Glee: Ballad

So, I know this is almost a week after the fact. But I’ve been busy, okay, I only saw the episode on Hulu on Sunday. Anyway, I usually really love the summaries/analyses up at This Ain’t Living and Adventures of a Young Feminist, but this week they really didn’t cover some points that I thought were important. I realize they’re not doing extremely comprehensive writeups and I am not expecting them to cover every little detail, but I felt compelled to mention a few things.

First, a confession. I get that I might be supposed to say that the Kurt side story is insulting and pathetic and the vague overtones of ‘mock the gay guy’ and ‘gay people secretly want to seduce you!’ are terrible, but. All I could think while watching Kurt was “Oh, honey. I know what you’re going through.” Because if there were a prize for Most Pathetic Crushes on Straight People? I would make the nationals. I’ve been around that age, somewhat more confused about myself than Kurt is, and following some straight girl with a boyfriend around like a lost puppy. And yeah, I don’t believe that ‘turning people’ is possible either, but I can’t find it in myself to blame Kurt for trying to nudge Finn towards the bi-curious side, even if we all know it’s hopeless.

As for Lean On Me, I seem to be the only person who found that shockingly marginalizing. The minority characters literally gave up their stories, their personal ballads, in order to celebrate two heterosexual white kids and their baby-drama. I for one was actually really looking forward to some of the minority characters’ ballads. On the bright side, I thought Mercedes’ mini-speech to Puck was really pretty queer-positive, emphasizing the difference between biological parenting and the social role of a parent. Of course, I–like every other viewer–am frustrated that Quinn hasn’t told Finn about Puck’s involvement, but I can let that slide for now. It has been subsumed under the indignation that I felt over Finn deliberately letting Quinn’s parents know about her pregnancy. It wasn’t his decision to make, and although it’s clear that Quinn hadn’t really thought things through in terms of her parents’ knowledge she should have been the one controlling the big reveal. To me, this falls under bodily autonomy–Finn has consistently demonstrated that he feels some ownership over the fetus, while Quinn has to remind him that it’s her body and her choices. Yes, this contrasts sharply with her whole ‘I’m a woman and crazy and demanding that you provide for me!” schtick, but I’m choosing to ignore that. The bottom line is that Finn thinks he has the right to make certain decisions about the fetus, even when Quinn has specifically indicated her intent to make different decisions.

Overall, Glee is sorely trying my patience. I love that there’s a show on the air with singing and dancing in every episode. I love that this is a better alternative to High School Musical. It’s fun, and entertaining, and it has Lea Michele in it. It also, increasingly, makes me go, “Wait, what? Seriously?” If this keeps up I’m not sure I can continue watching it.

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