The TV Chick

Glee is back. No seriously, I kind of can’t believe it’s back myself. There were a lot of complaints about the back 9, the use of guest stars, the HUGE onslaught of music vs. stories, the list goes on and on. I was not as disappointed in the back 9 as my fellow critics and bloggers alike, but I see their point. Ryan Murphy had promised he wants to focus on the main characters and then announced a ton of guest stars. So what’s the story? Here’s what I say: Glee is amazing. You may be cautious about the number of guest stars but we only really have a few ultimately confirmed and remember how amazing Kristen Chenoweth, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff and Neil Patrick Harris were? Have faith, Gleeks!

“The Audition” starts off at the beginning of the school year. Jacob Ben-Israel (remember him?) is doing a video blog of sorts which is rather hilarious and summing up the events of the summer. Schue wants more Glee club members so New Directions can become a force to be reckoned with. So who should the Glee club recruit? Well, there’s the incredibly good looking Chord Overstreet (who plays Sam Evans) and international pop star Charice (who plays foreign exchange student Sunshine). They aren’t convinced so easily to join though (or perhaps one of them is thwarted by a certain leading lady whose name rhymes with Machel Merry). The way Finn tries to get Sam to join is a lovely call back to the pilot episode, so be sure to look out for that. I actually really liked these additions to the cast. Overstreet is an AMAZING singer. I don’t think he’s better than Jonathan Groff, but we can’t all be that amazing. He seemed to fit right in with the dynamic of the cast. And Charice has some serious serious pipes too and was quite adorable.

There are some new pairings in this episode, and some unlikely ones too. Tina and Mike Chang have perhaps formed some sort of relationship. Finn and Rachel are still together, and they have some very funny moments in this episode. Dot Marie Jones guest stars as Coach Beiste and she did a phenomenal job. I was not expecting to like her (I will admit I don’t think Coach Tanaka added too much to the show). However, she brings a depth to this character that I really didn’t think was possible. I look forward to more from Coach Beiste (yes that is pronounced beast).

The music is scaled down slightly, which makes it that much better. Their version of Empire State of Mind floored me. I had to watch it three times or maybe more. I didn’t think Cory Monteith could rap but he does a great job, and Amber Riley brings it home singing one of the Alicia Keys’ parts. The song Rachel sings at the end had me in tears. But let’s be honest, most episodes of Glee have me in tears. Chord Overstreet and Charice each sing a number as well and I enjoyed their songs immensely. Overstreet sings Billionaire which honestly I kind of don’t like at all but he made it great. And Charice’s solo of “Listen” (from Dreamgirls) gave me chills. Quinn also finagles her way back into a Cheerios uniform, and I am so happy to see Dianna Agron used more. She is such a shining star of the show, whose facial expressions can make an entire scene. Brittany is back with some great one liners and for all the Will Schuester fans out there (I know there are a lot of you!), he is heavily featured in this episode.

Audition is really great, and not just because I’m so glad Glee is back. It had good stories, great new characters and a lot of absolutely amazing singing. Sadly, there was no Terri or Emma but I am positive they will be back very soon. I can’t wait to see what new level of crazy Sue takes things to this season. What about the Will/Carl/Emma love triangle? Where does Terri fit in? Will Rachel and Finn last forever? Who will be Kurt’s boyfriend? I know one thing is for sure, it’s going to be great.

And now a little Q&A about the premiere! I had a lot of questions submitted via twitter, and here are the best ones with answers. Cautions: Minor spoilers lie ahead, so don’t read if you don’t want to be spoiled.

@GuitarGurl77: When will Stamos’ 10 eps be up what month?
Good question! I can’t say anything for certain, but I’d imagine sometime around December unless they decide to stretch it out more.

@Bilal_Milan: List of songs in the episode.
Sure! I don’t consider these spoilers, since they were already technically released.

-Empire State of Mind: Group number
-Billionaire: Chord Overstreet and the guys of New Directions
-Telephone: Charice and Lea Michele
-Listen: Charice
-What I Did For Love: Lea Michele

@kristen_ellwood: Is Finchel everything we’ve been dreaming of?
I’m not sure what sort of dreams you’ve been having but yes! They are still together in all their Finchel glory.

@hezmanagirl: I was wondering why Coach Tanaka left and how the heck did they find The Beast?
They explain that Coach Tanaka had a nervous breakdown — which I am going to guess was caused by a certain red-headed guidance counselor. If I recall correctly, they don’t explain how they find The Beast, but seriously Dot Marie Jones is brilliant.

@kcmmp13: What can we expect for Quinn, is she a Cheerio right away or does she too have to audition? What about Puck and Quinn?
I love Quinn. In fact, I wish they used her more last season because I think she has an amazing voice and stage presence. She has to work a little bit to become a Cheerio, but by the end of the episode she is back in uniform. I think she will be straddling the line between Glee club member and Cheerio this season and it will be interesting to see where that goes (that’s just my speculation). As for Puck and Quinn, I’m sure Puckzilla probably still has feelings for her but that isn’t addressed too much in the premiere.

@Jaymafans: Does the premiere even mention what happened to Emma over the summer in relation to Will?
There’s only one way to answer this: No. Will is busy with his own crazy antics but I think they will probably mention it when Emma returns.

@hezmanagirl: Do they mention at all why Rachel has decided to change her hair after so long?
They do not, but she is back and up to her usual Rachel Berry amazing-ness so not to worry. Her hair looks good (in my opinion).