Glee: The Basics

BWW:UK's resident gleek gives you a summary of all you need to know - and tells you what happens in the pilot episode. Not seen it and fear spoilers? Look away now...

Enter Glee, Fox's surprise runaway hit and the show America has been going crazy for. Having now been picked up by E4 it is undoubtedly about to become just as big a phenomenon here. It focuses on a misfit-filled high school glee club as it becomes one teacher's quest to revive it to its former Glory Days and win nationals - though as everyone knows it's a rocky road to stardom. So in case you missed the pilot when it aired a few weeks ago, here's the essential run down and all you need to know about the series.

Who is everyone?

William McKinley High School teacher Will Schuester or Mr Schue, as he is affectionately known to his students, is played by Broadway veteran Matthew Morrison. Young, kind, plucky and seriously gorgeous, he is everything that a teen could want in a teacher but, feeling unfulfilled with his career, decides to take over Glee club and make it great again. In fact, he needs to help these kids so badly that he agrees to fully finance the monthly budget himself. "Do you want to captain the Titanic too?" the principal asks. Will is married to Terri, a shrill shop assistant, who must surely take the award for most annoying character. She's obsessed with two things: Pottery Barn and getting pregnant.

Spring Awakening's original Wendla Lea Michele takes on the role of Rachel Berry, the club's loathsome yet indisputably talented singer and standout member. We know this because of the gold stickers she places after her name. They're a metaphor for her being a star, don't you know? Despite her obvious flair for the dramatic, her determination has left her a social outcast. Her only hope is singing success with the club. "There is nothing ironic about show choir," she exclaims after Will casts sweet-natured, wheelchair-bound Artie to sing the lead in 'Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat.'

Amongst the other members of the club are the utterly fabulous Kurt, with the perfect choirboy voice. He is, however, the prime victim of the fearsome jocks but at least they're kind enough to let him take off his Marc Jacobs new collection before they throw him into the dumpster.

Next we have diva Mercedes, who one cannot help picturing playing Effie in Dreamgirls as soon as a note leaves her mouth. "I'm Beyonce, I ain't no Kelly Rowland," she declares as Rachel yet again tries to steal the limelight.

Finally we have Tina, who, despite stammering, delivers a highly charged and unusually sexual performance of that classic 'I Kissed a Girl' to get into the club.

In the terrifyingly rigid high school caste system, the Glee kids live 'sub-basement' while the cheerleaders and jocks live untouched in 'the penthouse.' So Finn, the football team's most popular player, would at first seem a dubious candidate for the club. However, when Will overhears him give a half naked spellbinding performance of 'I Can't Fight This Feeling' in the shower he goes all out to get him in Glee. So after an incident of blackmail involving marijuana he ends up in the club, thus delivering Rachel her leading man. Though much to her dismay, Finn is dating Quinn (the rhyming names are just so endearing, don't you think?), the school's number one bitch who also just happens to be president of the school's Celibacy Club, - and of course head cheerleader.

I simply cannot have a guide to Glee without mentioning Sue Sylvester, played to perfection by Jane Lynch, the school's cheerleading coach and Will's nemesis. Highly strung and openly offensive, she wants you all to know that she has appeared on the Fox Sports Network. Determined to wipe out any threat that may be posed to her precious cheerleaders she immediately tries to take down Glee. You think being a coach is hard? "Try living with hepatitis. That's hard."

Will does however have an ally in the staffroom in the form of Emma, the pretty, germ-phobic guidance counsellor, with unusually big eyes, who has been harbouring a serious crush on him. Though while Emma pines for Will, Ken, the overweright and slightly depressive coach of the football team, equally pines for her.

Pilot episode - "Pilot"

How can Will get more kids to join Glee? "There's only five and one of them is a cripple," reports the principle. While Finn may have signed up, it doesn't seem like any of his team mates will be joining 'Homo Explosion' any time soon.

Will decides to take the club on a little field trip to see last year's glee champions and main competition. He seems confident, but Vocal Adrenaline certainly live up to their name and the group raise the roof with a high energy rendition of Amy Winehouse's 'Rehab.' The awed faces of the McKinley kids say it all.

Finn faces a dilemma of Troy Bolton proportions - sport or music? As his lies spiral out of control (apparently he can't make practice as his mum has had some dramatic surgery on her prostate) his teammates eventually twig and make him come clean. "Chicks don't have prostates" after all, Puck's looked it up. Punishment for this most heinous of crimes? Finn gets paintballed.

Terri announces that she's pregnant, so Will does what all loving fathers-to-be do - quit their jobs and decide to become an accountant. Rachel takes over the glee club but is unable to convince Finn to stay. His teammates reward him by letting him have the first push after they trap poor Artie in a portable toilet. Fear not, though, Finn mans up and stands up to the jocks, declaring that he's going to do both because "you can't win without me, and neither can they."

Just when we think that all hope is lost and that our dearest Schue will depart, Emma finds a video clip of him singing with the 1993 glee club at nationals. Cue poignant reminiscing as he declares that it was the last time he truly knew who he was.

As he walks down the corridors for what could be the last time, what do we hear but the club, actually sounding good. It may seem like a happy ending - but not if Sue has anything to do with it. as she and her Cheerios look on hell bent on war.

The 11 o'clock number

Dressed in fetching matching red shirts, our beloved New Directions belt out Journey's 'Don't Stop Believing' with Rachel and Finn on lead. (In the US, Glee has done for this song what The X Factor has done for it over here.) It's heart melting and insanely catchy and is just enough for Schue to change his plans and stay put.

Quote of the week

Rachel on her single status: "You may think that all the boys in school would totally want to tap this but my myspace schedule keeps me way too busy to date." Cut to Rachel recording herself singing some self-indulgent Les Mis.

Final thoughts

This may be Glee's first outing but I'm going to come right out and say it. I'm a Gleek (the cleverly coined term combining the words geek and glee). Pilots can be awkward at the best of times as they have to introduce us to the characters and focus the main plots. Glee does this while still remaining, fun, fabulous, undeniably camp and with a big, big heart.

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