can someone explain what the fuss is about Glee?

[pellucid]

Some weeks ago, I caught about five minutes of the Glee premiere before turning it off when the choir director's wife (I don't know anyone's names) made me want to attack her with a sharp, pointy object. Ah well, I figured, I didn't need another show anyway. But then all manner of my acquaintances, fannish and otherwise, have exploded with love for

Comments

[pellucid]

The replies to this post have really surprised me: the impression I had was that everyone LOVED this show, and I felt like there must be something I wasn't seeing. I had no idea that my impression was widely shared or that the people who are really enjoying it are feeling defensive about that. Sorry! I didn't mean to make you, or anyone else who is enjoying it, to feel like you need to defend yourself or the show, and I certainly didn't mean to imply that people who enjoy it are idiots or misogynists or anything like that. I thought you were in the dominant majority, and I was just honestly curious about whether I was missing something.

It does sound, from what you say, like the characters are growing. The one I saw was the ep where the football players do Beyonce, Kurt(?) comes out to his dad (and yes, I really did love that scene--easily my favorite character moment in the episode), and Quinn(?) tells her boyfriend she's pregnant (but doesn't tell him it's not his), and we learn that the choir director's wife is not actually pregnant. So perhaps this wasn't the best ep in terms of showing the characters in a favorable light? I did get the impression that some of the secondary characters (like, for instance, the girl that was offered the song instead of the prima donna girl) had the potential to be interesting, but I wasn't very taken with any of the leads.

Anyway, I don't know if I'll watch more or not, but I have been truly surprised to see more comments against than for the show. My impression of the buzz was that it was an overwhelmingly positive buzz, so I was certainly not intending to step on any toes.

[beanpot]

I think people either love it or hate it. Yes it does have a lot of hype and sometimes it falls, and other times I just giggle hysterically. I don't think it is trying to be anything but what it is - over the top on all aspects. I mean, people burst into SONG. I also think it has improved a LOT since the first two or three episodes, especially when it pertains to the women.

But why can't a show just be over the top and about dancing and singing? Why do all shows have to be meta and enlightening and changing the world? Why do they have to be drama and depressing and dealing with issues? There are plenty of shows like that and I adore many of them because of what they are. And I like this one because I will hear some amazing singing and nothing moves me more than music.

[pellucid]

I've seen so little of it that it's hard to say, but I suspect cofax may be on to something in the comment below when she notes that it's an oddly misanthropic show, and especially for something centered around a show choir, which you'd think would inspire silly, sappy, and fun. Perhaps it's the dissonance of those two aspects that is causing such strong reactions, both for and against? But obviously I'm basing this--and all my comments--on having seen very little of the show, and I may well be off-base. I am glad to hear that you think it's improving; that's always a good sign with any show.

As for your second set of questions/comments, I think I'd muse that of course there's great value in shows that are pure, un-thinky entertainment. I mean, for me this is the year of the silly cop show, so obviously you're not going to find me insisting that all shows should have some deep, thinky agenda.

But I also don't believe "it's just good fun" is a valid pass for problematic portrayals of women, or people of color, or anyone else. A show may have no deeper purpose than entertaining its audience for 45 minutes, and that's great, but I'd still like to see it doing so in an un-sketchy way. I, at least, am far more entertained when I am not cringing at the way certain characters are portrayed. Different people have different handwaving thresholds where this sort of thing is concerned, I think. TV is so full of racism and sexism and other forms of sketchiness that it would be hard to enjoy any of it if you had no capacity to handwave problematic thing X for the sake of enjoyment, but the question of where the problems start to outweigh the enjoyment is going to be different for everyone--and I suspect you and I have a different threshold for Glee, and that's absolutely fine!