Why I Might Give Up on Glee

The last two episodes of Glee have left me feeling very disturbed. I am not usually a person who takes any television show seriously; in fact, rarely am I offended even when watching Family Guy or South Park, which I'm sure their writers would find disappointing. But after watching the Blame it on the... and Sexy episodes of Glee, I am left feeling so disappointed in the treatment of these incredibly important teen issues (alcohol and sex) that if one more episode leaves a bad taste in my mouth, it will permanently end my love affair with the show.

Glee has tackled big issues in the past and managed to have a balanced and respectful take on more than one side of an issue (ie. Grilled Cheesus/religion episode), but all of a sudden they seem to be going for the "cool" route when it comes to alcohol and sex. And as we all know, the cool route doesn't (often) appreciate those who decide to wait.

Hungover in the halls of McKinley High.

I found the negative outlook on those high schoolers who might be hesitant to engage in drinking or having sex to be incredibly offensive. The Glee writers are perpetuating the negative attitude against these responsible kids that these students often deal with from their popular peers every day. This show has often featured bullies and bullying in such a negative light and now, all of a sudden, they are okay with an adult (the sex ed teacher, no less) calling a student who chooses to abstain from sex, "frigid." It's one thing for one of the characters that we don't take seriously, such as Santana or Brittany to say such a thing, but for an adult to address such a comment to a student is completely unacceptable.

Rachel's reaction to being told she is
"naive and possibly frigid" by the sex ed teacher.

 For a program that so delicately handles gay and lesbian issues (which I wholeheartedly applaud) they are certainly bull-dozing mature choices as unrealistic and old-fashioned. Sure, many more students may be drinking and having sex these days, but not every kid out there is doing it. To belittle those students who are choosing to abstain from sex until they are truly in love or following the law by not drinking is directly negating any good they do in changing student attitudes regarding sexual orientation.

Glee writers can't have it both ways. They can't hope to improve the climate for students who don't fit in with the popular crowd if they continue to pass judgment on students who make uncommon choices about alcohol and sex. It's just not funny.

Photos:
1. Glee Logo from Fox Broadcasting via www.thechinabeat.com
2. Blame it on the...from Fox Broadcasting via www.rickey.org
3. Sexy from Fox Broadcasting via www.fanpop.com