Back to San Diego: May 2011

I know you've been thinking to yourself, "Kara never shuts up about Glee in person, between her visit to the Glee set and being an extra...why has she been so quiet on the blog?" That's because I've been recapping Glee over at TeaWithLemon.com all year!

I started reading the site a few years ago, and was invited to do a Glee review-off with T, who runs the site, and Marja, another columnist. It ended up turning into not only being the Glee reviewer, but also associate editor.

It's a good group of folks over there, and fun writing for a site who's motto is "pointless drivel updated daily."

Here's a list of my Glee reviews, for your reading pleasure:

Glee-ful Finale Fever Recap: No Air
New York [S2, ep 222]
There are two things that make me very, very happy: Wicked and Glee. Sure, there are a bunch of other show tunes (Rent) and TV shows (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) that I enjoy, but Wicked and Glee thrill me. They’re both about the underdog overcoming obstacles and triumphing. That whirlwind you heard around 9:15 PT tonight in the San Diego sky? No, not a monster tornado (though the Dorothy reference isn’t lost on me)...it was my eventual implosion as the two came together in this episode. [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: Tracks of My Tears
Funeral [S2, ep 221]
You ever have this amazing dining experience: the appetizer and wine are fantastic, you’re already excited about what you ordered for dessert, and right there in the middle of a Sue-perb entrée...4 toddlers walk by and throw up on your table. That, my fellow Gleeks, was what happened in the middle of tonight’s heartfelt, poignant episode that dealt with the loss of Sue’s sweet, handicapable sister Jean. [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: Don't Be a Drag, Just Be a Queen
Born This Way [S2, ep 218]
Remember the catchphrase in Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood every time things would get semi-serious? MESSAGE! I thought we were lessoned out after last week’s veritable After School Special laundry list of condescending messages. It’s ironical, because the characters on Glee creator Ryan Murphy’s old high school show, Popular, would’ve ripped these characters and situations to shreds if they even walked near the same zip code as these treacle “messages.” But I digress...[read more]

Glee-ful recap: Night of 1,000 Honey Badgers
A Night of Neglect [S2, ep 217]
Dear Grilled Cheezus: Thank you for the invention of the DVR, because were it not for that little ditty’s red light going on, I wouldn’t have known there was a new ep. To paraphrase EW, my life in the weeks without Glee has been as barren as my spayed womb. Truth is, my excitement over the prospect of a new Glee was quickly dashed by the unevenness of the episode. [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: Can I Be Really Honest With You?
Original Song [S2, ep 216]
Because it comes from a place of caring. Look, you’re amazing Glee. Your funny bits in this ep are breathtaking. They’re also numerous. Let’s begin at the end: Kathy Griffin. When she appeared onscreen as Sarah Palin meets Christine O’Donnell, I snarfed out loud in my living room. It’s days like these I’m grateful I avoid spoilers like the plague. What a delightfully hysterical surprise! Coupled in judgedom with the always lovely Loretta Devine as a stripper with a heart of gold, frankincense and myrrh. [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: I Want to Sex You Up
Sexy [S2, ep 215]
Glee really has an embarrassment of riches in that they’ve got two national treasures: Mike O’Malley and Jane Lynch. Tonight’s ep was simultaneously wildly, inappropriately over the top and surprisingly touching. For every instance of Warbler-filled ejaculation insinuation we were treated to sweetly awkward moments like the Kurt/Burt sex talk and a nuanced exploration of the Santana/Brittany sapphically-inclined relationship. And make no mistake: Santana owned the night. Her vulnerable nature has slain me these past few eps, and major props to Naya Rivera for bringing it. [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: Smells Like Teen Vomit
Blame It On The Alcohol [S2, ep 214]
Dear Grilled Cheezus: Thank you for bringing the fun back to Glee, most notably in the form of the Rachel Berry House Party Train Wreck Extravaganza and Count Boozy Von Drunk a Ton. Love, Kara (RET Fag Hag, 1st Class) The fact that we got 4 new Glee eps in a span of less than 3 weeks means things could have gone bad—very bad—tonight. But, surprise surprise, everything was fun – and funny. Everything. Well, except for the white boys rapping...that’s never funny. (Have we learned nothing from Season 1, people?) [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: Don't Stop Bieliben
Comeback [S2, ep 213]
Having to review 3 new episodes of Glee in 10 days AND live-blog the Grammys (oh, and work my tail off making your tax experience super-easy*) proved to be too much even for someone with my pop culture stamina. In the absence of a full-on Glee review, here are a few things we learned this episode: Girls go gaga over the Biebs. Even if the boys looked more Eminem than Justin Bieber in their thick-stringed hoodies. Ryan Murphy’s a d-bag for thinking suicide’s funny under any circumstances, even if he spells it Sue-icide. [read more]

Glee-ful Recap: Sparks Will Fly
Silly Love Songs [S2, ep 212]
At the tender age of 16 I sold my soul to the devil and became a part-time employee at the Gap. One day, which started off innocently enough like any other, the manager assigned me greeter duties, which mainly consisted of, "Hi, welcome to the Gap, let me know if you need anything." I imagine that super-cute in a gay sort of way Gap Junior Manager Jeremiah wanted to do the same thing upon getting ambushed by the Warblers while he was working. The poor guy will have many therapy sessions after being Blained (really, who wouldn’t? I thought at one point Blaine was going to chew his nose off). [read more]