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I had a lot of friends who were surprised
that I wasn’t a ‘Gleek’
(def; unabashed fan of the series “Glee”).
After all, I’m kind of an anomaly
amongst my friends in the fact that I’m
a white, heterosexual male who hates sports
and loves musicals. And that’s what
“Glee” is all about… music.
I think the main reason I didn’t
watch “Glee” right off the bat
was my desire to stay away from commercials
and scrolling ads at the bottom of the screen.
These annoyances keep me away from even
my favorite shows, so why should this be
any different? That said, I was determined
to watch “Glee” once it became
available on the home video market. Recently
I checked out the entire first season on
Bluray and while I’ve determined I
am not a ‘Gleek’, I still really,
really like the show.
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“Glee” follows the exploits of a
high school teacher as he tries to inspire the
school’s less than stellar Glee Club to
become a team of highly trained singers and dancers
in order to take them to the top… or at
least Nationals. Matthew Morrison stars as Will
Schuester, the teacher who believes wholeheartedly
that he can transform the school’s band
of misfits into winners.
It’s a simple formula, but not a simple
show. It has its quirks and is decidedly unrealistic
at times, but the cast of “Glee” turn
every episode into something special. There are
show stopping numbers thrown in at the drop of
a hat, and not a one of them was anything less
than entertaining. The comedy can be over the
top, really… who needs realism on an good
TV show. It’s not like reality shows are
realistic.
The Bluray release offers up a pretty decent
transfer, though the video is occasionally less
than perfect. When the musical numbers hit though…
everything comes together. I was pleased to see
a good number of special features offered, after
this was an extremely talented cast so I wanted
to see more of what they had to offer.
The Pilot Episode includes a visual commentary
that puts most of the cast on a screen right next
to the episode, so they get to interject their
own comments and tidbits of information and we
get to watch them as they do it. There is a ‘Jukebox’
feature that allows you to jump to every musical
number, while the ‘Sing Along Karaoke’
allows you the choice of listening with the original
vocals intact or taken out. You’ll also
find featurettes teaching you the ‘Rehab’
Dance, taking you behind the scenes of the ‘all-Madonna’
episode, the making of their version of “Bohemian
Rhapsody” and a look at the show’s
costumes.
Additionally, there is a ‘freshman orientation
video’ for McKinley High School, a music
video for “Somebody to Love”, and
the full length audition scenes for the characters
Rachel and Mercedes (one of which sings “On
My Own”, a personal favorite). But the fun
doesn’t stop there. There is a program from
the Fox Movie Channel that focuses on finding
actors that can sing, dance AND act, while another
featurette gives viewers a look at Dance Boot
Camp for those few non-dancers. Add to this a
bunch of video diaries from the cast and you have
a pretty full plate.
“Glee” is a very entertaining series,
though I’m sure most men who aren’t
comfortable with their sexuality will admit to
liking it. They’ll spit and talk about hunting,
but if you look I guarantee their feet will be
tapping.
Episodes:
Pilot
Showmance
Acafellas
Preggers
The Rhodes Not Taken
Vitamin D
Throwdown
Mash-Up
Wheels
Ballad
Hairography
Mattress
Sectionals
Hell-O
The Power of Madonna
Home
Bad Reputation
Laryngitis
Dream On
Theatricality
Funk
Journey
Starring: Matthew Morrison, Jane Lynch, Lea Michele,
Cory Monteith, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, Jayma
Mays, Jessalyn Gilsig, Amber Riley, Dianna Agron,
Mark Salling, Jenna Ushkowitz, Naya Rivera, Heather
Morris, Mike O'Malley, Iqbal Theba, Patrick Gallagher
Extras: Behind the Pilot – Visual Commentary
with Cast & Crew; Glee Sing Along Karaoke;
The Power of Madonna; Full Length Audition Pieces;
Staying in Step with Glee; Bite Their Style; Making
of a Showstopper; Meet Jane Lynch
Specification: Widescreen (1.78:1); English 5.1
DTS-HD Master Audio
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: 9/14/2010
MPAA Rating: NR
http://www.foxconnect.com
We'll give Glee: Season 1 (Bluray) a B.
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