"The Quarterback"

I haven't been a fan of Glee for very long. I wrote about this awhile ago, but ever since I caught up I have been hooked.

Tonight, Glee said goodbye to possibly my favorite character. In fact, Finn Hudson may in fact be one of the main reasons I got into the show to begin with.

I had never heard of Cory Monteith before - in fact as I watched I still had no idea who he was. But, the character Finn I could really relate to. Especially as he began to question just what he was going to do after high school.

He was good at a lot of things, but out of those things what could he use them for in life?

Monteith's voice wasn't amazing, but I liked it. He was also apparently pretty good at drums - and the way he portrayed Finn, you can tell he was a pretty talented actor. Really just finding his way - and the role of Finn might have really opened things up for him.

I watch a lot of television, movies, sports and listen to a lot of music. So, I am familiar with a lot of celebrities. But, I don't think there are many out there that I would be really taken aback by their death.

Tom Hanks is my favorite actor of all time - so when his time comes I will most likely be upset. However, when I first heard of Monteith's death it really shook me. A lot more than I was expecting.

I know a lot of people suffer from addictions - and I have read a ton of comments on sites saying he didn't really deserve all of these special moments because of the way he went - but, however you think, a young, talented man died and I feel his work deserved some praise.

Tonight, the show that made him a star finally had to say goodbye. And, it was heartfelt - and sad to see. But, it was needed. I feel for the cast as they went through this, but it also must have been cathartic. Though the show never stated how Finn passed away - there were many things throughout the show that mirrored the character Finn to Cory.

It was hard to get through, but it was also good to look back.

I will miss Finn - and although I don't think Cory would have become a huge movie star, I will definitely miss being able to see what his career could have been.

R.I.P. Cory Monteith. Gone far too young.

Haterade: Glee

This probably won't be a regular feature, but possibly something I do every so often. I admit that I sometimes find a hatred for something without ever really giving it a try. I think it happens because I don't really love what everyone else loves - and if everyone loves it, I sometimes hate it for no real reason.

So, as I said, every so often I may give something a try that I think I am going to hate and then I will post about it - sometimes what I watch will maintain my hatred for it, but occasionally I may just find out that I was completely wrong - and I am not afraid to admit that.

My first experiment was with the television show Glee. I realize it became pretty popular when it first hit the airwaves in 2009. And, both my wife and son have watched the entire series to date - and my parents even purchase the CDs. Well, I have heard about it a ton and heard a lot of the music - and I had to give it a shot.

To give the show a little bit of a rundown, a high school Spanish teacher, Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison), looks to take over the school's glee club and look to rekindle his high school glory days.

The glee club, though, is pretty much considered off limits and the lowest of the low by all of the cool kids in the school. Only a few sign up initially, an uber-insane girl with a ton of talent but knows it, Rachel Berry (Lea Michele), a born diva, Mercedes Jones (Amber Riley), a girl with a stutter, Tina Cohen-Chang (Jenna Ushkowitz), a guy in a wheelchair, Artie Abrams (Kevin McHale), and a still-in-the-closet gay guy, Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer).

Though all five kids are very talented, the group is definitely lacking in the cool department - and to even compete as a glee club in competitions they need 12 members. Will makes it his mission to recruit some of the cooler kids, and stumbles across star quarterback Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith) singing in the shower. Once he gets him aboard, he is able to pull in three other football players - Noah Puckerman (Mark Salling), Mike Chang (Harry Shum Jr.), Matt Rutherford (Dijon Talton), and three cheerios - Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron), Santana Lopez (Naya Rivera), Brittany Pierce (Heather Morris) - to round out the group.

Pretty much the show is a typical high school show with tons of drama, but this one also features a ton of singing.

Just to make things clear, I am currently in the middle of season two, but for the purpose of this post I am only speaking about season one.

First, the things that sort of drive me crazy about the show. I have never been in a glee club, but for a group that is getting ready for competition they sing an awful lot of different songs and are always looking for the perfect song for 'regionals' or 'sectionals' or whatever is coming up. Don't you think they should find this song and stick with it? And, spoiler alert, by the time they actually get to sectionals - they totally make up their choreography and their songs on the spot. Cool, yes, but what's the point of all the practice?

Next, Rachel. I think she extremely talented - that is obvious. But, wow what a bitch. Totally thinks she is so much better than everyone else in the club. And the problem is, Will way over uses her. She sings way too much. The rest of the group is so talented (with the possible exception of Mike who is more of a dancer than singer). The group needed to mix up the solos way more.

Finally, Will's wife. Couldn't stand her from the beginning and what she probably should have been crushed for what she did to her husband. He was way too nice to her.

But, those are small pieces of the show. For something I thought I would never even think of trying out - I am pretty addicted to it. Despite the issue I have with the process of glee club, I do realize why a television show does it - they need to mix up the music to keep us interested. And, they do it very well. Like I said, they all sing so well and the numbers they do are amazing.

Every member of the cast brings something great to the table - and because of my gripe about Rachel, I just feel everyone needed to be featured more (again this is my thoughts on season one).

So for my first batch of Haterade - my opinion has been changed. I will definitely continue to watch Glee and see how things play out. I admit my ignorance.

Guys of TV: Baker vs. Montieth

A few extra voters yesterday, still haven't reached our peak for this bracket - spread the word.

David Boreanaz continues the higher seed winning trend as he knocked off Chace Crawford to land in the second round.

First round continues. Enjoy!

(3) Simon Baker

Baker has been in a handful of movies, including The Devil Wears Prada and The Ring Two. He also starred in a pair of failed television series, The Guardian and Shark, before finally nailing it as Patrick Jane on CBS's The Mentalist.

(6) Cory Montieth

Montieth has acted in a few movies early in his career and was part of ABC Family's Kyle XY. He is also the first lucky member of the Glee cast to make it on the list. He stars as Finn Hudson.

poll by twiigs.com