Glee, Actually
Season Four, Episode Ten
First Aired	December 13, 2012
Episode Guide
previous "Swan Song"	next "Sadie Hawkins"

Glee, Actually is the tenth episode of Glee's fourth season, and the seventy-sixth episode overall. It premiered on December 13th, 2012. It is the third Christmas episode and it is inspired by "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Love, Actually".

In a homage to the beloved holiday film "Love, Actually," seemingly separate storylines come together to form one merry Glee episode.  Artie has an It's a Wonderful Life inspired dream that changes his outlook on life, Kurt has a Christmas that he will never forget that invloves both his father and Blaine, Jake and Puck spend quality time together for Hannukah. Meanwhile, as the end of 2012 draws near, Sam and Brittany live their lives to the fullest before the Mayan Apocolapyse occurs and Sue has a change of heart when she gets Mrs. Rose as her Secret Santa.

The episode was directed by Adam Shankman and written by Matthew Hodgson.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Songs 3 Guest Cast 3.1 Guest Stars 3.2 Co-Stars 3.3 Absent Cast Members 4 Trivia 5 Errors 6 Gallery 7 Videos 8 Navigational 9 Comments

PlotEdit

Sue reflects on the holiday season, imagining it as a setting for a series of plot lines sandwiched between commercials breaks, much like the movie "Love, Actually" - "which is a movie that I don't think anyone cares for but is constantly on cable."

After an angry, humiliated Artie slips on the ice, cuts his face and has to wait for some Freshmen girls to help him up , Finn helps him to the nurse's office, where he stews about being helpless and pitied and wishes he never had to be in the wheelchair. As he tries to rest, he slips into a fantasy in which his legs are completely mobile. Surprised, he tests his legs and walks around McKinley, quickly realizing that reality has changed when no one is surprised at his mobility.

After Artie realizes that Tina still has her old stutter, a guardian angel appears to him in the form of foreign exchange student Rory, who grants Artie's wish that his accident had never happened. However, this means that he never joined glee club, so some resultant changes -

 like Tina Cohen-Chang getting over her stutter, and Becky Jackson learning self-respect - have never happened, either. Finn Hudson and Puck are both bullies, terrorizing Kurt Hummel, who's been avoiding school and has yet to graduate and has never met Blaine Anderson; Will never started the glee club and lives in an alcoholic haze, still married to Terri, while Emma actually married Coach Tanaka; Rachel is still in Lima working as a librarian, never pursuing dreams of stardom. Rory reveals to Artie that, without his accident, he'd focused on football and never became the glue that held the glee club together. Artie tries to set things right, assembling his friends to convince them they should be in glee club together, offering a performance of Jose Feliciano's Feliz Navidad as an example - but Finn deems it "so gay." 

Artie learns that Quinn never got out of her own wheelchair without his support and ultimately died of a broken heart. The shock brings Artie back to reality, where his mother has come to pick him up, and this time he graciously accepts Finn's help back into the chair, realizing that it's part of who he is and how he's affected his friends.

Despite Rachel's pleas to join her in Lima, Kurt plans a solo holiday in New York to save money for school, but he's surprised by the arrival of his Christmas tree-bearing father Burt. Burt recalls how he forgot to get a tree the year that Kurt's mother died until he saw the disappointed look when Kurt had nowhere to hang his favorite ornament, made from his mother's perfume bottle. He realized the tree's importance and would never forget again to focus on their holiday traditions.

Over hot cocoa, Burt reveals to Kurt that he has prostate cancer - but the prognosis is pretty positive. Still, Kurt's concerned that when he finally achieves his dreams, Burt may not be around to see it. 

Burt advises Kurt to hold the people he loves close to him, no matter what, and later they exchange gifts. Burt instructs Kurt to pick his up at a particular address, and Kurt is stunned to discover Blaine awaiting him at a skating rink - Burt had him flown out so they wouldn't miss their traditional holiday duet. They sing White Christmas together as Burt watches, and they recognize that even if they don't get back together romantically, they'll always be there for one another.

Jake has a fight with the taunting football players until Puck breaks it up. Puck convinces Jake to put his school troubles aside and join him for the holidays in Los Angeles. In Hollywood, Puck brings Jake along on a meeting at the Paramount Pictures studio lot, where they show off their musical skills singing Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah. 

They get Star of David tattoos together and chill by the pool at Puck's "rented" mansion - until the real owners return home and discover their pool boy Puck taking advantage of their absence. Puck admits his charade was an attempt to get Jake to move out to L.A. with him because he's lonely. Instead, Jake invites Puck and his mother to join him and his mother for dinner at the holidays - there's no reason for any bad blood to exist between them. At Breadsticks, the tension is thick, but Puck and Jake remind their mothers that their father is the one at fault for such a messed-up family - but they are a family nonetheless. Brittany gives everyone lavish holiday gifts after watching a documentary on the Mayan prediction of the imminent end of the world, having cashed in her savings so that everyone can enjoy themselves at the end. Sam is a believer as well, having studied it extensively. 

Feeling they need to express their true feelings about their friends to them, they form the 2012 Mayan Apocalypse Club and hold its sole meeting - their comments to their friends are blunt and, for the most part, insulting, and the club disbands immediately. Left with only each other, Sam sings to Jingle Bell Rock then surprises Brittany by pulling out a ring and proposing to her. Coach Beiste tells them she is already ordained in the Mayan church and officiates their immediate wedding. With three days left, they plan to make their time count but are soon surprised to discover that the world hasn't ended - and they remain married. Sue selects her faculty and staff Secret Santa and draws lunch lady Millie Rose - Marley's mother. Failing to find a gift to satisfy Becky, Sue frets about getting a present for Millie but doesn't really care if she succeeds.

 Faced with tough money choices over the holidays, Millie asks Marley to simply sing for her and receives a pitch-perfect rendition of The First Noel, which Millie calls "the best Christmas gift I've ever gotten." After overhearing them, Sue tells Becky she's feeling overly indulgent and wants to sell her beautiful Christmas tree to a toothpick factory and give the proceeds to charity. The Rose women wake up on Christmas morning to discover that their own tree has been stocked with a plethora of presents as well as cash - Sue and Becky peer in the window and admire their handiwork. Puck and Jake watch their moms swapping war stories about their father, and Puck decides to return to Lima to see his newly extended family. Meanwhile, Coach Beiste confesses that she isn't actually ordained and she'd fooled them in order to spare them from making a huge life mistake. 

Blaine reveals to Kurt and Burt that he's thinking of applying to NYADA after graduation, and Kurt gives him his blessing. After bribing Becky with candy for the truth, Millie thanks Sue for her generosity but tries to return the money; Sue in turn says they both know how hard it is to be a single mother and presses her to keep the cash. To thank Sue, Marley assembles the glee club to serenade her with Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

SongsEdit

Song Title	Original Artist	Performer(s)
Feliz Navidad	José Feliciano	Artie Abrams with New Directions
White Christmas	Irving Berlin	Blaine Anderson and Kurt Hummel
Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah	Barenaked Ladies	Jake Puckerman and Noah Puckerman
Jingle Bell Rock	Bobby Helms	Sam Evans with the Cheerios
The First Noel	Traditional	Marley Rose
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas	Judy Garland	New Directions, Kurt Hummel, Noah Puckerman and Finn Hudson

Guest CastEdit

Guest Stars Edit

• Jessalyn Gilsig as Terri Schuester
• Mike O'Malley as Burt Hummel
• Dot-Marie Jones as Shannon Beiste
• Aisha Tyler as Tanisha Puckerman
• Gina Hecht as Mrs. Puckerman
• Melissa Benoist as Marley Rose
• Jacob Artist as Jake Puckerman
• Becca Tobin as Kitty Wilde
• Blake Jenner as Ryder Lynn
• Damian McGinty as Rory Flanagan
• Samuel Larsen as Joe Hart
• Lauren Potter as Becky Jackson
• Trisha Rae Stahl as Millie Rose

Co-StarsEdit

• Daniel Curtis Lee as Phil Lipoff
• Jesse Luken as Bobby Surette

Absent Cast MembersEdit

• Naya Rivera as Santana Lopez
• Amber Riley as Mercedes Jones

TriviaEdit

• There's flickering holiday lights on the Glee logo in the title-card.
  • The eigth time Glee's title-card is different, the others being The Rocky Horror Glee Show, A Very Glee Christmas, Silly Love Songs, Extraordinary Merry Christmas, Heart, Dance with Somebody, Dynamic Duets, I Do, Girls (and Boys) on Film and All or Nothing.
• Ian Brennan, one of Glee's original writers, can be seen in a cameo as a director during the performance of Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah. This is his second appearance on Glee after his appearance as Svengoobles in On My Way.
• Terri Schuester appears for the first time since Season Two.
• Zach Woodlee, one of Glee's choreographers, can also be seen behind the camera, during the performance of Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah.
• Rory Flanagan returns since Goodbye.
• Vanessa Lengies (Sugar) stars in the YouTube webshow MyMusic as Loco and for that she is absent in Swan Song and Glee, Actually.
• This is the third time we see Sue soften up for Christmas, even though she doesn't celebrate the holidays and is an atheist.
• When Puck and Jake are at Paramount Pictures, there is a shot of Stage 14, the stage where the show is filmed.
• This is the first Christmas episode with the new cast.
• In Artie's dream, these would have been the events if Artie would have been able to walk:
  • Quinn would have died, since she drives and travels in every timeline and no one supported her. It is implied that she commited suicide.
  • Artie would have been part of the Football team and a bully.
  • Kurt wouldn't have been able to graduate, due to the bullying.
  • Becky would be pregnant, since no one respected her enough due to Artie not dating her.
  • Kurt wouldn't have met Blaine, since New Directions didn't exist.
  • Will would be an alcoholic and would still be married with Terri, along with their fake child.
  • Rachel would be a librarian.
  • Carole and Burt wouldn't have known each other, and married consencuently.
  • Finn and Quinn would still be a couple, but they would have broken-up before Quinn's death.
  • Puck, Finn and Mike wouldn't have graduated.
  • Emma would be married Ken Tanaka, and living in Hawaii.
  • The Choir Room would be Sue's Craft Room.
  • Ryder would be a bully.
  • Tina wouldn't have been able to talk without her stutter.
  • All the couples wouldn't have been possible.
    • Curiously, nothing is said about Santana, Brittany, Lauren and Matt whereabouts.
• This episode got a 2.0 rating with a total of 5.26 million viewers. Source

ErrorsEdit

• When Puck and Jake get caught in the villa by its owner, Puck admits that almost everything he had been telling Jake about his life in Los Angeles is a lie, including him working as a screenwriter. However, at Breadstix, when Puck explains why it would be alright for him to move back to Lima, Puck says that he can write screenplays even in Lima, as if it were suddenly true that he works as a writer.
• Artie falls asleep in the nurses' office after he cuts his head.  It is very dangerous to sleep after hurting your head, even if it is a minor injury.

GalleryEdit

VideosEdit

Behind The Scenes Glee Actually GLEE(03:25)
1,124 views

Sneak Peek "Glee Actually" GLEE(01:34)
6,287 views

Glee-Cap "Glee, Actually" GLEE(02:37)
574 views

NavigationalEdit

v - e - d Glee Episodes

Season One Pilot • Showmance • Acafellas • Preggers • The Rhodes Not Taken • Vitamin D • Throwdown • Mash-Up • Wheels • Ballad • Hairography • Mattress • Sectionals • Hell-O • The Power of Madonna • Home • Bad Reputation • Laryngitis • Dream On • Theatricality • Funk • Journey Season Two Audition • Britney/Brittany • Grilled Cheesus • Duets • The Rocky Horror Glee Show • Never Been Kissed • The Substitute • Furt • Special Education • A Very Glee Christmas • The Sue Sylvester Shuffle • Silly Love Songs • Comeback • Blame It on the Alcohol • Sexy • Original Song • A Night of Neglect • Born This Way • Rumours • Prom Queen • Funeral • New York Season Three The Purple Piano Project • I Am Unicorn • Asian F • Pot o' Gold • The First Time • Mash Off • I Kissed a Girl • Hold on to Sixteen • Extraordinary Merry Christmas • Yes/No • Michael • The Spanish Teacher • Heart • On My Way • Big Brother • Saturday Night Glee-ver • Dance with Somebody • Choke • Prom-asaurus • Props • Nationals • Goodbye Season Four The New Rachel • Britney 2.0 • Makeover • The Break-Up • The Role You Were Born to Play • Glease • Dynamic Duets • Thanksgiving • Swan Song • Glee, Actually • Sadie Hawkins • Naked • Diva • I Do • Girls (and Boys) on Film • Feud • Guilty Pleasures • Shooting Star • Sweet Dreams • Lights Out • Wonder-ful • All or Nothing

Start a Discussion Discussions about Glee, Actually

• 

  What are your thoughts on Burt's cancer?

  39 messages
  • 
    KurtsieGirlForever2
    They should have, but it does not mean that he does not have them. Mercedes and Artie have been here forever and we have not seen either of any... 2013-01-17T05:12:58Z
  • 
    Raybelle
    yeah but we know that Mercedes has a mom, dad, and older brother at least, and Artie has his mom and dad.  2013-01-17T05:15:35Z
• 

  Stupid, Actually

  5 messages
  • 
    OGRastamon
    Oh? Are you referring to the Chilean troll that felt the need to attack someone that has already admitted their mistake or its poor madre t... 2012-12-16T05:52:42Z
  • 
    DiannaAgron xo
    da fuq 2012-12-19T10:43:07Z

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