Glee Season 2: Merry Christmas, Darling Sneak Peek

Wow. They released two performance sneak peeks ahead of the actual song list for the next episode, A Very Glee Christmas? Interesting. As of now, there are still no confirmed songs yet to be performed on the actual episode - well, except for these two sneak peeks, of course. All I know is that the songs that will be featured in the episode are off their Christmas album.

Now, as for Rachel and the song, she sounds, as usual, lovely. Her voice is absolutely exquisite in this song. I think the production is gorgeous and that little scene with her looking at Finn and Santana is just heartbreaking. I just want to hug her. Enjoy!!

Glee Season 2: A Very Glee Christmas Promo Pictures

Here are the official promo pictures from A Very Glee Christmas - Glee's last episode for this year. Waah! And the hiatus begins again. Sigh.

According to reports, Finn tries to bring a little holiday cheer to McKinley High, and Artie discovers that Brittany still believes in Santa. Meanwhile, the teachers pick their Secret Santas, and one manipulative coach rigs the gift-giving in her favor. The plot seems interesting. Let's see.

Check out the photos after the jump!!

Glee: Ryan Murphy To Replace Cast Members After They Graduate

Wow. This news is huge!! According to Ryan Murphy - executive producer of Glee - in an interview, majority of the original cast will most likely leave the series by the end of 2012, as their characters will be graduating from High School. So, Chord Overstreet's Sam is possibly the first of the next generation of Gleeks.

According to him:

"Every year we’re going to populate a new group. There's nothing more depressing than a high schooler with a bald spot. I think you have to be true to the fact that here is a group of people who come and go in these teachers' lives – they graduate and they're gone. When some of them finish their run at high school it will be very teary episodes. For me it will be particularly tough but a new crop (of actors) will come in. I was concerned about that (whether to have characters graduate and leave the show) because those kids caught on so quickly – but I think one of the things I'm very happy we’ve been able to do this years is we’ve brought in new characters. I think if you can keep regenerating – and I didn’t think we could – I didn’t know if people would want those characters (like Sam) but they do."

Well, that makes total sense. Of course, the kids have to grow up sometime. However, I, for one, think that bringing in a new cast is not the best move for the longevity of the show. What would a new cast have to offer us that we didn't get from the original cast? What kind of story would we get? We will have already gone through the whole competition part of Glee with the original New Directions, so there's nothing exciting there.

High school drama and teenage issues? Same thing, we will have already seen that from the original crop. I feel like introducing a new group of people to be the main cast wold ultimately result in more of the same but with new faces. I don't think that it will hold the viewers interest for too long, especially given how much everyone is invested in and attached to the original cast.

Yes, the idea is creative but I honestly don't think I'll ever love a cast this much ever again. Really. Lea Michele is what pulled me in when I watched the pilot. She leaves, plus Cory, Jenna, Amber, Chris, Dianna, Mark and Kevin, I don't know what will happen. They could maybe kind of keep them involved with the Glee club, but that would be pushing it.

Maybe what's even more frustrating is the fact that original Glee members will be replaced and we're all stuck with Will Schuester. Haha. I personally don't believe Will, Sue and Emma are enough to sustain the same show that will hold the same fans and that idea makes me sad.

But seriously, why not give the show an awesome, cute ending? When did it become a bad thing for a show to end purposely, rather than drag on forever? See, Desperate Housewives. Haha.

Album: Grown-Up Christmas List - Charice

I had no idea Charice will release a Christmas EP this year. Well, it's out and in this EP, Grown-Up Christmas List, she features three popular Christmas songs, which I think sounds really good. It's surprisingly compelling, it's a remarkably comforting listen and the production is top notch with vocal acrobatics in ample supply. This is actually an impressive piece of work.

Anyway, Charice will be back on Glee for it's post-Superbowl episode, which will air sometime in February. For now, enjoy this EP!

DOWNLOAD LINK WILL BE UP FOR ROUGHLY 24 HOURS ONLY!!

1. Grown-Up Christmas List

2. Jingle Bell Rock

3. Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

DOWNLOAD

BUY THE ALBUM (EP)!

Glee Music 2: Don't Cry For Me Argentina (Kurt and Rachel Duet)

I've posted both Kurt and Rachel's solo versions of Don't Cry For Me Argentina, which was featured on the episode, Special Education. Well, here is the duet version of the song. I think this duet is equally exuisite as their solo versions. Enjoy!!

LISTEN:

You want a copy? Email me.

Glee Season 2: Special Education Episode Review

Special Education

Season 2, Episode 9

This, to me, was a very interesting episode, but all in all an upgrade from some of the episodes this season. The character balance was a refreshing return, and several stories started coming to a head that needed to. Of course, there were other parts that still need tweaking.

But overall, this was a decent episode full of drama, good music and some comedy, which was, yes, a good mix for the show but something was definitely missing and I can't put my finger on it. But, whatever. Ha!

THE GOOD: 

- I honestly liked that the episode started with the Finn-Santana-Rachel drama. Somehow, it fed in to the issues within New Directions.

- There was such joy in this episode - despite some of the not-so-happy plot twists, if you will - that I think some of the other episodes have been missing. I personally like when it really focuses back on the kids, and while I do like the occasional guest star every now and then, the best episodes are always the ones that focus primarily on the Glee club itself.

- Santana killed every scene she was in tonight. While the way Finn's lie came out to Rachel was unexpected, it was entirely in character in my opinion. Her later trolling of Rachel, again, was cruel but we've learned by now that Santana's a cruel character, and I love it. Haha.

- Now, as far as the actual Sectionals performance went, New Directions owned it! Seriously. I already addressed Valerie's pure, sheer, unadulterated awesomeness in some of my previous posts, but Time Of My Life was surprisingly good as well after all.

- The angst in this episode was good. I mean, it was a nice change from all the tired 'Kurt's gay' storylines of the past several episodes. Don't get me wrong, I like Kurt's character but it's becoming more of an overkill to me. Kurt wasn't overused this week, and the scenes he was in were actually pretty good. Don't Cry for Me Argentina was fantastic, from both characters - but I'll get into that later.

- Brittany’s adultery thing cracked me up! Haha. She had her moments in this episode.

- The Rachel/Kurt friendship was adorable. I loved it, more so than when they were bitching at each other over solos. This was really refreshing to see. Actually, I love Rachel in this episode. I'm glad they brought back the true Rachel we all know and love.

- The Hipsters were hilarious! I loved how they had trouble moving across the stage. I know, I'm petty.

THE BAD: 

- A tie? Seriously? New Directions most definitely deserved to win that because Dalton's performance was mediocre at best, vocally and routine wise. Beyond that, has anyone heard of two winners being chosen in a one-winner competition? The ball was dropped there. For me, it was clear that the writers felt that they can't continue Kurt's character without him moving on - which, again, baffles me - hence that kind of result. But really, I felt the tie was completely unnecessary. After the Warblers' somewhat lackluster performance, I'm scratching my head.

- Lauren can go now. Like, now. Haha. I just do not like her. The fact that she was singing and dancing in Dog Days Are Over made me ill. You're not a part of this group! Sorry.

- I'm not sure I understand what happened at the end of the episode. I mean, Rachel did tell Finn the truth and that she didn't go through with it. So, while Finn should be pissed because of the history with Puck and Quinn, I don't know if it's really that bad - bad enough to break up. Finn's a wuss. Sure, he didn’t cheat on her, but lying about being a virgin and leaving her in the dark when everyone else knew about it is a pretty big lie.

- I have to admit, Rachel being on the back burner all season long has made, for me, the light dim on this once beloved show. At first, I got tired of her but I actually miss her now. I think the writers didn't handled her character quite well and it's terribly sad. Rachel has no friends. Santana saying that no one likes her was true and cruel but the girl has made strides. Before, she left the club completely. This time, she stuck it out and was in the background. That's progress. But no one reaches out to her. If the writers don't shed light on that anytime soon, I'm going to flip out.

- I'm sorry but I really didn't care much for the Emma-Will drama. But that's just me.

THE MUSIC:

DON'T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA was beautiful. It wasn't the division I expected lyrically, but it was absolutely exquisite. I liked that Rachel had her true Evita moment on that balcony. Haha. To me, this scene did a great job of showing just how different these two are. They're talented, they think highly of their talents, and they don't apologize for it. They see each other as the only real competition, and I actually think that's a fair assessment.

THE LIVING YEARS was unintentionally funny. Ok. I apologize now but the performance was ridiculous. I don't believe that any senior citizens were singing, and the whole thing was plain absurd. As I've said, I loved how they had trouble moving across the stage though. Haha.

HEY, SOUL SISTER. Cute performance. They sounded great but it wasn't as mind-blowing or charming as Teenage Dream. How I wish they used that instead of this during Sectionals. I think the best part of this sequence was the support New Directions gave Kurt, especially from Rachel. The "smile" moment warmed my heart.

(I'VE HAD) THE TIME OF MY LIFE. Besides the fact that they now seriously need to come up with a different way for everyone to enter, I liked the performance. Quinn and Sam have great chemistry together, and they did a great job. The dancing was fantastic as well, which was a nice change of pace. I knew the actual performance would be better than the audio alone.

VALERIE. Fan-freakin-tastic! I think Santana, Brittany and Mike killed it. Oh, and the background dancing was excellent too. Again, it was a pure, sheer, unadulterated awesomeness from New Directions. Great energy and this performance alone made them more than deserving to win Sectionals outright. Enough said.

DOG DAYS ARE OVER was also great. The song totally works for these guys. The little montage with this number was great because I got to see happy Kurt, I felt  sad for Rachel at her locker, and it was a great ending to the episode. I loved the group hug as well. Everything was genuine. Plus, Tina and Mercedes in a duet was refreshing.


Download music HERE.
Download episode HERE.
Watch the preview for next episode HERE.

Glee Season 2: A Very Glee Christmas Teaser

This is it! Glee's last episode for this year. Yes, they'll be having another 2-month hiatus for all Glee fans to endure. Waah! Please remind me again how I survived that. Haha. Anyway, here's a preview of next week's episode, A Very Glee Christmas. This, to me, looks very interesting. Enjoy!