Glee – Season 1

No, I'm not being an idiot, I realise it's only halfway through the first season of America's latest hit show, but given that the back nine episodes are being produced separately and won't air for months, now is as good a time as any to offer an opinion.

What can I say? This show has just been fun. It's uneven to be sure – the contrast of the 'gleeful' musical numbers and zingy one-liners with the heightened melodrama and occasionally intense conflicts is rather jarring. But none of that detracts from the fact that the show is just fun. Fun to watch, fun to listen to, fun to buy the songs off iTunes. Seriously, this programme must be making FOX a fortune with its craftily chosen selection of songs being covered by an often vocally stunning cast, be they taken from old Broadway shows, modern-day R&B crooners or stomp-along rock anthems of yesteryear. As I say, the cast are mighty talented and Ryan Murphy has created a mostly intriguing set of characters that make the long bits of 'TV show' between each tune not just tolerable, but very enjoyable to watch. Standouts for me so far are Kevin McHale's wheelchair-bound Artie, Chris Colfer's extremely gay Kurt (the scenes with his down-to-earth dad are quite touching) and, strangely, Heather Morris' clueless cheerleader Brittany who kills with every one-liner she's given (which is good, as she does usually get just one line). Hairography – "It's like cool epilepsy!"

I initially didn't take to the two characters who are supposed to be the leads, Rachel and Finn, particularly as the whole point of the cooperative glee club was that everyone should be as important as each other, but fortunately that wasn't an issue as they took a bit of a back seat as time goes by. Plus I've warmed to Rachel a lot more – what a voice! I both love and hate what they've done with the 'adults' on the show though. Will Schuester obviously loves this club and is trying his best to help them succeed, and yet almost every episode I felt like he had made another poor teaching decision. Jayma Mays as guidance counsellor/love interest Emma was done very well to start with as, let's face it, she is adorable, but a combination of less screentime and poor dialogue meant I was quite apathetic to how the finale turned out in that regard. Praise of the highest order, however, must be given to Jane Lynch's Sue Sylvester, the cheerleading coach hell-bent on destroying Will's ambitions, and one of the finest comic creations in quite some time.

So a terrific start for Glee. Sure, there were big mistakes with not one but two awful pregnancy storylines, but for the most part the show is sheer fun without the songs, and a complete marketing and creative triumph with them! Hey, with what other show would it not seem completely pathetic to end with a Top 5 list?!

Top 5 Songs

5. "Sweet Caroline" – Perhaps it was because it was Puck's first (and so far only) solo, but I loved this short version of a Neil Diamond song that showcased better vocal talent than the unusual Finn

4. "Dancing With Myself" – Again, another solo from one of the smaller players, Artie, that's great in its own right but made better with the visuals of his lonely wheelchair dancing.

3. "Don't Rain on My Parade" – They needed a killer song for sectionals, they got one. I hear Lea Michele's already being compared to Barbara Streisand (because they're both Jewish?!) so the show might as well embrace it!

2. "Somebody to Love" – As you might have seen, I'm usually more a fan of the solo offerings, as they usually have more to say about the character singing them. But this Queen song was done extremely well, and is probably my favourite ensemble effort, except for...

1. "Imagine" – Yes, it was a bit corny having a deaf choir sing John Lennon's classic. And yes, it even felt a bit rude that Mercedes and the rest of New Directions would butt in with their harmonies. But dammit if it wasn't also the sweetest thing I've seen in a long time. Consider my cockles truly warmed.

Got your own list? Feel free to post in the comments!

(For all you regular British people out there, I hear Glee will be airing on E4 in the new year. I heartily recommend it.)