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S06.E13: S06.E12: 2009 / S06.E13: Dreams Come True


Tara Ariano

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I've sat through plenty of bad finales that left you going "What the fuck?" long after it was over. I sat through X-Files. I sat through Quantum Leap. I fucking sat through Lost. But this was such a self-congratulatory pile of horseshit. I'm surprised that Ryan Murphy didn't break his arm patting himself on the back.

 

Arts education spreads all across the country, all because of Will Schuester and New Directions. Yay! Rachel wins a Tony! Mercedes becomes an international recording star? Amazingly, Kurt and Blaine's more realistic success as actors, and Artie's as a director are (dare I say it) the most realistic conclusions to their storylines.

 

Most of the episode had me rolling my eyes because it was just a dogpile of successes. That in five years, Rachel gets to graduate from NYADA and beat out the biggest name actresses for a Tony award. Sure... Mercedes is picked to open for Beyoncé. Right... As much as I hate Klaine, they annoyed me the least here. Kurt and Blaine supportive and working together and finding success as actors and as LGBTQ icons. The scene of them at the school (with kids that I assume are either gay, the children of gay couples or transgender children) was entirely heartwarming.

 

The final scene with basically the whole cast is what got to me. Because it just reminded me of when Glee was really good and all the great characters. Even those that we only saw in passing. That was what made sitting through the rest of it worth it.

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When the inevitable juicy tell-all is published in the next few decades (probably by Jenna or someone else), I will flip to the chapter about what Dianna Agron did to RM or vice versa. Because really, show? You bring back the Unholy Trinity and show us half a second of them in the group number at the very end, and that's it? At least Brittany and Santana got an episode for their wedding. Quinn was continuously shat on for years and wasn't even MENTIONED in the second half of the series finale. Why even bother bringing her back?

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I actually loved "2009" -- by far my favorite episode this year. It reminded me when the show was about characters, with some music thrown in, as opposed to...plot loosely based around music and then...just odd flights of fancy. Maybe I just don't know Chris Colfer's style well enough, but he really impressed me as six years-ago Kurt. I thought he changed the timbre of his voice and just...carried himself differently. Lea Michele was excellent, as well. The references to Finn were bittersweet and the whole hour teetered on the edge of meta without (I believe) going on their usual full-on 4th-wall-breaking tear (Will and Terri's relationship for example and "he's there to do as I say").

 

It's going to sound odd but I wish they'd reversed the order and gotten the wish fulfillment hour out of the way (which I agree was an aimless, semi-likable mess with a few isolated bright spots), ending on "2009." If a finale is supposed to reference a Pilot, what better way than a totally different Pilot, knowing how these characters will end up? And ending on "Don't Stop Believin'" would've been a more powerful capper than "three plaques on a dark wall."

 

But hey, any time-jumping finale where Ted doesn't end up with Robin is automatically good.

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The scene of them at the school (with kids that I assume are either gay, the children of gay couples or transgender children) was entirely heartwarming.

Harvey Milk High School is a real NYC public school that was started as a safe space for LGBT teens, although is not exclusively LGBT.  I have no idea why in 2020 they would have branched out into having an elementary school to go along with that, but I could see it being the same kind of space for kids with gay parents.

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Meh. The only time I felt even a little emotional during the last hour was at Mercedes' exit, when she said she was going to pretend that there would be a glee club meeting tomorrow. I guess it hit me that there is no Glee next week, or ever again (until the inevitable reunion movie). Everything else was pure fandom wish fulfillment and left me rolling my eyes. The first parts of "2009" were also weird and disjointed but the way that it turned into a Finn tribute during the last 20 minutes was far more affecting than the episode afterwards.

 

Bye Glee, I'll miss what you once were but you haven't been that for a very long time.

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The good, the bad, the beautiful, the ugly... Glee, it's been a long and winding road, albeit with a few potholes along the way. All and all, it's been an entertaining and emotional ride, although not as much fun without Finn. Hard to believe the journey has come to an end, but you did a fine job of wrapping up everyone's story lines and even made me like Sue in the end. Well done.

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The great thing about the Finn Hudson auditorium is that, back in "The Quarterback", Puck mentioned how the kids in McKinley would make out under the Finn tree, and not know who he was.  More kids will know about him now since the auditorium is named after him.  Just thinking about all the things Finn did in there, and now it's named after him.

 

After seeing that Rachel was pregnant, I was hoping that she was pregnant with her own child for all parties involved, but Que Sera, Sera.

 

I loved the last scene with everyone in it.  I wish that Melissa Benoist could have made it so every single glee clubber would have been there, but congrats to her for moving on to bigger, better things.  Also, I love Karofsky, but he seemed like the odd man out since he was never in New Directions.

 

Finally, was Chord Overstreet unavailable during the Tony's scene?  He is just shown running past the TV at Will's house, his face obscured, and never shows up again in the scene.

 

I thought that Glee season 6 was going to be as awful as Gossip Girl season 6, but overall it was okay, and I like the finale.  Goodbye Glee; it's been one hell of a ride.

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Things I liked:

Don't Stop Believing flashback

Daydream Believer, especially Kurt's Single Ladies dance moves

Matt Rutherford(!)

The look on Emma's face when Will hugged Teri at the end

Jayma gives a great WTF? look. I actually liked the hug, though. Clearly Will is happy with Emma now, so it was a nice letting bygones be bygones moment. Weirdly enough, Terri did Will a favor. Ha ha Edited by Sara2009

It would have been much better for the series to have ended with 2009 which was the stronger of the two episodes by a long shot. We already knew what direction everyone was heading in. Kurt and Rachel to NYADA (and both to a stage career), Blaine to NYU (and to a performance career of his own). Sam would likely be a teacher of some kind (even though he had no college degree and no interest in pursuing one). Artie would be a director. Mercedes a recording artist. Everyone (except Tina) was pretty much accounted for. We didnt' need to see them rise to epic levels of success that reached a point where even being willing to suspend disbelief was impossible.

 

While it was hard to force the actors into their pre-pilot configurations (especially poor Chris, who looked like they vacuum sealed him into costumes that he outgrew years ago), there was a value to the episode because we got to see just how far they had all come. We saw their relationships grow and evolve. It would have been perfect to end with the original Don't Stop Believing performance, because seeing the original group on stage (with Cory) was the perfect bookend to the pilot. We would have been left to imagine where the future would have taken the characters without having it spelled out.

 

But Glee is not something where enough is enough and we get the self-congratulatory mess that was Dreams Come True. Or better titled, Outrageous Fantasies Because We Can't Be Bothered To Care. Where successes are so quick and enormous that even the unlikely prospect of two young gay actors debuting at Lincoln Center is considered reasonable compared to the rest. And this is where Glee always fucks up. They can't help going so far over the line that they pitch the entire show off a cliff.

Edited by Hana Chan
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Also, I love Karofsky, but he seemed like the odd man out since he was never in New Directions..

 

Well he did perform in Thriller/Heads Will Roll. Plus I guess since technically it was the official opening of the Finn dedication he did play football with the guy. Or maybe him and Marley are the same person. Like Ben/Glory from Buffy.

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Well he did perform in Thriller/Heads Will Roll. Plus I guess since technically it was the official opening of the Finn dedication he did play football with the guy. Or maybe him and Marley are the same person. Like Ben/Glory from Buffy.

I think you found the only possible way to make him dating Blaine more messed up. Congrats!

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They just said she was their surrogate. I highly doubt Rachel would give up her own child.

You'd think that might be a sore spot given all she went through with Shelby. Of course, Little Rum Tum Tugger or whoever will probably be singing trios with her Aunt Rachel and Uncle Jessie while she's still in her bassinet, so it's not as if she's going to disappear from the kid's life for 16 years.

 

Oh my God, I just realized, this likely means that Rachel's prediction about Blaine giving her vaguely Eurasian looking children in "Blame It on the Alcohol" comes true!

Edited by Bruinsfan
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I am obviously dead inside, because that last number did nothing for me, and I was really expecting it to. I was ready to feel emotions but I just feel nothing tbh. Maybe it was the 55 minutes preceding the number that made me numb.

 

Well then I'm equally dead inside. As I said in the live blogging thread, the writers just killed any interest I had in most of these characters to where I just didn't feel much of anything about this end. I wanted to feel something, I really did, at points I was even trying to force it but it just wasn't happening. The only times I did feel some modicum of emotion was anything to do with Finn and that's just because almost two years later, my heart still breaks over Cory's passing and how his life ended. But other than that, I just felt nothing. I really think it sucked the show had been green lit for two season after Season 4 because I really think a perfect series ending would have been the 100 episode where the Glee Club disbanded and Will moved on with everyone coming back one last time to thank him for all he'd done.

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He's a misogynist, who doesn't understand consent. She dumped his ass once for good reason.

 

He does have slightly misogynistic tendencies here and there...but he could grow from that.

I'll semi-give you the consent part..except that he's never acted that way towards his girlfriends.

Also Tina's reasons for dumping him weren't good. She saw Mike shirtless. 

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I got a lot of what I wanted from the first hour. The 2nd hour I was disappointed especially for Mercedes. All of the other "original" Glee Club members ended with someone they loved; Mercedes ended with "Sam texting" her while he has a girlfriend. 

 

I'm glad she is a big recording artist and I will admit was hopeful until they sprang that little tidbit about Sam having a new girlfriend that for once the strong, independent, black woman who don't need a man stereotype that Glee has perpetrated for so long would end. Unfortunately not. The last hour was more of the same Rachel, Sue, Will.

 

Loved the first hour, loved the dedication to Finn but I honestly could have done without ALL the long speeches and not at least giving Mercedes some love closure in the end.

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Lea and Amber can sing but I agree, their songs were odd. Like, just say goodbye and hug like normal people? It's like..really. I know this is Glee and nobody can just exit without a song but I got a laugh out of that.

 

 

Rachel wasn't even saying goodbye to friends because she was going into witness protection (whoops i mean touring) like Mercedes was.  She was singing goodbye to a time/place that she had left 9-10 months prior.  

 

He's a misogynist, who doesn't understand consent.

 

 

Well then he and Tina are perfect for each other as I recall her rubbing all over a drugged up Blaine.  

Edited by camussie
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He does have slightly misogynistic tendencies here and there...but he could grow from that.

I'll semi-give you the consent part..except that he's never acted that way towards his girlfriends.

Also Tina's reasons for dumping him weren't good. She saw Mike shirtless. 

 

He's always acted like his girlfriends were his property, there for his pleasure. Tina dumped him because he was a lousy boyfriend.

 

Seeing Mike shirtless is a good reason to do anything. 

 

Note the glee club men who end their time on the show single - Mike, Matt and Jake. Every other male has a girlfriend. 

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Ryder wasn't dating anyone when his time ended on Glee so why assume he is in 2020?  Also my impression was that Mike was having fun dating around, you know like a normal college student, when he attended the weddings.  While he didn't have a girlfriend he was definitely playing the field. Good for him!  

 

Also I am not one who believes that someone has to have a SO to be defined as successful.  That said with the way Mike left things with Tina I thought it was pretty clear he was going to find romance some day, just not with Tina.  

Edited by camussie

Ryder wasn't dating anyone when his time ended on Glee so why assume he is now?  Also my impression was that Mike was having fun dating around, you know like a normal college student, when he attended the weddings.  While he didn't have a girlfriend he was definitely playing the field..  

 

I thought Ryder was dating Marley. 

 

So Mike ended his time on the show single. It's not necessarily a bad thing he's single but they did have his character end up single so a white guy could get a girl. 

I loved the first hour of the finale, absolutely love. I loved getting a point of view segment from each character, especially Kurt. That's the most we've seen him in a large quantity. I honestly felt like they really tried to get back to their season 1 roots, and I think it worked, for the most part. And honestly, the moment they started mentioning Finn and then ended on Don't Stop Believin and we saw Cory? My sister watched it with me and was surprised that I was crying, as I only cry in private. The one thing they got really right was the right amount of Finn/Cory. They couldn't have used him better....well, they probably could have but I was impressed by how many times they mentioned him. The only thing I wish was for Rachel to mention Finn's name in her Tony speech, even if it was just in passing "I want to thank my McKinley friends, and I want to thank someone who inspired me and helped me get to where I am today, Finn Hudson. But finally, I would...." But honestly, really great first half and really great use of Finn.

 

And...then everything else ranges from a mediocre behaviour, to a miss, to a HELL TO THE NAW attitude. The second half was a cluttered mess. Plus for St Berry, minus for pregnant Rachel. Plus for Mercedes touring for Beyonce, minus for acting like she was going to war and would never be seen again or be able to see her friends for years. Plus for Klaine (for ONCE, although I still wish Blaine was a teacher and Kurt was a fashion designer), minus for the weird wig on Chris. Plus for Samcedes not being endgame, minus for Artina being endgame. 

 

I would have also preferred 2009 being the last episode. Start with the Pilot, end with the Pilot. That would have been an interesting way...so maybe from now on, I'll watch the finale in reverse. I'm sad we didn't really get to find out anyone else's futures; that would have been nice. I guess Becky was used sparingly, and Sue being President doesn't surprise me. Terri/Will's hug with Emma's look was priceless, and there were some good moments. The songs, in my opinion, were weak (except for, surprisingly, the Klaine duet). I wasn't moved by the last song, maybe because I've never heard it before. I know this show ranged from classics to modern songs to original songs, but I kind of wish the series ended on a more popular song. Again, that's probably just me. 

 

All in all, 7/10 finale, because it exceeded my expectations. I think I will be rewatching 2009 sometime next week, and I'm happy it ended on the plaques...sort of. 

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Things I disliked

  • All the out of character retconning in the "flashbacks" from Kurt being suicidal and lacking confidence (WHAT?) to him fawning over Rachel and Mercedes (DOUBLE WHAT?)... Rachel was relatively consistent if more over the top like the more recent version of Rachel... Mercedes was ridiculous. That was definitely pulling in later season plotlines to inform her character
  • All the unbelievable plot points... too many to name
  • Us pretending that Will would make a good principal when he was a terrible Spanish teacher, mediocre history teacher, barely adequate glee club advisor, and complete failure as a Vocal Adrenaline coach
  • The heavy handed "this is why Glee is important" meta moments

 

Things I liked

  • Jesse! Jesse! Jesse! I have always been on the Puckleberry and Jesse St. James teams since their characters were introduced as romantic prospects for Rachel. Do I believe that he would be OK with Rachel being a surrogate for Kurt and Blaine while they're all so young and that Rachel and Jesse would have gotten so far in their careers in five years (minus the time she was finishing up at NYADA) for him to direct her in a Tony winning role? OF COURSE NOT. But he saved us from Samchel and I can ignore all the nonsense to enjoy this happy ending.
  • All the cast members they were able to get back for that last group number. The only ones I couldn't find were Rory and Marley. I may be forgetting someone though. There were a lot of people coming in and out. It would have been a nice touch if they could find those members of the band who got recruited for a little while.
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All the cast members they were able to get back for that last group number. The only ones I couldn't find were Rory and Marley. I may be forgetting someone though. There were a lot of people coming in and out. It would have been a nice touch if they could find those members of the band who got recruited for a little while.

 

Yeah they're the only two missing. Damian was on tour, and I think Melissa was working on Supergirl. 

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2009 brought back some of the old style and nostalgia, and had an interesting twist about the GC voting on letting Finn in. Other than that, it was ultimately superfluous. They already heavily hinted at Kurt's depression / suicidal thoughts back in 100/101 through Burt in the Will tribute video. Kurt and Rachel singing Popular was like a rewind of the Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead performance. Mercedes and Rachel fighting for solos (and Mercedes' mom, Rachel needing it more, wtf?), the reasons Tina faked the stutter  - didn't add anything new really. But for the nostalgia factor, and the culmination in DSB, I liked it much better than the wish-fulfillment and self-congratulatory mess which followed.

 

2009 was a bravura performance by Lea, she nailed it. Chris looked so different back in the day, and on top was now utterly failed by the hair and makeup team, his stubble was so visible in one scene. I think the best visual approximation of young Kurt was in the Hummel body shop scene, and the Sit Down scene. 

 

Dreams Come True, just mess, I can't even organise my thoughts on it, it was that messy. The saving graces were the flashback with Lilian Adler (if I'm not mixing it up with 2009), the final scene of auditorium dedication to Finn, and also the scene of Will  becoming principal singing Teach Your Children where everyone was again crying for no in-show reason (Lea and Jenna were not acting, Chris was holding back tears at some point, Darren and Amber also looked very emotional). The Klaine school scene was also cute, and their careers made some sense. Who knows, maybe their show was sponsored by Mr. Guffman of the Oppenheimer Organisation.

Edited by fakeempress
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I forgot to comment about Kurt in the 2009 episode. While I found his story poignant, especially Emma's calling Burt in about the suicide pamphlet, (which by the way, WTF on the "Pros and Cons of ending it all". What the hell were the pros?) it didn't really gel I felt with the Kurt we met in the Pilot of the show. I was especially thrown by his asking Rachel and then Mercedes to audition with him because he didn't know how to perform and seem to lack any confidence at all. 

 

Yes things were awful for Kurt and he hated McKinley High but the Kurt we met in the Pilot seemed pretty sassy and bitchy even then. I just can't reconcile the character they were selling with the guy who did that snotty hair flip while holding a glory note, singing Mr. Cellophane. Like I thought Artie, Tina, Mercedes and Rachel of course matched perfectly with the people we saw that first episode, auditioning for the Glee Club. Kurt's wilting wallflower thing felt a bit heavy handed to me. It's like they couldn't decide between making him some shrinking, vulnerable violet and by the scene where they're discussing Finn, he's all diva attitude and sass. 

Edited by truthaboutluv
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I thought that Glee season 6 was going to be as awful as Gossip Girl season 6, but overall it was okay, and I like the finale.  Goodbye Glee; it's been one hell of a ride.

Well, Glee never had a couple as glorious as Blair/Dan, only to ruin that and act like they barely tolerate each other again to bring back the awful Fated Couples together. So yes, in that sense Glee's end was better than Gossip Girl's.

Oh plus Rachel wins everything, as she should, regardless of how she got it and how many oppose this.

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Well then I'm equally dead inside. As I said in the live blogging thread, the writers just killed any interest I had in most of these characters to where I just didn't feel much of anything about this end. I wanted to feel something, I really did, at points I was even trying to force it but it just wasn't happening. The only times I did feel some modicum of emotion was anything to do with Finn and that's just because almost two years later, my heart still breaks over Cory's passing and how his life ended. But other than that, I just felt nothing. I really think it sucked the show had been green lit for two season after Season 4 because I really think a perfect series ending would have been the 100 episode where the Glee Club disbanded and Will moved on with everyone coming back one last time to thank him for all he'd done.

I know for a fact tha tptb screwed the pooch on this one. I'm not a crier, I am a weeper. I sob. Loudly. Lea ain't got nothing on my ugly cry. And pretty much anything can set me off. Toy Story 3 had me fetal. For some cray reason I thought it was a sound idea to watch The Quarterback while I polished my furniture this morning. My living room was nearly flooded with my tears. Yet I was dry as a bone through all of it. And hormonaly speaking I'm in the zone right now. I should have been easy pickings. Weak.

Shit, episodes of Dr. Mcstuffin has effected me more.

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I forgot to comment about Kurt in the 2009 episode. While I found his story poignant, especially Emma's calling Burt in about the suicide pamphlet (which by the way, WTF on the "Pros and Cons" of ending it all. What the hell were the pros?) it didn't really gel I felt with the Kurt we met in the Pilot of the show. I was especially thrown by his asking Rachel and then Mercedes to audition with him because he didn't know how to perform and seem to lack any confidence at all. 

 

Yes things were awful for Kurt and he hated McKinley High but the Kurt we met in the Pilot seemed pretty sassy and bitchy even then. I just can't reconcile the character they were selling with the guy who did that snotty hair flip while holding a glory note, singing Mr. Cellophane. Like I thought Artie, Tina, Mercedes and Rachel of course matched perfectly with the people we saw that first episode, auditioning for the Glee Club. Kurt's wilting wallflower thing felt a bit heavy handed to me. It's like they couldn't decide between making him some shrinking, vulnerable violet and by the scene where they're discussing Finn, he's all diva attitude and sass. 

I was waiting for the retcons, and this definitely felt like one. Including going literal on Burt saying to Will that GC saved his son's life, in relation to the Pilot events.

Edited by fakeempress

I am also "far too old," mojoween. But I will confess to tears.  I have watched every single episode, for better or worse.  I started watching at a time I was an emotional mess, having suffered enough personal losses that this show appealed to the part of me that wanted a fantasy world, and to the part of me that remembered what it was like to be one of the "artsy" kids in school.  Since then I have had more losses, and I think that's why tonight really touched me.  It was about saying goodbye to a part of your life that was "special."  There were lots of things that annoyed me about the show in the course of my fandom, but I am way more than satisfied with the way it all ended, except of course for the loss of Cory.

Edited by clarkbar
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I seriously thought (silly and naive of me of course since this was the "Rachel Berry Finale" that the writers were going to surprise me (happily and not disappointingly) when Mercedes said "then why he still texting me?" they could have let Kurt, Blaine (since he is Sam's best friend) say "because you know that man will always love you" it would have been a perfect tie in back to Mercedes singing "I Will Always Love You'. But atlas once again the writers showed they had no creativity outside of giving Rachel EVERYTHING ans sticking a cherry on top. Hell they even cut the line that Sam and Mercedes sang together in "I Lived".

 

I'm sure there are plenty of shallow Sam fans out there celebrating that they are letting him go back to his bed-hopping ways instead of settling down with the woman he loves and who loved him.

 

I'm even sure a few of them might be popping back in to celebrate. So they didn't end them together on screen I guess possibly in their oh so not creative minds they may have thought they left it open for interpretation when simply showing it would have been just fine with me!

Edited by Ann Mack
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