How Glee became unbearable in ten uneasy steps - Part 9: Too many cooks in the kitchen...

First, I want to really again thank everyone who's been following my lil' ol' space on the web. I sure appreciate the feedback, and I just do this for the love. I mean, if you all knew me a couple years ago, Glee was something I was rabid crazy about. Have every single from the first two seasons (and couldn't even wait the week before they went from iTunes to Amazon, and then bought them again on CD). But I guess as something I loved so passionately, I guess I can be as easily frustrated as passionately. Lord knows I'm no professional, and I can't claim to know all the answers to how to run a successful show. But I am a person who's faithful to a show and wants to see it succeed. I don't think I'm alone. So thanks for hearing out my rants.

The reason season one of Glee was so cohesive was that Ryan Murphy, Ian Brennan, and Brad Falchuk worked together on developing the stories for the season ahead of time, and collaborated in the intermingling plotlines. However, by the end of season two they had spread themselves so thin that the episode seemed much more detached from each other, like a crazy singing sitcom bubble machine. And while some of those bubbles were spectacular ("The Sue Sylvester Shuffle", "Never Been Kissed"), others were horrible (I'm looking at you, "Night Of Neglect"). And you can't even blame it on one of the three - Ian was responsible for both the best ("Prom Queen") and worst (yeah, "Night Of Neglect") episodes of season two. Maybe the machine that Glee had become with marketing, tours, that damn Glee Project diverted them away from spending the time together to work out the kinks in the show. Maybe they didn't feel they needed to.

But in season three? They just subcontracted.

I admit I was fooled by the hype about bringing in more writing talent to concentrate on the show since RIB had so much on their plate with American Horror Story, directing, and who knows what. Six big guns were brought in, including Buffy writer Marti Noxon, comic book writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, and Ali Adler. The latter two were especially anticipated to up the quality of the show from their bio and relations with crew and cast.

But what turned out is more of a hack work, since they apparently were sent off with their episode assignments, and I think since they are more individualistic writers, none of them really had much conversation with each other on the course of the season. This is why you see crazy-ass things like Coach Beiste being ignored for most of the season, them oops, she's up and getting smacked around! Then nothing in the episode after! Quinn has a horrible accident for a cliffhanger, then ignored till another writer's assignment has her back! And all with little meta quips seemingly inserted on filming winking about the inconsistency of the plot (e.g. Brittany revelation that she hasn't "talked" in weeks).

A lot of the people talking with me during the course of my little series here agree on the fact that there's no vision for the show anymore. You've got plot gimmicks that are more used for titillation (suicide, domestic abuse, celebrity death, marriage) and hashtag promotion than actual character and plot development. Sue's pregnancy? Really? The idea that's marching this show like Bataan towards Finn and Rachel's wedding? REALLY? The fact that the show now has become more of a "what's happening to them next year" than "what's happening with them now"?

The show's been so lucky with the caliber of acting and singing talent they've got (and ahem, in some cases not taking advantage of), but if your show gets to the point where if you miss a few episodes it makes no difference in how much you understand and appreciate what's happening to these characters, then you might as well be making Two and a Half Men.

Of course, I believe they've gone to far to go back to just the three of them again. It's a shame that its more of a franchise than a piece of work at this point.

and next up, the most personal part of my relationship with Glee, a big lunk of a guy whose character and actor changed the shows dynamics for the better, and the biggest missed opportunity the show ever had.