Spoilers and Discussion

[Higgs]

The show can't seem to pull the trigger in showing Rachel failing in anything becasue she's not quite good enough.

Yeah, but it would have helped if they hadn't allowed Lea to sing "People" better than Streisand. (They've actually done that sort of thing with her in the distant past, as when Rachel auditioned with an "On My Own" that didn't compare to Lea's live pre-Glee performance at the Hollywood Bowl -

- and in continually suppressing her lower range that would suddenly show up in live performances on Oprah and the tours.) Edited March 31, 2014 by Higgs

[Myrna123]

Yeah, it would have helped if they hadn't allowed Lea to sing "People" better than Streisand.

If ever there was a TV show capable of putting forth the idea that one can be a really good singer and a really horrible actor, it's Glee.

There's no reason why Rachel's triumph on the Broadway stage had to be a given.  Of course, on Glee's Broadway, the people auditioning as the understudy for a major revival can't even carry a tune so no wonder Rachel is seen as the Second Coming.

[Florinaldo]

I don't think they are going to put Darren in a padded suit. The show has pointed out flaws and hurled insults at characters based on the characteristics of the actors since the show first started. 

Except that in this case, the actor is not overweight. I would think they should make at least some effort to make the "freshman fifteen" minimally credible visually; there's only so much they can do with posture tricks and it's not like added padding around the waist is very difficult to realise. Plus, they probably won't have to use these for an extended period before the character recovers and reclaims some of his his past assurance and status, even if with an adjustement in perspective and expectations.

As for the bashing, I think one very interesting aspect (if the writers care to deal with it) could be how it impacts both members of the couple, together and individually, and most of all differently. I think the two actors are equally capable of doing justice to it.

Even though with a smaller core cast they would now have room enough to deal with extended plots of that nature, it might be deemed too deep for the show.

[Myrna123]

Rachel's acting in "You Are Woman" was better than Streisand's by an even greater margin than her singing.

Not to mention her tour de force that was Run Joey Run. 

I think the two actors are equally capable of doing justice to it.

I can picture Criss' Very Special Episode faces now--a worthy graduate of the Joey Tribiani "Smell the Fart" School of Acting if ever there was one!

Edited March 31, 2014 by Myrna123

[bravelittletoaster]

I can picture Criss' Very Special Episode faces now

Aw!  Look at you finding me a bright side!  I do love Darren's screen-cappable anguish faces.  

[Cranberry]

Okay, guys, I split the Lea Michele posts into their own separate topic. Let's try to keep this one to spoiler discussion -- talking about Rachel's future career is fine, but discussion of Lea should go in her thread. Thanks!

[Higgs]

I can picture Criss' Very Special Episode faces now--a worthy graduate of the Joey Tribiani "Smell the Fart" School of Acting if ever there was one!

While I cannot deny a certain small delight in the vicious civil war between Chris and Darren stans, someone has to take a stand for truth and fairness. Now I might consider Darren to be a bland mediocrity as a singer, but it is he, and never Chris, who has performed, by invitation, on multiple and significant non-Glee occasions. It is he, and never Chris, who has been given the support of promoters to tour and record. So a person is free to wax eloquent over Chris' glorious high notes and manly tenor, but music business professionals have decided otherwise.

But ah, say so many, it is surely a proven fact that Chris is the far superior thespian, one who can signal the most profound emotions with the slightest twitch. Well, let's put aside the fact that it was Darren who has already spent several weeks as the star of a Broadway musical and had a decent supporting role as a human being in a Hollywood movie that didn't require his financial support, and that Chris has never done any such thing. Instead, let's watch the scene in the S2 finale, when Blaine debriefs Kurt regarding ND's Nationals and The Finchel Kiss, and then tells him he loves him. And how did Kurt feel about that? Chris had to put out a definitive statement (yes, the love was requited, whew!) to quell the resultant debate among his own fans. 'Twas not a good sign of his emotive powers, to say the least. So, while Chris does a respectable put-upon-gay, conveying homoerotic desire may not be his strong point, which makes the likes of "Looking" beyond his reach. His high-pitched speaking voice will be a great fit for a robodog, but if anyone wants to see a sublime performance (by a still unknown actor) of a gay teen in love, forget Glee and Netflix "This Boy's Life" (1993, DiCaprio, De Niro, Barkin).

Edited April 1, 2014 by Higgs

[Myrna123]

someone has to take a stand for truth and fairness.

Oh my God, thank you SO much for doing this!  I now see how incredibly wrong I was.  You're absolutely right that Darren Criss has proven himself to be the performer I think is more talented than Chris Colfer.  To think I might have continued on in my ignorant Colferstan bias without someone brave enough to stand up to my lies and unfairness. 

I stand corrected.

[bravelittletoaster]

ok, moving my snarky response on Darren to a shiny new Darren thread which, irony of ironies, I'M creating.  Mwah ha ha ha ha.

[Coxfires]

While I cannot deny a certain small delight in the vicious civil war between Chris and Darren stans, someone has to take a stand for truth and fairness. Now I might consider Darren to be a bland mediocrity as a singer, but it is he, and never Chris, who has performed, by invitation, on multiple and significant non-Glee occasions. It is he, and never Chris, who has been given the support of promoters to tour and record. So a person is free to wax eloquent over Chris' glorious high notes and manly tenor, but music business professionals have decided otherwise.

But ah, say so many, it is surely a proven fact that Chris is the far superior thespian, one who can signal the most profound emotions with the slightest twitch. Well, let's put aside the fact that it was Darren who has already spent several weeks as the star of a Broadway musical and had a decent supporting role as a human being in a Hollywood movie that didn't require his financial support, and that Chris has never done any such thing. Instead, let's watch the scene in the S2 finale, when Blaine debriefs Kurt regarding ND's Nationals and The Finchel Kiss, and then tells him he loves him. And how did Kurt feel about that? Chris had to put out a definitive statement (yes, the love was requited, whew!) to quell the resultant debate among his own fans. 'Twas not a good sign of his emotive powers, to say the least. So, while Chris does a respectable put-upon-gay, conveying homoerotic desire may not be his strong point, which makes the likes of "Looking" beyond his reach. His high-pitched speaking voice will be a great fit for a robodog, but if anyone wants to see a sublime performance (by a still unknown actor) of a gay teen in love, forget Glee and Netflix "This Boy's Life" (1993, DiCaprio, De Niro, Barkin).

Reply in the Darren thread

[caracas1914]

[bravelittletoaster]

Lawd, that promo for next week...

The 90s called.  They want their very special episode back.

[Lola]

Wow they're giving Amber the screentime to sing a song from her album? The only other perosn they did that for was Matt - that's pretty big, right?

[SNeaker]

Four words: Dancing with the Stars.

[truthaboutluv]

Lawd, that promo for next week...

The 90s called.  They want their very special episode back.

Is it wrong that I laughed and laughed more at that than anything that happened in the episode? Something tells me that's not the reaction they were going for.

[caracas1914]

someone has to take a stand for truth and fairness.

Might as well add in justice and the American way.

Amber already has like 3 solos in 3 episodes, (5.15, 5.16, 5.17/18 ?)   Not too shocking , she's pretty much been used as a human jukebox in previous seasons, though I do think her acting as improved, shes more relaxed and confident with her line readings.   The spoilers have not had her in any duets or group numbers yet, which is kind of odd though.  She does very well with Lea and Chris.

Edited April 2, 2014 by caracas1914

[Higgs]

Wow they're giving Amber the screentime to sing a song from her album? The only other perosn they did that for was Matt - that's pretty big, right?

It's a reasonable thing to do, since they're presenting Mercedes as a recording artist, and any extra publicity and possible expansion of the audience can't hurt. OTOH, it wouldn't be appropriate to do it for the very real "Louder", and as a Lea fan I want her outside work to be kept as far away from Glee as possible.

She does very well with Lea and Chris.

Chris should only sing solos, as he ruins for me every song he's in**. I have to mute him out of all group songs while watching, and perform all sorts of timing filtering to get him out of my (illegal) audio files. I'm extra sensitive to the painful overtones from the upper end of his range in his singing and speech because of my shameful secret. You see,

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f8/Internet_dog.jpg

**I can think of one exception: "Happy/Happy", where Chris was better than Judy.

Edited April 2, 2014 by Higgs

[caracas1914]

out of my (illegal) audio files.

Bootleg downloading and dubious taste aside, I do hope the show addresses in a non hysterical way  (oh, sorry this is Glee)  that gay bashing happens everywhere, and that ironically a highly visible gay prescense in a neigborhood (like Chelsea) makes targeting someone for a hate crime easier.   NY's neighborhoods have these crimes often enough to remind us of this.

Not sure I want them making Mercedes a couple with Sam, someone as fabulous as Mercedes might need someone with a bit more grey tissue matter.

Rachel as the newest Broadway star is being set up so broadly that something is coming to come crashing down, either NYADA or Stardom.  That's fine as long as we get a great comic breakdown from Rachel.  It would be a hoot to see her blackballed from theatre audtions.  heheheh.

Edited April 3, 2014 by caracas1914

[bravelittletoaster]

Frankly the gay bashings in NY this year have been disturbing and I wouldn't mind someone shining a light on them, but I wish it weren't fucking Glee.  Ugh.

[Higgs]

Rachel as the newest Broadway star is being set up so broadly that something is coming to come crashing down, either NYADA or Stardom. That's fine as long as we get a great comic breakdown from Rachel. It would be a hoot to see her blackballed from theatre audtions. heheheh.

Your resentment is delicious.

[Dejajeva]

Some very obvious "blind" gossip I've read recently about Glee could explain what they are doing with DC. Apparently (grain of salt.) Lea and Chris hate Darren, and have tried to get him replaced by Adam. The idea is they don't think he's attractive enough or talented enough. Adam was like "uh...ain't nobody got time for that" and decided he didn't want any part of the drama. Meetings with show runners have decided Darren will exit at end of season.

Now don't argue with me over this kind of spoiler, I think it should be interesting to see how they break them up, as it's pretty obvious that's where the relationship on screen is heading.

I don't particularly like either one of them, I'd trade them both for Adam.

[bravelittletoaster]

I don't think there's much credence to that blind item. I'd be happy to see Darren go and give his seat to an original cast member, but I'll be surprised if we see it.

[caracas1914]

Your resentment is delicious.

? Actually I think Rachel blackballed from Broadway would a great  opportunity for Lea to showcase her comedic skills; I could see Rachel determined  to overcome the hostility mounted against her as all she can get is job as part of a dancing teacup chorus line .   Lea would kill that scenario.

The Funny Girl SL right now is boring to me because we haven't seen Rachel struggling or overcoming anything, or even  having any genuine conflict or tension at all.  As a fan of Rachel/Lea I want the worm to turn and to have chaos, mayhem, disaster and give her a chance to have some great comedic and dramatic moments.   It would be a juicy storyline but if that is "resentment" whateves...

Edited April 3, 2014 by caracas1914

[tom87]

Four words: Dancing with the Stars.

Funny if they think that means anything at least rating wise. 

Edited April 3, 2014 by tom87

[tom87]

So an extra (https://twitter.com/RatliffsmomR5)%C2'> tweeted about dance rehearsal with Matt and Jane both are in epsidoe 17 which is Opening Nihgt.   I don't know about anyone else but why?    Why give these two another dancing duet have any of them been all that great and something people are wanting more of?   Why not have Sue and Rachel or Rachel and Will sing?   Sue and some of the other kids in NY do a number?    After 5 years we finaly got a Arty/Rachel duet so I was hoping for some new combinations.  

[Glorfindel]

I love Jane Lynch and think she's one of the best actors on the show (hey, if she can make Sue relatable she's an acting goddess in my book) but dancing is really not her strongest suit. And it seems a waste to have Matt Morrison hold back on his fabulous dancing just so she won't look too bad in comparison (although that cannot really be prevented anyway).

That Blind Item is so full of venom and tinhatting conspiracy theories (and clearly catering to a certain part of the Glee fandom) that I don't believe even 1% of it. And even if it turns out there are some true facts in it, like e.g. Darren leaving the show after this season, I seriously doubt it will be for the reasons this BI makes us want to believe.

I can vouch for caracas1914 that she is anything but a Rachel/Lea hater. Wanting juicy storylines for a character/actor, or a ship for that matter, is not the same as resenting their success or relative happiness in the canon of the show, let alone an attack on (the abilities of) the actor portraying that character.

Edited April 3, 2014 by Glorfindel

[Myrna123]

Aww, I love that blind item!  My favorite part was Colfer supposedly screaming at Criss in front of the day's entire cast and crew, "You aren’t good-looking or talented enough to be anyone’s love interest! You’re naive to think that people on the show are really friends with each other and that we don’t talk behind each other’s backs!"

Because that's exactly what a grown man would shout at his workplace in front of his peers to the colleague he is allegedly insanely jealous of and not at all what a 14 year old might imagine is happening on set to her dearest darling woobie.

[Glorfindel]

^Exactly, lol.

Plus those lines of Kurt deserving a better-looking love interest contradict Chris' tendency to self-depreciate when he talked in interviews about the pairing of Klaine. And actually: part of that 2nd line he supposedly screamed ("You’re naive to think that people on the show are really friends with each other and that we don’t talk behind each other’s backs!") was almost literally what he, as a joke, commented on a tweet from Kevin, when Kevin was relieved noone of the cast and crew thought he was weird for having sleep-deprived deliriums, or at least not openly talked about it.

That BI read like a bad angst fanfic, and I don't think it can be considered a spoiler.

Edited April 3, 2014 by Glorfindel

[caracas1914]

http://tvline.com/2014/04/02/agents-of-shield-season-2-cobie-smulders-maria-hill-spoilers/

Excerpt:

"Question: Any fresh intel on what Glee Season 6 is going to look like? —Charlie

Ausiello: It’s said to be big, bold and… not completely fleshed out at the moment. “I can’t say anything because it’s still cooking, but it’s going to be good,” teases exec producer Ian Brennan. “I think it will be a very satisfying final season for the show.” Similar to this season’s structure, Season 6 will be “broken up into chunks” Brennan confirms, adding, “With Fox, we get a lot of of preemptions with, like, baseball. So we’re now really plotting out the last year around those little chunks. There will be five or six episodes, and then we’ll go on break for a couple of weeks, which is actually how people have gotten used to watching shows anyway.” "

Edited April 3, 2014 by caracas1914

[bravelittletoaster]

Ausiello: It’s said to be big, bold and… not completely fleshed out at the moment.

LOL.  No shit.

[truthaboutluv]

Some very obvious "blind" gossip I've read recently about Glee could explain what they are doing with DC. Apparently (grain of salt.) Lea and Chris hate Darren, and have tried to get him replaced by Adam. The idea is they don't think he's attractive enough or talented enough. Adam was like "uh...ain't nobody got time for that" and decided he didn't want any part of the drama. Meetings with show runners have decided Darren will exit at end of season.

 

Yes this same site is the place where they had "blind items" that stated that Darren is really bi-sexual, that he and Chris hooked up a few times and that's why they now don't get along, that Lea and Cory's entire relationship was PR, that Lea is currently doing it with Chord and is hiding it since she's still playing the grieving girlfriend part to promote her album, that Lea and Dianna were once more than just roommates, that Naya and Heather had something going on, etc. etc. Basically their "blind items" are all regurgitation of the shit being spewed on the various boards in fandom. Do I think Darren and Chris are best friends, no and I don't think they have to be.

The only thing they're required to do is show up, do their jobs and try to sell whatever crap the writers throw at them. But all that other stuff is bullshit and it amuses me when I see some Chris Colfer fans who loathe Darren wanting to believe these rumors. Like why as a fan would you want to believe that since the only person that looks bad in these blind items is Chris Colfer. If there is any truth to that stuff, all it means is that Chris Colfer is so unprofessional and petty that he would try to screw with someone's job. Who would want someone they're a fan of having that kind of reputation in Hollywood? But again, the whole thing is all bullshit anyway. 

Edited April 3, 2014 by truthaboutluv

[caracas1914]

it amuses me when I see some Chris Colfer fans who loathe Darren wanting to believe these rumors.

What amuses me is that it's obvious that this blind item would more likely  be a plant by Darren Criss fans/people  who would want to make him appear the poor  innocent victim of dastardly Chris and Diva Lea. 

But yea, the whole thing is all bullshit anyways.

Edited April 3, 2014 by caracas1914

[ShadowDenizen]

SPECIAL GUESTS:

AMBER RILEY Mercedes Jones
LAUREN POTTER Becky Jackson
BILL A. JONES Rod Remington
EARLENE DAVIS Andrea Carmichael
MAX ADLER Dave Karofsky
JOSH SUSSMAN Jacob Ben Israel

They're bringing BECKY back?
FFS, can we NEVER get rid of her??

[Myrna123]

I see some Chris Colfer fans who loathe Darren wanting to believe these rumors.

Read the comments on the gossip website and you'll see the majority of readers loathe Colfer and believe the rumors to be true.  Always lots of swamp land for sale in Flordia and all that.

[caracas1914]

LAUREN POTTER Becky Jackson

MAX ADLER Dave Karofsky

JOSH SUSSMAN Jacob Ben Israel

Apparently before her opening night Rachel has some nightmare scenario, It would suck if they brought Adler  back just to play the boogie man Karofsky  Bully from high school again.

Geeze, what blackmail item does Lauren Potter have on RIB?

[truthaboutluv]

Both fanbases have people who want to believe the rumors. With some Darren Criss fans, they've been insisting since S2 that Chris Colfer has some amazing power on the show and controls things and so everytime something happened with Blaine's character they hated, he was blamed for it. Goodness knows I read enough theories about his being behind the horrible cheating storyline. That said, the reason I brought up the Chris Colfer fans who believe this or want to believe it is because as I stated, I find it baffling that anyone who is a fan of his would want this story to be true. Whatever you think of Darren, Chris is the one who looks bad in these blind items because it makes him out to be an unprofessional, vindictive person. So my feeling is if I'm a fan of this person, my reaction would be to immediately dismiss it and call it bullshit.

Edited April 3, 2014 by truthaboutluv

[caracas1914]

Both fanbases

You know, I think we're going down a slippery slope if we start talking about fanbases of any actor.  Guilty of responding myself , HA! but it becomes a catch 22 because my opinion is that EVERY fan base, bar NONE,  has some bat shit crazy delusional fans, so let's  just leave it at that .  It becomes a zero sum game.

[bravelittletoaster]

Actually that blind items site has definitely gotten some things right.  It carried one about Phillip Seymour Hoffman using again before he died of an OD.  But I think they mostly bat 0.00 on their potential Glee items.  I also don't think the Blind item is a spoiler, anyhow, so.

As for actual spoilers, sort of always happy to hear about Naya filming, sort of disappointed because I want her to leave and for me to have my freedom.  They'd also better not break up Brittana off-screen just because they can get Naya but not Heather.  

[truthaboutluv]

I'm not saying they've gotten everything wrong (oh and Philip Seymour Hoffman was public about falling off the wagon), just that all their so-called blind items about Glee have been crazy rumors and stories floating around the fandom. The worse part is they don't even try to be subtle which is why I've long suspected that they're just trolling the fandom at this point and the ones who want to believe these ridiculous stories. 

But yes, back to legitimate spoilers, apparently GOBR has posted one of the songs for The Back-Up Plan episode (this is the one after Opening NIght I believe) and it's One Direction's Story of My Life which will be sung by Kurt and Blaine. Speaking of The Back-Up Plan, I am curious about the plot summary. Because the title suggests a lot of things but especially coming on the heels of Rachel's big opening night, it does make me wonder if something doesn't go exactly as she planned. Of course I know there's no way the writers are making her fall completely on her face and bomb. But they may surprise me yet. 

Edited April 3, 2014 by truthaboutluv

[ExplainItAgain]

We really need the summary for The Back-Up Plan so we can figure out what's going on. Right now I can't figure out if Funny Girl is going to fail (probably due to no fault of Rachel) or if something else is going on. All of them seem to have something steady going on right now so I wonder what the back-up plan is for. And hopefully soon we'll get the title of the episode that Chris is writing.

[Dejajeva]

I didn't mean to start a fight. I just thought it was interesting in comparison to spoilers for upcoming Blaine storyline that may not paint him in the most flattering light. This last episode sure didn't. I don't have an opinion either way. :)

[bravelittletoaster]

Sounds like lots o' Klaine on the horizon.  <weakly> yay.

[truthaboutluv]

I don't think it's just Klaine so much. With the smaller cast it was expected that there'd be a lot of focus on all of them. Based on the summaries sounds like a lot of Rachel, a lot of Sam and Mercedes and even a lot of Artie. It sounds like how Modern Family for example is. Every episode, all factions of the family have their own individual story and that's a half-hour show.

[caracas1914]

I'm actually looking forward to stories for all the main characters, the choir room of 12 plus teachers and guest stars in hindsight become an albatross.  Yea it was an easy setup for a song but it also pushed for a thousand characters screaming for storyline or song focus.

This was by far the most dialogue Klaine has had in an  episode EVER, and the Artie/Rachel scene was very nice.  Mercedes and Sam had a sweet vibe and a song like "People" thematically set up the ending without having to go with the usual full blown production group number that was becoming tired and trite.

Edited April 3, 2014 by caracas1914

[Myrna123]

Yea it was an easy setup for a song

I seem to remember at the beginning of the series, TPTB made a point in nearly every interview to assure viewers the musical numbers would almost always be organic--that is, no one would all of a sudden burst into a song like in a traditional musical, that songs would generate from real, performance situations in the choir room or competition stage. 

But I really liked the musical numbers in this ep.  Sure, it's hard to find 25 people in the subway who all happen to know the same choreography to the song you're about to sing, but I'd rather see that kind of un-reality than Sue tossing some poor old teacher down a stairwell.

[tab19]

 

As for actual spoilers, sort of always happy to hear about Naya filming, sort of disappointed because I want her to leave and for me to have my freedom.  They'd also better not break up Brittana off-screen just because they can get Naya but not Heather.

I'm really excited/pleased to see Naya filming with Amber/Mercedes.  I think a Mercedes/Santana friendship (already canon) makes a lot more sense than Pezberry, even though I certainly thought that was a feasible friendship - until Glee brutally killed it dead.

As for Brittana:  I was also concerned that they'd kill it off screen because only Naya is back for the rest of this season (so far as we know, at least).  However, I'm a bit more sanguine about Brittana surviving when I heard it was a 20 episode season.  That way Glee only has to hide Heather's absence for four episodes, since Santana returns in 5x17, which seems a lot easier to explain than six episodes.  No idea why I think that.  It would be easy to have Brittany have to return to MIT to clear things up or go on tour with someone as a dancer and that would be fine even if Heather never returns.

[caracas1914]

Eh, I think Brittany is busy setting up the condo they bought in the island of Lesbos.

[Myrna123]

The title of Episode 19 (written by Chris Colfer) is Old Dogs, New Tricks. 

Please tell me that Artie's Intro to Directing Something class requires a public service project like producing a nursing home pageant--and the nursing home is populated by aging Broadway luminaries...

[Higgs]

The Funny Girl SL right now is boring to me because we haven't seen Rachel struggling or overcoming anything, or even having any genuine conflict or tension at all.

I mistook your basic sentiments with my "resentment is delicious" response, and for that I sincerely apologize. I continue to believe that a Funny Girl triumph will itself be the major hurdle to overcome in finding her way "home" and that S6 will dramatize her existential struggle and its fallout. There is not likely to be much humor in it, however, as that Glee ship has long since sailed. They even missed a golden opportunity for a far from fatal funny failure (god, I loves me some alliteration) by not having her limp and drawl in her Laura Wingfield audition.

Right now I can't figure out if Funny Girl is going to fail (probably due to no fault of Rachel) ...

Santana spikes the drink of a member of the stage crew with a known history of paranoid schizophrenia. He suffers a sudden delusional episode in which he thinks the show is "Phantom of the Opera" and, triggered by a triple forte minor chord, causes a huge chandelier to fall, but since it's over the center of the auditorium, ten audience members with $250. orchestra seats end up in serious but stable condition at Mount Sinai Hospital. The after-show party at Sardi's is cancelled.

I think it appropriate that an author of stories for children write an episode for "what is a essentially a dumb kids show".

(Per Bret Easton Ellis: http://www.out.com/news-opinion/2013/05/13/bret-easton-ellis-gay-men-magical-elves)

Did he mean a show for dumb kids, a dumb show for kids, or both?

Edited April 7, 2014 by Higgs

[caracas1914]

Brett Easton Ellis.., God his novels are such pretentious hokum.