Fall TV Preview: Glee

Glee (FOX)
Wednesday, 9PM

So Glee is awesome, as I mentioned yesterday. It's from Ryan Murphy, who is the creator of both Popular and Nip/Tuck, which, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see which direction this show leans. It's also got bits of High School Musical, except with actual talent, because apparently a number of the cast have done Broadway, but even without knowing that, these kids are freaking good at singing. Also, Jane Lynch is as always phenomenal. Sadly, she's leaving Party Down, but it's to do Glee, so OK, I'm fine with that.

I know what the initial reaction to this show tends to be, which is that my god, that looks awful. Because this show is full of singing, and optimism, and it's generally just a lot of fluff to make you feel good about yourself. But it is wonderful. The pilot aired on Tuesday this week, but the season itself isn't debuting until the fall, which is both an excellent marketing strategy and also practically asking for the plan to backfire. It's a real gamble, and hopefully it pays off, because FOX has no problem axing expensive shows with little to no warning.

In the meantime, you can watch the pilot on Hulu, you can download it (I believe for free) on iTunes, or you can otherwise acquire it, not that I condone that. (But this might help.) You can also download tracks from the pilot on iTunes (in this case, it's Glee club renditions of Rehab, which is kind of cool, and Don't Stop Believin', which is the best thing you will ever hear). So even if you don't like musicals so much, just watch this show in the fall. I guarantee you will find something to like, and hopefully the rest of America does, too.

Forecast: Clear Skies