‘Glee’ Season One Recap and Things to Remember

Reflections now, refresher later

Image from Wikimedia.

I’m writing this “Glee” fall season recap now, while it’s fresh in my mind, but bookmark this one, kids. You’re going to want it around in the spring to give your mind a little jump-start on the happenings of “Glee” before you watch the “Glee” spring season premiere.

Like a loan until payday, this “Glee” fall season finale recap will help you catch up. Most of this will be a recap of the “Glee” fall season finale, but the finale touches on pretty much every aspect of the season. Where to begin?

Glee club’s temporary leader

So Emma, the guidance counselor who has ongoing sexual tension with Will, volunteered to take the glee club to sectionals. Her wedding was scheduled for the same day, so she simply postponed said wedding. However, her husband-to-be didn’t show up for the wedding, and after sectionals Emma, at the reception hall and clad in a wedding dress, tells Will that Ken dumped her because she postponed the wedding.

Then she tells him that she went to sectionals for him, not for the kids. Then she tells him she’s quitting her job because she feels too guilty about Ken and too heartbroken about Will. Then Will tells her he left his wife. Then she leaves. More about this later!

The big trophy

Despite the other choirs stealing its set list, New Directions (which is the name of the “Glee” glee club) wins sectionals after it throws together a show-stopping performance at the last minute. The kids have to change all of their numbers, but they perform well enough to get the city comptroller, a former Miss Ohio contestant and a news anchor to pick them as winners.

Here’s where I think “Glee” proves it is one of the most clever shows on television. It did not give us a cliffhanger — a tactic that has been over-used to an irritating extent. It didn’t delve into sappy emotional manipulation. The judges’ discussion about who would win sectionals wasn’t filled with suspense or tension; it was just funny. The way the audience finds out that the glee club won sectionals is light-hearted and not backed by a string section. “Glee” remains a comedy, despite its curve ball plot lines, and it reserves the drama for its musical numbers.

OK, sometimes there’s drama

Of course, the ending was pretty dramatic, but endings are a good time to be dramatic. Sure, there were a few cliched moments: Will runs down the hallway after listening to the kids sing “my life would suck without you,” only to find Emma’s office cleared out and empty. But then — THEN — there she is at the end of the hallway. At the very end of the show, they kiss. Then they look at each other silently for a moment. Then blackness.

Sure, it’s dramatic. But it’s not over-the-top. We don’t hear any big speeches, although we’re aware that Will says something to her as he takes her packed-up box out of her hands. There are no dramatic proclamations after the kiss. But will there be? I think “Glee” kept the audience on the edge of its seats by making people think there would be some kind of cliffhanger, and then there wasn’t. There is plenty to look forward to, though.

No one messes with Sue Sylvester

During the “Glee” fall finale, Will scores a big win against his arch nemesis, Sue Sylvester. The principal removes her as head of the Cheerios and says she is suspended from the school after he finds out she leaked the glee club’s set list to the other schools.

If you know Sue Sylvester, and I think you do, it should come as no surprise that she and her striped track suit march up to Will in the hallway, and she says a bunch of menacing things, ending y saying he has woken a sleeping giant, and he’s going to be crushed. Note to Glee producers: The past few episodes have been a little light on the Jane Lynch, so let’s bump that up a bit, shall we? I loved seeing Will beat her, but I love every second she’s on screen — pure comedic genius.

Baby mama drama

Going against the advice of all my college journalism advisers, I saved the most important stuff for last. Rachel becomes psychic and tells Finn that Quinn’s baby is Puck’s. Finn beats up Puck, then demands Quinn tell the truth. When she does, he quits glee club. (Of course, he shows up at sectionals to save the day later.) Puck pleads for Quinn to let him be there for her, and she declines.

It all happened about that fast, and in the end it was all about the music. I can’t wait to see what happens next! Requests: along with more mean Sue, more shirtless Puck, please!