However, the premise of the episode is shaky in and of itself, since there is no way that a high school, especially one in a small conservative town, would ever produce The Rocky Horror Show. The episode does address the controversy, but never in a satisfying way, because as usual Glee can't decide whether it's grounded in an actual high school or a musical fantasy land. The audience is supposed to accept that a school can put on an edited version of Rocky Horror, in approximately one week, and the boyfriend of a faculty member can get a part just because it's convenient. You can't do that and then have a serious subplot about male body image, which was shoved to the side and bungled anyway (earnestness is not the show's strong suit, so the upcoming "very special episode" about bullying will probably set the gay rights movement back a century). The show doesn't have the guts to explain why Rocky Horror pushes the envelope in the first place, merely relying on that phrase and thereby rendering it meaningless. Meanwhile, the protagonist (Mr. Schu) is a prick and the woman who is the show's trademark voice of insanity (Sue Sylvester), a characteristic reinforced at the beginning of the episode, is the voice of reason at its end.
As for the adaptation of Rocky Horror itself, the musical numbers are mostly passable, albeit a little overproduced sometimes (another Glee hallmark). Nothing stands out until John Stamos' surprisingly fun rendition of "Whatever Happened to Saturday Night?" I was distracted throughout Amber Riley's "Sweet Transvestite;" it's a potentially interesting take on the show to have Frank N. Furter played by a woman, but in that case, shouldn't she be a drag king? I liked Jayma Mays' version of "Touch-a Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me" although I may be a bit biased because she's my second-favorite redhead on televison (#1 is Christina Hendricks, obvs). The climactic rendition of "Time Warp," sadly, was merely okay. I will say that Chris Colfer makes for an excellent Riff Raff, and Heather Morris' Columbia makes me think "how *you* doin'?"
The Walking Dead: I'll watch anything that's zombie-related, but put it on AMC and I get extra excited. Even better - while all zombie films must inevitably end, The Walking Dead, as a series, can continue for as long as it is renewed. Jericho blew it as an extended examination of the post-apocalypse, so I'm hoping this show doesn't disappoint.
It's hard to judge a series as a whole by its pilot, but the premiere of The Walking Dead is stellar. There's little here we haven't seen in countless zombie films before it, but solid execution overcomes any narrative shortcomings. There is one new idea that I hope will be explored further in upcoming episodes: sympathy for the undead. Also, Lennie James gets a large chunk of screen time and you can't go wrong with Lennie James.
Community: I've never seen an episode of Community before, although I've heard nothing but good things. I'd been holding out for the first season to appear on Netflix's instant viewing (c'mon guys, pleeeease?) but this year's Halloween episode seems like a good point to dive in. The plot, in which a zombie-like infection strikes during a holiday party, cribs from so many zombie movies that it could almost function as a standalone short film, but the individual characters get enough attention that I could probably understand their relationships to each other in following episodes. There's also Aliens references and an ABBA soundtrack. How can you lose? (It will be interesting to see if Community, unlike Glee, commits to its "anything goes" universe or if it tries for occasional misguided earnest realism. Perhaps it will split a happy medium, like in The Office or 30 Rock, where effective dramatic moments are introduced because they come from established character relationships and not randomly introduced plot points.)
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