GLEE - Episode 9 - Wheels

What's going down?

We open as Quinn watches the Cheerios practice from the bleachers, having been stripped of her uniform. Finn tells her that she shouldn't, as she's "just torturing herself watching." However cheerleading proves to be a distraction from the sky-high medical bills she has to pay for the pregnancy. Quinn asks him what he's going to do but so far all his attempts to find a job have failed, so she tells him to prove to her that she "picked the right person to have a baby with". It would also appear that Sue is struggling without her head cheerleader - though Sue of course doesn't feel this way, saying that the "Cheerios are stronger than ever" and that a pregnant girl on their squad would only ruin their chances at nationals.

There's also trouble over at Glee as Figgins tells Will that there isn't enough money in the budget to rent a handicapped bus for Artie, to take the team to sectionals. As the club are "used to overcoming challenges" they're going to have to find a way to pay for it themselves. Poor Artie. Will tells the principle that the glee kids "won't stand for it"; however, he doesn't quite get the response he was hoping for when he suggests a bake sale to raise money. Declaring them as "so bougie", they suggest that Artie's dad simply drive him there.

Will also gives the club their next number, Defying Gravity from Wicked, and no one is quite so excited as Kurt and Rachel, as Kurt reveals he has a "iPod shuffle dedicated exclusively to selections from Wicked"  and Rachel has it as her ringtone.  Kurt and Mercedes are less than impressed, however, as Miss Berry is once again given the lead.

Artie tells Will he's fine about the minibus situation but we soon realise that he isn't as he takes to the stage to perform Dancing With Myself by Billy Idol. We also learn that he has a crush on fellow club member Tina. When Schue watches his performance he decides that the Glee kids need to see what Artie goes through every day and so sets them the challenge of spending time in a wheelchair. He also tells them that they're indefinitely having a bake sale and that they will do a number in the chairs. When Artie finally reveals that to the club that he was offended by their insensitivity Rachel states that they "didn't think he would take it personally." "Well, you're irritating most of the time, but we don't take that personally," replies Artie. Ouch.

Back at rehearsal Kurt, sporting a rather fetching bandana, causes a stir as he tells Schue that he "wants to audition for the Wicked solo" as he can sing that high F just as well as Rachel. Though we see his request fall flat as he's told that they'll be sticking with Rachel in lead.

As the club try to navigate their way around school in the wheelchairs, Quinn starts to bake cupcakes for the "stupid bake sale". Enter Puck who hands her a wad of cash to put towards the baby. This doesn't go down too well as she tells him "I don't care if that baby comes out with a Mohawk, I will go to my grave swearing it's Finn's." Puck doesn't bite and simply jokes that "it would be pretty awesome if it came out with a Mohawk." Even Quinn can't help laughing and the two have a food fight which leads to them nearly kissing. Too bad Finn walks in on them.

Over at the Hummel household, Kurt's dad questions his son as to why he's been so down lately. "It's not about a guy, is it? Because I'm not ready to have that conversation,"  he tells him. Kurt reveals about the Defying Gravity drama, which prompts his dad to march straight into the principal's office, screaming discrimination. Fearing a law suit, the compromise is set that Rachel and Kurt should have a diva-off, which will be judged by the rest of the club. Rachel worries that it's going to become a popularity contest but her rival makes the club promise to vote solely on talent.

Inspired after witnessing the Glee kids in their wheelchairs, Figgins tells Sue that she needs to find a replacement for Quinn and someone who will give the club a bit of "diversity". In order to ensure these open auditions are fair, Will will sit in on them. As you can imagine, Sue is not pleased. 

The bake sale is not going too well for the club, as people just don't want to buy their cakes. With tensions frayed this sparks yet another argument between Quinn and Finn; how is he going to be able to look after a baby "if he can't sell a damn cupcake?" she yells. Later we see Finn and Puck throw punches in the hallway, as Puck tells his best friend to man up and figure out a way to support his baby as well as telling him "he doesn't deserve Quinn as his girlfriend."

Over at the Cheerios tryouts Sue is still in a foul mood. Will tells her to just "let them express themselves" but she says she'd rather projectile express herself all over his hush puppies. After many a disastrous audition, including ones from Kurt, wheeling a baton and Mercedes, Sue is left exclaiming, "Tell me you're not serious." However, she eventually relents and allows Becky on to the squad, though Will is suspicious of her motives and feels that she's once again up to no good.

Back at Glee, Artie is trying to teach the others how to spin in a wheelchair. He and Tina also share a moment alone, as he reveals why he ended up in a chair, a result of a car crash that he and his mum were in. He also makes it very clear that he "still has the use of his penis." Awkward much?

While Kurt practices hitting that high F his dad receives an anonymous phone call from someone who has something not so nice to say about his son. Upset, he tells Kurt about it and says that he doesn't want to see him get hurt.

Sue has been giving the latest addition to the Cheerios, Becky, private practices and is pushing her extremely hard to get her up to standard. Will tells her that she shouldn't  be so harsh on her just because she is different to the others. "I want you to listen to what you just said, William. You're asking me to treat this girl differently because she has a disability, when actually it seems to me she just wants to be treated like everybody else," Sue tells Will. Could it be that she really does have a heart after all?

Rachel confides in Finn that she doesn't think she'll win the diva-off as Kurt is more popular than her. He tells her that she might need to work on her popularity but that all the same he likes her. Right at that moment Quinn bursts in thrusting another medical bill in his face. She's given him an ultimatum: help support her and the baby financially or the two will "go their separate ways."

Cut to lunchtime and the Glee club are having much more success with their bake sale. Why are they suddenly selling so fast? Puck added a special ingredient; marijuana and now the school have a serious case of the munchies. With all this money he's finally able to offer Quinn some real support as he offers to get them a house, with furniture, so that they and the baby could be a real family. She apologises for ever calling him a "Lima loser" but tells him to give the money back to the minibus fund. Just then Finn bounds in telling him he's finally found a job. We then get a flashback to him, in a wheelchair, and Rachel bounding into a restaurant and demanding they give a job to Finn unless they want a lawsuit on their ass for refusing to give a job to someone who's handicapped. Only catch is he has to stay in the wheelchair for as long as he's working there. Now that Finn is able to support Quinn, Puck once again loses out.

It all goes down at Glee as the diva-off takes place. It's neck and neck between Rachel and Kurt as it comes down to the final note, the high F. Rachel is first to get but Kurt blows it, leaving Rachel as lead. Turns out he did it on purpose in order to protect his dad from receiving any more anonymous phone calls. He tells his father that he "loves him more than he loves being a star."

At rehearsal Puck hands over all the money they've raised for the bus to Will. Though Artie selflessly says that he will ride to sectionals himself and that instead the money should be put towards installing wheelchair ramps around the school. However Artie gets his bus after all, as it turns out Sue has already written a cheque for the ramps. "Do you think she has a brain tumour?" Will asks Figgins. It's revealed that Sue has an older sister Jean, who is also disabled, which is the reason why she has been acting so nicely. Turns out that Sue Sylvester does really have a soft side after all as we see her reading Little Red Riding Hood to her.

The second tear jerking moment of the night comes after Tina and Artie share their first kiss. She admits that she doesn't really have a stutter and has simply been putting it on as a way to deal with her lack of self esteem. Deeply hurt, Artie tells her. "I thought we had something really important in common. I'm sorry now you get to be normal and I'm going to be stuck in this chair the rest of my life and that's not something I can fake."

We close as the whole club sing Proud Mary by Tina Turner, while dancing in wheelchairs. Having finally mastered the chairs they show some pretty nifty moves.

11 o'clock number

We finally got to hear Artie sing this week and he definitely didn't disappoint. With a great voice, added to a mixture of real emotion and humour, it definitely has to be one of my favourite solo performances. That brings us on to Defying Gravity, yet another great creative decision by the team behind the show. Both Rachel and Kurt have outstanding voices and I don't think you could have found a better song to fit the characters. The episode ends on the fun and upbeat Proud Mary and it makes a definite change to what we've seen the club do for the past few weeks and the idea to use wheelchairs for the number was a brilliant one.

Quote of the week

Sue: You think this was hard? Try auditioning for Baywatch and being told they're going in another direction. That was hard.

Final thoughts

It was nice to have a change of focus, as this episode was centred on Artie. We saw the emergence of yet another new couple tonight: Artie and Tina, though things between the two are over before they even began. With no Emma tonight, or much of Rachel and Finn, we got to see just how much Puck really feels for Quinn. For me personally, they are now my favourite couple and I really want to see the two get together now. Biggest shocker of the week is that Sue Sylvester really does have a heart after all.

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