Sex, food and rock n roll was the theme of GLEE's "Tested" - showcasing some tubular 80s tunes ranging from Robert Palmer and Foreigner to Pat Benatar and Janet Jackson, all while explicating the finer points of modern sexuality as it pertains to the characters and perceived viewing audience at large, as well. Reliably timely, Glee got tested - and passed with flying colors; a rainbow, no doubt.
Love Is A Battlefield GLEE in NYC is filled with surprises around every turn - and, so it seems, so it goes for the former McKinley High crew transplanted to a new place called home. Artie (Kevin McHale) featured prominently in the story-focused show, which was penned by Russel Friend and Garrett Lerner and directed by Paul McCrane, due to his humorously-played (until it wasn't) STD diagnosis - in this case, Chlamydia. Although the visual metaphor of an actual rolling (thanks to his wheelchair) virus was perhaps a bit over the top, even for GLEE, the addressing of an invariably pertinent topic was well-used and well-played, all in all. Over on the other end of the sexual spectrum, Sam (Chord Overstreet) and Mercedes (Amber Riley) contemplated the next step in their near-chaste relationship - that is, consummation; church included. In the middle were the pair otherwise known as Klaine - aka Blaine (Darren Criss) and Kurt (Chris Colfer) - at a crossroads in their newly closely-bound relationship whilst living together in the Big Apple. Speaking of food...Cronuts to Chlamydia, it is undeniable that "Tested" was Glee as its most of-the-moment - this, from the series with a recent episode focused on the trend of twerking, no less - and a generally solid entry for the ever-present theme shows that the series has claimed as its bread and butter ever since the tone itself shifted noticeably from the more pronounced pitch black comedy as seen in the first half of S1. Since then, special topics such as STDs have been shown any number of reverential to outright profane due diligence by the always-creative if occasionally inconsistent team that creates the show - with this week's ep surely a lesser example of the intriguingly designed Glee 5.0 as we have seen it thus far, but enjoyable all the same.
Next? Well, it was just announced by co-creator and Glee mastermind Ryan Murphy that the final season will jump ahead a few years and depict most if not all of the major and minor players that the series has introduced thus far; if the actors that played them are willing, that is - the possibilities therefore are virtually endless. Until then, we have next week's "Opening Night" to give us a shot of adrenaline that can only be provided by an entertainment event as white-hot as a Broadway premiere. Clap, clap, clap, indeed!
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