Glee and Social Issues (Part 2.5): Marley just Marley

Okay it's ten forty eight eastern standard time on November twenty ninth two thousand and twelve as I start to write this.

I have just watched the episode of glee dealing with what I just posted about body image issues and Marley Rose as a part of it.

And we're going to talk about this because I feel like I should.

(Spoilers up until episode eight of season four "Thanksgiving". Also this opinion based and a reaction to what I just watched about an hour/two hours ago at this point.) 

Glee and Social Issues (Part Two): Mercedes, Sam and Marley

As previously stated in my first post of Glee and Social Issues (Part One), Glee has two issues they do pretty well (for the most part) bully and LGBT issues (more on the B and T part in the next installment). Other social issues that glee tackles is done to varying degrees of success. 

On a spectrum of say one to five with one being the worst and five being the best for how these storylines are treated, let's put Kurt's coming out and bullying at McKinley at a five and Quinn's texting while driving accident at a one.

Kurt's coming out and the bullying he has dealt with McKinley is equal parts thoughtful, engaging, realistic and holds development for the character. The plot line for Kurt's journey from a boy in the closet to a confident young out man feels realistic. The viewer barely realizes the character's journey is actually a storyline, which is what makes it work so well. This is what rates it a five.

Quinn's texting while driving storyline is shoehorned in at the least thirty seconds of an episode that already didn't deal with an issue all that well. We see the aftermath of her accident sure but it...it didn't really change anything. It just was...there. No one really dealt with it. We just learned not to text and drive. Which people shouldn't do. That's not a storyline glee that is a PSA and it is why this gets a one.

So let's go into this week's topic for Glee and Social Issues: Mercedes, Sam and Marley with Body Image.

Before you continue I would like to remind that this is observations and opinions of my own based on a rewatching of the television series Glee. Okay? This is my opinion. If you agree fantastic if not well that's okay too.

(The following post contains spoilers up to Season Four, Episode Seven "Dynamic Duets".  So go watch the episode and come back here. Or keep reading. Do whatever you like.  The following post will ALSO talk about sensitive subject matter like eating disorders. So if this makes you uncomfortable then please don't read.)

The Top Ten Mash-ups Glee Should Have Done But Didn't

Glee has brought many things into our current pop culture lexicon: slushie facial, gleek, Klaine... But perhaps the most important one that the show has brought forth is the term mash-up. 

A mash-up for those of you not in the know is the act of combining two songs together for a wholly unique musical experience. Now I myself am unsure with the history of mash-ups but I think I can safely say that they came into cultural knowledge thanks to glee.

I certainly cannot remember a time in my twenty years of life when I heard a mash-up pre-glee and neither any of my friends who I asked.

According to the Glee Wiki, glee has done nine mash-ups in season one (two of them not being released in any format) and eight in season two (one not on show but released on album). In season three glee released eleven added that to the four already released in season four (so far as of this writing season four has only completed six episodes).

Glee has released thirty-two mash-ups thus far according to my calculations and information available. The mash-ups released have ranged from really good to why did you to do that to just meh.

However, as something of a glee mash-up connoisseur, I do wonder from time to time about mash-ups glee should have done but didn't do. Which leads to my very first top ten list!

(Let's just say spoilers up to general season 4)

Glee and Social Issues (Part One): Kurt, Santana but Mostly Karofsky

Glee has an interesting history of how it attacks social issues prevalent in today's society. 

If I can say a positive thing about this...these issues do need to be discussed with the audience that watches glee, which are mainly teenagers and young adults. Hell even the older sect do need to discuss these issues.

Now with a weakness of fantastically horrible TV primetime soaps of the early 90's that I have well...the issues were tackled (not well but were tackled) and you really don't see it much these days on television shows. 

Now since glee tackles a variety of different social issues, I'll be splitting this series into parts.

Part 1: Kurt, Santana but Mostly Karofsky-Bullying and LGBT issues
Part 2: Mercedes, Sam and Marley-Body Image
Part 3: Brittany and Unique-Bisexual and Transgender Depictions
Part 4: Terri and Quinn-Mental Illness and Teen Pregnancy (along with other things)
Part 5: Finn, Puck and Rachel: Peer Pressure and Reputation

I will like to take a moment to point out that the following is opinion based on my own observations from rewatching glee. 

Now let's take a retrospective look at how glee tackles issues of the day.

(From this point I will be spoiling up to episode 14 of season 3 "On My Way". So if you don't want to spoiled then well get caught up and come back. If you do hey I can't stop you. This following post also contains sensitive subject matter like attempted suicide.)

Why I Love Glee

Call me Bec and I am a out and proud Gleek.

And I am not ashamed of this fact either (most Gleeks during season 3 have started to become ashamed but I didn't).

I am English major and a Communications minor at University of College USA.

And last year I came up with the idea to rewatch the entire series of glee presented and interpret it in context of the current season. Or at least look for common threads.

But mainly I wanted to figure out my love for the show or what exactly glee is.

However, I had to figure out how to do that out.