Amidst much hype from the Fox networks, the highly anticipated new comedy Glee aired for the first time on May 19^th, following the last competition night of entertainment powerhouse American Idol. The new show, created by Nip/Tuck director Ryan Murphy, is poised to be a prime part of the fall television lineup for Fox. However, despite incessant commercials, not to mention a prime time slot for the preview event, Glee’s ratings were less than optimal, pulling in a mere 9.6 million viewers. This was a significant drop from the 23.8 million from Idol.
      Glee’s central plot focuses on a young teacher, Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) who has returned to his alma mater determined to return the high school’s glee club to its former, nationals-winning, early 90’s pop singing glory. Needless to say, the glee club becomes the object of much ridicule due to the misfits that compose it-a paraplegic, a person of indeterminate gender, an over-the-top gospel singer, and most notably, Rachel Berry (Lea Michele), a diva in the making who takes time to download her new singing videos to You Tube every day.  Unfortunately, the club lacks a solid male singer to keep up with Berry, until Schuester happens upon Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith) a star football player with a stellar voice. Enter the status quo cliché ala High School Musical.
      Fans of director Ryan Murphy’s darker television shows need not be disappointed with his new creation. Glee is at once charming and darkly humorous, with the same kind of acerbic, ironic wit that has become commonplace in Murphy’s shows. In fact, one could argue that this is one of Murphy’s most engaging projects to date. The bright, cheery set was an appropriate contrast to the black, sarcastic jokes, and flashbacks to the main character’s pasts were well-placed and thought out.
      One of the weaker points of Glee was perhaps the occasional casting error. All of the glee club singers, including Michele and Monteith, gave strong, endearing performances that served as a welcome introduction into each character’s-no matter how minor-personality. Unfortunately, Morrison’s turn as Mr. Schuester seemed a tad wooden and non-inspired. It did not help that Morrison was given some of the most cheesy things to say in the entire show-he simply was unable to carry off such lines as, “All I care about are the kids,” and “Singing is the only thing that’s ever made me happy.”
      Of course, as the title suggests, singing plays more than a small role in Glee. Michele’s vocals as the flamboyant, seemingly overconfident Rachel were very good and sufficient to make the audience understand why she was cast as the lead singer. Monteith sang appropriately for his character-a high school boy with raw talent but no vocal training. He was not as amazing as everyone on the show made him out to be, but was wholly decent. If the show succeeds into the fall, a cameo by successful Broadway actress Kristen Chenoweth should be one of the vocal highlights of the season. Combine that with Morrison, who has quite a lengthy resume in theater himself, and the vocals alone may be enough to compel a person to tune in.
      Overall, Glee was completely enjoyable and worth taking the time for. Any discrepancies that may distract from the plot can easily be worked out before it premieres in the fall. Such a show that appeals to so many ages would quite frankly be a shame to miss.