“Glee” Sings Strong “Silly Love Songs,” Santana Steals Show; Review

Entitled “Silly Love Songs,” Tuesday’s Valentine’s Day-themed edition of “Glee” is not quite a perfect episode, but it represents a welcome return-to-form that will help viewers forget the exaggerated caricature that was “The Sue Sylvester Super Bowl Shuffle.”

With a vastly-transformed central theme and the mainstream audience on its radar, “Glee” is no longer in a position to rekindle the off-beat magic of the first few episodes. But the writers still possess their talents and sensibilities, and when they prioritize snarky dialogue and quirky commentary on the cliches of high school relationship troubles, they can deliver a winner. Well-crafted dialogue and a strong sense of writers’ self-awareness help solidify “Silly Love Songs” as an episode about which fans will be singing for the rest of the week.

Set in the aftermath of the conference championships, Finn finally has achieved the true popularity he long craved. Every girl in the school drools for his attention, and a jar full of “Sweethearts” in his locker reveals that more than a few McKinley ladies eye him as a Valentine. But for all the confidence and swagger Finn now possesses, there is one thing he lacks–Quinn on his arm.

With their flame rekindled due to the kiss in the post-Super Bowl episode, and the natural high school order again bringing them together (status-wise, the two are even more of an “obvious match” than they were prior to the New Directions), the relationship again seems right. But obstacles stand in the way–Quinn is dating Sam and certainly does not need to fuel the “cheater” label. Finn, meanwhile, still has an obvious connection to Rachel.

An additional complication erupts as a consequence of Puck’s pursuit of Lauren (remember, Lauren “rocked his world” in their “epic” Seven Minutes in Heaven session from before sectionals). With Puck committed to impressing the unusual target (which includes dedicating a rendition of “Fat-Bottomed Girls” to the heavyset character), Santana is left in the cold, again forced to face her insecurity of being one of the prettiest girls in school but consistently overlooked for courtship. She, therefore, seizes every attempt to interfere in the key relationships, and her vengeance makes Quinn and Finn pay particularly dearly.

Also in the mix: Kurt and Blaine. With love in the air, Blaine, a true Valentine’s Day believer, enlists the help of the Dalton Warblers in serenading the object of his admiration. Kurt, clearly in love with Blaine, gets excited at the prospect of finally being wooed by a potential lover, but that early excitement makes it painstakingly clear that Blaine has another target on his mind. Though two-thirds of the action belongs to the New Directions this week, half of the songs are given to Blaine and company.

The passion of the “Glee” fanbase assures the show can never win from a storyline perspective. Moreso than any show on television, “Gleeks” seem deadset on certain relationships, and for most viewers, neither Puck and Lauren nor Finn and Quinn fit into the ideal plans (anger over the prospect of Finn choosing Quinn over Rachel, based on rumors for the “Shuffle” and “Love Songs” episodes, resulted in a massive Twitter outcry this weekend). Therefore, for all the success the episode has in developing the new relationships (Finn, Quinn and Rachel have particularly- impressive scenes, while Puck’s pursuit of Lauren comes across far more authentic than “Puck-Merecedes 2.0”), the viewer still gets a sense that the writers’ hearts are not in these prospective pairings. A pivotal scene involving Finn and Rachel, one that could have proven devastating for “Finchel” fans had the writers gone all-in, instead plays it safe, all but guaranteeing viewers that the dynamic, which inspires Rachel’s version of “Firework,” will again shift in the coming weeks.

On that ground, the fan reaction to “Glee” storylines and relationships is astounding. “Glee” is very thin on story, and its approach to character pairings is extraordinarily non-committal. Yet the core fanbase eats everything up, assuring that the writers still have to walk a careful balance–even one week of two “soulmate” characters pursuing other interests could send shockwaves through the “Gleek” system.

But, half-hearted or not, the new story focuses do come across as fresh and organic, and the result is an episode of “Glee” that actually works from a storytelling perspective. The strong dialogue and effective humor further cement this as an episode to watch.

Puck fans are in particular luck. In addition to getting another one of his show-stealing voiceovers, Puck’s pursuit of Lauren highlights his always-hilarious struggle to be sincere and complimentary without diving into the offensive and brutally-honest in the process. Ashley Fink represents a game counterpart as well, crafting Lauren whose confidence works in tandem with her insecurities. Though not one of the funniest characters, Lauren brings something interesting to the table, and her demonstrations of both strength and vulnerability come across as genuine.

Santana, however, is the real MVP of “Silly Love Songs.” As her sidekick Brittany’s humor is so much more exaggerated, Santana’s knack for delivering the most uproariously funny, biting one-liners often goes overlooked. Not this week. From clever lines (“Please, I’ve had mono so often it turned into stereo”) to cutting insults (kissing Finn might not be worth a $1, but jiggling his man-boobs would be worth $100 to Santana), everything fans love about Santana is in full-force. This is not the episode to turn Santana into a sympathetic “good girl,” but if you like what the cold-hearted Santana brings to the table, you will not be able to get enough of this episode.

And while viewers might not love how the Finn-Rachel issue resolves itself, the performances along the way are strong. Outside of raving about Chris Colfer and the guest stars, acting is very rarely a subject of concern for “Glee” viewers, but Cory Monteith and Lea Michele are definitely effective in their scenes. Although the episode is essentially about resolving the Finn-Rachel breakup for the short-term while still keeping the door open for a long- term reconnection (in the world of “Glee,” that will probably be in a few episodes), the chemistry between Rachel and Finn was never more tangible. Instead of coming across like two people who are supposed to be together because it makes sense within the script, Finn and Rachel come across as teenagers with real, somewhat-complicated feelings. For once, the writing gets it right–and the two actors are up for the challenge of successfully selling it.

A negative for the episode, unfortunately, comes in the Kurt-Blaine storyline. While the arc wraps itself up in an immensely-endearing way, the ride comes across as both forced and predictable. The glee Kurt experiences when Blaine discussess wanting to pursue his crush makes the direction of the storyline excessively obvious, but for as much as it might work as a storytelling device, that “obvious direction” is not particularly logical (the mere concept that Blaine could be interested in someone else and/or oblivious to Kurt’s lust, given what we have seen of the two so far, is not believable).

Musically, the show is also a bit bland. Mark Salling is fine on “Fat-Bottomed Girls,” but the straight-ahead performance adds nothing new to his portfolio. Lea Michele’s “Firework” is a major disappointment; the progress she made in adapting her voice for pop music goes out the window on this one, as her attempt at recreating Katy Perry’s vocal style comes across as flat and dishonest. Kevin McHale’s “PYT” starts fairly strong, but the performance devolves into something of a mess (save for a great Brittany line at its conclusion). Darren Criss leads The Warblers in “When I Get You Alone” and “Silly Love Songs,” and while both are charming, the group again fails to rekindle the spark of “Teenage Dream.” A sixth musical number is a non-issue.

“Glee” is nothing if not inconsistent, and sure enough, two days after delivering one of its worst episodes to date, it returns with the very strong “Silly Love Songs.” The episode airs Tuesday at 8PM, leading into “Raising Hope” and the new “Traffic Light.”