Glee Season 2 Episode 7 – The Substitute
Will learns that Sue is the acting principal after Figgins got infected with what Sue calls a “particularly virulent strain of monkey flu from Borneo.” When a flu-ridden student was about to sneeze, Sue pushed Figgins in her direction, which she also does to Will. The glee club director tries to ignore the symptoms but when he starts to hallucinate that the glee members are little kids, he takes time off from work. Terri takes care of him and eases his pain with a “Singin’ in the Rain” DVD at home. The two later on share an intimate moment and sleep together.
Holly Holiday, a substitute teacher with unconventional methods, takes over his Spanish class. Kurt invites her to take over glee club as well, after Holly subbed in his English class where she had a musical rendition of her lesson in conjunctions. The glee club members try to play pranks on her, but they are unsuccessful. She impresses all of them, except for Rachel, after singing Cee Lo Green’s “Forget You.” Everybody starts to realize that they prefer Holly because unlike Will, she allows them to sing whatever they want. She wins Rachel over when they duet on “Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag” from the musical Chicago.
Kurt spends more time with his new friend Blaine, talking about gay issues and icons. He tries to set Mercedes up with a black football player named Anthony but she gets offended because she thinks Kurt’s basis was their being black. When Sue bans the junk food Tater Tots and promotes healthy lunch menu, Mercedes throws herself into a Tater Tot protest, and the students in the cafeteria join her.
When Will returns to McKinley, Sue tells her that because of her healthy initiative, her appointment as principal becomes permanent. Her first move as a principal is to fire Will on the spot. Sue invites Holly to replace him. When confronted by Will, Holly tells him he couldn’t refuse the offer.
Sue summons Holly and Mercedes in her office, after the substitute allowed the student to be excused to shove Tater Tots up the tailpipe of Sue’s expensive 1979 Le Car. The deed resulted to $17,000 of damages. Sue gets Holly to admit that she doesn’t know what she’s doing.
Holly goes to Will’s house and opens up to him about her difficulties in her early teaching days. She tells her that she used to be as committed as Will until a troublesome female student punched her in the face. This prompted her to have a more lenient and laid-back teaching approach. Terri walks in on Will and Holly and assumes that they are having an affair. Even though Will tries to explain, she keeps on saying nasty stuff, prompting Will to admit that their reunion was only caused by his loneliness. Terri leaves and vows that Will would regret his decision.
Sue reinstates Will, with the condition that the glee club pays for her car expenses. She tells him that even though he irritates her, he won his students’ respect. The kids welcome Will but tell him they will miss Holly. The glee director asks Holly to help him modernize “Singin’ in the Rain,” which resulted in a mash up with Rihanna’s “Umbrella.”
Featured Songs
Title Original Artist
“Conjunction Junction” from “Schoolhouse Rock!”
“Forget You” Cee Lo Green
“Make ‘Em Laugh” Donald O’Connor
“Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag” from “Chicago”
“Singing In the Rain/Umbrella” Gene Kelly/Rihanna feat. Jay-Z
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