I expected Glee to be 1) an easy to watch series that I can fill my time with while commuting, etc., and 2) music. There was a lot of music, plotlines, twists, social commentaries, jokes, serious moments, etc. In those six seasons - some horrible, some great, some in between. I want to especially praise Sue (played masterfully by Jane Lynch). Although ther's a lot to critize with Glee, for me it's a guilty-pleasure show that added almost 200 songs to my playlist and that I will mostly remember fondly.
Season 1: Glee has a slow start. Getting to know the characters, wonderfully silly plots (pregnant Terri), and kind of stumbling in place. But it also offers strong themes (Kurt's sexuality, pregnant Quinn) and there's always room for a bit of humor. I grew to like all the characters sooner or later. Plus, it starts to take itself seriously in the second half of the season and builds up nicely to an effective finale.
Favorite episodes: 01 Pilot, 04 Peggers, 08 Mash-Up, 09 Wheels, 13 Sectionals, 15 The Power of Madonna, 19 Dream On, 20 Theatricality, 21 Journey to Regionals.
Favorite songs:Don't Stop Believin', Alone, Keep Holding On, True Colors, My Life Would Suck Without You, Like A Prayer, Total Eclipse Of The Heart, Bad Romance, Bohemian Rhapsody, (+ 35 more).
Season 2: Better than previous season. The new characters fit in nicely with the others and we get to know a bit more about the original ones. The relationship twists and turns sometimes make your head spin, but Puck + Lauren, for example, show that even seemingly WTF plotline can work well. The strongest plotline is once again about Kurt, but the rest is definitely not to be dismissed. Holly played by Gwyneth Paltrow, Sue and her sister or Emma's subplot are very good. The bittersweet finale is even better and more emotionally touching than last time.
Favorite episodes: 03 Grilled Cheesus, 05 The Rocky Horror Glee Show, 06 Never Been Kissed, 07 The Substitute, 08 Furt, 10 A Very Glee Christmas, 14 Blame It On the Alcohol, 16 Original Song, 20 Prom Queen, 21 Funeral, 22 New York.
Favorite songs: I Want To Hold Your Hand, Hot Patootie, Teenage Dream, Singing In The Rain / Umbrella, Sing, Loser Like Me, Raise Your Glass, Friday, Still Got Tonight, Light Up the World, (+ 34 more).
Season 3: It starts out mediocre, but gradually turns out to be the best season of the show, noticeably more balanced than the others. Once again, the new characters fit right in with the others. The relationships, characters and plots have settled down and are more mature. The plotlines reflect this and are all great. "Humanized" Sue and Karofsky's plotlines deserve a big thumbs up. Everything builds up to a moving finale. Glee Club as we've known it for the past 3 years is leaving with glory.
Favorite episodes: 03 Asian F, 07 I Kissed a Girl, 08 Hold On to Sixteen, 10 Yes No, 11 Michael, 13 Heart, 14 On My Way, 18 Choke, 19 Prom-asaurus, 21 Nationals, 22 Goodbye.
Favorite songs: Rumour Has It / Someone Like You, We Are Young, We Found Love, Black or White, Smooth Criminal, Stereo Hearts, Cough Syrup, Glad You Came, What Makes You Beautiful, Edge of Glory, It's All Coming Back To Me Now, Starships, (+ 38 more).
Season 4: There's too much going on, yet the season isn't focused on anything. Everything is just kind of bland, dull. There is an absurd amount of plotlines, but none of them are engaging and even the potentially interesting ones end unsatisfyingly (bulimia, Katie). Whereas in previous seasons the subplots fitted in quite well with the main story-arc, in season four everything feels very episodic. Splitting the plot into two locations/storylines (McKinley and New York) did more harm than good. The new characters are mostly uninteresting and even the original ones are mostly boring. The finale is weak.
Favorite episodes: 01 New Rachel, 04 The Break-Up, 06 Glease, 07 Dynamic Duets, 11 Sadie Hawkins, 14 I Do, 18 Shooting Star, 22 All Or Nothing.
Favorite Songs: Everytime, The Scientist, Whistle, Tell Him, Anything Could Happen, Mamma Mia, Don't Stop Believin' (Rachel), Hall Of Fame, (+ 28 others).
Season 5: Better than last time. The weak points of season 4 (ad-hoc plotlines going nowhere, bad use of characters, split between McKinley and NY) still remain, but aren't as blatant this time. Storylines of old Glee club members are mostly OK, but the newcomers (except for Kitty) are again boring and unispired. The series reaches its peak halfway through, when Glee Club nostalgically ends (and the newcomers are removed without any dignity). Unfortunately, the rest of the series in NY isn't worth much.
Favourite episodes: 07 Puppet Master, 08 Previously Unaired Christmas, 09 Frenemies, 11 City Of Angels, 12 The 100, 13 New Directions, 18 The Back-up Plan.
Favorite Songs: Brave, Mary's Little Boy, I Believe In A Thing Called Love, Vacation, More Than A Feeling, Mr. Roboto / Counting Stars, Raise Your Glass, Don't Stop Believin', Downtown, Story Of My Life, Wake Me Up, Take Me Home Tonight, , (27+ others).
Season 6: Back to the roots. The shorter the 6th season is, the more it tries to wrap everything up, throw in something new and have a bit of fun. Sometimes it works (Rachel and the New Directions reboot), sometimes less so (Rachel and Sam) and sometimes not at all (Beiste). Unfortunately, the new characters, which surprisingly are quite good and likeable, don't have much space, because the show - again - focuses on Glee veterans. In the end, almost everyone returns and with some hint of nostalgia the entire show bids us farewell with solid finale.
Favorite episodes: 04-05 The Hurt Locker 1 & 2, 09 Child Star, 11 We Built This Glee Club, 12 2009, 13 Dreams Come True.
Favorite songs: Home, Take On Me, It Must Have Been Love, All Out Of Love, The Final Countdown, Come Sail Away, I Lived, (+12 more).
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