Glee

Infinitely better then I expected. I had figured this was going to be a pretty lame constant joke/buffoonery at high school Glee clubs. Yes, it was a bit of the sacharine/stolen from Disney's HighSchoolMusical bit about the athlete who joins the glee club because he wants to sing stuff..

But I was surprised that it seemed to be a pretty effective storytelling, some good moments, and I like the cast - I'll give it a shot.

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It certainly was a well-crafted pilot, and I agree, it was pretty effective storytelling. The ensemble cast is likable enough and there appears to be enough there for the producers to be able to tell some interesting and fun "character" stories.

I am not sure I understand the logic behind Fox's scheduling strategy, though. According to their recently announced primetime schedule, Glee will follow So You Think You Can Dance on Wednesday nights this fall, but then it goes away in December(?) and does not return until spring as the lead-out to the AI results show (which apparently is sliding back into its old 8:00 PM timeslot.) This may work out just fine, but if history is an indicator, putting a fledgling program like this on hiatus in the midst of its first season usually does not do much to ensure its long-term success or viability.

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I think the hiatus is due to the mostly to the Olympics.

I thought "Glee" was really quite good. The leads were well-acted and interesting, and the musical numbers (especially "Rehab") were well-sung and extrememly well-choreographed and filmed for a TV show. Some of the camera movements were better than what I've seen in movie musicals.

Until the remake of "Fame" hits TV next year (is this still a go?), "Glee" will be a welcome change in a sea of medical dramas, cop shows and procedurals, and reality TV. I especially like how a number of the actors on the show are actual singers, and appear to be, at the very least, lip-syncing to themselves.

I'll be sticking around to watch this one.

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This pilot was one of the best things I've seen on television in a long time.

I just hope Fox stands behind the show instead of strangling it in its crib like they usually do.

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I thought it was decent, though it seemed to get a little contrived with the name dropping of other News Corp entities (Fox Sports Network, Myspace)...

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I know it's name dropping, but it's hard not to do unless they just inject fictional headings when we know what they really mean. It's like saying "I'm going to grab a coke" on a show instead of "I'm going to grab a cola".

I had no trouble believing High School kids hang out at myspace.. I mean, that's not some out-of-the-blue product placement that struck me as "phony". It was pretty realistic with the experience I see. And if you do competitive cheering (yes, I know) then it's moved from ESPN to FSN for a lot of the regionals, so I don't know why they would not use the drop.

I get really unhappy -REALLY- unhappy with product placement that makes no sense and is obviously just product placement. ButI felt as though at least the MySpace drop fit the character, and if anything, it highlighted the negative of the website. When the girls were harrassing her via her myspace "Get sterilized" and so on, all I could think about was the Missouri case where a woman harrassed a kid into suicide.

But maybe I'm alone in that.

As to the other bit above, there is NO planned revival of "Fame" the TV show (it was attempted once before in 2003 and died) but their is a new "Fame" movie coming out September 25:

Fame (2009)

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Thanks for the clarification, Matt. I knew there was *something* coming out, and I guessed it would be a TV series.

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I have to agree with all the comments so far. For me, it definitely did what a pilot is supposed to do as I am looking forward to the series starting in the fall. Some of the acting and line deliveries were a bit off but they more than made up for it with how earnest they were during the musical numbers.

Does anyone know if anyone else in the cast besides Lea Michele (Rachel Berry) has a musical background. It seemed like all of them had some experience. Incidentally, you guys probably already know this but Lea Michele was on Broadway in Les Mis so having her character sing a piece from that for her audition was kind of funny. She was also one of the original cast members in Spring Awakening (Wendla, the female lead), which is one of my favorites.

One last thing - my DVR cut off towards the end of "Don't Stop Believin'" right after their teacher walks into the auditorium and sees them rehearsing. What happened after that?

Darren

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LOVED it! Can't wait to see the entire series this fall. It's probably the best high school show I've seen since "Freaks and Geeks". And does anyone else think that the guy that plays "Finn" looks like a young Tyler Florence (from Food Network)?
I was surprised at how well (and quickly) the story set up the characters and premise. I'll definitely be talking this one up!
I am just concerned that if/when it hits DVD that the music clearances were worked out in advance to prevent any edits/replacements...and I can't wait to see the episode where they perform "Somebody to Love"!

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Not sure about the other cast members, but I know the actor (Kevin McHale) who played Arty (the guy in the wheelchair) was in a boy band called "Not Like Them."

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I didn't really expect to like it all that much either (my wife wanted to watch, so I figured I'd be the good husband and watch with her ...) Anyway, I ended up really enjoying it. As a child of the '80's, I've always loved Journey -and that arrangement of "Don't Stop Believin'" at the end was a pretty impressive number. The leads all seem to be well cast (the students anyway). The only thing I'd do is drop the wife - I like Jesalyn Gilsig (sp?) but her character is extremely annoying after only 1 episode.

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I was waiting for the reveal that the pregnancy was faked to get him to quit his job But I'm so evil that way.

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The full cast performed the number at Fox's Upfronts recently--you can see a video (poorish quality) on youtube at YouTube - GLEE - Tues., 5/19 @ 9 p.m. - Fox

cheers!

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Argh. I missed this due to a power outage and was kinda hoping that it sucked so I wouldn't feel bad.

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You can catch the entire episode on Fox.com. They tagged at the end of the broadcast that you can watch it for free all summer long on their website.

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Liked it, a touch of Disney saccharine, but overall pretty decent.

Liked the singing. They weren't the perfect, polished studio vocals you'd expect, just nice, decent voices that will improve with training.

Loved the commercial for next fall. The first episode wasn't even finished, yet they're advertising it as "The most exciting new show of the season...." or something similar.

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I thoroughly enjoyed the show and plan on watching in the fall.

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I really enjoyed last nights pilot episode. Totally up my alley. Can't wait to watch next week.

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Sorry, that was it until the Fall season begins.

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"Don't Stop Believing" is the number one downloaded track at iTunes as of 11pm Wednesday night!

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It looks like the entire first episode is now available as a free download on iTunes!

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I always forget that network shows are available online. Maybe I'll wait until just before the series actually starts to watch.

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On Monday, there was a great interview with Ryan Murphy on Fresh Air.

Fresh Air from WHYY : NPR

From the conversation, music rights may not be a problem. Everyone they have approached has been excited about their music being used in the show. That should make it likely that the rights are being cleared for DVD upfront.

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This was absolutely fantastic, but I'm worried about getting into a new Fox show that's not created by Seth MacFarlane. Not really sure about this strategy (using the Idol finale was smart, but I'd hate to see it become forgotten over the summer) but I really would like to see this show do well. Can't wait for more.

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It is also available on hulu.com. I had to watch the end online since American Idol ran over (again)and it cut off at the end. Urgghhh.

I really enjoyed the pilot and am looking forward to more but am wondering, is this too different to succeed with today's viewers. Usually anything out of the ordinary fails in network TV.
Looks like Ryan Murphy has brought some of the freshness he gave to the first few seasons of Nip/Tuck. Maybe I will try his other show Popular.

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It's available in HD on Fox.com; when you make it full screen, it seems to "clear" after a few seconds. Tremondous quality.


Really, really enjoyed it. Brutally effective left-field humor with pitch-perfect (sorry) comic timing balanced out with earnest moments at just the right junctures. I'll be tuning in come fall.

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Seemed like just another network kids show to me and not for adults, or at least those of us with some age. Just too many kids shows on now and not enough shows like Boston Legal, Frasier, etc. It's just not for me or my demographic I guess.

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I really enjoyed it, looking forward to watching this bunch of misfit underdogs fight the good fight.

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I'm not exactly a spring chicken (mid-40s) and I really enjoyed. A good show is a good show whatever the age of the characters are.

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I'm a bit of even tougher bird - in my early 50's, not a musical fan by any definition, and I enjoyed this too.