GLEE - Episode 5 - The Rhodes Not Taken

What's going down?

The episode kicks off with Will sticking up a poster advertising Glee club invitationals, followed by another performance of Don't Stop Believin' by the kids but with Quinn taking the lead now that Rachel's left to be Sally Bowles. However, she can barely get through the song without having to run to the toilet to regurgitate her breakfast. The club isn't shining quite so bright without its star.

Terri is having the opposite problem, with still no signs of morning sickness in sight. Will finally becomes suspicious as to why she appears to be showing none of the symptoms of pregnancy but she covers telling him that at work she does "her best Linda Blair impression every half hour." His attention is turned though when he realises a Vocal Adrenaline secret. Six-year seniors are able to stay in Glee club for as long as they're in high school. Their 24-year-old waiter has been purposely failed for years as he's "the only one who can do the triple flip." This proves to be some serious food for thought for Will.

Over at school Emma offers some counsel to Finn after taking a "special interest" in him and definitely not because Will told her about Quinn's bun in the oven. She tries to persuade him to try and convince Rachel to come back to the club. Without her, any hopes of him bettering himself are starting to fade. She tells him that he has a better chance of getting a free ride to school if he sticks with Glee and continues to excel in the arts than pursuing a football scholarship.

It doesn't look like Rachel will be coming back to the club any time soon, as she throws herself into rehearsals for Cabaret. She may be just a sophomore but has still won the lead after all. "When stars are found you have to let them shine," she tells us. The school's journalist compromises her, however, and states that if she doesn't show him her "over the shoulder boulder holder" the reviews are going to be less than complimentary. Finn then turns up and offers to run lines with her, though from his flirting it seems he has more in mind.

After mulling over which high school drop-outs he can bring to Glee, Will happens upon one April Rhodes, played by Broadway superstar Kristen Chenoweth. Emma gives him her file and off he trots to her swanky mansion. Though all is not as it seems - it turns out she's a not so glamorous squatter and by the looks of things an alcoholic. Back at school she was the stage's leading lady who Will clearly had a huge crush on but nowadays things aren't quite so good, which is why she jumps upon his offer to come back to school and to Glee. She gets to be back in the spotlight and Will promises to "get you sobered up and buy you some underwear."

The club don't share Will's enthusiasm and refuse to welcome her with open arms. Why would they want an old person in the club? Though after belting out the Liza Minnelli classic Maybe This Time, they realise the girl can sing, as she tells them "to put that in their pipe and smoke it." As we cut between Chenoweth and Rachel singing the song, one can only think that whichever writer thought of this is surely a genius.

It would appear though that the club have simply interchanged one diva for another and they aren't happy about it. Cue April trying to win over the kids in a variety of humorous ways. She teaches Tina and Mercedes the art of shoplifting, gets Kurt well and truly drunk and hits the showers, in the boys' locker room naturally. It's all in a day's work.

Over at Cabaret rehearsals, Sandy cuts into Rachel telling her she's just not up to his high standards. While Sandy may just be using some reverse psychology, Miss Berry has a near nervous breakdown. April tries to comfort her in the toilets but it backfires as she tells Rachel that Finn is "one cutie pie she's got her eye on." First she takes her role as a star of the club and now her love? Rachel tries to put her in her place but April's not scared.

While April may have won the Glee kids over, the way in which she's done so hasn't gone unnoticed. When Kurt pukes all over Emma it's the final straw. She has a long talk with Will questioning if his decision to bring in the club's old star was really a wise one, though only after she's been the hospital for four decontaminating showers. Enter serious feelings of guilt from Schue.

Despite asking "if there's diseases in there or something?" Rachel agrees to stick her hand in a bowling ball on her sort of date with Finn. His flirting and flattery are beginning to work on Rachel as he tells her how Glee isn't the same without her. In typical clichéd fashion, the pair shares a kiss after she scores a strike. This is enough for her to declare that she's quitting the musical to come back to Glee.

Over at the next lane, Will sits April down to have a serious talk - though how serious this can be is questionable she she's off her face on horse tranquillisers. She tells him she wants "back on the wagon", enjoying her born-again popularity and reliving her Glory Days. Will admits that it was always his dream to be able to sing with her. She pulls him up on the stage to do karaoke and the two belt out Heart's Alone.

After various bouts of running out of rehearsal and being sick the Glee kids start to wonder just what on earth is up with Quinn. Puck, feeling wronged that she's pretending the baby is Finn's, blurts out that she's in the family way. This scandal steals the thunder from Rachel's return to the club. When Miss Berry hears the news, she promptly smacks Finn in the face, realising that he was just flirting with her to get her to come back to Glee. He apologises and reveals his true intentions. But it isn't enough and once again Rachel leaves the club and with Sue granting her "complete artistic control" it seems that this time her storm-out is for good.

Despite the drama, the club's performance goes ahead as planned. Dressed as cow boys and cow girls, they perform the fitting Last Name, especially when they consider that their lead turns up off her face and plants one on Puck. Emma begs Will not to let her go on but with the club's reputation at stake he has no choice.

This is Rachel's first taste of life without Glee and she realises that she doesn't like it all that much. Luckily for her Will also realises that he wants the alcoholic out of the club. After getting the standing ovation she wants April decides that maybe she doesn't belong after all and that she should probably clean her act up and try and take another shot at Broadway.

Before the club go out for their final number, Will tells them that April has left. Just at the last moment Rachel comes back and apologises and offers herself up as her understudy, announcing that she's quit the play as it's the club that matters. Everything seems to go back to how it was before and the kids perform Somebody to Love with Rachel once again as their lead.

11 o'clock number

The whole gang step up to the plate and perform Queen's classic Somebody to Love. It's hard to fault the performance with perfect vocals from all, Mercedes' short but very powerful belt at the end stands out in particular. The chemistry between Finn and Rachel is still obvious despite the fact that any sort of relationship between the two stands in tatters. Overall it's simply great to see the whole cast truly enjoy what they're doing.

Quote of the week

An incredibly drunk Kurt to Emma: "Oh, Bambi, I cried so hard when those hunters shot your mommy."

Final thoughts

Glee just keeps on giving and giving and with a brilliant cameo from Broadway veteran Kristen Chenoweth the show reaches new heights. The storylines and relationships between the characters are finally beginning to take shape and I'm really starting to invest in them. Despite the fact that Rachel is incredibly obnoxious and annoying I can't help but will her and Finn to get together. Surely he's going to realise at some point the baby isn't his. It could come out with its own mohawk for all we know.

 

To post a comment, you must register and login.