With nearly half of its third season underway, musical dramedy “Glee” has finally revealed a glimpse of why viewers fell in love with the show in the first place with the latest episode “Mash Off.” After heavily relying much of senior year on the school production of “West Side Story,” the high school drama prevails by returning to its original formula of incorporating music that has to do with what’s happening to the show’s stars.
FOX’s “Glee” centers on a group of very different high school students who form a singing group with the help of their Spanish teacher, Will Schuester. With a variety of characters in the ensemble cast, many episodes reveal dramatic characteristics about each star including relationships, sexuality, and social issues that result in song. This was shown in last week’s episode, which saw cheerleader Santana Lopez being exposed as a lesbian on television, which prompted her to sing her heart out to Adele’s “Someone Like You.”
After creator Ryan Murphy was criticized for the second season of the hit show, which depended on big guest stars like Gwyneth Paltrow and heavily themed episodes, he vowed to return to a more character-driven storyline. But the season thus far has left much of the show’s best characters like Guidance Counselor Emma Pillsbury in the dark and has given ex-cheerleader Quinn Fabray an odd baby-stealing storyline.
Murphy even went as far as to write off fan-favorite Lauren Zizes and give Sam Evans the boot, but has thankfully welcomed back the ladder who will return in the season’s eleventh episode. But the third season hasn’t been all bad: some highlights include Kurt Hummel’s campaign for Class President; Mercedes Jones’ rival choir group “The Troubletones,” and who could forget Mike Chang’s heartbreaking dance episode.
But was there really anything wrong with “Glee’s” second season to begin with? Viewers don’t seem to think so with last season being its highest rated to date, including a superbowl episode watched by nearly thirty million people. While the second season normally saw upwards of ten million viewers per episode, viewership continues to decline for its third season averaging nearly nine million people.
The FOX show also has an amazing merchandise line that includes soundtracks, concerts, and last summer’s 3-D film. But with the departure set for show stars Rachel Barry, Finn Hudson, and Kurt Hummel, will “Glee” survive another plot change or will the introduction of new cast members drive viewers away? Maybe they won’t have to: “Rumour Has It” many departing characters will be featured in a spin-off.
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