As Rachel (Lea Michele) walks down the hall in this new episode, audiences breathe a sigh of relief. They are back in high school and they are singing! Yet, if audiences were hoping things would be different for the Glee kids, think again. With slushies in their faces and Sue Sylvestor (Jane Lynch) back on their heels, everything is just as tough. Main guy Finn (Cory Montieth) feels that his game is off despite the fact that Rachel is his new girlfriend. Of course, just in time, teacher Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) swoops in with a new assignment for his kids. In order to get ready for regionals they must prepare a song with the word 'hello' in the title.
Glee's New Set of Tricks
Not only is this a great platform for Glee writers to show how clever they can be (oh look we can pick all these great songs that match). But this episode finally introduces some new blood and conflict into older story lines. If Rachel is "the kind of girl who wants things too badly" then her new romantic interest Jesse St. James is her true counterpart. Jesse St. James (Jonathan Gross) is the star of the rival group, Vocal Adrenaline. Gross performed with Lea Michele on Broadway in Spring Awakening and clearly are comfortable working together. Mostly, it feels good to watch Rachel stand up to flighty Finn who is in dire need of a wake up call.
New Romance, New Hook-ups, New Songs
As these new relationships heat up, even Will gets his hands on some new Glee cast members. Idina Menzel, from Broadway fame and Tony award winning as Elphaba in Wicked, joins the show as Vocal Adrenaline's director. Menzel's not singing in Glee yet, but she is on the right show to finally get some mainstream success. Obviously all is not what it seems, even in Finn's failed two-pronged cheerio date (a situation that sports the best one-liners of the episode, a reference to Rachel looking like "Pippy Longstocking but Israeli" and that "dolphins are just gay sharks").
But the episode works hard, has stellar one-liners and good numbers with Rachel and Jesse's duet of Lionel Richie's 'Hello' and Finn's song 'Hello, I Love You' by The Doors. Both numbers offer different things. The duet, where suddenly a mini orchestra appears, is spontaneous and appears organic as the couple sit down to publicly sing to each other. Yet Jesse hardly looks at his hands while playing the piano, appearing to have already known this song and thus, planned the moment. Characters burst into song, but in a controlled and almost painfully naturalized way. Whereas Finn's numbers shows him in rehearsal onstage then transported into a music video. Sauntering down the high school hallway, singing while playing basketball, and dancing with the cheerios, Finn steps straight into Disney's High School Musical. Regardless of what audiences prefer, the two numbers represent the struggle of the musical and Glee struggles to be successful to modern audiences while still honoring classic movie musical history.
A New Direction for Glee
Ultimately, this struggle will play out all season. But in this episode it specifically plays out in the following example. When in between both the Finn and Jesse/Rachel numbers Rachel belts out her own song. A version of the All American Rejects song 'Give You Hell.' Rachel sings in Glee Club rehearsal, thus involving her fellow singers. This choice of environment allows Rachel's solo number to reunite spontaneity, naturalization, and performance all into one. The three elements that are conventionally used for successful modern musicals. But is this episode a success?
Obviously, Glee's Rachel has found her inner rock star more easily than Finn, but it is clear her relationship with Finn will be the forefront on these next nine episodes. For example, the 'Hell-o' episode sadly limits the singing to mostly Rachel and Finn, leaving out the other club members. However, the last number sung by the group, a version of 'Hello Goodbye' by the Beatles, reinforces the glee club group as a unit. It is a necessary move to prepare for next week's Madonna themed episode (but also significant as it ultimately highlights the group over the couple). Already garnering massive buzz and itunes pre-orders, the upcoming Madonna episode will reinforce where the show can go and how fans consume it (what will they buy? support? re-watch?). And hopefully, with these upcoming episodes, Glee will figure out what it wants to say and decide what stereotypes it actually wants to break, rather than going back and forth thematically in each episode.
Nicola Jones - Growing up in New Orleans Nicola never had any inkling at being part of this thing people call the entertainment business. Now, after ...
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