ShadowDenizen

I think Tamar seems like a strong, intelligent woman, and a proficient dancer. But she doesn't exude charisma that makes me compelled to vote for her. That said, she is totally getting the shit-edit of the season, and Val is a terrible, terrible, ,TERRIBLE partner for her.

Woo sucked the first time. And is sucking harder this time around. YMMV, of course! :)

I'm kind of hoping they bring in Mary Cherry (from "Popular"), and have HER be the killer.

Was Pete Wentz always that hot? Or is it just me? Maybe it's the pink hair, or his enthusiasm and general enjoyment (many of the "Celebs" on this show seem to be full of sour-grapes lately.) But I was like "DAY-UMN"!

Totally agree, and well-said, Caracas.. I think, in the hierarchy of Glee, the "NewKids1.0" (Ryder, Marley, Unique, etc.) get the shaft more than any of the other groups. I think their storylines were mostly recycled (except the catfishing storyline which A) was TERRIBLE, and B) Got no resolution), and the kids did their best, but the momentum was long gone by that point. (I confess to having a mad-crush on Blake Jenner. Because? SHoulders.) The "NewKids2.0" did serve to revitalize the show a bit, but by now the fractured fandom (and craptastic writing/story arcs) was just too far gone. WOuld I have liked to see more Roderick, Jane and Co.? Absolutely, but not necessarily at the expense of the OG's. (If they dumped all the SUe crap from this season, maybe focused on a small handul of the alumi each epsidoe, and how THEIR sturggles related to the NewKids2.0 life, it might have been salvageable. But, as with all things Glee? Too little, too late.

Yes, in a Final Season (and they KNEW it was the final season; many shows don't have that luxury) they should have tied the "new kinds" stories in to the older ones. Maybe each week could have focused on an Alumi teaching something to the new kids (I mean, the show was allegedly "All About the Choir Room", right?). I don't get the focus on Sue in the final season. She hasn't been a driver of the story since Season 2, realistically, and the Sue-centric episodes seemed almost filler to me, when I'm more interested in the progression of the teens. (I think the new teen cast had potential that was not utilizied fully due to the schizo nature of the writing on this show. And don't get me started on Becky... While I'm happy that Lauren POtter can hopefully use this as a springboard for the future, if there was ever a pox on this show, it was Becky. (What teen would EVER get away with trash-talking teachers like she does? Down's Sydrome [or any other disability] is NOT a free pass to be a bitch, in ANY reality!)

I honestly think people will be surprised by his draw, and it's far too soon to tell what the ticket sales will be like in the end. And I don't think the producers would have cast Darren if there were any doubts about his ability to perform the role. JCM would probably frown on MAJOR changes to a play that has been around for so long. (Updating of some of the lyrics to be contemporary, I can totally see, but beyond that? I"m not sure.) Of the people who will remain "unscathed" by Glee (and maybe get a tad bit of forward momentum in their career), I think the "Big Three" are Chris Colfer (Book Series/Noel Coward movie, etc.), Lea Michelle (Broadway Darling prior to Glee, already booked on new show), and Darren Criss (Starkids, Boradway, possible solo album). I was fortunate enough to see him perfom live in concert, and on Broadway (H2$); while I thought he was great on both ends, he really shines more when doing his own stuff, IMO. (To be fair, though I'm an avid Broadway/theater geek, I'm not super-knowledgeable about "Key Changes" and such.) WHile Darren's not who I picture as Hedwig, neither was NPH, and he won a Tony!

For the record, while flattering, I’m not Darren’s publicist. (Ha Ha Ha.) I think that almost everyone on the show got stuck with crap writing throughout the series, since I posit that RIB never had a story arc for the series envisioned. Some actors manage to slightly elevate what they were given, others often floundered. And some people are decently competent actors, but truly shine when there is someone there to elevate their performances, even when let down by the writing. (Of course, judgements on acting are almost entirely subjective, so YMMV.) Using Darren as an example of someone in that last category, while I tend to enjoy almost any scene Blaine is in, I find that his scenes with Rachel/ Lea Michele tend to be more watchable than, for instance, his scenes with Chord.

I actually don't blame Darren Criss for the debacle that befell Blaine and Klaine. While not the best actor on the show, I think Darren truly gave 100% any time he was on-screen, but was let down in many cases by terrible writing and plot-points [blatina, anyone?) Both he (and Lea Michele) have been consistently polite, upbeat and positive when talking about this crapfest of a show, even into this lackluster final season. I think Darren will continue to have a thriving career (Starkids alone guarantees that!) post-Glee, and I'm still looking forward to following his stuff in the future. (For the record, I really do think that DC's charisma doesn't truly come across on the big-screen; having seen him on BroadWay in "How to Suceed", and performing live a couple of times, it's truly a substanstially different experience than seeing him onscreen.)

UGH! This shitty, shitty show! This show continues to circle the drain, with little to no redeeming values. I'm not sure I could tell you a single specific thing that happened in this episode. WHY have us attempt to invest in new characters only to give them virtually no screen time? I could actually see myslef be interested in most of the new students.(Let each of them have a group number, at least, if not a solo!!) I'm so not invested in Rachel anymore; after torpedoeing her own career, she doesn't deserve to have a dozen people (half of whom DON'T EVEN KNOW HER!) paving her triumphant return to NY/Broadway.

Agreed, Bastet. I picked up the complete series for cheap, and have just finished the complete run-through. And certain things do absolutely stand-out. They totally pulled a Peter Griffin on Mark. He went from being an outside/bad-ass guy you kinda want to root for, to a laughing-stock in really short-order. (And it makes me miss Glenn Quinn that much more, knowing what happened to him.) Even though Bev goes into AA, her family still lets her drink consistently without saying anything about it, even to the point of encouraging it?! Really? I realized that I kinda like Sarah Chalke in the role of Becky. I mean, yes, she’s a bit less nuanced than Lecey, but she did admirably stepping into the role late in the series. They handled the Fisher arc pretty well, and everyone remained in-character throughout, which was nice. Everything in that arc was foreshadowed and handled nicely. (Unlike the Fred story-arc.) Season 9 was an utter train-wreck; it’s hard to pick a “worst” ep for that season; the terrorist ep is up there, though.. But that finale totally gets me every time.

I don't get that impression from what we saw on-screen. I mean, MAYBE subconcsiously that's a part of it, but I'm thinking that's way too subtle a motivation for RIB to use a character on Glee. I think they tried their best to sell Blaine/Karofsky as a couple (the writing seemed pretty straightfoward in a "They met, They grew to like each, and now they're dating" kinda way.), but the poor writing coupled with the visible lack of chemsitry betweeen the two made people skeptical. (And I like both Max Ader and Darren Criss as actors, for the most part!!) Of course, Murphy's obession with the Klaine wedding trumps all, and I fully expect an re-engagement (if not the actual wedding!) by the end of the season.

I have mixed feelings about the premiere, I liked it depsite myself; it was kinda all over the place, tone-and-style-wise. I liked the intro of the new students (Roderick, the twins and Jane [and even "Post-Modern Gay"] are all potentially excellent additions to the cast. BUT, it just makes me mad that the last batch of "New Students" is unjustly maligned; they all tried their best but were saddled with recycled plotlines and pigeon-holed into archetypes that did them no favors. (I really miss Blake Jenner and his shoulders....) I'm gald they attempting to "retro-fit" Rachel; after the horror of the last 2 season, I'm glad they're trying to bring her back to her roots a bit. And I liked that they had a Finn-reference that seemed to fit the scene without being overly cloying and artificial. Jane's performance of "Tightrope" in particular really blew me away, and her interaction with the Warblers was quite charming. While I like both Darren Criss and Max Adler, I sadly read absolutely zero chemistry between the two. (I also liked that Kurt instantly assumed it was Sebastian Smythe; they could have TOTALLY done a meta-joke however, where Sebastian hit it big with a TV series since we last saw him...)

I didn't forget Pools of Darkness. I choose to pretend that it didn't exist. (Ha Ha.) The SSI games didn't dumb downt heir combats either, which I liked. You were reliant on you postiioning your characters correctly, and knowing the best spell to cast in any situation (like wehn to use "Fireball" vs "Lightning Bolt". But as a longtime Realms fan, the coolest part was interacting with the signature characters and exploring singnature places. And to think.. This was all pre-Drizzt, if I recall correctly!!

I agree this episode was a tad on the preachy side, but it also holds up shockingly well (as does DS9 as a whole.) And Avery Brooks really lends some crdibility to ANY episode he is in. (And I"ll once again recommend the "Captain Sisko yells at everyone" video montage you can find on YOuTube or any other video site.) While TNG and Voyager seem dated now for me (TNG has a few episdoes that stand the test of time, there were MORE than a few throw-away clunker episdoes), DS9 really still seems relevant and modern still (perhaps even more so now than when they first aired!