Blaine Anderson in Sweat Dreams

This episode was a clear point of continuity when it came to the portrayal of Blaine. It not only gave a nod to his reaction to the shooting but it also emphasized several of his character traits.

• The aftershocks of the shooting

- Blaine was pretty much interacting with everyone in Glee and he touched quite a few. The contrast between this Blaine and last episode's Blaine who held himself at a distance and folded onto himself is so starkly clear that it shines more light on his reaction to the shooting.

- Much like everyone else, Blaine developed an adapting technique to work through the shooting. Blaine's method consisted of pushing forward and burying himself in work (something he did before when he tried to keep himself busy and focused on other things when Kurt moved to NY) He was going on like nothing happened despite him being clearly affected ( he literally ran into Artie in the hallway)

• Being a leader

- He was the one who called the meeting of the Glee club when he felt that Will's suggestion weren't good. He was the one who prompted them to brainstorm new ideas for the competition. He was the one who proposed the idea of taking Marley's original songs to Will. He was the one who took lead and started the failed conversation with Will, a conversation that everyone kept silent during and he ended up getting the heat of Will's 'disappointment'.

- Will clearly addressed Blaine as the captain of ND, not just as a member. While his comments to Unique and Sam criticized them for personal things, he held Blaine accountable for everything his teammates did and attacked him for allowing what was happening to go on (I'm not sure what he expected Blaine to do about Unique and Sam but that's besides the point)

• Being a people pleaser

- Indulging Coach Washington in something he clearly thought was stupid and crazy.
- Looking particularly upset when Will told him that he was disappointed and that what they were doing is unacceptable, even apologizing after Will told him that he was disappointed in him.

• Expressing vast musical knowledge

- Seriously, the guy knows the years the songs came out. Add that to the performer persona Blaine always assumes on stage, you get why he is the captain of ND.

• Being a teammate and a friend

- Listening to Unique explain what she was doing to enhance her boobs is a mark of a good friends, no matter what anyone tells me. He even looked interested, nodding his head along to her words.
- Praising Marley for her songwriting skills and encouraging her to go bigger and show her songs to the rest of ND and Will. Reaching out to accept the sheet music the second said that she just wanted to hear her song out loud.

- Showing concern for Becky, first glancing at her worriedly when Roz started talking trash about Sue and her baby. He seemed almost reluctant to call Becky Adult Baby Robyn during the pledge. He picked up on the fact that something was going on with Becky, something that the Coach herself didn't notice.

• Blaine and Sam

- While not being at his 100%, Blaine still showed concern for Sam, the fact that he was the only one who voiced concern about what Sam was doing speaks clearly of it.

- But he came to the conclusion that this is what Sam needs so he decided to be there for him, even if he didn't get it. If it was helping Sam, then Blaine was on board.

- Every single time Sam needed to summon Evan, he faked a phone call with the exception of when they were in the auditorium because Blaine gave him the excuse he needed. Blaine showed solidarity to Sam by this move, telling Sam indirectly that Blaine had his back. Blaine somewhat indulged Sam, which appeared in the way he looked at Unique after Evan disappeared behind the curtain.

Sam Evans Twin Situation

The Sam-Evan plot was pure crack that had me gaping at the screen at first, not understanding where the hell it came from but the more I think about it, the more I like it because it's a continuation of the mindset Sam was in in Shooting Star.

Sam's experience with the shooting was extremely traumatic, even maybe more traumatic than the others because Sam denied himself one of his most basic rights, the right to be terrified for himself. We only saw him talk about Brittany then lose it over her. From the very first moment, Sam was only talking about Britt. It was like he focused all his energy, all his thoughts on her without sparing a thought for himself, which is why he was willing to put himself in danger to rescue her. Sam didn't allow himself the time to worry about his own life and thus, his perception of the shooting was focused on how Britt wasn't there with them. This part manifests himself in how he never tried to reach out or interact with any of the others, even the ones we expected him to connect to. His distance from Blaine in particular was noteworthy because Blaine was right there, yet, Sam never interacted willingly with Blaine at all during the shooting despite the fact that Blaine was basically falling apart in front of him. Sam never responded to Blaine telling him that Tina wasn't in the room either, he shrugged off Blaine's and Artie's hands when they tried to stop him from standing up and he patted Artie camera away. It was like his mind was on a loop of 'Brittany isn't here'. He silenced the voice that was worried for his life and only focused on Brittany. Sam silenced his own fear.

The first time we saw Sam start to absorb the presence of other people was when Will and Beiste restrained him, which only complicated the problem. This was yet another restraint, another gagging. Sam was silenced repeatedly by Will in this episode, first by Will shushing him then by actually putting his hand on Sam's mouth to stifle his cries.

So Sam basically felt like he has lost his voice in some way so he came out with a defense mechanism: having a 'twin' who is collected and can deal with tough situations (as shown in how he jumped up to 'summon' Evan when the atmosphere became tense in the choir room), a twin that still has his voice. He kept switching between the two of them before settling on Evan to attend the first official club meeting. Because it was a room where Sam was no longer heard.

Evan was the one who came into the auditorium when Marley asked them to meet her there but the second he arrived, he switched into Sam immediately because he knew they won't shoot him down or silence him. Blaine actually gave him an excuse to disappear for a second.

After Will stopped Sam from switching to Evan, effectively restraining Sam again. However, Sam was virtually the only one who didn't let Will deter him from his attempt at adapting. Unique returned to wearing boy clothes and Blaine retreated into a shell and avoided looking at Will altogether till Will addressed him. Evan, on the other hand, told Will that 'Sam moved to Alaska', a sign that Sam no longer feels safe in Will's presence, no longer heard that he had moved far far away. Will had lost Sam's trust by shooting him down when he tried to switch to Evan and basically called him crazy.

The return of Sam's impressions was the sign that Evan was no longer needed. It came after Will told them that 'they will always have a voice in this room'. That declaration, followed by Finn's return and Will's willingness to actually listen to what they had to say are what made Sam come out and stay. He was just Sam throughout Outcast because Sam had a voice again.

4.19: Sweet Dreams

Here's what you missed on Glee: you can live in college dorms without actually studying anything Puck-style, Coach Washington is a firm believer in Fruity Fonzie's Vodoo powers, Will didn't want us to worry about him becoming a decent teacher so he went back to his mouth-gagging ways and Tina still holds the trophy of the weirdest clothes ever worn on Glee which is saying something considering we suffered through Rachel Berry's animal sweaters.

Finn's college experience was so over the top that it actually became hilarious. It was like Glee was showing us the opposite side of the college experience with Finn and Puck. Rachel's and Kurt's life at NYADA consists of work, auditions, work, Midnight Madness and more work, the only time we saw them having fun was at Callbacks and we all know just how much fun that night turned out to be. NYADA represents the serious side of college with the requires hard work and hardships while Lima University is about the fun side of college. Puck being the one to kick Finn into shape was a nice nod to last season when it was the other way around, with Finn trying to help Puck graduate.

Just when we were considering changing our opinion about Will's crappy teaching methods and like him for what he had done last episode, he decided that his old ways were oh-so-very-successful and went back to them. It's very hypocritical to be talking about the traumatic experience your kids went through then turn around and basically gag them, Will. First telling the transgender girl to 'tone it down' then yelling at the boy whose adapting technique was to pretend to have a twin then my most favorite part, telling the boy who basically shut down during the shooting how disappointed in him you are. But hey, Will skipped his coffee to get to Glee which is apparently a dictatorship that was disrupted by the kids daring to 'defy' their vest-wearing, coffee-loving leader. Oh, poor misunderstood Will.

So in true Will fashion, he didn't realize what a douche he was until someone clubbed him over the head with the fact. The moment came when he overheard some of his kids sing about having friends and being okay. Glad to know that Will's creepy, eavesdropping, slightly stalkerish I'll-watch-you-from-the-wings-without-you-knowing ways are still effective.

You Have More Than friends More Than You Know was one of the sappiest, corniest things I've ever seen on Glee but you know what? I loved it. Those kids broke my heart when Will yelled at them and if corny songs makes them feel slightly better, then so be it. Marley's decision to write a song to make Unique, Blaine and Sam feel better was a very nice gesture. To me, the song spoke more about Unique than it did Blaine or Sam but it was good all the same.

The kids reaction to Will was very realistic and very well-played. Evan's 'Sam moved to Alaska' was a crack moment (the whole twin thing is a typical Glee crack story that makes you wonder what the hell is going on then fall in love with how it was portrayed) but it sent a message to Will that no, he wasn't  helping. In fact, he was making it all worse and causing his kids to retreat further into themselves.

The Roz\Blaine\Becky scene had me in stitches. I haven't laughed this hard at Glee since forever. Vodoo power and Fruity Fonzie (this is officially my favorite Blaine nickname) made my day. And Blaine noticing that something was wrong with Becky is shaping up to be one hell of a story. Glad to see the Nightbird's powers still work when you're in your civilian clothes, B.

Outcast was fun and I loved the energy and joy in the room. But I still don't buy having this specific group singing about being outcasts, I just don't see it and there was nothing in the episode to warrant such a song, except for Unique's story line. Alas, it was nice so I'm gonna enjoy the music and stop trying to link the lyrics to the story lines.

Rachel's duet with Shelby was one of the best songs in the episode. They sounded amazing and thank you Shelby for telling Rachel not to try to be a carbon copy of Barbra. Watching Rachel imitate her everything, down to the way she talked was hurting my eyes.

Wasn't the phone call between Rachel and Finn supposed to be sweet? All I saw was her cutting him off to discuss her problems. I get that she needed him and that she had more pressing issues and he is supposed to stand by her when she needs him. However, she didn't call to thank him despite saying that she owed him a debt of gratitude but she called him when she needed a pep talk? Her question about college was just her being polite, instead of her being actually interested in what was going on. It was just weird.

Here's the thing Glee: we've watched Rachel Berry sing Don't Stop Believing twice on the show and both times were equally amazing. We've seen what she can do with this song and a million others so why on earth did you feel the need to do that to the song? I appreciated the slight change of melody at the beginning, it made the song slightly more upbeat and fun. Making it sound Broadwayish, on the other hand, was the exact opposite of good. Not only did it destroy the song, it also made Rachel look like a show-off. Her voice is beautiful and the song already has parts that showcase the range of her voice. Broadwayzing Don't Stop Believing made the song sound forced and disfigured.

However, the visual part of the performance was dead on. I teared up when the original ND appeared and the glances Rachel exchanged with Finn, Kurt and Artie made me all fuzzy inside. That part was a definite success with all the nostalgia it provoked in us. The same costumes, the same roles with Finn on the drums and Artie on the guitar, the same dance moves, it was all great.

And the award for the best background character goes to: Kurt Hummel. I didn't spare Rachel a glance when she was on the verge of finding out if she got this great opportunity in favor of watching the fuzzy shape of Kurt as he munched adorably on a cookie in his anticipation. Be more precious, Kurt, I dare you.

Blaine's parents: Fanon vs Canon

I find that the fandom tends to make Blaine more angsty than he is on the show. We've had this idea about how utterly unaccepting his parents are ever since his talk with Burt in Sexy. Blaine's parents are rarely mentioned in canon but even before Shooting Star, I've always felt like we jumped the gun with our theories. I think Blaine's parents are more loving and accepting than we give them credit for:

• They let Blaine go to the Sadie Hawkins dance with another boy.
• They transferred him to Dalton, a private school that was very expensive, to ensure his safety and to get him away from his bullies (it's unclear if that happened right after Sadie Hawkins or not considering that Blaine considered the transfer 'running away')
• They let their son accompany his boyfriend to prom.
• They agreed to let Blaine transfer to Mckinley to be with said boyfriend.
• Kurt was shown in Blaine's room on two different occasions (Because of the layers talk in The First Time and the scene in Michael) and the door was closed both times.
• They let Blaine go to NY on a whim to see Kurt
• They agreed to let Blaine transfer back to Dalton because he wanted to
• They allowed Blaine to go with Burt to visit Kurt on Christmas.
• Blaine is evidently very open about his relationship with Kurt, based on the shrine of photos he has of Kurt in his bedroom.
• Then we have the comment in Shooting Star about how they stayed up all night, crying, talking and hugging Blaine. This is pretty much a normal reaction for parents who were faced by the possibility of losing their child but the scene between Tina and Blaine evidently took place a few days after the shooting. Blaine's parents couldn't sleep because Blaine was going back to a school where a shooting took place the next day. The way it was worded and the atmosphere of the scene just felt like the show was telling us that they aren't cold or distant or anything like that.

The only part that made us all think the worst about Blaine's parents was his comment to Burt in Sexy when he said he thought that his father built a car with him hoping to turn him straight and said that he and his father don't have the kind of relationship Burt has with Kurt.

- While this could point to Mr. Anderson not accepting Blaine's sexuality, I can't help but remember that Burt bribed Kurt with a car so that he would stop wearing knee-length sweaters then took his car away when he discovered Kurt's collection of tiaras. Burt was still struggling at the time but he worked on himself till he developed this wonderful relationship with Kurt. And it didn't mean that he loved his son any less, he just couldn't relate to him at the time.

- I think that this might be the case with Mr. Anderson, he just couldn't relate to Blaine at the time. Plus, we don't even know what actually happened in this situation. What we got was Blaine's interpretation of it. The possibility that building a car with Blaine was Mr. Anderson's idea of bonding or an attempt to get closer to his son is still there, Blaine could have just misunderstood his father's motives.

- The comment about Blaine not having a close relationship with his father though makes me think that they never moved on from the initial struggle and thus, never shared the close knit relationship Burt and Kurt share. While the Hummels' struggle made them stronger and brought them closer, the Andersons' never got solved and held them at a stand still.

I just think that there are several subtext points that suggest that the Andersons are just as accepting as Burt, but they just don't know how to show it.

Who's catfishing Ryder?

This question has been stuck in my head since I saw Shooting Star, and I literally went through every single Glee member and it's driving me crazy.

The thing about Shooting Star is that it made us eliminate people while subtly adding other into the mix. Katie's phone rang in the choir room but they never told us if Brittany and Tina were in the choir room before leaving or not. Neither girl had their bags with them so they could have left them in the choir room.

Here are the people who I think could be the catfish and the reasons I think they fit or not.

• Kitty: I honestly thought that she would be the one. Her relationship with Puck holds no weight and the similar names indicated it, like Glee was hiding her in plain sight and there was a spoiler that Kitty will have a romance gone wrong but after SS, it became apparent that it wasn't Kitty because she would have just admitted to it, especially after her confession to Marley in the choir room.

• Jake: Jake's reaction to the whole thing was just off. He was just rigid and weird and they didn't show him holding a phone in the choir room. But Katie helped Ryder find some common ground with Unique in a time where Jake was pissed at Ryder, he just wouldn't have helped him. And Katie told Ryder that she only lied about her name and picture, and that she wanted to get close to him and that she was shy. I don't see Jake saying that to Ryder, it just sounds romantic and Jake wouldn't continue to lead Ryder on after he blew up at him and Marley, and after he saw how Ryder was hung up on Katie.

• Unique: She makes a lot of sense. Katie appeared during the kiss fiasco between Ryder, Marley and Jake, a time when Unique was upset with Ryder, too upset if you ask me. Unique approaching Ryder to 'defend' Marley always struck me as weird. Plus, Katie said that she was 'someone' who wanted to get close to him, she didn't say a girl who wanted to get close to him which could go along with the whole fight about gender identity that Unique and Ryder had. Unique was also shown holding onto a phone only during the group hug after the lockdown. What makes me skeptical about Unique is that all signs point to her now and I don't know if Glee would make it that obvious when it was supposed to be a cliffhanger of sorts. Also, why didn't she go to meet Ryder? And the amount of fury and pain she showed in Feuds doesn't match the calm demeanor Katie adopted when she was talking to Ryder about the situation with Unique.

• Tina: I never actually considered Tina before SS but now, I'm warming up to the idea significantly. I always got a vibe from Tina and Ryder during This is the New Year when she tapped his nose during it (an intimate move that seriously made no sense at the time considering that she was crushing on Blaine then, and it's not a friendly move and even if it was, Ryder and Tina weren't friends) Tina was outside the school but without her bag and the conversation with Blaine made it look like she had no way to get in touch with the others. So where was her phone? Couldn't she have texted them to make sure they're safe? to say goodbye? And she was very distraught before Say that it could explain why she didn't go to meet Ryder. Katie said that she was shy which might appear as a contradiction to the snarky persona Tina had been adopting but it could make sense when you remember the girl we met at season 1, this girl is still a part of her. Plus, after the utter fiasco with Blaine, she might be wary of just putting herself on the line like that again because last time, she got taunted (Sue in Feud and Sam in Guilty Pleasures)

Katie looks like someone who has a romantic interest in Ryder, based on what she said about wanting to get close to him so the boys are out, both Marley and Kitty said it wasn't them and I believe them. Sugar wasn't there and I seriously can't see Brittany doing it ( Sam did indicate that her phone was in the choir room and the simple logic she used with Ryder in Feuds matches Brittany but she has no reason to do it, she isn't 'shy' when it comes to getting close to people, she just basically walks to them and starts talking (i.e, Kurt, Marley and Kitty), she is dating Sam with no reason to be romantically interested in Ryder and she is far too innocent to pull something like that. And wasn't she preoccupied with Lord Tubbington and the asteroid during the episode?).

So it's between Unique and Tina and I'm leaning heavily towards Tina right now.

4x18: Shooting Star

Here's what you missed on Glee: New Directions are going against two choirs with equally ridiculous names, Lima is going to be hit by a ladybug meteor\ asteroid, Ryder serenaded a girl who didn't even know him with an iconic love song and Sam keeps innocent cats trapped in his backpack and let me tell you, the cat wasn't amused.

I truly loved every minute of this episode. Some parts didn't make sense to me but all in all, it was one of the best episodes Glee has ever done. The built up of the catfish story was good and I can not wait to find out who the person behind this scheme is. Having him jump to the conclusion that it was either Jake or Marley was a little weird though, even if the scene was so well played.

Brittany was her usual bubbly, hilarious self (at least at the beginning of the episode) and watching the ND singing a love song to a cat was surprisingly very funny. My favorite part was the incredulous looks the ND exchanged when they realized that this is not a song between Brittany and Sam but between Brittany and Lord Tubbington.

The scene between Beiste and Will in the locker room didn't make much sense to me. Because even if Beiste believed that Will and Emma are over, A) Emma is her friend so going after her fiance didn't sit right with me, B) when did Beiste ever show romantic interest in Will? and C) why the hell didn't Will tell her that he and Emma are back together right away?. Will's reaction was very respectful though and they solved the matter like the adults they were (thank God).

From the very second the first shot echoed through Mckinley, we were treated to the best acting the Glee cast has ever done. From Sam's frantic tries to go and find Brittany, to Brittany's choked terror, Blaine's mute shut-down, Kitty's dive into Unique's arms, Ryder's insistence to get in touch with Katie, Artie's video of goodbye messages, Tina's desire to join her friends and Marley's failed attempts at contacting her mother. Will was like the perfect teacher in the situation and him going out to find Brittany was heartwarming.

The shooting might have just taken 10 minutes on screen but it was the most horrifying and tear-jerking moments of Glee. The cast caught the reality of human emotions when faced by such a terrorizing events and it was like we had most of the possible different reactions happening at the same place. Chord Overstreet, Heather Morris and Darren Criss truly stand out though. The scene when Will had to physically restrain Sam to prevent him from leaving made me burst into tears, so did Brittany's petrification when she heard someone going into the bathroom and the breath she let out when she discovered it was Will, and don't get me started on how perfect Darren was in portraying Blaine's triad of emotions.

What really hit me in those scenes though was the use of sounds. The silence that swept over the whole school with only the sound of panted breaths and muffled cries disrupting it and  how Glee turned simple things like the ticking of a metronome, the vibration of a phone, the sound of shower water hitting the tiles and the dripping of tab water in sinks into clanging shines of doom. The metronome is particular sounded like both a mix of racing heart beats and a countdown to disaster.
Have to say that I didn't see Becky being the shooter coming. They did a very good built up with her conversation with Brittany and while having Sue assume the responsibility to protect Becky was a move that Sue would do, we are still faced with the fact that Becky thought that the best way to protect herself was to bring a loaded gun to the school. Not to mention that now she would be faced with the guilt of being the reason Sue lost her job. I certainly hope they deal with this part in future episodes.

I'm seriously in love with Bram now. There wasn't a second in the episode that I didn't feel Sam's love for Brittany and their fake family part was great, even if Lady Tubbington looked like she was gonna rip Sam apart for keeping her in a backpack.

Can RIB write more scenes that have Blaine laughing this teary squeaky laugh more often? I'm just absolutely in love with it. That whole scene was cute as hell and please tell me it marked the end of Tina's bitchy persona, I miss nice Tina.

Say was perfect in every way. The coming together of the Glee club and the way they were all bonding with each other and touching each other was really moving. Also, I'm seriously shipping Artie and Kitty (Kartie?), make this happen Glee.

Shooting Star's messages about Blaine

I can't help but feel like the writers were trying to send us several messages about Blaine in this episode. While there wasn't a particular focus on Blaine during the shooting, the camera cut to him an awful lot of times, recording the changes in his reaction which mirrored the change in his emotions. It was little moments that came together to form a big picture that not only addressed the common fanon theory that Blaine's parents aren't accepting, but also divulged subtly the impact Sadie Hawkins had on Blaine's psyche while staying true to who Blaine is as a person. 

• Blaine's initial reaction to the shots:

- While everyone was scrambling to the nearest corner, Blaine was moving the piano to create a place to hide then helping Artie sit on the floor. He was the one to question whether the sound they heard was a gun shot or not, and he was the first one to reach for his phone the second Mr. Shue told them to start telling people.
- This is consistent with how Blaine was portrayed from the very start. As a leader (Warbler's lead soloist, the New Rachel, Student Council President, etc) and a planner (planning to infiltrate the Cheerios to topple Sue), as someone who doesn't fly off the handle without proof (refusing to believe that the warblers cheated until he had concrete proof)

• Reconciling the panic of the situation with Blaine's 'collected' persona

- Blaine was trying so damn hard to keep a level head in an impossible situation and not to let his panic consume him. It was like he was rationalizing the situation so as not to get crippled by his panic and was forcing himself to be as calm as possible and think. But he broke when someone jiggled the door handle. He crumbled, pressing his palms to his eyes as if saying "this isn't happening". He was petrified and there was no masking it.

• Showing Blaine exhibiting what could be viewed as PTSD

- Blaine was the only one not touching someone during the shooting. All of the others were seen holding hands, hugging and leaning against each other except him. He put a little bit of distance between him and Artie and only touched Sam once until they were told they were safe. When Will was wrestling Sam into submission, he pressed his hands to his ears, trying to block what was going on. He was sitting with his knees pulled to his chest and at some point, he just curled into himself, making himself smaller.
- When everyone was telling Ryder to hang up, they were frantic and forceful while Blaine was positively terrified. He couldn't even talk so he mouthed "hang up the phone, please" at Ryder. After the shooting ended, he was sobbing into Sam's shoulder.

• Stressing the bond between him and Sam and between him and Tina

- He tried to hold onto Sam to prevent him from standing up (his first physical interaction with anyone since he helped Artie out of his chair, since he physically distanced himself from everyone else) and he clung to Sam after they were given the all clear.
- He acknowledged that Tina wasn't with them in the choir room (a fact that everyone already knew) and the scenes in the hallway and the auditorium.

• Subtly reminding the audience that Blaine is just a teenager

- After The Break Up, there was a lot of hate on Blaine which only got worse after the crush on Sam. Blaine looked utterly young throughout the shooting. It was bleeding through several things like the curled up position he adopted and the fact that we could actually hear his sobs when he latched onto Sam after the shooting. It only intensified when he was the only person showed to be calling his parents and his 'hey mommy' was audible.

• Telling the audience that Blaine's parents aren't homophobic or cold

- Despite the presence of some subtext indications of that before ( Blaine's parents agreeing to let him transfer because he wanted to be with his boyfriend and Kurt being present in Blaine's house twice with the door closed (Michael and The First Time) and we had confirmation that Blaine's mother was there in Michael), Glee made sure to tell us that Blaine's parents are in fact loving and caring, with Blaine being one of only two characters to mention the parents reaction.
The subtext development of Blaine's character and how Glee is giving him more depth is just wonderful. And Darren Criss deserves a round of applause for his perfect capturing of Blaine's emotions. In an episode filled to the brim with amazing performances (i.e, Chord Overstreet and Heather Morris), Darren managed to tug at our heart strings and deliver one of the most heartbreaking and most realistic performances.