Friday, November 26, 2010

A Little Friday Night "Glee"...

Glee is easily one of the most talked-about shows on television. The songs performed on the show are some of the most-downloaded on iTunes, and celebrities are clamoring to perform some role. This season alone has seen Neil Patrick Harris, Kristin Chenoweth, Gwyneth Paltrow, Carol Burnett and even Susan Boyle is lined up for a cameo.

Truth be told, I'm not a fan of the series. Having spent several years in high school chamber choir, theater and even show choir, I feel as if the musical numbers and other situations have surpassed anything we every saw in high school. (The biggest "costume changes" we dealt with were sparkly bow ties and cummerbunds.) But beyond that, I feel as if the show is falling into the trap that befell Will and Grace in its later seasons—the "guest casting" is becoming more gimmicky and the theme episodes really sound false notes to me, moving the show away from its core—and often, its heart.

That being said, some of the music is pretty fantastic. Lea Michele (Rachel) and Amber Riley (Mercedes) bring the house down nearly every time they sing (apart from the silly and contrived "mash-ups") and Mark Salling's (Puck's) voice is really unique and enjoyable. But it is the introduction of singer-songwriter Darren Criss as Blaine that has caught my interest. Apart from his obvious attributes, he has a dynamite voice, and his rendition of Katy Perry's Teenage Dream has apparently become the show's biggest hit, as well as one of mine. Check it out:



Next week's episode has Criss singing the nearly-ubiquitous Hey Soul Sister, and again, makes a song I'm practically tired of fresh again.



While it's not making me tune into the show on a weekly basis, thank goodness for the internet and iTunes, so I can enjoy the songs without the filler!

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