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Preggers

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"Preggers"

"Preggers" is the fourth episode of the television series Glee. The episode premiered on the Fox network on September 23, 2009, and was written and directed by executive producer Brad Falchuk. "Preggers" sees Kurt (Chris Colfer) join the football team and admit his homosexuality to his father. Quinn (Dianna Agron) discovers she is pregnant and tells Finn (Cory Monteith) the baby is his, when in fact the father is his best friend Puck (Mark Salling). Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) and Sandy Ryerson (Stephen Tobolowsky) team up in an effort to bring down the glee club, luring away a disillusioned Rachel (Lea Michele), who quits when Will (Matthew Morrison) refuses to award her a solo song.

"Preggers" introduces recurring cast members Harry Shum, Jr. and Dijon Talton as glee club members Mike Chang and Matt Rutherford, and Mike O'Malley as Kurt's father Burt Hummel. The episode features covers of two songs, and several dance performances of Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)". A studio recording of Michele's cover of "Taking Chances" was released as a single for digital download and also features on the album Glee: The Music, Volume 1.

The episode was watched by 6.624 million viewers and received mixed reviews from critics. Shawna Malcom for the Los Angeles Times and Eric Goldman of IGN praised the comic pairing of Sue and Sandy. Goldman and Raymund Flandez for The Wall Street Journal did not sympathize with Rachel in the episode, believing her to be in the wrong. Mike Hale of The New York Times felt that there were too many storylines, leading to a lack of screen time for key characters. Kurt's coming out attracted praise, with James Poniewozik of Time and Tim Stack of Entertainment Weekly both writing positively on Mike O'Malley's casting as Kurt's father.

Plot

Kurt is caught dancing to Beyonce's "Single Ladies" by his father (Mike O'Malley). He claims that it is a football exercise, and that he is now part of the team. Finn helps Kurt to practice, and he becomes the team kicker. When Finn's girlfriend Quinn tells him she is pregnant, Finn asks Will to coach the team at dancing, believing it will help them to improve and aid his chance of securing a football scholarship, increasing his prospects. Finn confides Quinn's news in his best friend Puck, who later confronts Quinn, claiming to be the baby's father. Will's wife Terri (Jessalyn Gilsig) reveals to her sister Kendra (Jennifer Aspen) that she experienced a hysterical pregnancy and is not really carrying Will's baby. Kendra suggests that they acquire a baby, and when Terri learns of Quinn's pregnancy from Will, she approaches the cheerleader claiming concern for her pre-natal care.

Cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester approaches former glee club director Sandy Ryerson and enlists him in her plan to sabotage the club. She blackmails Principal Figgins (Iqbal Theba) into appointing Sandy as the school's new Arts director, and together they hold auditions for a school musical, hoping to lure Rachel away from the glee club. Rachel, who feels slighted when Will awards Tina (Jenna Ushkowitz) a solo song, auditions for the musical and is given the lead role. When Will refuses to reassign the solo song to Rachel, she quits the club. The football team put their dance training into practice and with Kurt's help are able to win a game. Buoyed on by his success, Kurt comes out to his father, who tells him he loves him just the same.[1][2]

Production

"Preggers" introduces recurring cast members Harry Shum, Jr. and Dijon Talton as glee club members Mike Chang and Matt Rutherford, and Mike O'Malley as Kurt's father Burt Hummel. Stephen Tobolowsky appears as former glee club director Sandy Ryerson, Patrick Gallagher plays football coach Ken Tanaka, Iqbal Theba is Principal Figgins, and Jennifer Aspen plays Terri's sister Kendra Giardi. Naya Rivera and Heather Morris also appear as cheerleaders and glee club members Santana Lopez and Brittany. The episode features covers of "Taking Chances" by Celine Dion and "Tonight" from West Side Story. Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" also features in several dance performances.[3] A studio recording of "Taking Chances" was released as a single, available for digital download, and appeared on the album Glee: The Music, Volume 1. The track charted at number 79 in Australia,[4] 73 in Canada and 71 in the US.[5]

Reception

"Preggers" was watched by 6.623 million US viewers and attained a 3.0/8 in the 18-49 demographic.[6] It was the twenty-second most watched show in Canada for the week, with 1.39 million viewers.[7] Shawna Malcom for the Los Angeles Times reviewed the episode positively, praising the football team's performance of the "Single Ladies" dance, and Kurt coming out to his father. Malcom also wrote: "Will and Emma, and even Finn and Rachel, seem destined to get together, yes. But do any two Glee peeps really deserve each other more than Terri and Quinn?" adding that "Sue and Sandy, the former glee club coach, make for a pretty entertaining team, too."[8] While Malcom commented positively on the show's fast pace, Mike Hale for the New York Post suggested that Glee: "may be just a wee bit overstuffed with story lines — not to mention characters fighting for screen time." Hale opined: "It’s not good when the most important relationship on the show, Will and Emma’s stifled romance, gets barely a minute of screen time" and that "There was so much exposition going on that there didn’t seem to be much room for laughs." Hale wrote that the pregnancy plot felt "out of step" with the rest of the episode, and that Lynch gave a "one-note performance", suggesting that she had been miscast in the role.[9]

Raymund Flandez for The Wall Street Journal commented that in "Preggers": "Rachel has become insufferable. The disagreements with Mr. Schue about her own development as a bonafide triple-threat have branded her as an overbearing prima donna to the rest of Glee."[10] Eric Goldman for IGN agreed: "It's hard not to be annoyed by Rachel".[11] He rated the episode 8.8 out of 10 and praised Lynch and Tobolowsky as Sue and Sandy.[11] Goldman deemed Quinn's pregnancy a "very soap opera plotline" but commented: "luckily Glee is the kind of show to handle it with humor." He opined that: "So far, Terri has been an incredibly unlikable character. More firmly establishing her as this devilish type of schemer at least pushes her far enough to make her actions entertaining, even as we root against her."[11] Goldman called the "Single Ladies" performance "a memorable TV moment", deeming it: "not something you expect to see on network TV... but damn if it isn't really funny and actually kind of awesome, in a completely ridiculous way."[11] James Poniewozik for Time deemed Kurt's coming out "beautifully handled", writing that: "the fact that Dad (Mike O'Malley, who has turned out to be a pretty good character actor) ends up not being the boor we think he's going to be is one of the first signs that Glee is growing up as a series, that having established a world of primary-color stereotypes, it's now willing to subvert those expectations."[12]

Tim Stack for Entertainment Weekly wrote that, although the dancing in the episode was "fun", "Preggers" was lacking in "big singing moments" apart from Rachel's performance of "Taking Chances".[13] He called the "Single Ladies" dance "completely ridiculous" but commented that it "still managed to make me smile."[13] Stack wrote: "Colfer’s scene at the end with O’Malley was really quite touching. For a series so broad, it was nice to have a quiet, sweet moment like that to anchor the whole episode. And who would have thought that Mike O’Malley, star of the horrible Yes, Dear, could be such a good dramatic actor?!"[13] Stack deemed Quinn's pregnancy "a good dramatic twist", but hoped that it would not be a long-lasting storyline.[13] He expressed hatred for Terri, calling her "annoying and beastly" and also commented that he did not feel particularly bad for Rachel, whose actions were "totally unreasonable".[13] Stack added: "It was nice to finally get to hear Tina sing, too",[13] and called Sue and Sandy: "the best villains ever."[13]

References

  1. ^ Brad Falchuk (writer, director) (2009-09-23). "Preggers". Glee. Season 1. Episode 4. Fox. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ "Episode Recap: Preggers". Fox Broadcasting Company. Retrieved 2009-09-17.
  3. ^ "Preggers: Featured Music". Fox Broadcasting Company. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
  4. ^ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 19th October 2009" (pdf). Pandora Archive. Retrieved 2009-11-21.
  5. ^ "Glee Cast - Taking Chances". acharts.us. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
  6. ^ Gorman, Bill (September 24, 2009). "TV Ratings Wednesday: Modern Family, Cougar Town Start Strong; ABC Challenges CBS". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved 2009-09-24.
  7. ^ "Top Programs – Total Canada (English): September 21 - September 27, 2009" (PDF). BBM Canada. Retrieved 2009-11-27.
  8. ^ Malcom, Shawna (September 24, 2009). "'Glee': Kurt and the football team give 'Single Ladies' new life". Los Angeles Times. Tribune Company. Retrieved 2009-09-25.
  9. ^ Hale, Mike (September 24, 2009). "'Glee' Watch: Put a Ring On It". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-09-25.
  10. ^ Flandez, Raymund (September 23, 2009). ""Glee" Season 1, Episode 3: TV Recap". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2009-09-25.
  11. ^ a b c d Goldman, Eric (September 24, 2009). "Glee: "Preggers" Review". IGN. Retrieved 2009-10-02.
  12. ^ Poniewozik, James (September 24, 2009). "Glee Watch: A Big Gay Team of Dancing Gays". Time. Retrieved 2009-10-02.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g Stack, Tim (September 24, 2009). "'Glee' recap: Kurt comes out a winner!". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
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