Airdate: Tuesday, May 10^th at 8/7c on Fox

Rating:★★★★★★

Will (Matthew Morrison) tells the New Directions they are going to be the entertainment at Prom.

Prom is a milestone in everyone’s life, whether you’re an outsider like most of the kids in New Directions, or typical Prom King and Queen material like Finn (Cory Monteith) and Quinn (Diana Agron). With New Directions performing at Prom, “Prom Queen” could have been simply an awesome opportunity for singing and dancing, but like other memorable episodes of Glee, this episode was much more than just about the singing.

All the elements of a typical Prom night are present in this episode. Mercedes (Amber Riley), the girl who desperately wants to be Cinderella but hasn’t been asked; Sam (Chord Overstreet), the boy who can’t afford to go; Santana (Naya Rivera), the girl who doesn’t want to be an outsider; Arty (Kevin McHale), the boy who can’t get his former girlfriend to go with him; Puck (Mark Salling), the boy who spikes the punch; and Finn and Quinn, the frontrunners for Prom King and Queen. Their dreams do come true even though they turn out to be different than they’d imagined. The episode turns on the theme in Rachel’s (Lea Michele) prom song “Jar of Hearts” by Christina Perri, asking “Who do you think you are?”

The pressure kids put on themselves for their Prom, which Santana calls their Oscars, noting it’s even more important than getting married, all comes to a head in the crowning of the King and Queen. Quinn is desperate to be crowned Queen –her entire self-image is tied up in what she believes to be the one shining moment of her life. Agron delivers a powerful performance in confessing to Rachel she is afraid of the future, afraid of losing her looks and her status in high school. Rachel, surprisingly, is the one to tell Quinn she is much more than a pretty face. Rachel shows a lot of growth in this episode in supporting both Quinn and Finn and while she does include Jesse (Jonathan Groff) in her three-way date with Sam and Mercedes, the old Rachel likely would have simply abandoned them.

Santana is also devastated by not winning, and it is Brittany (Heather Morris) who points out to her she needs only to be herself in order for everyone to love her the way she does. Even though Brittany broke up with Arty because he called her stupid, she believes in herself enough to turn down his heartfelt musical request to go to Prom with him. Brittany’s “dumb blonde” has been a cornerstone of the show’s comedic moments, and Morris is a master of the one-liner, but in this episode Brittany is the smartest member of New Directions, secure enough in herself to go to Prom stag and still have a blast. Morris continues to deliver a wonderfully nuanced performance.

Arty (Kevin McHale) tries to convince Brittany (Heather Morris) to go to Prom with him through the magic of Stevie Wonder.

Dave Karofsky (Max Adler) is still struggling the hardest to come to terms with himself. Adler turns in a stunning performance as a teenager wrestling with his sexuality and his entire identity. As Dave apologizes to Kurt (Chris Colfer) for bullying him, Adler subtly conveys how tortured his character is, how strong his feelings for Kurt are, and how difficult it is to maintain the mask that hides his true self.

From Blaine’s (Darren Criss) initial refusal to go to Prom with him, to the concerns Kurt’s dad, Burt (Mike O’Malley) voices about Kurt’s choice of dress for Prom—“Gay Bravehart,” “trying to stir the pot”—to Kurt being selected as Prom ‘Queen,’ this episode hits the mark. Kurt’s trip to prom seems pretty easy at first – Blaine (Darren Criss) tells Kurt he is reluctant to go because of being beaten up over a Sadie Hawkins Day dance. This was a great red herring because I thought this was the nod to the intolerance I was expecting. Kurt insists that “Prom is about joy. Not about fear.” After being elected Prom Queen by secret ballot, Kurt asks Blaine, “Wasn’t this Prom supposed to be about redemption?” By claiming his crown, Kurt embraces his own identity, but he does it with the help and support of all his friends. As they sing and dance to the song, “Prom Queen,” it’s telling that they are all dancing together, rather than in discrete pairs. The characters come to a deeper understanding of themselves by relying on the group and each other. Dave unfortunately doesn’t have this support, and I’m anxious to know where that storyline will go.

I worried as the story played out that Glee was abandoning what until now has been a fairly realistic look at bullying and intolerance, especially where gay teenagers are concerned. Glee didn’t let me down, especially as the story played out for each of the characters.

Puck (Mark Salling), Artie (Kevin McHale) and Sam (Chord Overstreet) perform "Friday" at Prom.

Other songs in this week’s playlist that were my favorites were “Friday” by Rebecca Black and “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder, both performed by Arty, Puck, and Sam, who are quickly becoming my favorite boy-band!

Glee continues to use comedy to ask serious dramatic questions and underscore the answers in song. For me, it’s a perfect combination.

Tune in to Glee on Tuesdays, 8/7c on Fox.

All photos ©Fox.