Due to the unfortunate death of Cory Monteith, Fox's Glee dedicated the third episode of its fifth season to paying tribute to the actor and Finn Hudson, the character Monteith played in the musical dramedy series. As Finn was a key member of the drama, his loss has obviously not gone unnoticed on the show since Season 5 began, however Finn's absence hadn't been acknowledged until last night's episode, fittingly titled "The Quarterback." As expected, no reason for Finn's death was given, but the episode had current and returning cast members singing songs in Finn's memory, and Fox has put the full performances online today.
Before we get to the video, I just want to acknowledge the fact that I think some of the better moments in the episode were the ones that didn't involve music. I was particularly moved by Mike O'Malley and Romy Rosemont's performances, as Finn's stepfather and mother respectively. Rosemont's breakdown over having to go on as a parent after losing a child was incredibly moving. I also thought some of the regulars did a fantastic job, including Jane Lynch and Naya Rivers.
The episode began with Rent's "Seasons of Love." The song, which kicks off the second act of the emotional Broadway Musical, brought out the current cast and then introduced the returners, some of whom haven't been around lately, like Puck, Mercedes and Mike Chang…
Here's Mercedes singing "I'll Stand By You":
Sam and Artie sang James Taylor's "Fire and Rain":
And Rachel sang Bob Dylan's "To Make You Feel My Love":
Fox also released a number of public service announcements about addiction, featuring the Glee cast, which include a number to a hotline (1-800-662-HELP). Here's one of them:
View the others here. And you can read Melissa's breakdown of last night's "The Quarterback" here.
