Comment Mis GLEE ding • Max Cabaj

When Fox’s Glee first hit the air in 2009, it was advertised as a satirical musical about a group of lovably optimistic choir nerds taking on the challenges of high school and young adulthood through song and dance. As with a number of people my age (even those who won’t admit it), my curiosity was piqued enough for me to tune in. I have to admit, I honestly liked it. The show was flashy, light-hearted, and had a talented cast of unknowns, which all made for a fun, organic pro - gram. However, according to the Los Angeles Times, ratings for the show have dropped by 23% since this time last year, which I believe can be attributed to a number of things. In the past few years, there’s been a surge in the

quantity of news stories about bullying, causing an o t o

elastic response by celebrities and the mass media. h p

The anti-bullying message has been a key aspect of o l l i z

Glee ’s success, and their portrayal of characters over - n a c

coming adversity is relatable to millions of young S

a people. The show sends the positive message of en - l e a

couraging its viewers to always be themselves. h c i

However, a major wrench in their plan for feel- M goodery was their unintentional shift from satire to Students show their distaste for the infamous “L.” drama. The show started out poking fun at the dy - namics of high school students and had an awareness for how young people interpret society. Since it was just making fun of high school and other high school-themed shows, it was fine that all their supporting characters were one-dimensional, as they were mocking stereotypes. The issue here is that when a show discreetly shifts its mood, it becomes the exact show it was once mocking, and this is especially evident in the ensemble. Wheelchair Kid is in a wheelchair. Fat Girl is fat. The Dancing Asian Kid dances/is Asian. While this may be oversimplification to some extent, as all the characters have moments of realness when dealing with their inter-personal issues, all intra-personal issues are completely void of depth. I think this can lead to a dangerous interpretation by viewers, as they would be interpreting Glee ’s “reality” from what was originally designed as parody. “ Glee isn’t at its best when it goes for pure drama,” offers alumnus Kedian Keohan, “It needs the balance.” This point is perhaps best expressed by one of the show’s main characters, Kurt Hummel, portrayed by Chris Colfer. Kurt started out as an ever-fashionable diva. He was sarcastic, flamboyant, and sang soprano, and his biting humor made him one of the most likable, engaging characters on the show. Although he was created as the stereo - type of an over-the-top gay young man, the shift from satire to drama was completely detrimental to his character. Glee is supposed to be a progressive show, and yet Kurt spends a fair amount of each episode whimpering and/or giving a sad-puppy face to the camera, which in my opinion, does more harm to the cause of gay acceptance than good. Although his character wasn’t all too relatable at first, Glee had the opportunity to mock a stereotype into extinction, but instead ended up further advocating it. “I think it is great that Glee is pushing the boundaries in introducing gay and lesbian characters and their relationships, but at times it feels forced and goes against the goals of bringing about a positive message for that community,” says senior and Co-President of Allies, Molly O‘Brien. While lame plot lines are excusable, Glee has made a number of decisions that make me question their sincerity in their fight against low self-esteem. The show takes place in a high school, yet a number of the actors are pushing 30. It’s true that having older actors play younger characters is common, as adults are legally allowed to work much longer hours than minors can. So for a production team, it simply makes more sense to have adult actors. That said, having a 27-year-old actor play a 15-year-old student is a bit of a stretch. While I’m sure the actors are all nice enough people and mean the best with their show, I can’t help but think that having a young person see a full-grown adult as the ideal of what he or she’s supposed to look like as unhealthy. Perhaps I’ve over-analyzed the situation, but in my opinion, Glee falls short on its quest to raise the self-esteem of its teenage viewers. page 6