Theatricality
Glee Episode Guide
In which there are vampires. Lady Gaga inspires the Glee kids to express themselves and even though I'm not a Gaga fan, I'm still adding "Bad Romance" to just about every playlist I can find.
What Happened
Rachel realizes that Shelby Cocoran is her mother. When they meet, both are a little confused that there's not an immediate mother-daughter connection. In the end, Shelby takes Will's advice to step back for a bit and let Rachel adjust.
Kurt encourages Finn's mother to plan to move into the Hummels' home. Finn is moderately freaked by the sudden upheaval and uncomfortable sharing his personal space with Kurt. When he overhears Finn insulting Kurt using homophobic language, Burt kicks Finn out of the house. Pulling himself together, Finn dons a vinyl Gaga dress and saves Kurt from some bullies.
Quinn objects to Puck's suggestion that they name their daughter "Jackie Daniels," reminding him that she's giving the baby up for adoption so that he doesn't have to bother being a father. Thinking it over, Puck realizes that he missed his own dad - who went off on his own career quests - and suggests Beth instead. Quinn is touched by his song and agrees to let him be there when the baby is born.
The Good
- Funny Girl. Great performance from Idina Menzel.
- I like that Finn thought of a solution before talking to Will about not wanting to do Lady Gaga.
- I suppose that it is a plus that I absolutely loathe that pair of football bullies. I want them to get run over by a school bus. A big one.
The Better
- Lea Michele looks so young in her scenes with Shelby. She's so adorable.
- Tine & Figgins. OMG.
- Finn standing up to the bullies and saving Kurt. In a red shower curtain.
The Best
- Bad Romance. And I'm not even that much of a Gaga fan.
- Kurt wins a special endurance award for staying upright in those shoes.
- Burt's speech to Finn. Utterly perfect.
Best Lines
Tina: "My parents won't even let me watch Twilight. My mother thinks Kristen Stewart looks kind of like a bitch." (Not that I think badly of Kristen Stewart, but that is such a "mom" reason for something. Well. My mom, anyways. Ask her about her Smurf issues someday.)
Tina: "My balls keep falling off."
Kurt: "I've been there."
What Did I Think?
For all the build up, the Rachel-Shelby story was not entirely satisfying. It felt a bit cramped, like they needed another episode. I wish we had seen Rachel and Shelby making her costume so we got a better idea of how they interacted. Shelby tells Will that Rachel doesn't need her just minutes after we see Rachel ask for help. There needs to be follow up on that.
As a good-bye song, "Poker Face" is vocally interesting - particularly the arrangement they use - but it doesn't feel quite appropriate. Like a missed opportunity to choose a song that has more character-driven impact.
Ah, but what is any of that compared to Burt's speech to Finn? Has me bawling every time the way he defends his son. I mean, I feel for Finn. He's going through a lot. And from the outside (the audience perspective), we can go "aww" whenever Chris Colfer makes sad face, but the fact remains that Kurt has been interfering in Finn's life pretty heavily and not to good effect.
One thing that occurred to me is that maybe one of the reasons Kurt is so hung up on Finn is that Finn is the sort of son Kurt imagines his father wanted. So there's a double rejection there and that's just heartbreaking for poor Kurt. (Of course, I've come to suspect that 99.9% of Western Literature comes down to Daddy Issues, so I could be over-thinking it.)
I think it's a tribute to all the actors and the writing that it's not about good guys and bad guys, just about the people in the situation.