The Cutprice Guignol

Alright, I’m putting side the rotation of Britney’s greatest hits that have been stuck in my head since last week, and I’m getting down to business. Grilled Cheesus business, to be precise.

This episode is Glee’s Great Big Religion Debate Bonanza episode, and, of course, there’s only one sensible way to kick off that plot: by having Finn accidentally grill the face of Christ in a sandwich. It’s one of those phenomenally stupid openings that really should not work at all, but I think what pulls this out of just aggressively idiotic is Cory Monteith. Now, I am and will always be a stan for Monteith and how he plays Finn – he’s got this bumbling, earnest charm that is so watchable, even when the writing doesn’t come up to match – and this episode is a really great example of how the show uses it to their advantage. Finn’s total wide-eyed sincerity about everything allows this plot to ground in his reality, even if it doesn’t ground in actual reality.

Monteith just has this way about him that sells even the most ridiculous plots, because I believe that Finn believes it, even if I can objectively see it’s stupid (and also that “yes, he’s coming out!” when Finn tells everyone he has an announcement is me at every opportunity, by the way, especially during Pride month. It’s my duty!). Alfonso Gomez-Rejon directs this plot in such a delightfully silly way too, like a religious spectacle, the camera pulling away into a heavenly POV every time Finn thanks his new saviour – it’s just fun.

And, even if this is an undeniably silly plot, they brought in a ringer: Burt. I have made my fucking obsession for Mike O’Malley as Kurt’s father Burt maybe too clear in these recaps, and this is just a great episode for both him and Chris Colfer. There’s an authentic warmth between the two of them that gifts this plot, of Burt hospitalized after a major cardiac arrest, real depth, and it’s hard for the emotion not to hit when Kurt is greeting his wee eyes out over him in the hospital. There’s some slightly tacky father-son drama writing at the start of Grilled Cheesus, but what it leads to is so satisfying, one of Glee’s rare out-of-the-park hits for drama, makes it worthwhile for me. Watching this episode, I was fully ready to give Burt one of my kidneys if he needed it, and he had a heart attack, so that should tell you all you need to know.

In terms of drama, too, it comes from a surprising place this week, as Sue throws in her two cents about religion and faith in the context of growing up with a sister who had Downs syndrome. I truly do think Jane Lynch can do it all, and this is one of her most impressive dramatic performances in the whole show’s run – we see the facade drop a little, a brief flash of the more vulnerable side she cloaks under her exceptionally evil exterior, and it’s such a treat. The scene she shares with her sister Jean (Robin Trocki) is such an exceptional bit of writing and acting coming together to deliver an emotional punch – the tiny pause as Sue struggles to articulate how hurt she was by seeing people bully her sister speaks to so much more than what we see, and I love it. Trocki is a great scene partner for Lynch every time the two of them come together, and I always look forward to seeing this softer side of Sue in the show, even if it isn’t always handled as well as this.

Performance-wise, I’m sure you don’t even need me to say it, but Amber Riley gets two features this week, and that’s all I really need to say about that. But I will say more, because I never know when to stop – she’s such a captivating performer, not just her voice, but her presence, her power. Her underuse is one of the biggest missed opportunities in the show’s run. Also: her debut album is coming out this year! About damn time, truly.

Grilled Cheesus is actually a pretty great episode, even though we’re edging into dangerously silly territory. I have the feeling this series probably won’t make it past another ten episodes, but hey, I’m going to enjoy what I can while I’m still at it. And make a grilled cheese, because, you know. Now that’s something to believe in.

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(header image via IMDB)