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America is suffering from Glee fatigue, consistently irritated by Ryan Murphy’s indecisiveness and the fact that Glee covers are always hovering around the iTunes Top 10. Even fans wonder what happened to the creative juggernaut that was Season 1.

So what exactly happened to the little show that could? What qualities did it lose in Season 2 that it hopes to reclaim in Season 3? Here are some thoughts on this season’s new direction:

 

New focus on the minor characters,

With its expanded cast, Glee has a major balancing act on its hands. The first season shared the love with compelling storylines for each character, but last season morphed into the Rachel, Finn, Kurt, and even Brittany Show. As much as I enjoyed the new characters they introduced in Season 2, I couldn’t help but wonder why some of the original characters, like Mercedes and Tina, were relegated to the background. Why not explore some of these old characters’ lives instead of rehashing Rachel and Finn? Glee seems to have gotten the message with the episode “Asian F,” but I’m suspending judgment for now.

Continuity,

Season 2 addressed some of the questions Season 1 left unanswered, like Kurt’s standing with bully Karofsky and whether or not Quinn could actually be faithful to someone. With regards to some of the other characters, however, the writers seemed to have forgotten that Season 1 ever happened. Sue Sylvester, the cheerleading coach with a penchant for needling glee club advisor Will Schuester, was turned into a complete caricature of herself. Rachel seemingly forgot the Broadway dreams that drove her in Season 1, but eventually got back on track in the second season’s finale, “New York.” Hopefully, the writers will remember to build on the strong foundations established in Season 1.

Music,

Love it or hate it, Glee has invaded the pop scene, and it’s not going anywhere any time soon. The second season focused a lot more on Top 40 songs, and even though these covers sold like crazy, they had less to do with the story and more to do with what was popular at the time. My critique is simple: get back to the Season 1 structure and people won’t care whether the song is a number-one single or a Broadway ballad.

I can see why Glee became so different last season: you need a little change to keep viewers interested. Yes, people want good music, but in the end, consistent storytelling and endearing characters will keep audiences coming back for an encore.