Here in Florida we are still wearing shorts and sweating as soon as we walk outside, yet I know Fall has arrived. The only reason I know this is because the new seasons of Fall television have begun. As I mentioned in a previous post one of my favorite television series is Glee and it was my most anticipated premiere. After a very uneven second season I was hopeful that the show was going to get back on track based on several comments made by show creator Ryan Murphy. As 8:00 rolled around the night of the premiere I could scarcely sit still I was so excited and by the time it was over I knew my faith had been rewarded.
There was so much jam-packed into “The Purple Piano Project” that it took me several viewings to be able to take it all in (episode synopsis available here). Arguably the biggest, and most controversial, event was Blaine’s transfer from Dalton Academy to McKinley High. I for one was thrilled with this change. Klaine (Kurt & Blaine) is my absolute favorite couple on the show and anything that allows me to see more of them together is a good thing. As much as I enjoyed Blaine performing in the Dalton Glee Club called The Warblers I just didn’t see how they would cohesively fit into the plot with Kurt no longer a part of the group. Moving Blaine to McKinley made the most sense. From what I have observed the main outcry against this move was the excuse given – that Blaine didn’t want to go through the school year apart from Kurt if he didn’t have to. I was okay with this. Blaine made up his own mind and did what he felt was best for him. I truly felt that if he had decided to stay at Dalton, Kurt would have accepted that and moved on. I don’t think that he manipulated Blaine into the transfer at all.
In the latter part of the second season a wonderful friendship had begun to blossom between my two favorite characters, Rachel and Kurt, and that friendship has thankfully carried over. I adored every scene with the two of them. Their performance of “Ding-Dong the Witch is Dead” was a highlight of the show. It was just so joyful and fun. You could see the comraderie between the two of them as they flitted around the stage. When they were faced with the harsh reality that there are many others just as talented as they are whom they will be competing against for college the resultant scene in the car was touching. I loved watching them commiserate in shared sorrow and then build up and encourage one another. It was a lovely picture of the true love found in friendship.
I am interested to see how things play out within the New Directions as they have gotten quite a shake up. It seemed clear from Finn’s outburst that he feels at least somewhat threatened by Blaine which could lead to some interesting conflict since he and Kurt are stepbrothers. I am still in shock that Santana actually got kicked out of the group and yet, while I was sad to see her go, it was good to see that she finally faced some consequences for her underhanded behavior at Sue’s behest. The only thing I can think of for her motivation in helping Sue is her desire to cover up the secret of her sexual orientation and maybe she thinks that being a Cheerio is a better way of doing that than being a member of Glee. Whatever her motives, however, I really hope it gets worked out soon so that she is back among the New Directions. Similarly, I don’t see Quinn’s rebellion lasting long. I think she really wants to be back in Glee as evidenced by her looking in on them during “You Can’t Stop the Beat”.
In the end “The Purple Piano Project” got me very excited for Glee‘s upcoming season. Even though I did not discuss everything from the episode I am looking forward to seeing how all of it plays out. I am hopeful that this season is going to be the best one yet and will give the graduating seniors a worthy send off.
As a side note, if you are interested in hearing more of my thoughts on Glee throughout the season you can do so through the podcast Glee Chat of which I am a co-host.
What about you? Did you watch the season premiere of Glee? What plots were you excited about? Which ones disappointed you? Let me know any thoughts you have in the comments!
