I Can't Remember the Last Time a TV Show Filled Me With Such, Well...Glee

Fox is trying something different with a pilot. Instead of, say, dumping it to Friday nights and letting it die, they're actually premiering it now and letting word of mouth build it up for this coming Fall. It's an interesting approach, given Fox's habit of canceling things before they've barely premiered, or giving it a timeslot in which it will simply languish and die.

The show is "Glee," and I admit, even from the name, it's the kind of show that I usually avoid. Tell me if any of this sounds original: A teacher, teaching at his former high school, takes over a club that is his own personal passion (in this case, the Glee Club). This group is full of misfits who are picked on by everyone else in school. The school itself doesn't even want to pay for the club, and forces the teacher to do it out of his own pocket (a union violation, I'm sure, but let's not bicker).

The cliches don't end there, either. The group of ragtag misfits include the Drama Queen Diva, who has been practicing for stardom since kindergarten, the nerdy kid (Bonus: In a wheelchair!), the effeminate boy who loves to sing, and a black girl who speaks in the most stereotypical way possible.

But wait! The other member of the Glee Club is...a football player! Yup, he's that amazing person that is actually good at doing two things; football and singing! This is a surprise, as I always assumed someone on a TV show should only have one talent. For example, if you can dance, you can't also enjoy movies. Or if you're good at construction, you shouldn't, say, cook.

Luckily, his friends are all only good at one thing (football, duh), and don't understand his new passion for music. Well, to be fair, he's kind of tricked into joining the Glee Club, but it turns out that music was his passion all along!

To top it all off, the main character, the teacher, has a wife who doesn't understand his passion for teaching (and Glee Club). And there's a woman at school who seems really into him and wants him to follow his dreams.

To tell you the truth, if I had just read the description I'd written, there is now way I would have ever watched this show. If you haven't seen the show, you've probably already stopped reading this review anyway.

However, if you did see the show, you know that, against all odds, it all worked. Every single thing worked. I'm not excusing the fact that it looks like "High School Musical" for a slightly older crowd (complete with many, many songs). However, there's just something about the likability of the characters that helps to sell the show. Yes, the plot is formulaic, and there's really no surprises you couldn't have predicted on your own, but there is one thing surprising about the show.

The show, named "Glee," is surprisingly optimistic. It's not a sugary sweet "Everything will be okay because we're the main characters" kind of optimism. Instead, it reminds the viewer to be conscious of what they're passionate about in their life, and enjoy it. It's not asking you to just be happy for the characters, it's reminding you of the joy in your own life you get from pursuing your interests and passions. In an era of tv and film-making where "darker and grittier" is usually the order of day, it's refreshing to see a show that is willing to be full of unreserved happiness about it's subject matter.

Fox is counting on word of mouth buzz to promote this show before it premieres in the fall. Let me do my part by saying it's available as a free download on iTunes and streaming on Hulu.com for the next few weeks. Do yourself a favor and get some "Glee" in your life.

Is "The Terminator" Franchise, Well, Terminated?

Fox's "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" has been canceled. This is probably not the best press to have the week before the new "Terminator: Salvation" movie opens. "Come pay for a movie about characters you won't watch for free!" Great marketing.

Actually, I have to give the producers credit for the marketing of this movie. "Terminator: Savlation" looks very, very good. A lot of that probably has to do with the fact that Christian Bale is involved. It's easy to just chalk him up to being hot following last years "Dark Knight," but the truth is, Bale is just a fantastic actor. There are movie stars and there are actors, and Bale is definitely in the "actor" category.

However, will his presence be enough to save "Salvation?" I'm sure his John Connor will be fantastic, but this franchise needs more than just a great performance. It needs a great movie. And no, not a mindless, CGI-fest of big robots killing people, but a movie that harkens back to the original two movies.

I know there was a third movie, but even the inclusion of Arnold Schwarzeneggar couldn't save it. I'm sure there are some "T3" apologists out there, but, face facts. That movie was awful. "Oh, what about the big chase scene..." Terrible. "What about the fight between the two..." Deplorable. There are not enough negative adjectives in the English language to describe the bottom of the barrel tripe that is "T3." I would actually have to learn an additional language to describe how terrible the third film is. It's so terrible that the TV show, which is being canceled, chose to negate the events of the third film in its pilot. "T3" exists in the same sort of universe as "Highlander 2," "Superman IV" and "Halloween 3" (and, in my opinion, the nearly unforgivably bad "Matrix" sequels).

After seeing a preview for the new movie, I said "That actually looks really good." My cousin Courtney replied "That actually has the potential to really fuck us." It's hard to disagree with her, no matter how exciting the previews look.

Hopefully, this movie restores the franchise to its original status of sci-fi greatness. If not, this may be the last go-round for our favorite time-traveling cyborgs (until the inevitable reboot in 5 years, since that's the current rage).