Glee/Recap/S2/E09 Special Education

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
< Glee‎ | Recap‎ | S2


Will offers Emma two tickets to Sectionals. No, they're not for her and Carl, he's inviting her as his plus one. Will's an idiot. An over obsessive idiot at that. He tells her that she's the club's good-luck charm, before beginning to tell her about the club's killer set-list. And since he's so damn predictable, she already knows what it is: Finn and Rachel do a ballad and everyone else does a classic rock piece which ends with Mercedes belting out the last note. Will's surprised that she knows, and says that he's just trying to hit the club's strongest points. Emma says that watching the kids performing The Rocky Horror Picture Show really made her see how talented all the kids are, and Will gets An Idea.

M-m-m-music room. Will walks in and Rachel instantly offers him a suggestion about the ballad she's singing with Finn. Will tells her to wait until he's made his announcement, which is that they're going to do a number that features Mike and Brittany's dancing because their opposition aren't known for dancing. Rachel's worried that they'll obscure the audience's view of her when she does her solo, and he tells her that she's not getting a solo, because he wants to feature the winners of the duet contest- Quinn and Sam. Rachel has a hissy fit, Quinn tells her that she's a bitch, everyone starts arguing and Santana tells everyone that she and Finn had sex. Will finally gets everyone to shut the fuck up and gets Mike and Brittany to help him start planning the dance number.

At Dalton, Kurt enters his first meeting of the Warblers. They present him with a canary called Pavarotti, their mascot, which the newest Warbler must take care of. After a joke that fails, the three boys that run the meeting call it to order- they run the Warblers in place of a director or teacher. The meeting is to choose the set list for Sectionals. Kurt suggests "Rio" by Duran Duran, but is shot down.

In Emma's office, Rachel and Finn are getting therapy. Rachel asks if it's true that he slept with Santana. Finn apologises for lying but says that Rachel can be really terrifying. Finally, they get down to discussing their feelings. Finn lied to Rachel because he didn't want to hurt her, but Rachel's angry that it was Santana that Finn screwed. Finally, Finn says the wrong thing and Rachel storms out.

Artie finds Brittany in a classroom, paralyzed with fear. Basically, she's upset that the future of Glee is resting on her shoulders, because she thinks she can't do it. Artie gives her a magic comb that ensures that anyone who combs their hair with it can't fail. Aw.

In Will's office, Will recruits Puck as Glee's ambassador- they need a twelfth member or they can't compete. Puck agrees to do it.

At Dalton, Blaine comforts Kurt, who's a little upset because his suggestion was shot down. Blaine offers Kurt the chance to audition for a solo at Sectionals.

In the locker room, Puck tries to recruit for Glee club. It doesn't go well.

Music room. Everyone wonders where Puck is, since he's been missing for at least a day. Rachel walks in with a piece of duct tape over her mouth to protest about her lack of solos. Will loses it and starts screaming at everyone, telling her to lose the bad attitude and the club that they're going to be good sports at Sectionals, or else. Puck and Lauren walk in. She says that she found Puck in a Port-A-Potty.

Flashback. The jocks shove Puck in said toilet and tip it over. Puck spends a day locked in there until Lauren rescues him. He asks her to join Glee and she agrees for the payment of chocolate and seven minutes in heaven. Will welcomes her to the club.

Hallway. Santana walks by Finn before turning to Rachel and sniping about how generous he was to her when they had sex. Puck approaches Rachel and tells her that he's decided to be nicer to Jews, and senses that she's having troubles with Finn. He promises to help.

Tina, dressed as a goth cheerleader, tells Artie that she thinks Brittany and Mike are secretly together. She lists reasons, he offers explanations, and she says that the footballer/cheerleader attraction is too strong to overcome, hence why she's dressed as a cheerleader.

Kurt meets Rachel in the auditorium and asks for advice on his audition piece. He thinks it should be 'My Heart Will Go On', but she says it should be something more personal. We then get scenes of them both singing 'Don't Cry For Me, Argentina'- Kurt in front of the Warblers, Rachel in the auditorium.

In the hallway at Dalton, Kurt's waiting with two other Warblers for the verdict. He asks them how many times they've auditioned for solos- three and six, respectively. Blaine emerges from the Council room and tells the other boys that they're on to the next round. Kurt's stunned. He asks Blaine for some advice for his next audition. Blaine basically tells him that he needs to try harder at fitting in, not standing out, because the Warblers work on the principle of 'the whole is better than the sum of its parts' and individuality isn't encouraged because they all need to work together.

In the hallway, Artie talks to Brittany, who won't look him in the eye. She declines his offer of meeting up that night or the next morning, because she has to rehearse. Damn.

Pre-Sectionals, the club lines up to get on the bus. Emma arrives and tells Will that Carl asked her not to go to Sectionals.

At Sectionals, Kurt and Rachel talk. She's noticeably nicer than she was to him when he was in Glee, and he asks why. She says it's because when he was at McKinley, he was her only real competition. Kurt asks how Finn is, and Rachel says that she hasn't spoken to Finn since she found out about him and Santana. Kurt's like 'Wait, you only found out now?' but Blaine drags him away before anything else can happen.

Sectionals open with the Hipsters, an old-age version of New Directions, performing 'The Living Years'. The Warblers perform 'Hey, Soul Sister' with Blaine on lead.

Backstage, Artie confronts Brittany on her cheating with Mike, and Brittany says that she never felt worse about anything in her life. Mike asks Tina what he's on about, and she calls him a jerk. Rachel bursts in and accuses Finn of telling Kurt about Santana... and it's revealed that everyone except Rachel knew. Santana says that no one tells Rachel anything because she can't keep her mouth shut and they only pretend to like her. Rachel says that she won't sing with Finn, and Artie and Tina say that they won't sing with Brittany. Will screams at them and gives them a lecture, telling them that he doesn't care if they hate each other, they just need to sing together.

Artie and Brittany talk. It turns out that Brittany didn't cheat, she thought 'adultery' meant to do something stupid, and she feels stupid because she lost the comb he gave her and she's convinced that it was their only chance to win. He tells her that the comb wasn't magic and she didn't need it because she's magic. Aw.

Sam and Quinn perform '(I've Had) The Time Of My Life', followed by Santana singing 'Valerie' on lead. The Hipsters are in third place, and the Warblers and New Directions tie for first- they're both going to Regionals.

Emma's office. Will shows her the trophy, and she tells him that Carl took her to Vegas and they got married. Will lies and says he's happy for her before leaving.

Finn and Rachel make up after promising not to lie to each other. She confesses that she made out with Puck, and Finn gets mad and breaks up with her.

At Dalton, Kurt's called Blaine because he's worried that Pavarotti is sick- he's losing his feathers and he won't sing. Blaine reassures him, saying that Pavarotti's just molting, and he'll be just fine.

Tina and Mike walk into the music room. She apologises for doubting him, and they make up. Will walks in and after Santana expresses sympathy over Emma marrying the hot dentist, he offers Rachel a solo, but she passes it on to Mercedes and Tina, who proceed to perform 'Dog Days Are Over' with the club, on lead, cut with scenes of Kurt and Pavarotti, Emma's new nameplate (Emma Pillsbury-Howell), Emma and Carl making out in her office, and Rachel taking out her shrine to Finn. They end the song with a group hug.

Songs performed in this episode:

  • "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina" from Evita, performed by Rachel and Kurt
  • "The Living Years" by Mike + the Mechanics, performed by the Hipsters
  • "Hey, Soul Sister" by Train, performed by Blaine and the Warblers
  • "(I've Had) The Time Of My Life" by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes, performed by Quinn, Sam and the New Directions
  • "Valerie" by The Zutons, performed by Santana and the New Directions
  • "Dog Days Are Over" by Florence + the Machine, performed by Tina, Mercedes and the New Directions