GLEE Stumbles Over Its “Pot ‘O Gold”

And then they showed the promo for next week’s episode, “The First Time”.

The End.

I wish.

After what felt like the longest playoffs in baseball history, GLEE finally returned tonight with a new episode.  Few were more excited than I was to head back to McKinley High, but I have to be honest and tell you that it wasn’t the homecoming I was hoping for.

There was much talk of Brittany’s Pot ‘o Gold, but this episode felt more like a pot luck supper. Random storylines thrown together to create a semblance of an episode without any thought to cohesiveness or theme.

Unless you’re new to GMMR or The TV Talk Podcast, you know where I usually fall out when it comes to GLEE. I forgive a lot in favor of the songs, snappy one liners and adorable singing boyfriends boys. Maybe my expectations were a bit too high after waiting so long for a new episode, or maybe the episode was just that much of a mess (and if you saw my Twitter stream blow-up during the episode, I think it’s the latter), but either way tonight’s episode stumbled all over the place and never really found its footing.

So what actually happened in tonight episode…

Brittany’s new foreign exchange housemate, Rory, is playing on our girl’s naivety (is that the right word) in order to get to her pot of gold. Santana’s not having it. After appealing to Santana’s ego, Mercedes convinces her to join Shelby’s rival choir. Santana eventually brings Brit along, leaving New Directions down three members and unable to qualify for Regionals (well assuming the 12 person minimum rule still hols true from last year, which we can’t assume as this is GLEE, so all bets are off when it comes to continuity). Quinn is trying to sabotage Shelby in a silly attempt to regain custody of Beth. Puck is a bit more sympathetic and really wants to play house with his adopted baby’s mama. Sue gets the funding for the musical pulled, but her new Congressional opponent – Burt Hummel – saves the day. Go Burt! You Matter! Finn still hates Blaine. Blaine is still wearing bowties. Artie is still waiting for the rest of the group to graduate so he has something to do on this show.

And that’s what you missed on GLEE.

Now on to what worked and what didn’t. (Emphasis on the “didn’t”).

It’s Not Easy Being…the New Kid
Now I’m not looking to be another McKinley High bully, but the introduction of Damian McGinty (co-winner of THE GLEE PROJECT) was pretty painful. Before you go all leprechaun on my ass, I must remind you that I adore Damian. The minute Cameron quit THE GLEE PROJECT I jumped on the Team Damian bandwagon pretty quickly. But the kid has a lot to learn. For those of you who watched the summer reality show, you know that Damian struggled with the acting elements all throughout the season, and tonight was no different. I could see the nerves emanating from his adorable little Irish self. Perhaps it’s just lack of experience. Remember, this guy grew up in an Irish singing group, and his acting resume is a little light. Damian performed his lines rather than acting with those he shared a scene with. There is a difference. But I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and see if maybe he settles in a bit once he gets more comfortable with the camera. Time will tell.

As for Damian’s musical moments…

Although the placement of the song felt a bit abrupt, I thought his rendition of “Being Green” was absolutely charming. And The Muppets – how timely. His second solo, “Take Care of Yourself” was nice but it felt out of place. It just wasn’t a song I could connect to. His falsetto was a pleasant surprise (to everyone but Kurt Hummel – and tiny claps to Chris Colfer for perhaps saving the entire episode with a classic Kurt eye roll.). Not sure what Damian’s extended arc will be throughout the season (he’s guaranteed at least seven episodes), but I’m hoping they service his character outside of the easy Irishman jokes.

Michael Scott vs. Santana Lopez (only on GMMR – insert Hummel eye roll)
If you’re not a fan of THE OFFICE, I might lose you here for a moment, so I apologize in advance. But tonight I couldn’t help but think of Michael Scott during the scenes with Santana. Michael Scott was often a fool. He did so many stupid things that you often wondered how he kept his job. But what made Michael Scott work was that the writers found a way to balance his tomfoolery with heart. For every ten ridiculous acts, the writers would show Michael’s sweet side, and remind us all that despite all the reasons you had to want to throttle him, Michael was a sweet guy, with a good heart. The audience found a way to sympathize with the character and we grew to love him despite his antics. This balance is what I need to see a little more of from Santana. I love Santana’s bitchiness and I don’t want that to go away, but when the writers have her turned up to level ten at all times it’s just a bit much. For me to appreciate all that Santana Lopez is when she’s at her sauciest, I need a little bit more of her sweet and caring side. We’ve seen it before and we even got a small glimpse of that tonight in the Breadstix scene with Brittany, but it wasn’t enough. Santana once said that the only thing straight about her is that she’s a straight up bitch, but we the audience know better.  Maybe it’s just me, but I need to reminded a little more often.

Anyone else bewildered by Brittany and Santana’s budding romance? Are they dating? I’m as confused as Santana. Brit seems to think so, but unless I misunderstood, it seemed that Brit was saying that she and Santana were together because neither was with anyone else. Am I the only one that thought that? If so, poor Santana.

As for those two ladies joining Mercedes over in Shelby’s newly formed Troubletones, I cry foul. Mercedes, Santana and Brittany are all seniors this year, and while it’s not worth it to speculate what, if any, roles their real-life counterparts will have on GLEE next season, I’m not down with any storyline that keeps Amber Riley, Naya Rivera and Heather Morris apart from the other members of New Directions. Let’s bring these groups together and forget about this crazy Shelby/Sugar business.

Biological Baby Mama Drama
Speaking of Shelby. What the WHAT?! I get it, she’s stressed. She’s lonely. But allowing Puck to kiss her? She’s a teacher at his school. She’s the birth mother of his ex-girlfriend. EW! Sorry, I don’t care about any on-screen chemistry that Mark Salling and Idina Menzel may or may not have, I am so not down with this storyline at all.

As for Quinn. Enough. Is she doomed to forever be the villain, because after the cray cray stuff she’s pulled this season, I’m not sure that I’m ever going to be able to root for her again. Am I the only one that feels she beyond redemption?

Finn vs. Blaine – the Battle for Kurt’s Love (Ok, not really, but I’m sure there is some fan fic to support this, right?)
For the most part, a great episode for Finn. It was nice to see that he learned from his mistakes with his step-brother and stepped up to help out Rory. Yes, his reasons for doing so were a bit selfish, but in the long run he did the right thing.  Now he just needs to get over his Blaine hang-up. The boys seemed to get along just fine last year. Finn’s jealous, we get it…but get over it. Although the pettiness did lead to two of my favorite moments from tonight’s episode.

• Finn: “I know you’re a big deal at Dalton, or whatever…but we don’t wear blazers here, so have a seat. I’m trying to give a pep talk.
  Blaine: “Didn’t you just say something about us not turning on each other?”

Oh snap! You just got Warbled, Finn!

• Santana to Finn: “Every time he opens his dreamboat acapella mouth, you’re just itching to kick him right in the warblers.”

Best. Dad. Ever.
Now before you GLEE lovers start making your plans to throw me out of the club, I do have something nice to say about tonight’s episode. Actually two nice things: (1) Burt (2) Hummel.

Yes, Burt Hummel. Maybe the most consistent and only flawless character on GLEE. This guy is the best and Mike O’Malley plays him to perfection. Maybe it’s a bit of a stretch to think that Kurt’s Dad would be interested in participating in politics, but his reasoning is sound and sincere. As he told Will, “Your glee club saved my kid’s life.” But it’s not just about Kurt. Burt is running for all the kids like Kurt who found acceptance in the arts. I appreciate that. You matter, Burt Hummel.

Burt also gave me perhaps the most satisfying Sue Sylvester moment of the season. The smug and amused look on his face during her patented (and worn out) tirades was spectacular. The Hummels don’t respond well to bullies. God I love this man.

To iTunes or Not to iTunes…that is the question
As for tonight’s music, in addition to the two (yes, TWO) Rory solos….

• How about that sweet serenade of “Waiting for a Girl Like You” from Puck to his little girl, Beth? It was a nice, quiet moment for Mark Salling and I thought his voice sounded beautiful.

• Another Katy Perry tune from, you guessed it…Blaine Anderson. Let’s be honest people, I can’t honestly judge a Darren Criss performance. I’m just too biased.  Of course I loved it. But I will say, this season has been lacking some timely pop tunes, so I didn’t mind GLEE taking on this one. (A little bit of trivia for you non-GLEE diehards – did you know that both Kevin McHale AND Darren Criss starred in Katy Perry’s video for “Last Friday Night”? Yup.)

• “Candyman” by Mercedes, Santana and Brittany. I think I’m going to be called out on this, but I thought the number was quite unforgettable. The visual performance was nice but the song itself did nothing for me.

So that’s the for episode 3×04 of GLEE.  Yes, I’ve been rather harsh on the episode, but as I always say, it’s only my opinion. It’s the way I saw the episode. The comments are open so that you can voice YOUR opinion. Share the songs you loved. The moments that worked and those that didn’t. You’ve heard quite a lot of MY babbling, but the real fun for me is when I get to hear from YOU! So let’s chat, shall we?

Oh before I close out, I can’t forget to thank episode 3×04 for it’s very important role in this season of GLEE. For without episode 3×04 we couldn’t have episode 3×05!

SPOILER ALERT! (Stop reading if you don’t like spoilers!)

I have zero shame in telling you that I’ve already watched the promo for next week’s episode at least five times. I’m not sure I could be more excited for “The First Time”. Rachel and Finn having sex. The return of The Warblers. The intro of Sebastian – the hot as hell new Warbler who has his eyes set on Blaine. Our first Dave Karofsky sighting of S3.

And let’s not forget…Blaine and Kurt in a bar. Blaine and Kurt in a car. Blaine and Kurt go real far?!

In the words of my beloved Dalton boys…OH YEAH!

Did you know GMMR is now on Tumblr? Yup! Follow us (and reblog us) today!

Follow @GiveMeMyRemote and @GMMRtv on Twitter for the latest TV news. Connect with other TV fans on GIVE ME MY REMOTE’s official Facebook page.

And to be the first to see our exclusive videos by subscribing to our YouTube channel at youtube.com/givememyremoteTV