With the tenth anniversary of my favorite show approaching, I wanted to do something special and write a review for every episode throughout the year. Starting with the pilot episode, it was pretty nostalgic. When high school Spanish teacher Will Schuester takes over the school's failing Glee Club, he recruits a group of outcasts to join and tries to balance his work life while also dealing with a struggling marriage.
'Glee' is what the Marvel Cinematic Universe is now: a giant ensemble cast in a successful series. Because of this, there are many cast performances to focus on. Fortunately, there are only a few characters the viewers need to focus on in the pilot episode. Starting with adult actors, Broadway alum Matthew Morrison is pretty convincing as struggling teacher Will Schuester. He's a compelling character, and his motivations are very clear and understandable. He wants to relive his glory days by getting involved in the Glee Club by coaching but wants to make a difference in the students' lives, particularly the outcasts. While he is shown to be a well-respected teacher, he is struggling at home because while he loves his wife Terri, played by Jessalyn Gilsig, she doesn't make him feel very good about himself and doesn't support his decision to coach the Glee Club, as she wants him to have a better job so she can have more materialistic things. Morrison does a great job in the role and shows us what kind of teachers we want/wanted growing up. Jessalyn Gilsig is pretty good as Terri Schuester, as she portrays a pretty unlikable character from the start. It's clear she's very controlling and wants things her way, and that makes for an irritating character. Gilsig does a good job portraying that. Jane Lynch is entertaining as cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester. Known for comedy movies, Lynch joins the television world playing a unique villain who doesn't seem that way at first. It's clear that she has some animosity towards Schuester and the club when he asks her for advice as to how to recruit more people. While she eventually becomes incredibly entertaining, she doesn't have much screen time, which is pretty disappointing considering Lynch's celebrity and the importance of her character in this show. Jayma Mays is great as school guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury. Right away, we're introduced to her struggle with OCD, but we don't know much about it. Later on, we find out she is crushing on Will even though he is married. At the same time, she is pushing away the one guy who likes her, the football coach Ken Tanaka. She's a very relatable character and stays that way throughout the entire series. Patrick Gallagher is good as the creepy yet entertaining football coach. All we know about him at this point is that he is madly in love with Emma and will stop at nothing to be with her. Somehow, this makes him an interesting character. Iqbal Theba is good as Principal Figgins, as is Romy Rosemont as Carole Hudson. On to the students, Lea Michele is great as diva Rachel Berry. Incredibly ambitious and the school loser, Rachel has always dreamed of being a star and dreams of being on Broadway. When she joins the Glee Club, she struggles with sharing the spotlight and is bossy. Michele does a great job playing this role thanks to her own background as a Broadway star. Cory Monteith is amazing as the quarterback Finn Hudson. He's basically Troy Bolton from 'High School Musical' but on a TV show, as he struggles choosing football/popularity over being in Glee Club. A born leader, Finn is the most interesting character in this episode, as we learn about everything that made him who he is today. His speech to his teammates makes him the standout of the episode. Chris Colfer is great as Kurt Hummel, the only openly gay kid in the school, thus making him an outcast. We don't know much about him at this point, but he's pretty much the comic relief. Kevin McHale is fine as Artie Abrams, a kid in a wheelchair, and Jenna Ushkowitz is okay as Tina Cohen-Chang, the shy girl, but both don't get enough screen time. Amber Riley is pretty good as Mercedes Jones, fellow diva to Rachel and just as ambitious as her. When she first meets Rachel, it's clear there is tension between the two and that they will be competing against each other. Mark Salling is pretty good as Noah 'Puck' Puckerman, Finn's best friend and the school bully. Puck is very unsupportive of Finn's choice to be in Glee Club and isn't afraid to let him know it. He bullies most of the kids in the club and is also seen as an unlikable, immature character. Salling does a good job for the time he is given on screen. Because she was only cast the day before filming her scenes, Dianna Agron doesn't get a lot of screen time but is good as Quinn Fabray, the head cheerleader, president of the Celibacy Club, and rival of Rachel Berry. Like Puck, she's mean and is incredibly popular. Thanks to this, she's also dating the other most popular person in school, Finn Hudson. Everybody does a good job, but balancing many characters in the pilot proved to be a challenge.
Before airing, 'Glee' was pitched as a movie, and that's exactly what this episode feels like. While the plot is interesting, the structure feels too similar to a movie's, as it feels like most of the storylines that were introduced were wrapped up. At times, it's even predictable. But what is so great about this episode is how it sets up the entire show. Our introduction of the characters shows how they will be going forward. The characters have certain traits that help them grow, Finn being a great example for this episode. There is a realistic high school setting, as there are several scenes featuring bullying, and the main characters are all outcasts in different ways. With them being outcasts, they all eventually bond and feel like a team by the end of the episode. To progress to that level that quickly is pretty impressive, as it works really well.
I can't end this without mentioning 'Don't Stop Believing', the song that became the show's anthem. It's the most popular song the show ever did and has stood the test of time as one of the best performances in the entire show. In my opinion, it's even better than the original. The pilot episode is definitely one of the best in the series, as it really did a good job introducing characters and performances people still talk about ten years later.
Pros: -Introduction of characters -Realistic high school setting -Great cast performances -Sets up entire show -Great musical performances -Team progression -Plot
Cons: -Some characters don't get enough screen time -Story structure feels like a movie/short film
9/10 "Fantastic"
'Glee' is what the Marvel Cinematic Universe is now: a giant ensemble cast in a successful series. Because of this, there are many cast performances to focus on. Fortunately, there are only a few characters the viewers need to focus on in the pilot episode. Starting with adult actors, Broadway alum Matthew Morrison is pretty convincing as struggling teacher Will Schuester. He's a compelling character, and his motivations are very clear and understandable. He wants to relive his glory days by getting involved in the Glee Club by coaching but wants to make a difference in the students' lives, particularly the outcasts. While he is shown to be a well-respected teacher, he is struggling at home because while he loves his wife Terri, played by Jessalyn Gilsig, she doesn't make him feel very good about himself and doesn't support his decision to coach the Glee Club, as she wants him to have a better job so she can have more materialistic things. Morrison does a great job in the role and shows us what kind of teachers we want/wanted growing up. Jessalyn Gilsig is pretty good as Terri Schuester, as she portrays a pretty unlikable character from the start. It's clear she's very controlling and wants things her way, and that makes for an irritating character. Gilsig does a good job portraying that. Jane Lynch is entertaining as cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester. Known for comedy movies, Lynch joins the television world playing a unique villain who doesn't seem that way at first. It's clear that she has some animosity towards Schuester and the club when he asks her for advice as to how to recruit more people. While she eventually becomes incredibly entertaining, she doesn't have much screen time, which is pretty disappointing considering Lynch's celebrity and the importance of her character in this show. Jayma Mays is great as school guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury. Right away, we're introduced to her struggle with OCD, but we don't know much about it. Later on, we find out she is crushing on Will even though he is married. At the same time, she is pushing away the one guy who likes her, the football coach Ken Tanaka. She's a very relatable character and stays that way throughout the entire series. Patrick Gallagher is good as the creepy yet entertaining football coach. All we know about him at this point is that he is madly in love with Emma and will stop at nothing to be with her. Somehow, this makes him an interesting character. Iqbal Theba is good as Principal Figgins, as is Romy Rosemont as Carole Hudson. On to the students, Lea Michele is great as diva Rachel Berry. Incredibly ambitious and the school loser, Rachel has always dreamed of being a star and dreams of being on Broadway. When she joins the Glee Club, she struggles with sharing the spotlight and is bossy. Michele does a great job playing this role thanks to her own background as a Broadway star. Cory Monteith is amazing as the quarterback Finn Hudson. He's basically Troy Bolton from 'High School Musical' but on a TV show, as he struggles choosing football/popularity over being in Glee Club. A born leader, Finn is the most interesting character in this episode, as we learn about everything that made him who he is today. His speech to his teammates makes him the standout of the episode. Chris Colfer is great as Kurt Hummel, the only openly gay kid in the school, thus making him an outcast. We don't know much about him at this point, but he's pretty much the comic relief. Kevin McHale is fine as Artie Abrams, a kid in a wheelchair, and Jenna Ushkowitz is okay as Tina Cohen-Chang, the shy girl, but both don't get enough screen time. Amber Riley is pretty good as Mercedes Jones, fellow diva to Rachel and just as ambitious as her. When she first meets Rachel, it's clear there is tension between the two and that they will be competing against each other. Mark Salling is pretty good as Noah 'Puck' Puckerman, Finn's best friend and the school bully. Puck is very unsupportive of Finn's choice to be in Glee Club and isn't afraid to let him know it. He bullies most of the kids in the club and is also seen as an unlikable, immature character. Salling does a good job for the time he is given on screen. Because she was only cast the day before filming her scenes, Dianna Agron doesn't get a lot of screen time but is good as Quinn Fabray, the head cheerleader, president of the Celibacy Club, and rival of Rachel Berry. Like Puck, she's mean and is incredibly popular. Thanks to this, she's also dating the other most popular person in school, Finn Hudson. Everybody does a good job, but balancing many characters in the pilot proved to be a challenge.
Before airing, 'Glee' was pitched as a movie, and that's exactly what this episode feels like. While the plot is interesting, the structure feels too similar to a movie's, as it feels like most of the storylines that were introduced were wrapped up. At times, it's even predictable. But what is so great about this episode is how it sets up the entire show. Our introduction of the characters shows how they will be going forward. The characters have certain traits that help them grow, Finn being a great example for this episode. There is a realistic high school setting, as there are several scenes featuring bullying, and the main characters are all outcasts in different ways. With them being outcasts, they all eventually bond and feel like a team by the end of the episode. To progress to that level that quickly is pretty impressive, as it works really well.
I can't end this without mentioning 'Don't Stop Believing', the song that became the show's anthem. It's the most popular song the show ever did and has stood the test of time as one of the best performances in the entire show. In my opinion, it's even better than the original. The pilot episode is definitely one of the best in the series, as it really did a good job introducing characters and performances people still talk about ten years later.
Pros: -Introduction of characters -Realistic high school setting -Great cast performances -Sets up entire show -Great musical performances -Team progression -Plot
Cons: -Some characters don't get enough screen time -Story structure feels like a movie/short film
9/10 "Fantastic"