Mike Chang and his background moments, Pt. 1

[four_tens]

H'okay. So. I recently introduced a couple of my friends to Glee, and they liked it, but they really didn't understand why Mike Chang was my favorite character. And as much as I like to say "Mike Chang is flawless", it's not really an accurate representation of why I like the guy- I actually like him because he is an incredibly likeable fellow, but he is also a nuanced character! There are a lot of things about Mike that are not easily apparent, and the more you delve, the more you will like him, in my opinion (Not to say that you have to like Mike! Opinions should proliferate in many varieties!)

So I started compiling all his moments that he did anything in seasons 1 and 2, along with what we have of season 3. And that list got very, very long. Like, I'm up to Pot O' Gold, and I'm at like 50 pages. I figured now was the time to write down and process these moments some. So here's all of season 1, in one handy dandy post, just in case you want a bit of a canon Mike action guide, so to speak. Or if you just want to get to know the character more, and see why I like him!

Mike Chang character study (And also mild Glee critique and moderate reaction shot hype):

Overview: Mike joins Glee in episode 4, after Kurt helps them win their first game of the season. Since then, he’s been an enthusiastic member of the Glee club. He has confidence in his dancing, and indeed that is his biggest strength, but he can also sing. He loves performing and wants to be a professional dancer.

Preggers:

Oh lawdy, our first shot of the man himself. Well, upon going back trying to spot background events with Mike in them, the first thing I notice is that Mike is in the shot where the football team is being lectured by Finn, Mr. Schue, and Ken. He’s the football player sitting closest to Kurt, funnily enough. You’ll notice that this is a recurring trend.

The second thing you’ll notice is that Mike is front and center in the choir room, learning the choreography. He shows typical dancer traits- He’s not afraid of how his body moves, he’s making every move as large and sharp as he can. Even before I knew Mike would be a character, I surmised that the actor in question was brought in because he’s a dancer. He doesn’t have the choreography down right yet, but he’s trying hard to learn it.

You’ll also notice that he doesn’t actually spend any time hanging out with Matt in this episode, which leads me to believe that he doesn’t really have a friendship with the kid yet. And when the game starts, Mike is not on the starting lineup. So we know that he’s a second string player currently (Which certainly makes more sense for a Sophomore than quarterback).

Actually, watching the football game, I don’t see Mike ANYWHERE during the game. Which sort of makes sense, meta wise- Is this the only school without a JV team? Sophomores on the Varsity team aren’t like Unicorn levels of impossible, surely- but  I’m either of the opinion that Mike is a benchwarmer or a JV member from textual evidence.

Not much comes from him walking in at the end of the episode except for the fact that he likes Glee enough to want to join it after Kurt helped them win their game. Also, this is where we get his name. On to the next episode.

The Rhodes Not Taken:

First two background events that Mike participates in: Quinn’s precipitous retreat and Santana’s cutting jib. Mike looks concerned but confused for Quinn (Nothing out of the ordinary for the Gleeks, everyone else pulls the same face), meaning he’s generally nice and concerned for the wellbeing of his teammates. Well, actually, on its own, it means jack. But it’s the start of several background moments of Mike being really nice. And to be fair, we only have background to work with for pretty much ALL of season 1. =/

The second interesting moment is that after Santana counters Kurt’s “Giant Elephant in the room” with “Your sexuality?”, Mike is visibly uncomfortable. I somehow doubt that he’s uncomfortable with Kurt being gay- He has no problem with it in Preggers, and even sits near Kurt in the locker room (To be clear, Kurt wasn’t out in Preggers, but everyone assumed he was gay. And it’s unclear how out he is in this episode at this point- whether it’s just Mercedes and Burt or everyone). So the thing we have to work with here is that Santana’s jib made him uncomfortable- either with Santana and her meanness or the subject matter. More in the next episode.

At the end of this scene, when Finn goes up to talk to Mr. Schue, Mike turns back to talk to Matt. First interaction between the two as well.

Our next moment is really a lack of a moment- we see Puck and Matt leaving the showers with April, but Mike is conspicuously absent. After this, we see the three of them (Mike included this time) all teasing April and acting chummy.

As an aside, this episode always irked me for a number of reasons- Introduces April as a love interest (WHEN WILL IS STILL MARRIED, AND BTW TERRY IS NOT IN THIS EPISODE BECAUSE WHY NOT), Rachel isn’t a vegan yet (It’s jarring), and Finn starts the startling trend of everyone manipulating each other instead of just talking. Also, cheating on Quinn as much as Rachel cheats on him later. GO FINN.

Next scene where Puck drops the preggers bomb. Mike’s standing in the back, not talking to anyone. We don’t even get a reaction shot from him, while we do from Matt. After they all start gossiping, he starts to gossip with Matt.

Everyone’s warming up for the Invitational, and Mike is clearly enjoying the warm ups, even more than some of the original six Glee kids (Specifically Kurt and Mercedes- that “Lazy Mercedes” shenanigans from season 3 got started early, I guess.)

Geez, Santana and Brit Brit can dance. As can Mike. Tangent. Anyways, the kids really love performing. First time we get to see Mike truly happy since his introduction, and that includes the teasing April bit where he was smiling and laughing. Part of that truly reads as him fitting in with the other two jocks.

Also would like to point out that this is the start of a trend to pair our best dancers together- Brit Brit and Mike, Santana and Matt as second stringers.

Vitamin D:

Continues the trend of Mike caring more about the club than EVERYONE ELSE. He and Matt are the only two not visibly sleepwalking when we cut in on the start of the episode. Literally EVERYONE ELSE is half assing the choreography, but neither of these two are.

Flash to the team announcements, Mike’s been working with Santana, and even having a good time. So we can further draw that Mike probably doesn’t mind Santana’s abrasiveness, meaning previously in The Rhodes Not Taken, he objected to her clear attack on Kurt’s sexuality. Interesting.

Again we get the shoehorned Jock/Gleek split, with Mike standing over by the Cheerios. Team split. Mike leaves with Matt, they’re clearly friends by now.

Sue ran for office twice? Wow, season 3 is rife with callbacks to season 1. And this is the show we make fun of for continuity.

Mike continues his attentiveness streak, listening to Ken’s idiotic drivel about knowing routes (Like this guy could coach them out of a wet paper sack).

Up til this point, we’ve had Matt in more shots in general AND more included in the plot (Via April threesome), but Mike finally does something to earn more attention, and that’s the dance solo in It’s My Life/Confessions. He and Matt carry most of the dancing anyways as well.

Notable in this scene, however? Kurt pulls away from the group almost instantly once the number is done. Even Will directs the praise to the other guys, his back LITERALLY to Kurt. Lolwut? Great teaching Will. The guys all celebrate together, but notable is that Mike purposefully goes over to Kurt to include him in the celebrations. By… playing with his scarf and tickling him.

Mike is also one of the most penitent kids after they get busted. Only Puck looks as truly shamed as he does in the group reaction shot (rather inexplicably, given the Puck of season 1). Sue is co-director, and we smash into my favorite season 1 episode. And Mike’s first line!

Throwdown:

First scene with Mike: Will’s trying to curry favor with the kids. He smiles and agrees when Mercedes and Kurt want “blacker” music, pulls faces at Rachel when she vetoes, and raises an appreciative eyebrow at Kurt sassing Rachel. Then we get the moment of truth:

Mike volunteers that he can Pop and Lock. His first line. He looks nervous to be speaking up, but volunteers a skill that they could maybe leverage for sectionals. And then he looks around for support and gets… none. Will also shoots down the contribution.

I has a sad. It’s okay, though. Because Sue Sylvester’s nurturing minority choir is about to make its debut. When Sue calls Asian and Other Asian (It’s unclear who’s who here, but Ballad confirms that Mike is Other Asian, so yeah), Mike practically runs over to her group. He’s clearly nonconfrontational and afraid of Sue. Also I love how Mike is totally onto Sue trying to stir the pot, he’s pretty perceptive.

Cut to Hate On Me, which is miles better than No Air, btw. Sue is letting every kid shine in the way they do best, Mercedes belting, Tina and Santana backing vocals, Mike and Matt dancing, Kurt and Artie… well, not every number is perfect. Mike lights up when Sue tells him to Pop and Lock, and this is the next number to heavily feature Mike dancing. All the kids have a blast. More tellingly is that Mike quickly and easily establishes a rapport with Kurt, Artie, Mercedes, AND Tina in this number, effectively killing the jock/gleek divide from last episode. Nurturing minority choir indeed.

Nex t scene is the Covert Jam Session, and that split is well and truly cooked. In fact, Mike is practically a social butterfly- he has a moment of singing with practically everyone (Which isn’t exactly the same for everyone else- Rachel spends this time glued to Artie, for instance). Guess everyone likes Other Asian.

The football jocks continue their streak of attentiveness- Kurt, Santana, Mercedes, and Brittany clearly could care less about the No Air number about to happen(me too, the number sucks), but Mike is sitting up straight paying attention. As are Puck and Matt.

When Sue calls Glee a “stupid little club that no one cares about”, Mike looks offended. Matt, for what it’s worth, is just staring in shock right now.

The last scene when Schue is calling all the kids minorities (Which actually, is sort of true- the only white cisgendered heterosexual abled christians in the group are Finn and Quinn, and Quinn is part of a minority demographic, teen mothers- but is so not the point he should be making here and actually a little insensitive and condescending), the kids are well and truly mixed now. Mike is sitting next to Kurt and Santana, in front of Brittany, and behind Tina. This episode really shows that all the kids are getting to know and open up to each other.

Mashup:

This is a hugely Wemma episode, and my least favorite next to Hairography and Home from season 1. Still, we’ve got a few moments. First of all, The glee club doesn’t even attempt to give the male lead to anyone but Finn and Puck before Will takes over. So Mike is pretty much invisible except for harmonizing.

Mike does have a little moment with Brittany during Sweet Caroline. It comes on the heels of a Kurt/Mercedes moment, which makes me think more platonic, but this pairing of the two happens often enough during numbers, background moments, and song choreography. I’ll discuss this later after the episode by episode.

Come Thursday, Mike and Matt are the second two football players who come back (Kurt comes back before them, it’s explicit in the episode that he was still on the team at this point, if you missed it), again reinforcing how much Mike cares for Glee and doesn’t really care for football. We get Matt/Santana hugs, and again the Brittany/Mike pair shows up. And… that’s it.

Wheels:

First scene where we find out Artie has to have his dad drive him: Mike gives him a pat on the shoulder as he’s leaving because he sympathizes. He also gives a bake sale the stinkeye. On another positive note, he’s definitely got his thinking cap on when Will suggests paying for the bus themselves. It’s just… he thinks the bakesale is a bad idea. As do the rest of the kids. And me. Also he pulls a pretty hilarious “Are you serious” face when Finn starts in on the busier than when Mr. Schue went here speech.

Generic “OH HO HO” from all the kids at Kurt requesting an audition. Nothing much to see here. Though there is a good “AW HELL NO” look from a blurred out Matt during this scene. It’s hilarious.

Second scene with the wheelchairs: Everyone makes faces at the Bake Sale idea again. Mike in particular looks ready to vomit, for some reason.

The wheelchairs get wheeled in, and Mike has the most suspicious look on his face. The boy is pretty much pissed.

Fortunately, he’s one of the better kids about his wheelchair. He and Matt spend the time while Will and Burt are arguing and we flash to the choir room to figure out how to handle their chairs. Also wow, Mike will NOT stop moving in his chair. One gets the feeling that he doesn’t like the wheelchairs more than the other kids because he’s so used to moving, dancing, that kind of thing, and doesn’t yet know the wonder of wheelchair dancing.

In the auditorium- Mike isn’t used to his chair (he hits Mercedes), but he’s certainly getting better. He’s practicing more than the Gleeks, and he looks happier. I think he’s getting used to the movement of wheelchairs.

And oh my god, Mike is adorable at the Diva off. First off, he’s talking to Kurt when Rachel walks in (And not sitting with the “Jock” quartet of Matt, Finn, Santana, and Quinn).Whooping and clapping, he kicks up his feet, he is just THAT EXCITED.

One more thing- with the lens afforded to me by season 3, Santana’s reaction shot here makes a lot more sense- closeted teen gay supporting out teen gay. Or, you know, she just likes making Rachel cry. Whichever.

Mike gives Puck a shoulder squeeze and sits with the jocks when Artie dedicates the money to a “cause bigger than himself” ™.

And then Proud Mary happens and I get confused because at first there are 12 people, then 11, and Mike is the one who is cut. But then he’s back, and I don’t even know. Also, there’s a truly funny moment where I think Puck is checking out Mercedes in her chair. And Finn still can’t dance, even in a wheelchair, and that’s just sad.

Ballad:

Disgusted reaction shots after Santana giggles her way through telling us Matt had a spider in his ear. Guess Mike doesn’t like spiders. Tina calls Mike Other Asian, and we get another disgusted reaction shot. I don’t blame him. Santana getting Brittany makes her so happy that it’s ridiculous. This ship has been dropping hints since forever, I swear.

I would also like to point out that Mercedes and Mike are the first two to pull weirded out faces at the following duet, which shows some pretty powerful perception. Artie also catches it, and his reaction shots are also really amazing.

Tina has Rosacea? I missed that. Also, this episode continues the trend of Jocks caring about rehearsal more than the Gleeks, with the Mercedes/Puck scene. And the Mercedes is lazy thing (Keep in mind, I don’t actually think Mercedes is lazy, but there’s plenty of backing evidence to show she doesn’t always give her all- something she’s struggled with and grown past in season 3, if the Troubletones’s performances are anything to judge).

God, this episode is a vast Mike-less desert. Let’s just skip to the end.

Lean on me. Mike is front and center, sings at Kurt during the jock gleek back and forth, gets into the choreography, and isn’t creepy like Puck and Kurt. Then he catches Finn in a trust fall. Good? Good. Also, I don’t know if it’s the yellow shirt (Which makes a triumphant return during Duets, natch), but Mike looks really REALLY good this episode. Like, dayum.

Hairography:

Mike finds Schue’s choreography fun. Rachel and Mercedes look bored as hell and are clearly not trying. Again. God. Enough about that.

Jane Addams kids perform, reaction shot time- Mike is staring at Mr. Schue in a clear “WTF”. Hilariously, the only ones who really liked the performance were Finn, Puck, Tina, Santana, and Brittany. Hmm, I wonder why.

New Sectionals number time. Mike is once again sitting really far from Matt- He’s two rows back, sitting behind Puck and Kurt. Best frienditude with Matt I am not textually seeing. It’s funny how the guys are fine with wearing long hair wigs, but won’t sing Madonna or Lady Gaga. This show is right back to being inconsistent.

Quinn’s voiceover, and Finn and Mike are making Dinosaur claws at each other. Oooooooooookay. Huge nerd alert.

Cool Epilepsy time. Er, I mean. Brit Brit’s lesson. (Seriously? Cool Epilepsy? Really show? God I hate this episode.) Everyone throws themselves into the hairography, and everyone thinks the Will/Sue showdown is a major downer.

Oh god, Hair/Crazy in Love time. Ugh. This mashup sucks, everyone looks awful, the costumes are alright though I guess. Haverbrook is not impressed.

Imagine time. For the record- What Mercedes does here is disrespectful- you don’t just bust in over someone’s performance without permission.. But Haverbrook kids look like they’re fine with it, and they get the final say in this situation, so I’m gonna cut ND some slack here. I still hate this episode. Anyways, Defining moments: Finn, Quinn, Matt, and Mike are the last people to join in and crash Haverbrook’s performance.

And now the diamond buried in the crap. True Colors hits (I LOVE this song, and Tina is miles better than Cyndi Lauper and Phil Collins, so I love this cover), and Mike is sitting between Rachel and Artie, and has fun singing at both of them. D’aw.

Mattress:

MIKE IS NOT IN THE ROOM WHEN KURT EXPLAINS THE YEARBOOK ISSUE. Neither is Rachel, but that’s plot relevant.

Voting time: Mike nods along with Puck being an idiot. Nice.

Rachel breaking the news: Mike nods along with Puck being an idiot. Trend sensed. He’s sitting next to Matt now, I guess they’re buds? Idk. Rachel breaks the news, Mike+Gleeks get super excited before everyone else. Kid must like performing.

Mattress commercial. Mercedes is a diva, Matt and Mike approve. Oh wow, none of these kids can act. Anyways, they do Jump, and Mike “dances” (jumps?) with Brit Brit and Mercedes. And at the start he’s staring at either Puck or Kurt, I can’t tell.

When Will breaks the news that he’s not going to Sectionals, Mike and the kids look heartbroken. Will acts like a teacher (for once), and we cut to Smile. Where Mike’s primping in the mirror while fixing his hair. Notably, he and Brittany are the only two Glee Clubbers whose pictures AREN’T defaced. So there’s that.

Sectionals:

Mike knocks Quinn over by… not bumping into her? Weird. They edge past each other, and she slips on sweat. Mike is like, wtf just happened?

While Puck tells us about fight club, Mike is in back chatting with original Gleeks.

The first of many Diva-Offs between Rachel and Mercedes. Apparently Mike and Matt are Mercedes’ guys? They’re giving her wordless backup at this point, which is actually really touching. Well, Matt gives her backup. Mike is mostly just WTFing at Rachel. It’s pretty amazing.

I guess Matt and Mike helped her or something, cuz she points to them with her first “And you”s.  They’re also like super into it, and the first two to stand up in support of how she’s killing the song. Maybe they really like Dreamgirls.

Finn starts whaling on Puck, and Mike and Matt hold him back. After, I should note, Mr. Schue breaks them up.

Mike gets popcorn, d’aw. He’s also totally buying into Rachel’s “First or last” speech, unlike Kurt. (Interestingly, I think this scene plays out in such a way that Rachel probably has gotten CT rolls, she just didn’t want to rise to Kurt’s bait.) Jane Addams performs, and Mike is disgusted. And hits Jacob to make him stop dancing.

Hilariously, when Haverbrook performs, Brit Brit waves at them, and Mike shakes his head at her. I thought that was a nice moment for the two of them- Last person enjoying a stolen performance got hit, Mike and Brit Brit are totally friends.

Finn busts in the greenroom, and Mike gives him the hairy eyeball, and it makes me giggle. You can just see him thinking “Am I going to have to hold him back again?” and it is perfect. Then Finn tells him and the other three good dancers to think up new choreography. And Mike gets his SECOND LINE (Before Matt even gets one. SUCK ON THAT). “It’s gonna be choppy”. Which also cements that Mike has his gameface on. He really wants to win.

My Life Would Suck Without You breaks up our dream team of Mike and Brit Brit, as the kids mostly dance solo. The most enduring feature of the song for Mike is that he spends the whole song in the back left, next to Kurt and his partner of the moment. He mostly dances with Santana and Mercedes.

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And that’s the front 13!

Back 9 gives us a bit more to work with, despite Mike having just as few lines. Brilliantly illustrated in Hello.

Hello:

Mike thinks the whole Hello lesson is garbage, considering the faces he pulls during Will’s speech. He also helps Rachel dance for Gives You Hell, and seems to get into the message of it with Rachel as well. There’s also a funny bit where Rachel messes with Kurt, and he goes over to sit next to Mike after she pulls him out of his seat.

Mike is on the basketball team, he’s sitting next to Matt.

Mike also continues to show that he’s pretty easy to guilt because of Will’s Vocal Adrenaline speech after Rachel’s number.

Hello Goodbye gives us the lovely Back 9 dance partnership of Tina and Mike.

Power of Madonna:

Mike likes Pantera and hates Madge. Well, that’s really all I take out of everything up until Express Yourself. That and an appraising look at Santana, but it’s rather incongruous with the rest of the scene. Maybe he didn’t take her for the Madonna liking type?

Anyways, Express Yourself happens. Mike is sitting in the back, next to Kurt. He looks bored, but he watches the proceedings politely, unlike Puck, Finn, Artie, and Matt, who all look away or eyeroll or something. Mike isn’t enjoying himself, but he once again shows that he’s a good audience.

After that, Mike doesn’t show up until well after halfway through the episode, when Finn and Rachel are talking about their respective dates. Gag. Anyways, he’s talking with Puck and Matt. Probably about how they hate Madonna.

Jesse joins New Directions. Mike looks suspicious. End scene.

What it Feels Like for a Girl time. Mike’s between Finn and Kurt. And must have gotten over his Madonna hate, because he’s getting into it. Maybe he just hates Express Yourself.

That has to be it, because he’s clearly having fun with Like A Prayer, one of New Direction’s better numbers in general if I do say so myself. He’s paired off with Tina again. Next to Matt and Quinn.

Home:

And I hate this episode, can we skip it? No? Fine. Puck recommends torching the auditorium, Mike gives him a fist bump. Also Matt, for some reason. Just go with it, Mike’s a knuckledragging jock right now.

Okay, this episode isn’t awful. Just April and Kurt’s parts. So, you know, most of it.

Kurt sings inappropriately to Finn. Mike says something to Matt, reads the lyrics, then SHOOTS A LOOK AT FINN before Kurt starts singing. So yeah, kid’s perceptive.  Other than that he is… nondescript. Nothing happens, not even a background look from him. YAWN. Brittana pinkie link is d’aw though.

At the roller rink, I can’t tell for sure if the guy falling down is Mike, but I’m fairly certain. Also it’s a characterization moment I think would be really neat- Mike’s a great dancer, but not all that coordinated. It kind of ties in with the falling over Artie’s wheelchair later in Furt.

When Mercedes is giving her speech for Cheerios, Mike (or Matt, can’t tell) is one of the first to raise his hand during her speech (Specifically during the not worth very much part). He’s also one of the first three to stand up and join in, along with Quinn and Matt. He stands by Kurt and Santana. This is yet another song that Mike got really, really into.

April drops her bomb about buying the auditorium. Mike’s standing behind Kurt next to Finn. Cue whooping and hollering. During her closing number, Mike is in the back left corner, behind Rachel and next to Jesse. Guess he’s the only guy who can stand him besides Finn (Who’s faking).

Bad Reputation:

Mike makes third to last on the Glist with a +11, whatever that means.

He’s also standing next to Puck while the club accuses the guy. Puck says a bunch of ridiculous, and Mike nods along with Puck being an idiot. Trend, back.

Anyways, Ice Ice Baby, and Mike gets into it absurdly fast. Way faster than everyone else. Ew. At the end he pats Quinn’s arm. D’aw.

Rachel’s bad reputation project. Mike is wearing the yellow shirt again. He’s sitting next to Matt, Kurt and Mercedes. Anyways, the video ends, everyone blows up over how shitty it is, Mike looks embarrassed on their behalf. Though my personal favorite reaction shot here is Quinn’s, she looks like Christmas has come early. PS- Brittana ship, stop being disgustingly cute all over EVERY EPISODE of season 1. Like, GOD.

TURN AROUND, BRIGHT EYES. God, this song is stuck in my head now. Okay, so, Mike’s standing over a chair with Brit Brit and Santana. And singing backing oohs, like the rest of club. Scene.

Laryngitis:

All the Glee kids save Artie, Matt, and Mike are gathered round the piano when Puck walks in. Mike is doing MJ hip thrusts (wanky) which sort of peter out in shock over Puckzilla’s missing ‘hawk. Puck’s mom washes his hair? Lol forever.

As we know, Rachel is telling us she has perfect pitch. This episode is a fav in general, but the ridiculous assertions that it posits are half the fun. Like, the Puck/Santana scene, and this one here, this episode is cracky and hilarious and if it weren’t for FRANKENTEEN RUINING EVERYTHING this would be my favorite season 1 episode (As it is, it’s still Throwdown). Anyways, Mike is in back with Puck. Singing ‘ma ma ma ma’. Puck has a baseball cap on backwards, but you can totally tell he doesn’t have his Mohawk. So idk when this scene is set. Especially considering everyone is in a different outfit than the first scene. Of course, the second bug scene has them in different costumes and seating arrangements- this time Mike is sitting next to a standing Finn and Rachel.

Anyways, long story short here is that on the list of people not singing, Matt and Mike aren’t on it. So they take everything, even warm-ups, seriously.

Weird Gleek/Jock split again, Mike is sitting next to Matt and Quinn and behind Brit Brit and Santana when Will is calling them on their laziness.

Oh god, I just realized that from the way Kurt panicked when he saw his dad and asked if everything was okay  is because his Dad only comes to school for emergencies. Like his mom dying. All my creys.

“The Climb” time. Mike is between Matt and Puck. And we get TWO reaction shots from Mike. The first has him looking at Rachel as if he’s bored, then we pan up to Santana. The second is him literally cringing. Hee. And Brit Brit is totally into it. Double Hee.

Jessie’s Girl time, and he’s sitting between Matt (Who is geeking out and drumming) and Santana. We only see his head during the pan over. But we do get to see more of him during The Lady is a Tramp.

The Jazz band files in, and Mike leans over to Matt to tell him something. Probably that he choreographed the upcoming number. Also his face when Puck says he joined a Black Church is hilarious. And then Mike is totally into it, like jamming in his seat, head bobbing, Oh god, he has the nerdiest laugh face in the whole world. Seriously, watch this clip if you watch any of them. It’s a primer on all things Mike Background Moment, and neatly shows why he and Brittana were the things I watched Season 1 for. (Well, and everything else. But they were my favorites.) And then he Matt and Schue give a standing ovation.

Kurt walks in and requests solo time, and Will acts super surprised to see what he’s wearing, as if he wasn’t wearing clothes like it during Jessie’s Girl and The Lady is a Tramp. Will is a terrible teacher. Anyways, Pink Houses, and Brit Brit and Finn dig it, but everyone else is throwing out some pretty classy WTF faces. Mike is between Rachel and Santana, and is looking fairly incredulous. Then blurred out Mike is gesturing while talking to Matt while Brit Brit is telling Kurt to tap her.

Can I just say that sick Rachel is adorable? Like, all the adorable?

The Boy is Mine, and Mike is sitting behind Kurt, next to Brit Brit and once again, Rachel. Weird. Even weirder, he looks down kind of ashamed when Santana gets all up over Puck. I don’t get it.

Oh god, Rose’s turn. I’ll just be here, in a puddle of creys/feels/emotions. TWoP’s review basically says it all: Kurt did it best. Also, I want to ask Fashion of Glee where he got his sheep hat. Because it’s both extremely fetching and also incredibly apropos for him to be wearing it right now.

Our closing number, and before we split into sisters and brothers, Mike dances with Mercedes.

Dream On:

Time for some depression.

I can’t help but find it funny that Bryan Ryan tells WILL that the love of his life is his wife named WILMA. I lol’d pretty hard.

I find it adorable that Mike has pen and paper out before Bryan Ryan even starts speaking. And then he gives Finn a piece of paper. We know NOW what Mike wrote on his piece of paper (Dancing, given season 3 stuff), but I like to think he and Matt both wrote “More story involvement”.

Mike makes a confused face at Bryan’s stats, which makes me think they’re totes made up. After Bryan’s diatribe, Mike looks pissed, and then looks over at Will as if to say “DO SOMETHING”. Which is kind of nice I guess. And then Will kicks him out, and Bryan snots about cutting Glee, and Mike looks EVEN MORE PISSED.

Ugh, this episode. All I took from the first half is that Artie and Tina totally get their mack on in a giant lens flare.

And then Safety Dance happens. And it supposedly has everyone, but I only ever catch Mercedes, Kurt, and Tina. But Brit Brit, Matt, and Mike are there at the start. But yeah, this is a fantasy sequence, and it’s just dancing. Nothing to see here.

Jean Jackets! Mike is not in this scene because why not. Interestingly, Matt is hanging with Jesse by the piano.

And then the last part of the episode. Will walks in and intercepts Mike’s football pass to Puck. I’d also like to point out that Mike is some sort of dance prodigy- he learned this routine in a day, tops. With no tap training, and having never danced outside his room before. Mike is sitting between Finn and Quinn behind Brittana in the choir room. Mike looks modest but pleased when Tina calls him as her partner. Hilariously, Jesse looks like he doesn’t know who Mike is.

And then, super hilariously, we cut to Dream a Little Dream of Me, and our three resident dancers (Matt, Mike, and Brit Brit) are swaying in their seats while everyone else sits still. Also Mike gets super into this song, and I think Mike Chang is a HUGE Standards fan because of how he reacts to all the music from that era and his Singin’ in the Rain-ness and a whole bunch of other things.

And then he and Tina dance and they’re super cute, and I think he gets his crush on Tina here and THAT’S JUST WHAT I THINK OKAY. Erm.

Theatricality:

At first I thought Mike wasn’t in the first choir room scene, but then I caught the blink and you’ll miss it moment where he pretend vomits over Lady Gaga music. This is the ONLY instance of him hating on Gaga in the whole episode, and it’s .5 seconds long, and really, as a dancer, and as the classy human being he usually is, I really think he’d appreciate her music (At least from The Fame, anyways), and Season 1 Mike is woefully poorly characterized, so I’m just ignoring it. But! It exists as a moment, for what it’s worth.

Kurt and the Girls walk in, and they’re all sporting Gaga looks and look fabulous and then Mike is nodding and smiling at the costumes (more than any of the other boys does at this juncture), and then Will throws some Spanish out there to remind us he actually teaches something, and then Mercedes drops her bomb. And then Mike looks like he really feels for Rachel and said bomb that was dropped. Mike is appraising of her outfit, and skeptical once one of the beanie babies falls off. And we start Bad Romance in the choir room, and Mike is clapping and dancing in his seat already (As is Artie), so I really don’t get them hating on the girl performances but WHATEVER, I GUESS FINN IS RIGHT FOR NO REASON WITH NO EVIDENCE AGAIN BECAUSE WHITE MALE, GOD.

Anyways.

Mike and Artie continue to jam out in the auditorium. Wow, they really don’t want to do Gaga (/sarcasm).

And then we have the boys doing Kiss. And these costumes are seriously just as bad as the Gaga ones, so STFU Finn. But yeah. Mike’s a kitty cat, and freakishly thin, wow. And also I think he’s wearing his Hairography wig for this and guh. I don’t even know, this show.

And we get Mike’s next line: “We did our research Mr. Schue”, so Team Mike is at 3 before Matt gets to 1. HA. And then he rocks on like a dork and high fives Artie.

Then after Blanketgate, we have Mike sitting with Mercedes and Rachel. And then Puck has him come down and back him up on Beth, along with the rest of the boys. And it starts with Puck’s daddy issues, and Mike looks utterly gutted and I just, season 3, suddenly this song is heartbreaking to me.

Also he’s wearing zebra print slip ons and a killer jacket. I just want to make love to his wardrobe, it’s fantastic.

God, it’s so weird to pan out to all of them, because Finn, Mike, and Puck are so emotional, and Matt and Artie are all, ‘whatever’. Guh.

And okay, tangent, but then Poker Face happens, and I think it’s secretly genius, because Rachel wanted a mom, yeah, and she’s giving up her mother, but another thing she wanted was to sing with her and have a conversation about boys with her mom, which is sort of exactly what Poker Face is, and come on show. Also its super adorable.

End of the week in club, Mike’s between Rachel and Puck. And enthused about costumes. They roll up to support Finn and Kurt and he’s still between Rachel and Puck. End.

Funk:

H’okay. So. We roll into the auditorium, and Mike’s between Quinn and Finn, sporting the world’s best cardigan which YOU CAN’T BUY ANYMORE ALL MY CREYS. And Mike has that look on his face like he hates what you’re doing. Because Vocal Adrenaline SUCKS.

Gleeks walk out of the auditorium, Mike’s behind Finn and Artie and next to Rachel and Mercedes. Finn tries to cheer everyone up, but Mike shoots Puck a look that says “is he serious?” Puck tells Finn he’s wrong, Mike nods. And then Mike is the third one in the choir room after Kurt and Artie, even though like 5 people were in front of him? Idefk.

Sue comes in and trashes Glee club some, Mike mostly wants her to die.

Will comes up with the Funk number idea, Matt and Mike are next to each other, with Kurt behind them and Brittana in front. Whee.

Oh god, Quinn’s number. Man season 1 rocked. Mike and Brit Brit share a look when she’s walking from the risers, and lol. Also to be fair, Mike looks to be considering what she’s saying when we cut to Mr. Schue right before the number. But then he looks weirded out during the number. Anyways, then the group hug happens, whatever.

Good Vibration time. Puck ‘comes on swingin’, and Mike is bemused but leans back (despite being in the second row). And he’s the first person dancing in his seat, of course. Even before Artie, and Artie loves this kind of music. And actually, Mike is embarrassingly into this song, and we get way more reaction shots of him than we really should.

Rachel’s sharing circle of avian assault.  Mike’s sitting next to Santana. Puck calls them to action, Mike looks mad and gets the macho posturing that everyone else does. He’s certainly more invested than Matt and Artie, at least.

And then we get boring Will/Sue drama and Parlaiment as the ending number, and aside from Mike being endlessly entertaining in this number (splits into waddle walk, anyone?), not much is going on.

Journey:

Mike’s sitting behind Tina and Mercedes at Will’s Pity Party. I mean the Set List Party. And then Tina starts crying and the next person to rub their eyes is Mike. And I just… sadness, creys, etc.

Mr. Schue’s pep talk after the fact. Mike is between Puck and Mercedes in front of Matt and Tina. Schue refers to how there were only 5 of them at first, and Mike smiles politely and looks around the room and is all “this is before my time”. The kids giggle over Schue not being an accountant.

I’m a Winner and You’re Fat. Pfffffffffffffft.

Green Room. There is always time to make fun of Finn’s dancing. Always. I love that they framed it so that he’s in the shot with Mike and Brit Brit, just to drive it home. They guffaw as they are entitled to do.

Mike’s paired with Mercedes during Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’/Anyway You Want It. And then he’s chillin at the end of the line during Don’t stop with Santana and Kurt. They run off stage, and Mike’s talking with Matt, his hand on Matt’s shoulder.

Oh god, I just noticed. Part of Vocal Adrenaline? It’s one of the McKinley jocks that dances with Mike during Cool, and does some of the Valerie dance in the 3D Concert Movie.Oh dancing extras, how you get reused. Cannot unsee.

A nice character touch: When Quinn gets wheeled through the doors, Mike is flapping his hands in panic. It’s not even his baby. Also the order of people past the door is Puck, Finn, Mercedes, Mike, everyone else in a blob.  And then Puck, Mercedes, and Quinn bounce to have a baby, and everyone looks super worried. Waiting room, Mike’s standing in the corner staring at a lamp.

Okay, this backup dancer thing is super distracting, he’s like the most prominently displayed male VA member besides Jessie.

I think my favorite line of this episode is “Brunettes have no place in show business”, said to Josh Groban, a brunette. Classy. This show continues to have privileged, entitled idiots say something blatantly, obviously wrong, and I love it.

When trophies are handed out, Mike is standing behind Kurt and Mercedes, next to Finn and Brit Brit. They lose, and he looks suitably crushed. Like, at one point he stares at the trophy in disgust.

To Sir With Love. And this song always always always makes me cry. Mike is at the end next to Brit Brit. And I’ve always said this, but I’ll say it again: Mike and Santana are the saddest thing about this. Mike’s line, considering all we know about him at this point is that he’s an utterly fantastic dance, is as sad as it gets. And his face is like top 3 of saddest here (Santana looks the absolute saddest hands down, then it’s like Quinn/Rachel/Mike tie for the next saddest). And then the song ends and everyone is crying, even Sue, and then I have a twig in my eye, I mean stick, I mean entire goddamn branch because fuck if this isn’t horribly sad.

And then Sue fixes things, and Mike is sitting dejected between Santana and Mercedes, and Kurt’s on the other side of Mercedes and it’s distracting because they’re like red cardigan bookends, and I swear he and Kurt have the exact same cardigan on. And then Will tells them they have another year. And no one believes it, but then he repeats himself, and Mike is out of his chair jumping for joy while most people are still processing. Many high fives with Puck and Matt, and then Schue sings Over the Rainbow, and we get some schmoopy reaction shots of the kids. Mike gets to fistbump Matt and start hula hands with Kurt.

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Season 1 Information:

From what little we see of Mike in Season 1, we’ve learned quite a bit about him. Let’s start with the quickest and least populated section: Shipping.

I’m not going to lie, I can ship Mike Chang with pretty much anyone. But Season 1 only really gives us hints of Brittany, Quinn, and Kurt if you squint really hard (And indeed, fandom did. Mike/Kurt was a marginally popular pairing for Kurt). Santana is a contender too, as is Matt due to them being undeveloped characters that hung out together.

Friendships seem a lot more common, however. Given Sectionals, we know that he’s friends with Mercedes. His friendship with Matt has been well developed up til this point too. He really feels for Quinn during the numbers directed at her, and gives her Funk number a fair shake too. He and the other Jocks carry Artie out of the auditorium in Throwdown, and he actively tries learning about the wheelchair in Wheels. He and Finn have their nerdy dinosaur claws thing in Hairography, and he spends a lot of time fistbumping and high fiving Puck too.  He and Tina are paired for the ballad assignment and dance together in Dream On.

We even clearly see friendship, or at least appreciation of, Kurt. There’s the scarf thing in Vitamin D, his subtle sass appreciation in Throwdown, and he has no problems with homosexuality or being seen associated with Kurt due to seating arrangements, both in the choir room and the locker room, where Kurt is one of the most common people he sits by (Other than Puck, Matt, and Brit Brit, who are all clearly his friends.) He doesn’t seem to mind Rachel as much (And even helps do an impromptu performance with her in Hell-O). And of course, Matt and Mike are the closest Glee club members at this point to Brit Brit and Santana.

This kid gets around, friendship-wise. I find it hilarious and ironic that at this point in the series, the character he’s had the least interaction with is TINA.

On to character traits! Mike has several we can infer from his reactions this season. First and foremost: He REALLY likes performing. Like, a lot. Probably more so than some of the original Gleeks.  Ironically, we see him more invested in the club time and again, and considering he doesn’t even get any lines, that’s impressive. He’s never seen skimping on the work (Laryngitis, Vitamin D, etc.), and he picked Glee over Football in Mash-Off, which means he’s really invested.

We also see him being insanely perceptive. He cues into Kurt’s singing at Finn in Home BEFORE KURT STARTS SINGING. He realizes Rachel’s crush thing on Schue in Ballad. He gets stuff. It’s like, he’s the only Glee kid who isn’t completely crazy. He instead watches the crazy unfold.

He’s nice and polite, too. He’s always watching performances and giving his full attention (Unlike some of the original Gleeks). He even prepared to take notes from Bryan Ryan. He acts friendly with everyone and doesn’t seem to have an issue with any of them. He’s also a huge nerd (Dinosaur claws, MJ moves, liking Good Vibrations, etc.).

One thing you will notice, however, is how okay with femininity and homosexuality he is. This was a large part of why he was shipped with Kurt a whole bunch. Mike has no problem wearing long wigs, enjoying Lady Gaga (A spokesperson for LGBT rights), eventually gets into Madge, includes Kurt in group stuff (Lean on Me, Confessions/It’s My Life), etc. There’s also a lack of him being all over girls like in later seasons (Which could just be Mike being a late bloomer), as evidenced by the Jane Addams girls’ performance. This isn’t just an accidental thing, either. It continues even in season 2 and 3 (RHGS, NBK, etc.) He’s visibly uncomfortable when Santana attacks Kurt for his sexuality, and didn’t have shower sex with April on screen. Also, he arguably joined Glee Club because of Kurt. (Keep in mind that absolutely none of this indicates that Mike is gay/bi- arguably excluding him not enjoying the Jane Addams performance of girls shakin’ their thangs and not having sex with April- but fandom certainly has a predilection towards Mike being at least bisexual, and most of their anecdotal evidence comes from this pool, along with stuff added in later seasons)

He’s very shy, and definitely a little bit nonconfrontational. He sings, but doesn’t think he’s good enough for lead on anything. So we see some of his character flaws here. He doesn’t think he’s good enough (Home, Mash-Off, etc.), he’s very shy (In fact, he’s terrified to volunteer anything in Throwdown, and only starts to really open up in club in the back 9), and he doesn’t speak up about things that bother him (“Other Asian”, Santana’s comments, Everyone’s inappropriateness, people being rude to Artie/Quinn about being in a chair/preggo).

So all in all, a good indicator of what he’s like so far.
And that’s it for season 1! Season 2 gives us a lot more to work with.

This is actually pretty rambly, so have some time on your hands. Season 2 is all done, and it'll probably be posted tomorrow sometime.