The Thing About Glee

Glee has, without a doubt, become quite a television phenomenon over the past two years. After Golden Globes and Emmy wins, countless fans, soundtracks and other merchandise, it seems that this phenomenon is around to stay. It has been praised for it's uniqueness and representation of high school outcasts, and for good reason. The concept of a musical comedy-drama television show is original and exciting for audiences and the use of mentally challenged, handicapped, and overweight cast members/characters is definitely a positive one. For these and other reasons, Glee is a groundbreaking show that deserves its applause. However, there is a reason why most college-aged people say Glee is their guilty pleasure. There is something about the show that makes people embarrassed to say that they watch it. Being labeled a "gleek" is, by no stretch of the imagination, a badge of honor for some. But why is this if it is a such a well-recognized, successful show? There are several things wrong with Glee that audiences overlook after being dazzled with their favorite songs or novel characters.

First of all, there is a logistical problem with the show that surprisingly hasn't been addressed in the media. This show takes place in high school, a four year program. What happens when the main characters graduate? Seasons of Glee follow the glee club through the school year to regionals. Most high school television shows gain longevity either by stretching about the school year over several seasons or by following the same characters through college. The way Glee is showing now, we shouldn't expect more than four seasons if they intend to run each season through the school year. Following the main characters through college doesn't maintain the point of Glee in the first place- to follow a high school glee club. New characters could be introduced and audiences could follow their four years in high school, but it's doubtful that audiences would build much empathy with new sets of main characters constantly being brought to the show.

When looking at the show from a purely talent-based point of view, the cast is impressive and the overall scope of the show is original and admittedly, addictive. However, when listening to the soundtrack not knowing what it is, it sounds like a Kidz Bop album. When watching the show, the performances are impressive and moving because of the core emotion the actors emit, not to mention the cinematography and editing. But without these aspects, the music alone leaves the listener wanting. The recent use of original songs is a wise move, but it's questionable how far original songs can go with the show. One of the main reasons to watch the show is to see a new rendition of your favorite songs performed, and without this the show will lose a lot. Along the same lines, episodes can get repetitive because the audience can predict who will have solos and what kind of songs the soloists will be singing. This kind of predictability gives the viewer no reason to keep watching the show week after week.

The makers of Glee make up for this predictability through their plot. One of the main reasons why Glee is so addictive is because there is always some big twist in each episode. Unfortunately, the cost of these twists is consistency. There have been several plot inconsistencies in terms of forgetting about supposedly important characters or simply dropping important parts of the plot for several episodes at a time. A few weeks ago, Yahoo released a list of inconsistencies within the show relating to "important" supporting characters, plot lines, etc. These inconsistencies are more noticeable when watching the show episode after episode online than on a weekly basis. But a great show should be one where you can buy the seasons and watch episode after episode with some kind of flow. The makers of Glee seem to be desperately fighting for their ratings and addictive, exciting appeal by adding any kind of character twist with little or no logic behind it based on character qualities. Each week, we find out that someone is breaking up or cheating or still in love with their ex. What happened to supporting diverse, overlooked populations? How much of the plot is meant to support abused populations and how much of it is for shock value? The first season was much more in keeping with this ideal for the show, but the struggle to maintain ratings seems to have taken over. More attention should be paid to the individual struggles of the students we sympathize with and less attention should be paid to the same recycled teen relationships.