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This is my review of the Glee Season 1 Volume 2 finale: Journey
Sue: “I resent the implication that I don’t play by the rules”
Will: “You leaked our set list at sectionals, Sue”
Sue: “I have no memory of that”
Seeing as how Sue Sylvester (played by the incredible Jane Lynch) was the star of this episode, I shall section off my posts with the epic Sue Sylvester quotes of this episode. We begin by finding out that Sue Sylvester is a judge at regionals. This was awesome, as I believed it would come down to the judges versus Sue in the judge room. The only thing is, I was wrong about which side the judges would be on regarding New Directions... but more of that later.
“Your hair looks so much like a briar I keep expecting racist Disney characters to jump out and start singing songs”
With the sombre mood we began with in the episode, with the Glee kids and Mr Schu crying (admittedly all OTT), I knew the episode would finish on a high. When we had the Regionals songs by New Directions show early in the show (I thought it would come much, much later), I didn’t believe the high would come from winning Regionals. With Sectionals, we knew that New Directions would win. However this episode, it was not obvious whether they would win or lose, which I liked and it made the finale that much more enjoyable.
“Newton John, you’re dead to me. Remington, Horsey, have a seat and listen up. I don’t care who comes in 1st, I don’t care who places 2nd, but I have a very strong opinion about who comes in 3rd”
It was nice to see Josh Groban and Olivia Newton John back on the show; with both of them having a history with McKinley High, I felt sure that both of them would favour New Directions, or that Newton John would side with Sue (again, how wrong I was). Sue doing the “Sue C’s It” hand made me laugh so much... it goes without saying that Glee would not be Glee without Sue. Honestly, some episodes would be laughless without her one liners.
“Come on, they’re just kids”
Faithfully was, at the beginning of the song, admittedly lacklustre. Let’s face it, all they did was walk down the aisle singing. Yes, it was more about the relationship between Rachel and Finn, but we had all this before in Sectionals. However, once the curtain lifted and the rest of the group pitched in, it was great and once again showed how good a singer Lea Michele is; something which was highlighted well with the spine-tingling Don’t Rain On My Parade performed at Sectionals. Anyway You Want It/Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezing’was great also, I truly enjoyed it. The fact I did not realise it was two individual songs (don’t judge me, I don’t know Journey songs well!) makes one realise how seamlessly they were put together. However, the stand out of the three songs was Don’t Stop Believin’. What we started with, we finished on. I was worried that it would just be a repeat of what we saw at the end of episode one, but it made you realise how much the group has changed and how far it has come along; from Mercedes and Rachel’s incredible riffs, to the inclusion of Puck and Santana singing, with the audience clapping along, it all made the song that much special and far superior to the Pilot version.
“The not-at-all-stupidly-named, Oral Intensity. And now your 2010 show choir champions... Vocal Adrenaline”
Mama... I enjoyed the Bohemian Rhapsody/Quinn birth scene, but I have to say that Vocal Adrenaline could have been better, considering they’ve won so much. Honestly, the only person they use is Jesse (who’s face I would like to punch)... I know it’s for obvious reasons (any more people would require paying more etc) but still, are we to believe that this group has won due to this one guy? Compared to New Directions, who utilises more than one person pretty well? The one thing Vocal Adrenaline really has for them is the choreography; they had a good dance routine, compared to our Glee club who most of the time stand around hugging each other or walking around. Still, the song was good and it was funny to see Quinn screaming the words like “Let me go” and “No no no no no...”. I thought it was very well edited.
“Kiss my ass, Josh Groban”
Who doesn’t hate Olivia Newton John a bit now? She was downright cruel to McKinley High and Sue herself. It was clear after this judges meeting that New Directions would not win or place at Regionals. It was so good, after 21 episodes, to see Sue stand up for the Glee kids and defend them.
“As you all know, Glee club is such an important... I honestly can’t finish that sentence”
Though it was expected, it was still a sobering moment to see the heartbreak on the faces of New Directions when they didn’t win or place. However, they are still a strong team; stronger now than ever. With Finn/Rachel and Puck/Quinn declaring their love, it feels like Sectionals all over again. Let’s hope that these relationships aren’t ruined in one episode akin to Hell-O. Seeing the usually quiet and reserved Emma shouting was a real treat and made Mr Schu seem like a loser in comparison, as we didn’t even see him try and stick up for the club with the Principal. We end with a Emma/Will kiss, and once again one can only hope this lasts more than one episode. To Sir, With Love was nice but not a particularly stand out song for me personally. Over The Rainbow was also nice, although it reminded me of the 100th Scrubs episode which featured Ted’s band singing this same song.
“I spend large chunks of each day picturing you choking on food. And I recently contacted an exotic animal dealer because I had a very satisfying dream that the 2 of us went to a zoo and I shoved your face into one of those pink inflamed monkey butts that weeps lymph”
The final Sue/Will showdown was great, and all of Sue’s lines were hilarious and great. And seeing Sue writing “New Directions” as number one on her ballot paper was so great. Sue has given the Glee club another year, which brings on Season Two. If they had won at Regionals, all they would have next year is Nationals. However, now we will have Sectionals and Regionals again, and quite possibly Nationals, no doubt with the addition of newer cast members. My only concern is that it may become a little repetitive, but I doubt it. I think that Sectionals will not be focussed on in as big a way; in fact, the Season 2 premiere might start with Sectionals; who knows! All I know is I can’t wait to see more.
[Sue’s ballot paper] “1st) New Directions”
From this...
To this...
