As if the cast of Glee weren’t already the outcasts of McKinley High, now in season two they will be tackling an even more weird and alienating subject matter, the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Co-creator Ryan Murphy announced plans for the Rocky Horror spot at Comic-Con (SDCC) over this past weekend.

The second season of Glee will debut on Sept. 21 @ 8 PM ET on Fox.

continued →

Okay, am I in some kind of alternate reality? Because I thought Glee was just ending its first season. Yet Fox, in a nearly unprecedented move, has announced today that it’s renewed the show for a third season.

A second season renewal was announced late last year, but traditionally networks wait to be certain that ratings hold in the current season before ordering another. Renewing a show for a season that won’t air for more than a year is just about unheard of. But reportedly, Fox execs were so pleased with the reception Glee got at the annual upfronts presentation, they decided to show confidence in the show by giving it an official two season renewal instead of just one.

Not that I’m looking a gift horse in the mouth. I adore Glee, and I certainly hope it sticks around for as long as it can. But this preemptive move seems foolhardy at best.

May 18th is the date that you’ll be able to get your hands on the last Glee soundtrack planned for Season 1. Along with Volumes 1 and 2, and the special Power of Madonna soundtrack, Volume 3 marks the fourth disc the freshman show has released, making Glee quite the cash cow for Fox.

Volume 3, entitled Showstoppers, will be released in two flavors: a basic, 14-song disc for $11.99, and a deluxe edition with 6 extra songs, for $14.99. Volume 3 features songs from the final episodes of the season, so one assumes that the performances featured in the show choir’s Regionals competition will be included. Here’s the full track list; songs marked with a * are exclusive to the deluxe edition.

1. Hello, Goodbye
2. Gives You Hell
3. Hello
4. A House Is Not a Home *
5. One Less Bell to Answer / A House Is Not a Home
6. Beautiful
7. Home *
8. Physical
9. Total Eclipse of the Heart
10. Lady Is a Tramp
11. One
12. Rose’s Turn *
13. Dream On
14. Safety Dance
15. I Dreamed a Dream
16. Loser *
17. Give Up the Funk
18. Beth *
19. Poker Face *
20. Bad Romance

With an endearing cast, whip-smart writing, and an irresistible mix of music, comedy, and heart, Glee has become a true phenomenon in a remarkably short period of time. Season 1 is being topped off by a multi-city concert tour featuring the entire cast. Season 2 premieres this fall.

TV Land Awards is over but people are still talking about the Glee tribute during the awards show. Glee bagged the “Future Classic” award, and though I love Glee this kind of award is obviously a “let’s-wait-and-see-if-that-does-pan-out” thing. What we can be sure though is the “TV Land Glee club’s” rendition of “Don’t Stop Believing” is a mega hit. The performance included David Hasselhoff and Marilou Henner as the lead singers (is that what Rachel and Finn will look like 30 years from now?). Other glee club members include: Todd Bridges, Joyce Dewitt, Jamie Farr, Marla Gibbs, Howard Hesseman, Shirley Jones, Richard Karn, Richard Moll, Marion Ross, Jimmie Walker, Marcia Wallace and Fred Willard. The twist of having the old and familiar faces on TV paying tribute to the new is just totally fun and surprisingly good to watch. The original Glee rendition was better of course but theirs wasn’t live, was it?

Other shows that took home an award on the 25th include:

Love Boat – Fan Favorite Award
Charlie’s Angels – Pop Culture Award
Everybody Loves Raymond – Impact Award

Also honored during the awards were Bosom Buddies, now on its 30th anniversary; Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner, for being legends in comedy; and Farah Fawcett, whose tribute was presented by Ryan O’Neal.

Glee is back and their premier episode sure was a blast. Glee sure made us wait for quite a while before they came back but it was worth it.

The first few minutes was a little flat for me but considering that it was a recap then I guess it was a recap of the past season then it was just ok. For me the episode really took off when Rachel sang her angry “HELL(o)” song for Finn. Finn did a good job with his solo prior to that as well but it just didn’t have the oomph. The song that stood out in this episode was Rachel and Jesse St James, Vocal Adrenaline’s soloist, rendition of Lionel Ritchie’s “Hello”. It was absolutely beautiful. Can’t wait for the next time they do a duet.

As for the storyline itself here’s a quick recap:

Sue’s back as the Cheerios coach thanks to her blackmailing skills. She has the two not-so-smart cheerleaders helping her out with the evil schemes. Mr Schuster locked lips with Emma as well as Vocal Arenaline’s coach. Guess he does need time to find himself. I for one am still rooting for his crazy wife. Rachel and Finn are out and Rachel’s new bf is the enemy (by the end it looks like he has an ulterior motive after all). Finn got all confused but now wants Rachel back.

The other stories (including Quinn and Puck’s) wasn’t really touched on this episode but we’ll surely see more of that the coming weeks. As for now I’m just pretty happy that Glee is back and that it’s now just another week away before my next Glee fix.

The best new show of the season returns tonight after a looooooooong hiatus, and it’s airing at a funky time. It’s on after American Idol tonight at 9:28pm EST. Here are three reasons you should watch:

1) The Music. Glee combines great storytelling with fantastic musical numbers that are always timed perfectly to serve as a cathartic release for whatever emotions the main characters are dealing with. And boy, can these people sang!

2) Jane Lynch. Glee’s MVP actress is the deliciously villainous and endlessly snarky Sue Sylvester. Hilarity ensues every time she’s on the screen; her comic timing and delivery are absolute perfection.

3) High School Drama. Yeah, I know, it all sounds a little too High School Musical, but Glee is as far from HSD as you can imagine. Aside from the quick-witted humor, there are some truly heart-tugging emotions at work on the show, addressing everything from teen pregnancy to unrequited love. But Glee always handles the stickiest of issues with a deft touch, never going over the top into melodrama.

Don’t you just love it when networks do theme-weeks or nights? (Yes, that was sarcasm.) Like that night years ago when NBC had all of their Thursday night programs involved in a New York City blackout storyline?

Fox has something similar up its sleeve. Inspired by the success of Glee, a full week of programming on Fox will find nearly every show on the network engaging in song-and-dance numbers. From Thursday April 29th through Wednesday May 5th, shows like Bones, Fringe, House, The Simpsons, and more will feature musical performances woven into their episodes.

This sounds like a horribly cheesy idea on the surface. No doubt about that. But on the other hand, maybe Fox’s shows will take this as an opportunity to really challenge themselves creatively and come up with some clever ways of incorporating music into their eps.

We can only hope.

Glee’s fans sure are sure to have the blues at least until November 11 arrives bringing with it the show’s latest episode. So what can we expect when Glee returns?

For one, we can be sure that there’ll be a new director. Ryan Murphy may be a great writer but even he knows that he isn’t the one who’ll take it to the next level as a director. For that Twentieth Century Fox asked Joss Whedon to direct Glee. Whedon, already a fan of Glee himself, is said to have readily agreed to do the job and only had reservations regarding scheduling. Ryan Murphy is also really happy about the arrangement and is even quoted to have said, “Joss directed one of the great musical episodes in the history of television on ‘Buffy so this is a great, if unexpected, fit. I’m thrilled he’ll be loaning us his fantastic groundbreaking talent.” As a fan of Joss Whedon…I have to agree.

Other things we can look forward to would be developments in Finn and Rachel’s romance. According to Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina), “All I can say is Finn definitely has some major decisions to make, and Finn and Quinn aren’t exactly on the best of terms. So you may see some more of that [referring to Rachel and Quinn].” Of course if you are into the possible Puck-Rachel tandem you don’t want this to pan out. However, it seems to be what will happen especially since Puck and Quinn will be getting closer again. Read Kristin Dos Santos spoilers for more on this.

Kevin McHale (Artie) also reveals that he won’t be the only one on a wheelchair on upcoming episodes. In fact he says that “everyone gets in wheelchairs at some point.”

As for the other cast members who so far have been relegated relatively minor roles we’ll just have to wait and see if they’ll be given more exposure and better personal storylines.