Dead Tree Alert: Shout Out With Glee

By James Poniewozik | @poniewozik | May 8, 2009 | +

FOX

Because of scheduling considerations in the print TIME, my review of the Glee pilot—debuting after American Idol’s final sing-off May 19—is in the issue on newsstands today.

I like the pilot. A lot. I have been referencing and tweeting abut Glee so often since seeing it that I am probably in danger of overhyping it, so let me say: it is not perfect. Many of the characters, the high school kids in particular, fall into very broad, stock stereotypes: the jocks, the nerds, the sassy black chick, the crypto-gay kid, etc. That’s been a weakness of Ryan Murphy’s shows, especially in the beginning: I didn’t like the pilot of Popular at all, but it quickly grew into one of my favorite teen shows in the era of the now-departed WB. But the adult characters are better drawn, and overall Glee is the best, most entertaining pilot I’ve seen in probably a couple years, so I have confidence.

OK, starting to overhype again. Will shut up now. Let the backlash begin!

Related Topics: dead tree alert, series premiere, Uncategorized

@TIMECulture

Latest on Entertainment

Music February 9, 2012

Listen to TIME’s Fashion Week Playlist on Spotify!

It’s Fashion Week in New York City and Manhattan is crawling with eccentric designers, stylish socialites and hungry models looking for next season’s big trend. It seems that our invitation to Marc Jacobs’ show got lost in the mail, so to console ourselves we’ve put together a stylish Spotify playlist.
From our Partners
"The Woman in Black": A Good Old Fashioned Scary MovieSlate

Can Katharine McPhee 'Smash' The Hype?Huffington Post
Total Recall: Unconventional SuperheroesRotten Tomatoes
Movies February 9, 2012

In Darkness: How a Swindler Became a Schindler

Agnieszka Holland’s Oscar-nominated film tells the true story of a Polish-Catholic sewer worker and thief who kept Jews alive in Nazi-occupied Lvov

Chaddogg

Go ahead, James. Overhype it. I have a feeling this show is going to be worth it…I’m going to assume that this show being aired and promoted heavily by FOX is penance from the TV gods for cancelling something as awesome as Pushing Daisies.
Rorschach

I was very excited about this show but I saw a preview and it looked frakking terrible. I was hoping the show was going to be tongue in cheek, but the tongue looked in the normal tongue position. Was it a bad preview? I was hoping the show would be making fun of high school musicals, not glorifying them.
natego

OH LORD! I am SOOOO tired of Teenage Stereotypes – ENOUGH ALREADY. I was in the band for the Show Choir in High School and here we go with another “chorus kids are geeks that get made fun of” show. Some of the coolest people I know were in Show Choirs. Some of them went on to very prestigious careers in the music industry even (achem.. ‘NSYNC.. achem) so enough of this Bull Plop Pleeeeease.
natego

@Rorschach.. BTW, why should we be rooting for shows that make fun of High School musicals? Some of the best productions (with some exceptional young talent) I have ever seen were High School musicals.
James Poniewozik

@Rorschach and natego: I can only suggest you give it a chance, though I can’t guarantee it’ll be to your taste. What I liked about the show, as I tried to say in the review, is that it is tongue-in-cheek but also has genuine heart. The satire is directed more at the culture of fame and the High School Musical genre of show (i.e., the Disney Channel show) than toward the show-choir members and their teacher, who are sympathetic characters.
natego

@james.. i hear what you’re saying, and I’ll be sure to check it out to be sure i feel the same way, but just the way they’re promoting it is enough to piss me off a bit.