So we all watched Shooting Star, to varying degrees of success, but what I actually enjoyed was talking about the overlapping plots from other series and how better (or worse) they were by comparison. And I decided I wanted to put up a forum about touchy subjects by varying series-- who did it best, who did it worst?
I'm a sci-fi freak, so obviously my first overlap went to: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but people have made comparisons to One Tree Hill, Grey's Anatomy, etc.
So my thoughts?
Better than Glee: domestic abuse: done by BtVS in "Beauty and the Beasts" vs Glee's "Choke". Glee had two episodes dedicated to this storyline, but i didn't get a real feel for the desperation or intensity of anybody's point of view. Buffy had a whole circle that revolved solely around this couple (one of whom, granted, was a monster), where we saw the friends thinking they were normal slowly descending into desperation and despair as we realized how co-dependent and destructive the couple-in-question was. It was beautifully done, because regardless of how awful the bad guy was (he killed three people, including his own girlfriend), you saw honest moments of humanity in him throughout the episode.
Pretty D*mn Good: school shooting: I can't believe I'm saying this, but by comparison to today's shootings versus when they were newer (Columbine and Virginia Tech), Glee's "Shooting Star" probably did better on the panic and chaos and, again, desperation of the topic. I hated the intro of "Tubbingtonbop" and it's subsequent assignment, and felt the shooting itself was rushed, but the moments (especially Brittany's and Tina's) were just right on the money and so well done. And while I don't doubt that most of it will be forgotten by next week, it was definitely an episode worth having in the season.
Other Series? Plotlines? I'm looking for a better touch on "Coming Out", because honestly, Mash Off was a disgrace.