On this week's episode of GLEE, Mr. Schue, observing the bullying that the girl members of the club are receiving from the guys, gives his students an assignment: pick a Madonna song and, in the words of the songstress herself, "Express Yourself." The premise, a rehash of last week's assignment to find a "Hello"-themed song, is already becoming tired and redundant; not only is the series getting less original, but its preachy aspects are amplified to incredible levels in this episode.
Sue Sylvester's professed years-long love for the singer seems to come out of nowhere and is a labored attempt by the writers to create a plot strung together by songs from Madonna's expansive catalogue. Though the episode covers a lot of ground - female empowerment, sexuality, and self-contentment, to name a few issues - the main storylines of each of the characters don't go anywhere, with the exceptions of Kurt, Mercedes and Jesse ST. James, who each unexpectedly join different groups (the first two the Cheerios, and Jesse New Directions). The switch allows Kurt and Mercedes a chance to perform, as they both point out to Will, and it's a very welcome change; their rendition of "Four Minutes To Save The World" is energetic and fully entertaining, and also advances their personal story arcs. The writers also thankfully manage to get back to the Artie-Tina relationship and rectify some of the problems it initially boasted, if only briefly.
The musical numbers this week vary from forced to surprisingly good. The Cheerios' dance to "Ray of Light" is, in a word, bizarre; though energetic, it's difficult to get past the odd use of stilts in a cheerleading routine. "Borderline/Open Your Heart" is similarly awkward and allows Monteith and Michele to simultaneously make the same three strained faces they do whenever they lip-synch on the show. The standout songs this week were the ones that allowed other characters a chance on screen, namely "Express Yourself," which features the girls sporting the power suits and tightly-coiffed hairstyle Madonna made famous, and the previously mentioned "Four Minutes." It was refreshing to see the club working as more of an ensemble this week, and I can only hope the trend will continue.
Kurt and Mercedes' decision to give Sue a "Vogue" makeover allows for a shot-by-shot remake of the iconic music video. The first few minutes are admittedly fun; seeing Jane Lynch in each of the classic looks Madonna has in the video, while singing and dancing, is entertaining. However, the video loses its entertainment power as it goes on; it becomes less and less interesting because they do little more than copy the video. It would have been interesting for the writers to throw in more humorous twists than the single lyric about how Sue hates Will Schuester. The same goes for the one-note concept of "Like a Virgin" later in the episode. The song is interesting for the first fifteen seconds, featuring a montage of Rachel, Finn, and Emma as they prepare to "lose the big V." Like the "Vogue" video, the song becomes an unnecessary extension of a very simple concept with little variation, and becomes boring very quickly.
The episode's overall message about gender equality and togetherness is heavy-handed and feels like something out of an afterschool special. Though it focuses on more than one character pretty nicely (for once!), the episode's overall tone is completely unbalanced and contrived. This is most evident in the moment when Sue reveals her dark childhood as the sister of a mentally handicapped girl and the daughter of "Nazi hunters;" though the speech has its funny moments, the underlying seriousness of her emotional issues causes a rather large disconnect between the steely character the audience sees 99% of the series. Similarly, the boys' caucus and performance of "What It Feels Like For A Girl" toward episode's end boasts cheesy lines that would arguably feel at home in a "very special episode" from Full House.
"The Power of Madonna" ends with the glee club doing a rendition of "Like A Prayer," complete with a gospel chorus. While the addition of the chorus is ridiculously far-fetched (at a simple rehearsal?), the number is undeniably fun to watch. "The Power of Madonna" may be incredibly unbalanced in tone, but a fair amount of attention was given to each of the characters and an attempt was made to make the plot more creative, which is really all I can ask of the series. It will be interesting to see how Jesse ST. James will adjust to New Directions, and to see where Kurt and Mercedes' loyalties ultimately lie - not to mention the fate of Will and Emma's relationship, which seems to be headed in a positive direction. Hopefully this episode is indicative of a step in a new direction for the program; only time will tell, but next week already looks promising as it boasts the return of Burt Hummel (Mike O'Malley) and April Rhodes (Kristin Chenoweth), two of the most interesting characters from the first half of the season.
