Three Ways Glee Could Become Almost Maybe A Decent Show

After a baseball-induced hiatus, Glee returned this week and even though I sort of completely forgot about it, I didn't think it was too terrible. It was nearly almost good! Maybe I'm softening up on Ryan Murphy a little because I'm completely hooked on American Horror Story (blatherings about this are coming soon to a blog near you!) but this week's episode had glimmers of the show it could have been. Read: a decent one. That being said, Glee still has some serious issues. Luckily, it's still very early in the season and the writers have time to turn this around. Here are my three suggestions to push Glee on the right path:

1. Stop focusing so much on the adults

Newsflash: no one cares about the stupid rivalry between Sue and Will. Honestly, we don't. After two seasons and way too much exposure, Jane Lynch is grating at best as Sue Sylvester. It's no longer funny and, frankly, a massive waste of a great comedic actor. But even Jane Lynch can only do so much when you literally have her play out the same scene over and over again. The horse is dead and lo, he is beaten. I swear, at this point, Sue has four lines on rotation. Matt Morrison is pleasant enough, but Will Schuester is kind of horrid and unlikable. He's also a dick. It's hard to care who wins when they are both so annoying. Plus, guess what? A local congressional race in Ohio and a battle for school funding? Not entertaining.  Even the recent addition of Kurt's very enjoyable father isn't enough for me to care. Concentrate on the kids. They are why people love this show and they may be silly, but at least they are dynamic. Sue and Will have been (no pun intended) singing the same song for too long and it's tired.

2. Stop picking songs that suck
When Glee first started, the show featured a very entertaining combination of pop music and musical theater. Then they realized they could quadruple their profits by selling everything on iTunes. After that, it was a cheesy pop extravaganza and it became total overkill. The show lost its roots and the musical numbers became trite and predictable. Now it seems like they are making a small effort to include more show tunes and classic hit songs as well as contemporary hits, which is great - if their choices didn't blow. I mean, first of all, we don't need to see Blaine sing another Katy Perry song (I actually don't think we need to see anyone, including Katy Perry, sing a Katy Perry song ever, but that's another story). When The Warblers performed "Teenage Dream," even I had to admit it was charming. But it's way less charming for him to sing a song about habitually getting blackout drunk and fucking strangers, ya know? And then they have the Irish kid from The Glee Project do "It's Not Easy Being Green"? Really? Last season, I used to fast forward to the performances because the show was so bad - now I find myself skipping over the songs.

3. Make the characters at least remotely likable
I understand that part of Glee's appeal is how over the top and exaggerated the characters are. Then again, the show also constantly reminds us that the New Directions are a family of misfits who need each other. So, how come all they do is stab each other in the back? Sure, kids are competitive and God knows teenagers can be selfish, but would everyone constantly betray one another? It would be nice to see, at least every once in a while, some of the friendships last. They seem so close and then one of them walks away due to their own obnoxious need for attention. Quinn, Mercedes, Santana, Kurt, they've all quit the club at one point. Rachel is Kurt's BFF until she decides to run for class president against him. Finn can't deal with Blaine's leading man vocals, so he treats him like garbage. Are these characters longing for a community to call their own, or are they just really, really shitty people? I'm not sure.

These are just three on a long list, but I think some small adjustments could turn this show back in the right, ahem, direction. Har har, I'm so clever with the- cause you see, they're the New- oh, forget it.