At the beginning of the Valentine’s Day episode, Mr. Schuester tells the glee club to perform the best love songs they know, and the students definitely accomplished that assignment. This episode was filled with not only great musical numbers, but also new characters and new (okay, and maybe some old) drama.
A major theme of the episode was introduced when Rachel and Finn announced their marriage plans to the glee club, only to be met with disapproval from their friends. The mood did not stay down for long, however, as Sugar announced that she would be hosting a party at Breadstix, which she temporarily renamed the “Sugar Shack”.
The battle for Sugar’s love that ensues between Artie and Rory is sweet, but hilarious. As silly as it was, this plotline brought viewers two great musical numbers: Artie’s smooth version of Mario’s “Let Me Love You” and Rory’s take on Michael Buble’s “Home” that ultimately won Sugar’s heart.
This episode gave a lot of screen time Santana and Brittany, who were about to share a kiss after Brittany makes a playlist for Santana (including classics like Purple People Eater), only to be stopped by Principal Figgins. He then explains that kind of behavior is not allowed at McKinley, and in her typical bold fashion, Santana fights against this injustice for the remainder of the episode.
This is where the newly formed God Squad comes in. Similar to the chastity club of the old Glee days, the God Squad is a Christian group, but seems to be a lot more accepting. In addition to Mercedes, Sam, and Quinn, the God Squad also includes Glee’s newest character, Joe Hart a.k.a. Samuel Larsen from “The Glee Project.” So far, the writers have done a good job with the character, a home-schooled Christian boy that also rocks dreads and tattoos.
To raise funds for the group, the God Squad offers to sing songs to people’s Valentines, kicking it off with a spectacular rendition of “Stereo Hearts” dedicated to Rachel. After their performance, Santana requests her own musical valentine, for Brittany. Although this request makes the group evaluate their Christian beliefs, they ultimately decide that love is love, and perform a mash-up of the songs “Cherish” by The Association and Madonna for Brittany.
Another huge development of the episode was the appearance of Rachel’s often-talked about, but never before seen dads. Jeff Goldblum and Brian Stokes Mitchell had some fabulous lines (“Honesty, respect, dance. Those are the foundations of the Berry family.”) and did a great job portraying the men that raised the next coming of Barbra Streisand. The Hudson-Hummel-Berry parents did launch a devious plan to keep their children from rushing to the altar, but it seems they only succeeded in speeding them up.
The most touching moment came when Mercedes powerfully delivered “I Will Always Love You”. The episode was dedicated to Houston, who passed away tragically this past weekend. Mercedes sings the song to Sam and Shane, after deciding she cannot be with either of them, leaving viewers wondering how this painful love triangle will end for yet another week. This tribute is a must-see.
Despite the ups and downs of the episode, the glee club ends Valentine’s Day on a high note at the “Sugar Shack”. Blaine returns just in time to sing The B-52’s “Love Shack” along with Kurt and some of the glee club ladies. For the moment, the glee club is happy and in love, but with regionals coming up, next week’s episode is sure to be dramatic!
Molly Keegan can be reached for comment at [email protected].
