Thank you to shoujo009
Describe- I had originally watched this episode of Glee (Special Education. episode 9, season 2) when it had aired on Fox. I watched it again February 1st, 2011 to refresh my memory. I would say that Glee falls into the drama category. An episodic series would be more specific, seeing as how it is the same people every week in the same high school. Basically this episode is just a continuation of the obstacles these high school students face- whether these problems stem from them being different from the rest of the crowd, relationships, or being a part of the "uncool" Glee club. In this episode the Glee kids are competing at sectionals. Mr. Schuester (Matthew Morrison) decides to mix things up this time around and use some of the other talented kids instead of the ones they normally have in the spotlight. This causes frustration for Rachel (Lea Michele) because she is the over dramatic, attention hog that always gets the solos. On top of that issue, more tension is added to the mix when Rachel finds out that her boyfriend, Finn (Cory Monteith), had slept with Santana (Naya Rivera) prior to their relationship. More frustration is added to the relationship department when Mr. Schuester finds out that Emma (Jayma Mays) ran off to Vegas and married her dentist, Ken (played by John Stamos). Tina (Jenna Ushkowitz) believes that her boyfriend Mike (Harry Shum, Jr.) is cheating on her with Brittany (Heather Morris), which is Artie's (Kevin McHale) girlfriend. The last problem the Glee club needs in this emotional mess is for one of their best singers, Kurt (Chris Colfer) to have switched schools and Glee clubs. He had done this a few episodes back because he was no longer safe at William McKinley High School because he is gay. All of these problems end up creating a feud between the performers, resulting in them all refusing to compete. Mr. Schuester is the one that ends up telling them that they are a team and have to talk it out and work together in order to pull this off. Their Glee club, New Directions, ends up tying with the Warblers, Kurt's new Glee club. But the drama isn't over yet- to get back at Finn, Rachel hooks up with his friend, Puck (Mark Salling), resulting in the end of their relationship. The same four commercials were shown throughout the show- an advertisement for the movie The Roommate, an advertisement for the new Fox Show Traffic Light, Kay's Jewelers, and the Chevy Cruze.Analyze- This show is definitely made to attract teenagers. The show is set in a high school, in a small town where you have your cliques and everyday dramas. Everyone dresses as teens of different groups would- the cheerleaders wearing their uniforms, the jocks wearing theirs, the "weird" kids wearing their dark makeup and "gothic" dress, the regular "background" kids wearing their Wal-Mart garb. It's all very relatable for the younger generations. These characters talk as if they are in high school- they're stubborn and immature but they try to act as if they are adults. They make sure people know what is on their minds and don't often spare feelings. It's real high school but with a musical twist. From what I could find on the internet, it seems that the show is filmed at Paramount pictures and the Alex Theatre. There are a lot of other shows out there like this. High school is one of the most popular things on TV and everyone wants to center in on their drama. Think about Gossip Girl, 90210, The Vampire Diaries, The Secret Life of the American Teenager- all shows about kids in high school and the drama that is guaranteed there. The thing that makes Glee is special is that all of these kids are talented and, although they belong to different groups, they band together to form a club to follow their passion in music. They find a way to express themselves that you don't see in other shows.
Interpret-Stereotypes is what this show focuses on the most in my opinion. The Glee club is something that brings people together to do a thing they love and that is singing and dancing. You can be a jock, a geek, a cheerleader or anyone in between and still be accepted into this club. The director of the show did an amazing job of focusing on characters in the series and focusing on their problems regardless of their popularity and that makes for a fun exciting show. Even though school is usually not like that with harassment and bullying, the show relays hope that people of all different groups can be accepted into this club and be a part of a family. There is one character that stands out in the show and that is the character Puck(Mark Salling). Puck is a football jock that bullied kids and was a "bad boy" type stereotype but after joining the Glee club he is less "bad boy" and more of good person. He makes friends with Artie, a kid in a wheelchair and only bullies occasionally but the other characters in the Glee club helped him become more good and less bad and that is true character development in my eyes. The show airs on Fox network so the commercials in the show focus on the other shows on Fox as well as products that Fox would normally show commercials on. There is no specific commercials that air during Glee but the commercials of Glee itself seem more for a younger group of people and people that enjoy music and dancing. The show obviously has more viewers from every age group or gender with its millions of viewers. The show itself is played in more countries than just the United States so people are most likely aware of the show. If I were a visitor from another country I would watch the show and believe that this is what American high school is like and draw a picture of what it is like from the show itself.
Evaluate- The show Glee is amazing. It focuses on everything that a high school drama needs to focus on. Religion, Sexuality, Love, Pregnancies, Everything!! So with that said its strengths definitely out do the weaknesses. There are some downsides to the show such as some episodes don't run into others for example they will focus on one topic one week and completely change the topic the next week leaving questions unanswered. Also they do themed episodes such as one on the Rocky Horror Picture Show or Britney Spears and only focus on that topic the whole episode which can be repetitive and boring sometimes. Other than that the show is a fantastic watch with catchy tunes and a great character set up. To me the realness of it is sort of accurate to real life but not at the same time. There are kids that face problems like the ones in the show but the resolution of the problems in the show can be little to none in a real life situation. Other than that the the focus on each character would be accurate for a real life high school student. What makes it memorable is the music for the most part. Every song they play I almost like better than the actual singer themselves. The songs are very catchy and I find myself thinking about the songs on a daily basis. The show has actually made me more aware of more music and that is always a positive thing. The other reviews of the show such as on IMDB or Yahoo can say almost the same exact thing as me with the focus on themed episodes and run off episodes being a downfall for the show.
Engage- We both watch this show on a regular basis. Tyler catches it on Hulu and Andrea records it on the DVR. Once in a while Andrea's sister will watch it with her. Andrea doesn't have a Facebook so she can't be a fan, nor does she normally visit the website. She just watches the new episodes when they come out and talks about them with Tyler.
Conclusions- I've learned, just from thinking about what goes into the show, that high school is probably one of the most important parts of your life. Why else would we center on it so often? I think the problems we go through and the things we accomplish there are some of the biggest defining moments in our lives. And, in a sense, high school never ends. We still have the ridiculous dramas and hurt feelings that really shouldn't effect us the way that they do. I think, now that I've analyzed one of my favorite shows, I'm a little disappointed with it. These kids are all so talented and have so much to look forward to- but they're just kids. And now that that is a little more apparent to me I don't feel I can relate as well. I want to be an adult and I try to stay away from the drama. Watching theirs on TV feels so superficial- I have bigger and better things to worry about. Maybe it is time we move on; find something more grown up to write screenplays to.
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