Glee Season 1 (2009)
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Glee Season 1 Review
Glee is a Fox teen comedy musical show that ran from 2009 for six seasons. The first season premiered in 2009 and consisted of 22 episodes.
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“I don’t trust a man with curly hair.
I can’t help but picturing birds laying sulfurous eggs in there,
and I find it disgusting“
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I like this show. I do not love it, at least not for now anyway, but I like it quite a bit despite its many flaws. And oh boy does it have its many problems, but it’s also very entertaining, undeniably so. First off, it succeeds as a musical quite a bit as the musical numbers are for the most part very well utilized into both the plot and the character motivations. The choreography is good as are the chosen songs, though at times either safe or odd. I only wish they weren’t so polished.
The storytelling is fine, though far from great. It tackles some important issues when it comes to teenage lives and the show focuses well on both adults and the kids which I appreciated. The humor is also pretty solid and the character interactions are strong, but my major issue with the show so far has been the pacing which is horrible and the show actually makes the rare, but nonetheless fatal mistake of jumping from one plot point to another and condensing too much plot into one single episode instead of spreading it out into more episodes.
Let’s talk about each and every character. Artie is fine, but he needed more screen time. I appreciated the honesty when it comes to the depiction of his disability. Rachel is a mixed bag. She’s too stereotypical, but also rather relatable at times with her high dreams. I just wish for more complexity when it comes to her portrayal.
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Quinn started off weak, but became better later on and I really liked the portrayal of teenage pregnancy and how problematic it is. Finn is very likable, but too much unnecessary drama happens around him. Mercedes is a lot of fun, but underutilized a lot.
Kurt is great and very admirably portrayed, but homophobia is not a strong issue for this show as it’s portrayed way too lightly, though I did love his relationship with his father as it was quite touching at times and so well acted too.
Let’s talk about the adults who were at first portrayed as buffoons, but later started gaining some momentum and realism. Terri is ridiculous as not only a stereotype, but also as unbelievable in her actions and simply horrible as a human being. But Emma is so wonderful and her growing romance with Will is one of the most charming parts of the show. She’s cute and so endearing.
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Speaking of Will, he’s very relatable as this man who never got to live out his dream and tries to achieve them through these kids. He’s wonderfully portrayed by Matthew Morrison who gives the best performance in the show. He’s a great choice for the protagonist.
But Sue is easily the standout character in the show as Jane Lynch shines in this silly, but undeniably impressive role. The character’s a lot of fun and she steals the show comedy-wise with many instantly memorable and hilarious one-liners. I want more from her as Lynch kills it.
In the end, this first season of Glee has its pacing issues and some characters are weaker than others, but the show is a lot of fun despite its many flaws while its characters are for the most part pretty well developed and the acting’s great. It’s a solid introduction, but I expect greater things from it in the future.
Worst Episodes: Hairography and Funk.
Best Episodes: Ballad and Dream On.
