Wednesday, June 9, 2010

To Glee, With Love.


Last night's Glee finale: I came, I saw, I cried.
The show wasn't without its bizarre/jarring moments. Like the whole Quinn giving birth/Vocal Adrenaline sequence. I will never hear Bohemian Rhapsody the same way again. (Baby Beth, by the way, gets the prize for cutest baby ever "born" on TV.) Also, Idina Menzel adopting Beth. Am I the only one who found that just...creepy?

Anywhosers. Weird stuff aside, this was one of the most moving episodes of Glee to date. There were about 84 different parts that had me weeping like a baby. Here are just a few:

-The glee kids serenading Will with "To Sir, With Love." I lost it when Will started to cry. And again when seeing each of the Glee kids tear up, one by one, during their close-ups.

-The entire "Don't Stop Believin'" performance. Glee songs don't normally make me shed tears, but this one did. Probably because it was a total throwback to May 2009, when we first saw the Glee kids singing it in their red T-shirts. To think how far they've come, all the way to regionals. Artie even used hair gel for the occasion! He's all grown up! If the entirety of Glee--its essence, its soul--can be summed up by one song, it's this one.

-Sue Sylvester in the last half-hour, putting New Directions down for first place. And then blackmailing Figgins to give the club another year. And then getting misty-eyed in the back of the room as the club sang to Will. Who knew Sue had a heart? Actually, all of us.

-"Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Will and Puck sang this at the Glee concert, so I'd heard it once already. But this song as the closing act for Season 1: A sweet, wistful, and memorable way to say good-bye.

And of course, the episode was not without its hilarity. Two parts stand out:

-Every line Josh Groban and Olivia Newton-John uttered in the judging room.

-The title of Sue Sylvester's memoir: I'm a Winner and You're Fat.

Best quotes:

"He was having an affair with some tattooed freak." -Quinn's mom (I hope Sandra Bullock watches this show)

"You know how many Facebook friends I had before glee club? Two--my parents." -Tina C.
"From Fort Wayne, Indiana, the not-at-all stupidly named, Aural Intensity!" -Sue

So long, Glee. It's been a crazy, emotional, triumphant ride. Thank you for all of it. The songs, the laughs, the concert (I'm still recovering). Thank you for bringing joy to the Gleeks, one inspiration song at a time.

See you in the fall.

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