Customer Reviews

Glee: Season One, Vol. 2 - Road to Regionals

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Glee" was a risky proposition when it debuted: the musical format had never really worked before on TV ("Fame" the arguable exception), despite many, many attempts (indeed, the musical genre as a whole has declined somewhat outside of theatre, though the 2000s saw a resurgence on film). But it did work here, and the show's original thirteen-episode commitment (collected in "Glee: Season One, Vol. 1 - Road to Sectionals") was extended to a full 22-episode season. These nine episodes debuted some months after the original run, and at least a few viewers mistook them for a formal second season, but that's not technically true. We're still in sophmore year at William McKinley High School. Spoilers follow.

The first volume ended with the kids' triumph at Sectionals against the odds, giving the club some breathing room, but, as they find out in episode 14, not a whole lot. And, contrary to what less-popular students like Rachel (Lea Michele) had expected and hoped for, winning at Sectionals hasn't resulted in any dramatic improvement in their social standing back at school, which is as cartoonishly hostile as ever. The ensuing nine episodes cover the period between Sectionals and the Regionals contest, as our main characters grapple with a wide variety of personal issues, and, of course, sing a lot. The season includes a notable innovation for the show, the single-artist-themed episode: "The Power of Madonna", focussing on the works of, well, Madonna (episode 20 is often called the "Lady Gaga" episode, but they only do two songs of hers there; they did as many by KISS in the same episode). This is one of my personal favourites. There are also a number of significant guest appearances: Kristen Chenoweth returns to reprise her role from the first 13, and she is joined (though never onscreen) by "Wicked" costar Idina Menzel, Lea Michele's former Broadway costar Jonathan Groff, and internet fan favourite Neil Patrick Harris ("How I Met Your Mother").

As far as the characters go, the Back 9 are a bit of a mixed bag in terms of screentime relative to the Front 13. Lea Michele and Cory Monteith (Finn) remain the leads, though they interact with each other a lot less for most of the way through; both continue to turn in excellent performances, and Monteith, the weakest singer in the group at the start, has improved quite a lot (he delivers a terrific rendition of the Rick Springfield standard "Jessie's Girl"). Of the rest of the main cast, Chris Colfer (Kurt) and Amber Riley (Mercedes) receive notable boosts in their screentime; Colfer is one of the breakout actors, and he has a couple of strong showcases here, many of them involving his equally impressive father, played by Mike O'Malley (who really should get a Guest Actor Emmy nomination). Riley was possibly the weakest actor on the show at the start (though one of the best singers), but she's likewise improved considerably. The biggest losers in all this would be Jessalyn Gilsig (who appears for only a few minutes) and poor Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina), who for long stretches is almost invisible, though things improve for her in the final few episodes. Dianna Agron (Quinn), also has a lot less prominence, given the writers' desire to sideline the whole pregnancy storyline. By far the biggest winners overall would be Naya Rivera (Santana) and Heather Morris (Brittany), Quinn's former minions and now two of the show's breakout characters; Morris is a brilliant comedienne (if only the promos would stop giving away all her non sequiturs), and Rivera, as the new HBIC at McKinley, has both great skills as a comedic actress and a fantastic singing voice that she gets to use several times here.

Oh, and Jane Lynch continues to be sheer brilliance, but you probably already knew that.

There are any number of plausible arguments for rating this DVD set at 4 stars instead of five: these nine episodes lack much of a sense of a narrative arc compared to the first thirteen, albeit in that case the narrative arcs were largley provided by plots that the fans didn't like (Quinn's pregnancy, Terri's not-pregnancy). Things are looser here, and the show can often be a bit messy in terms of continuity with its plots and characters. And episode 20, "Theatricality", in one of the show's more dramatic moments, falls flat on its face trying to make a point worth making about language (I'm increasingly sensing that the writers' idea of Kurt is very different from the Kurt who comes across on the screen a lot of the time). But, all these flaws accounted for, I simply can't rate it less than 5 stars: for all its messiness, "Glee" has an energy and life beyond any other show on TV right now, and, even when it immensely frustrates me, I still find it compulsively watchable. Tremendous acting on the part of the whole cast deliver characters that I really care about. And the finale is really spectacularly handled.

Recommended.

If you are reading this review, you, my friend, are a Gleek. Not only are you considering purchasing the series on DVD, clearly you couldn't wait and purchase the entire season at once. Believe me, I understand. Anyway, as we are all Gleeks here, I don't need to tell you all the reasons why this show is great, but if you're anything like me, you might want a little more info on the DVD extras.

The good news is that if you purchase season one in two volumes, you'll get all the same extras as the Complete Season 1 DVDs. Here's a detailed breakdown on the extras included with Season 1, Volume 2:

Glee Music Jukebox: This is a feature that allows you to skip directly to all the musical numbers on each DVD. You can let them play in order or just play them on shuffle. It's a nice feature missing from the Season 1, Volume 1 DVDs.

Glee Sing Along Karaoke: (10:20) Here you have four songs from the series that can be played either with full vocals or only back-up vocals. Lyrics play on the screen karaoke-style. The four numbers are "Alone" (1:36), "Somebody to Love" (2:51), "Keep Holding On" (2:32), and "Don't Stop Believin'" (3:22).

Staying in Step with Glee: (6:20) Here, choreographer Zach Woodlee and assistant choreographer Brook Lipton, along with four of the Vocal Adrenaline dancers, teach the choreography for the Amy Winehouse "Rehab" number step by step.

Bite Their Style: Dress Like Your Favorite Gleek: (8:52) Costume designer Lou Eyrich discusses the personal styles of Rachel, Kurt, Mercedes, and Quinn.

Unleashing the Power of Madonna: (10:37) Cast and producers are joined by music supervisor P.J. Bloom and music producer Adam Anders in discussion the Madonna episode, what was involved in the production, and what her music means to them.

Making of a Showstopper: (17:22) Cast, producers, and all the crew listed in the extras above discuss the making of the Vocal Adrenaline's "Bohemian Rhapsody" number for Regionals. (This extra was both interesting and entertaining, but the final six minutes is filled with the footage from the Season 1 finale. I was hoping it would be uncut footage of the complete performance, but it contains the same cut aways to the hospital.)

Overall, they aren't the most exciting extras, and I hope that future seasons include some substantive commentaries and other features aimed at least in part towards an adult audience. That said, Glee will never earn less than five stars from me!

This review is for the entire "Glee - Season One". I had DVR recorded all the musical numbers as the show was aired. I could watch the episodes over a few times, but the musical numbers I could watch endlessly. I never buy DVDs of television shows, but the "Glee Music Juke Box" feature sold me on it. The last three discs (Road to Regionals) have this incredible feature, but the first four (Road to Sectionals) don't. You would think they would at least chapter index the musical numbers like they do on regular movie musical DVDs. The musical numbers are very hard to locate. I still think it's worth it, but hope they continue with the "Glee Music Juke Box" feature in the future. "Glee" has been a long awaited treat for someone like me who loves musicals and pop music. I would easily give 5 stars for the show, but I am subtracting 1 star for the DVD collection for not upgrading the first four discs with the mentioned feature.

well this was in great condition and came super fast. I bought it for my girlfriend and well she watches the show a lot so thanks the price was good too

Okay, I am a Gleek. No question about it. But I returned it because this was only volume 1 and a volume 2 was not available or advertised. The entire Season 2 was advertised and available for purchase. I called Amazon and they let me return the book, no s/h fees, no restock fee -- they let me return it for no cost. So KUDOS to Amazon!!!

Love the way this show has turned kids on to Broadway music and performing, and the way the show cleverly promotes tolerance and acceptance of others. Just when a parent starts to get a heart attack, they pull back and deliver a wholesome message. Well done indeed.

We received this quickly during the holiday season. It was a good price, and my mother in law was very happy with her christmas gift. Glee is so much fun!

Though i'm a big fan of Glee, it's good to revisit the season. Ryan Murphy and the writers have many one liners for cast members - and sometimes you'll be laughing at things you didn't see the first time.

If your a Gleek, you will love it. I brought the complete firstt season after I brought this and these were included. If you buy that you won't need this one.

This item was cheaper than anywhere I could find it locally. Very pleased with quality and promptness of order.