The Funcooker

The pilot episode of Ryan Murphy’s ‘Glee’ airs tonight at 9PM

‘Glee’ is the new series from ‘Nip/Tuck’ creator/producer Ryan Murphy, which focuses on a rag-tag high school glee club. The series has been described as an amalgam of ‘Freaks and Geeks’ and ‘Friday Night Lights’, with of course the unique wit and humor of Ryan Murphy thrown into the mix. ‘Glee’ doesn’t feature an all-star cast, but most will probably recognize the underrated Jessalyn Gilsig and of course the always hilarious Jane Lynch.

This series doesn’t officially start until this fall, but FOX is airing the pilot episode after American Idol tonight at 9PM to gather some early buzz around the show. You can also download  the HD version of the pilot for free at the itunes store. The ‘Glee’ cast covers songs in each episode that will be also available for download the day that the new episode airs. In the pilot episode the cast covers Journey’s classic “Don’t Stop Don’t Stop Believin” and Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab”.  I have listened to both covers and they are each equally fantastic in their own way.

From what I’ve seen, this looks like the type of series I will absolutely adore and one that critics will love, but it will be canceled after three episodes. I hope that I’m proven wrong and FOX invests in this show until it finds its audience, because this looks like one of the most inventive and unique shows to air on network TV in the past few years.