Wonder-ful
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"Wonder-ful" is the twenty-first episode of the fourth season of the American musical television series Glee, and the 87th episode overall. It aired on Fox in the United States on May 2, 2013, and features the introduction of special guest star Katey Sagal as Nancy Abrams and the return of special guest star Kate Hudson as Cassandra July. The episode is a tribute to the music of Stevie Wonder.
Synopsis
Rachel Berry (Lea Michele) calls glee club director Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) to let him know she is one of the finalists for the role of Fanny Brice in the upcoming Broadway revival of Funny Girl; he tells the club the good news and encourages them to perform Stevie Wonder songs to celebrate the wonderful things in their lives.
Kitty Wilde (Becca Tobin) finds out that Artie Abrams (Kevin McHale) has been accepted in a film school in New York City, but his mother, Nancy Abrams (Katey Sagal), won't let him go. She performs "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" to encourage him to go, but Artie remains decided about staying. Kitty then approaches Nancy, who is surprised to learn about Artie. After being confronted by his mother, Artie admits he is afraid to be on his own, but Nancy assures him he'll adapt, and Artie decides to go to New York.
Mercedes Jones (Amber Riley), who is recording her first album, returns to Lima with Mike Chang (Harry Shum, Jr.) and Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer) to help coach New Directions for Regionals. She helps Marley Rose (Melissa Benoist) improve her voice, and the two sing "Superstition" alongside Blaine Anderson (Darren Criss) in the auditorium.
Kurt learns his father Burt Hummel's (Mike O'Malley) cancer is in remission, and celebrates his recovery with a performance of "You Are the Sunshine of My Life". Blaine later asks Burt's permission to propose to Kurt, but Burt tells him they're not ready for that type of commitment, and they'll be together eventually. Meanwhile, Mercedes and Mike notice Jake Puckerman's (Jacob Artist) talents, and motivate him be a more active voice in the glee club, which Jake accomplishes through a rendition of "I Wish"
In New York, Cassandra July (Kate Hudson) finds out about Rachel's callback and congratulates her, revealing that she constantly pushed Rachel in order to make her a better artist. Cassandra and the students then perform "Uptight (Everything's Alright)" for Rachel, and Cassandra wishes her good luck.
Mercedes becomes disappointed when the record label tries to force her to change her image to have the album released, and decides to cancel their contract and pursue her dreams through different means. She reminds New Directions to always remain true to themselves by singing "Higher Ground". The club later meets at the auditorium, where they celebrate Artie's success with a rendition of "For Once in My Life".
Production
Shooting for the episode had begun by April 8, 2013,[2] and was done in parallel with the final episode, which started by April 10.[3]
Cory Monteith, who plays Finn Hudson, does not appear in this episode or the season finale that follows it. Monteith entered a rehabilitation program facility on March 31, 2013, causing him to miss the remainder of the season. The storyline planned for him was changed, and the scripts for the final two episodes were revised accordingly.[4] Romy Rosemont, who plays Finn's mother Carole on the show, makes her first appearance of the fourth season.[5]
Katey Sagal debuts as Nancy Abrams, Artie's mother.[5] Kevin McHale, who plays Artie, had proposed Sagal—along with Harry Connick, Jr.—as the character's yet-to-be-seen parents at the Glee panel held during the 2012 Comic-Con shortly before the fourth season began shooting.[6] Show co-creator Ryan Murphy announced Sagal's casting on April 5, 2013.[6] Sagal filmed her scenes on April 10.[7]
Special guest star Kate Hudson returns as Cassandra July, Rachel's dance instructor at NYADA. Other recurring characters in this episode include Kurt's father Burt Hummel (Mike O'Malley), Burt's wife and Finn's mother Carole Hudson-Hummel (Romy Rosemont), glee club members Wade "Unique" Adams (Alex Newell), Marley Rose (Melissa Benoist), Jake Puckerman (Jacob Artist), Kitty Wilde (Becca Tobin) and Ryder Lynn (Blake Jenner), and the NYADA sycophants (Patrick Stafford and J.D. Phillips).[5]
Seven Stevie Wonder songs from the episode are being released as singles: "For Once in My Life" sung by McHale, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" performed by Chris Colfer, "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" sung by Tobin, "I Wish" performed by Benoist and Artist, "Higher Ground" sung by Amber Riley, "Uptight (Everything's Alright)" performed by Hudson and "Superstition" sung by Riley, Darren Criss and Benoist.[8][9]
References
- ^ "Listings - Glee on Fox". The Futon Critic. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
- ^ Michele, Lea (April 8, 2013). "Twitter / @msleamichele: First day of episode 21.. Can't believe we only have 2 more episodes to shoot this year!". Retrieved April 25, 2013.
- ^ Rivera, Naya (April 10, 2013). "Twitter / @NayaRivera: Busy busy day! Meetings then off to Glee for my first scene of our last episode of the season! I see a little #brittana in it too!". Retrieved April 25, 2013.
- ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (April 1, 2013). "Glee Poised to Finish Season 4 Without Finn, as Cory Monteith Enters Rehab". TVLine. PMC. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
{{cite web}}: no-break space character in|title=at position 73 (help) - ^ a b c "Listings - Glee on Fox". The Futon Critic. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
- ^ a b Ausiello, Michael (April 5, 2013). "Glee Casting News: Katey Sagal Is Artie's Mom!". TVLine. PMC. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
- ^ Sagal, Katey (April 10, 2013). "Twitter / @Kateylous: Gleefully being Artie's mom!! Sooo sweet!! Hangin with beautiful Becca and Awesome Kevin... Lovin it". Retrieved April 30, 2013.
- ^ "Glee Cast – MP3 downloads". amazon.com. Retrieved April 7, 2013.
- ^ "Kate Hudson Makes Her Wonder-Ful Return To Glee! Listen To ALL The Songs In This Week's Episode HERE!". perezhilton.com. April 29, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
