"The Power of Madonna" might be the best episode of Glee yet. Few artists deserve a dedicated episode of the show, but Madonna is definitely one of them. She and Glee have a lot in common: Both have blindly adoring fans, a certain camp factor, an obvious pop appeal, and a hint of midwestern charm. Oh, and they both like to hand out life lessons. Madonna was actually all over those, and last night, Glee decided to impart M's wisdom on those who might not have picked up on it before.
I probably could have done without all the blatant idol-worshiping; I didn't see the point in blasting Madonna's songs over the school's PA system or giving Sue Sylvester a diary with "Madonna" bedazzled across the cover. A simple mention of Sue's Material Girl obsession would have sufficed. But I can overlook that flaw, because the show used Madge's songs perfectly. A few of them were kept in their original form, as when the cheerleaders performed a spectacularly choreographed, stilt-enhanced "Ray of Light" number. Most were sung by New Directions—and by sung, I mean rocked. Or overproduced, but whatever; at this point I don't really care if the show's performances are unrealistic for a high school glee club. They're so damn good. Let's rank 'em:
7. "Like a Prayer"
The huge gospel choir came out of nowhere, as did the song, but it was a solid performance. And what's not to love about Kurt (Chris Colfer) hitting a high note?
6. "Borderline"/"Open Your Heart"
Finn (Cory Monteith) and Rachel (Lea Michele) never really stray from holding hands and twirling around while they sing together, but they don't have to—they're not dancers. New Directions has Mike (Harry Shum) and Brittany (Heather Morris) for that.
5. "Like a Virgin"
This classic was beautifully sung and brilliantly edited. The show took the oft-covered topic of losing one's virginity and just, you know, sang about it. Perhaps a little too tastefully, but whatever. I hope Santana (Naya Rivera) gets a few more bars in future songs; she kind of sounds like Sporty Spice.
4. "Express Yourself"
What costumes! What simple, fun choreography! What voices! I could have watched the ladies of New Directions fist-pump all day.
3. "4 Minutes"
Kurt and Mercedes (Amber Riley) did, as Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) said, "rip the song a new one." They need to duet more often, because their voices blend together surprisingly well. And I love a good horn section.
2. "Vogue"
This was truly magnificent, even if Fox totally ruined it by releasing it early, after last week's spring premiere. Turns out Jane Lynch has a great voice and can rock at least six of Madonna's greatest looks, including the cone bra.
1. "What It Feels Like For A Girl"
Glee excels at big productions, but this rehearsal-style performance gave me goosebumps. Did you hear those guys harmonize? And then they went out and apologized to all the girls they had pissed off. Swoon...
And hey, while we're ranking things, let's review some of the episode's best quotes:
5. Kurt, to Mercedes: "I'm going to Kabbalah. Is that too much?"
4. Tina (Jenna Ushkowitz), to Artie (Kevin McHale): "My growing feminism will cut you in half like a righteous blade of equality!"
3. Mercedes, to Will (Matthew Morrison): "Y'all just trot me out at the end of every number so I can wail on the last note. How is that okay?"
2. Will, to Sue: "How's the Florence Henderson look working out for you? Maybe you should try a new setting on your Flowbee! Oh, snap!"
1. Brittany, to the club: "When I pulled my hamstring, I went to a misogynist."
Not all of Glee's best jokes occur in the dialogue, though. Each episode is studded with visual winks might go unnoticed if you have a hard time taking your eyes off whoever's singing or your mind off whichever couple is currently on-screen. But did you notice that the students in the hallway were wearing assorted Madonna costumes during "Open Your Heart"? Or that Finn greased up his eyebrows before talking to Santana? Or that Rachel's sexy nightie included a mini cape?
We already knew that Glee was good at the fluffy stuff—the singing, the dancing, the witty one-liners. And I'd say that, up until now, the show's heavy drama was probably its most blatant weakness. On many levels, it still is. But in the last two episodes, the show has started to handle the drama a little more deftly. Emma's (Jayma Mays) OCD has been treated respectfully; not as a source of humor or a trivial "quirk"; with Will's help and support, she's now trying to deal with it in a healthy way. And I've gotta give the show props for the "Like a Virgin" aftermath—teenagers lie about their V-card status all the time, and seeing Finn and Rachel skirt the issue was awkwardly heartwarming. Finally, it was gratifying was seeing Santana demand sex from Finn, rather than it being the other way around. I just hope he bought her that burger.
Which song was your favorite this week? What did you think of the episode overall?
Follow TV.com writer Stefanie Lee on Twitter: @StefAtTVDotCom
Was Kurt the one wearing the cone bra in the Vogue video?
like a virgin was the best part of the episode...sanatana sounded awesome!!!!!vogue was also great!
Despite sounding "good," I totally hated the "What It Feels Like for a Girl" set up. It seemed fake and just awkward. It was my least favorite musical number, and I would've been happy if they'd left it out. "4 Minutes" rocked, and they really need to get Kurt to sing lead more often.
I like Glee but the episodes haven't been as enjoyable since the long break. All characters seem to have changed for the worse. Hope it hasn't jump the shark.
express yourself and like a prayer made me giggle with glee ;) LOVED this episode and I'm not a huge Madonna fan so I wasn't sure I would
i wish yhall would stop complaining about the voices, honestly they sound a whole lot better than most mass produced "singers" even without the extra studio technology. i loved this episode but my sister and i are thinking when is quinn going to start showing a baby bump i think its been long enough that she should show by now especially while wearing a corset
Best song: Like a prayer. Best quote: "When I pulled my hamstring, I went to a misogynist." - absolutely hilarious.
this episode was both awesome and disturbing xD
i loved 4 minutes and Vogue... the part when Sue says: Will shuester I hate you!!! and the look on kurt's face!!!! it was priceless!!! XD
LOVED it ! I really like when Kurt and Mercedes duet ... I'm kinda tired of Rachel getting all the attention. And Sue's Vogue was just amazing !
Love Glee. But not this episode. It was boring, uncomfortable, and awkward. I hope it picks up soon.
My favorite songs were Express Yourself and Like a Virgin... I have to say, I'm not a fan of Madonna, and I still loved this episode. Can't agree with you on it being the best episode yet just because I can't choose! I love so many episodes!!! Glee rocks!!!...
brittany; somebody needs to give that girl more lines!
Not the best episode in my opinion. Kind of boring. Best songs: like a prayer and express yourself
I love Glee but does anyone else think that the songs have become way too over produced?
fav songs this episode: 4 minutes ('kurt' has an amazing voice; don't know how to say it in english but it was great having him sing "deep" notes) and like a prayer
I don't understand why everyone keeps saying there's no storyline, a lot of things happened!
This show is totally awesome...the writers top themselves week after week. At this rate, I do not see HOW they are going to be able to come up with anything new that will suprise us for next season, but I am sure they will try.
Well. I love Glee, I love Madonna, so it's awesome, right? So why did I find myself bored out of my mind 10 minutes in? The music was good, but it's too well produced: a high school choir rehearsing in a class shouldn't sound like it's coming from a 1000$/hour studio. I mean, c'mon.
I felt bad for Finn. What a way to lose it. Not the best episode for me, but still good.
I loved this episode, but I wasn't too thrilled to have Finn lose his virginity to Santana. Especially with how she acted after the fact. I know people disagree, but I'm FinnxRachel all the way :)
Oh, and except for the Vogue bit and the finale, it was a boring show! Except for Schu's cool combackes!
I really can't stand Madonna, but everyone sang better than her, even the Guys!
I loved the Mash-up that Rachel and Finn did. So good and wonderfully revealing for the characters. But the best was definitely like a virgin just for its awkward humor
This episode was a huge disappointment, I'm not just saying that because I hate Madonna, but also there was practically zero storyline, and the sexism storyline of the show got solved way too quickly. Also I think Jesse joining New Directions is complete BS.
omg, this episode was horrible, cept for the last 10 minutes, i was so surprised, their was tripple the songs, and the thing i liked bout this show was that its not high school musical, but last night it started looking that way by having ppl dance along in halls, andthen having ppl magically have new clothes on, wtf?
The episode started off well, but the second half was terrible.
Definitely "What it feels like for a girl". God I love when they make a simple performance because that's when you can really each voice nail it, and not only Mercedes or Rachel screaming their lungs off.
GO GLEE BOYS!
The big production of "Like a Prayer" was immense but for me I was pleasantly surprised at "What it feels like for a girl" one of Madonna's lesser known songs. Plus the video was banned and stuff. I was just surprised the boys could harmonize so well.
I'd have to say Vogue, I was so impressed with Jane Lynch! And probably 'Like a Prayer' because it showed off some of the other cast members voices which they seriously need to do more often. I get that Lea can really sing but Kurt and Mercedes are right what they say when they explain why they've joined the Cherrios - it's not fair that they don't get more solos! '4 Minutes' rocked the entire gym too!
4 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Whoa!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mercedes and Finn rocked the gym, here to them staying on the cheerios. I am so happy that they got to sing a few notes because they have incredible and unique singing voices and Mr. Shuester rarely ever uses them properly. Lets face it, Finn is straight, a jock, and is good looking (to those people who like white guys with pale skin) but his voice is, okay. I mean if you heard the guy live he would not really impress you. Now Kurt's voice is too high for a male lead but Artie and Puck have nice voices too. I was wondering if the Santana, Brittany, and the two other guys could even sing. I thought they were just dancers. Why have a glee club full of talented singers if you are only going to give solos to 2 of the 12 (or now 13 with Jesse) solos. Mr. Shuester sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!moreless
Like a Virgin "a little too tasteful?" Not from where I sat. But at least they didn't go too far. I liked the big numbers, Ray of Light and 4 minutes.
my favorite song this week visual wise was "like a virgin" and because Naya Rivera has now proven she is not only the new queen of mean, a great dancer, but has a power house voice to back it up and i HOPE they give her more songs to sing. My favorite song to hear though was "Like a prayer." It was one of the first songs that really shared the spot light and its a huge feel good song. the episode total? SAD Finn lost his V to Santana, no matter how much i love her. But its a show targeted towards younger people and mistakes with sex do happen and i think it was important for the show to deliver that truth.
For me this was the best episode of Glee!!! And of course the best number was 4 minutes!!!
I gotta say Jane Lynch totally bluffed me with "Vogue". She was incredible !
The plot, though, was disappointing. I hope next week will be better.