas and exposition.
– I dug the medley of songs that the New Directions performed, but I still wish that we had seen more energy from them. I don’t need any crazy Vocal Adrenaline-like choreography, but the performance was certainly missing some type of spark.
What did everyone else think of tonight’s episode of Glee?
[Photo via FOX]
I liked the eposide. It wasn’t the best but it was okay. Didn’t think it was as bad as this article writer thought.
Glee has become a horrible waste of talent and character development. I feel sorry for the actors, who have invested so much heart and soul into the series. During his book tour last summer, Chris Colfer said, more than once, that to him Glee was just one more mountain to climb. How prophetic that has turned out to be. :(
hey, I came here because I’m just curious of what people think about this season. To me it’s ok, and if you think differently (or maybe ‘ok’ is not ok for you) then maybe it is because you watch it to review it…not really just to spend your lazy time after tiring week at work reminiscing the moment you had in high school or on how a particular song can trigger certain feelings. I know you are doing your job, but you know what, I think all I’m saying is that I don’t share your opinion.
oh ps by the way, I really like all those Game of Thrones joke so far, not literally laughing, but I know deep down in my heart I lol’d. Peace :D