“Glee’s” plucky female lead, Rachel, may have declared “There is nothing ironic about show choir,” but Fox’s newest comedy thrives on devilishly dark irony and witty dialogue. While other networks have focused on reviving the tried and true trend of showcasing beautiful, troubled teens with “90210” and “Melrose Place,” “Glee” spurns a plush setting in favor of small town Ohio.
McKinley High is an unapologetic, typical high school at its finest. The jocks and cheerleaders, here known as the Cheerios, rule the roost and the kids in glee club struggle on the fringe of high school society. Their only defender is Spanish teacher Mr. Schuester, who makes it his goal to restore Glee Club to its former glory, namely when he helped the team win Nationals in 1993.
Beyond overcoming their nerdy image, the club has another daunting obstacle in its path: Sue Sylvester. As the Cheerios coach, Sue wants all of the funding at the budget strapped school going towards the Cheerios and will stop at nothing to squash the Glee Club’s thunder. Sue is the perfect, comic book-esque villain for “Glee” and actress Jane Lynch brings her to life expertly. When Glee Club tries to make seventeen copies on the Cheerios’ copier, Sue pushes for the kids to be expelled. When the end punishment is only paying for the copies (a whopping four cents each) and Sue is told she must clean up the smoothie she spilled, she tells Mr. Schuester, “Lady Justice wept today.”
The writing and acting are enough to power this series, but musical fans will enjoy the performance aspect of the show, in that the group performs each week. So far this season, viewers have been treated to renditions of Kanye West, Rhianna and Journey, and as the club progresses, it looks like audiences will be in for more modern favorites and choreography in coming episodes.
No show’s ever perfect, and “Glee” has some issues to work through as it settles into its time slot. Terri Schuester, Mr. Schuester’s wife, is a very unsympathetic character thus far. She is unsupportive of her husband’s love of teaching, resents his teaching salary and tries to get him to quit to become an accountant, and is in the process of lying about being pregnant. What a classy lady. Though “Glee” thrives on its stereotypes, Terri’s character needs some fleshing out because right now, it doesn’t add up that the adorable Mr. Schuester would marry a woman obsessed with Pottery Barn and her craft room.
If the writers can resolve this inconsistency while keeping up the show’s wit and musical chops, “Glee” will give Fox something to sing about this season.t and musical chops, “Glee” will give Fox something to sing about this season.
