Sunday, November 21, 2010

Glee: The Substitute


Just in time for flu season and Country Strong, Gwyneth Paltrow guest-starred as carefree substitute teacher Holly Holliday. She covered for Mr. Schuester, who got sick as he was trying to prep the New Directions for sectionals, hallucinating his high school singers were a group of adorable five-year-olds dressed as the mini-mes of their older counterparts ("I'm going to go home... but first I'm going to get you guys a sitter," he told them.)

The episode was more about compromise within than pitting the New Directions against an outside enemy (save for the always-present Sue Sylvester, who was escalated to an interim principal post that found her worshipping — who else? — President Nixon). Kurt continued to hang out with his new role model, Blaine, Mercedes staged a protest against Sue's "potater-tot" ban and Mr. Schuester engaged in some ex-sex with Terri. But the main matter at hand was whether the glee club should focus on the old (Mr. Schuester: "Come on, guys, there's got to be a Journey song we haven't done yet!") or the new (Miss Holliday: "Top 40, sweet cheeks!").

This week's episode was a little harsh on Mr. Schuester — while he's steered the New Directions to excellent moments in the past, "Make 'Em Laugh" and "Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag" fell short of the takes on contemporary tunes. After last week's plot-heavy episode, this felt more filler — save for Gwyneth Paltrow's successful guest star stint. Next week: The New Directions take on Bruno Mars when it's wedding time — and Carol Burnett guest stars as Sue's mom.

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