In A Very Glee Christmas, Sue turns Grinch and steals Christmas presents bound for disabled orphans or something, and Brittany, who still believes in Santa, asks for the impossible, for her BF Artie to walk.

This episode was a tearful ride for me. I’m easily moved and a sucker for such things, but I still think this episode delivered, at long last, some of the heart that first made me a fan.

The emotional part of the ride started with a moving story by Coach Beiste of asking Santa to make her look more like the other girls. I loved Coach Beiste as a character and I love that she is simultaneously strong, feminine, vulnerable and masculine, in that order. This episode drove that home, and the expression in this shot says it all.

The ride continues to the inevitable tearful end when Artie get an unexpected albeit temporary gift. I thought this was a clever end. It was an unexpected way to deliver the predictable.

Musically, the highlight of this episode was the group performance of “Welcome Christmas“, with an honorable mention going to “Baby, It’s Cold Outside“. I do have two words for Kurt and Blaine. “Kiss already!”

As always, you can watch the full episode online using GL33′s convenient interface.

Featured Music
The Most Wonderful Day of the Year
We Need a Little Christmas
Merry Christmas Darling
Baby, It’s Cold Outside
You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
Last Christmas
Welcome Christmas

In this episode, New Directions competes against Kurt and the Warblers at Sectionals with Mike and Brittany as the featured performers. In other news, Finn and Rachel fight over Finn’s earlier affair with Santana, and end up breaking up when Rachel discloses that she tried to seduce Puck in revenge.

The highlight of this episode (IMHO) was the end, the performance at the end, that is.  Tina and Mercedes sang a powerful “Dog Days Are Over”, with the rest of New Directions backup dancing. Another must see was the dance routine that Brittany and Mike performed during the New Directions sectionals performance.

A fan fav will surely be Quinn and Sam (Chord Overstreet’s) performance of The “Time of My Life”, but to me that scene felt like a rehash of Finn and Rachel’s performance in last Season’s finale. The tie between New Directions and the Warblers (Kurt’s new school) also felt a little contrived to allow them both to advance to the next level while still allowing them to compete in this episode, but on the up side, Blaine will still be in the picture.

Featured Music

• Don’t Cry for Me Argentina (Distance Duet)
  • Chris Colfer’s Solo
  • Lea Michele’s Solo
• The Living Years
• Hey, Soul Sister
• (I’ve Had) The Time of My Life
• Valerie
• Dog Days Are Over

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In this episode, Finn and Kurt’s parents get married; Sue’s mother comes in for Sue’s wedding with herself, and the bullying of Kurt comes to a head.

The wedding reception for Burt and Carole was the musical highlight of the show, with Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) singing an impressive “Sway”. Unfortunately, Finn’s odd tribute to Kurt with “Just the Way You Are”, was just embarrassing and awkward. I literally cringed. Bad! Writers, bad!

Sue managed to be convincingly caring and weird along with her usual abrasive wit. The track suit wedding dress that she wears in the wedding to herself was actually not as tacky as one would expect. It fit Sue’s character. We now have a slightly better understanding of what makes Sue tick. Carol Burnett did a great job as Sue’s equally critical absentee mother.

As result of the bullying, Kurt is leaving XX High and heading to Dalton academy. Hmmm, I see a setup for a whirlwind romance followed by copious amounts of drama when Blaine and Kurt are thrust together in the same school and Kurt becomes New Direction’s rival.

In other news, Sam and Quinn are finally officially BFGF.

Any show with Sam Evans (Chord Overstreet) on his knees can’t be all bad, but all in all, “Furt” felt like filler. I’m looking forward to the next episode where New Directions competes at Sectionals, which they haven’t prepared for since they’ve been too busy finding religion and dealing with social issues.

Featured Music
Ohio (Sue & Her Mother, Doris Sylvester)
Marry You (New Directions)
Sway (Will Schuester)
Just the Way You Are (Finn & New Directions)

Watch the Full Episode