The Gleek Critique: "A Night of Neglect" Episode

Sue meets with the "League of Doom" in her office.  Image property of Fox.

After a month-long hiatus, my favorite show Glee is back!  This week's episode (the first of the final six for the season) was all about the kids needing funding to attend Nationals in New York City.  Will's suggestion is that they sell saltwater taffy, but his girlfriend Holly Holiday tells him that he's thinking too small.  Her idea?  Throw a benefit concert to raise money!  So the New Directions kids begin to plan "A Night of Neglect" featuring songs by sometimes overlooked artists, because they feel, well, a little overlooked.  They've won Regionals yet they are still getting slushie facials in the hallways.

To add to the neglect, some of the members of New Directions are also part of Brainiacs which is an academic decathlon team.  Who knew Artie, Tina, Mike and (wait for it...) Brittany were members of this club?  Well, turns out nobody did.  The four of them competed on local television on the show Smarty Pants and none of their fellow choir members even tuned in to watch.  The Brainiacs are supposed to go to Detroit to compete, but they don't have any school funding either.  To make amends, Mr. Schuester decides that "A Night of Neglect" will benefit both groups.  Isn't that sweet?

But someone is very much against this benefit concert, and I'll give you one guess who that is...  Did you guess Sue Sylvester?  You'd be right.  However, she's not taking on the glee club on her own anymore.  She's formed "The League of Doom" consisting of the old glee club coach Sandy Ryerson (aka The Pink Dagger), Will's ex-wife Terri (aka The Honey Badger) and Vocal Adrenaline coach Dustin Goolsby (aka Sargent Handsome).  Sandy's job is to form a group of hecklers to throw insults during the benefit concert, and Dustin's job is to destroy Will and Holly's relationship.

Turns out Dustin doesn't really have to do anything to split the two teachers up.  Holly is afraid of commitment so she breaks up with Will all by herself.  She's taking a substitute teaching job in Cleveland, leaving Will alone to try and patch things up with Emma, who's just revealed that Carl has left and is wanting an annulment of their marriage.  Obviously I'm not surprised that Will and Holly or Emma and Carl didn't work out... because Will and Emma are madly in love with each other!

In the end, Dustin and Sandy have failed in their missions, and Sue is not very happy.  Although the benefit concert had low turnout, they still managed to earn the money they needed.  How did that happen?  Sandy's kryptonite is Aretha Franklin, and when he heard Mercedes sing he couldn't help but donate all of his drug money.  So like I said, Sue is not happy.  She announces that it is Honey Badger's moment to shine, and Terri looks absolutely ecstatic.  I'm sure Terri is poised and ready to stop Will and Emma from ever getting together again.

The Pros:

• I am glad that Charice's character Sunshine Corazon came back, along with the Vocal Adrenaline coach Dustin Goolsby (played by Broadway star Cheyenne Jackson).  They were both in the season premiere and I always thought it odd that they were brought in never to be used again.  I mean, they are both superstars.  Charice's song "All by Myself" was great.
• Brittany sure knows her cat diseases!  I loved that the ditsy ex-cheerleader actually turned out to be an asset on the Brainiacs team.
• The League of Doom was very silly but I enjoyed it.  I particularly liked how they kept getting confused over the name... sometimes calling it The Legion of Evil.
• Sue talking about Holly Holiday:  "She's looser than a thrift store turtleneck and probably just as diseased."  Hilarious!
• Mercedes had plenty of screen time which always makes me happy!  She turned into a demanding little diva in this episode, but by the way she sang Aretha Franklin's "Ain't No Way" she earned the right to be!  That girl is amazing!
• Mike Chang's dance solo was terrific, and I thought Holly Holiday did a great job singing Adele's "Turning Tables."  She sang it as a goodbye to Will Schuester... and a goodbye to the show in general  (at least until they decide to write her back in again).
• Did Santana stand up to that bully Dave Karofsky or what?!

The Cons:

• Although Will and Emma need to just get together already, I am sad that Carl is getting his marriage to Emma annulled.  I feel sorry for both of them.
• Apart from Kurt and Blaine, only Sandy and his hecklers came to the benefit concert.  I seriously don't understand how the entire town of Lima is so oblivious to the talent these kids have.  Seriously?  Not even older couples wanting to enjoy a night out bought tickets to this thing?  Not even their parents??
• It seems to be the running joke that whenever Tina starts a song something happens to make her stop singing.  Usually she bursts into tears for some reason or another.  Glee writers, if you are listening, STOP DOING THAT!  Let the girl sing, dang it!
• Blaine and Kurt didn't sing.  I'm always sad when they don't sing.