Blame It on the Alcohol
Underage drinking leads to a hungover assembly and a drunken kiss.
"Blame It on the Alcohol" is the fourteenth episode of the second season of Glee, first airing on Fox on February 22, 2011. It centers on underage drinking at McKinley High and includes the show's first original song, "My Headband." The episode was written by Ian Brennan and directed by Eric Stoltz.
Quick Facts
- Series
- Glee
- Season
- 2
- Episode
- 14
- Air date
- 22 February 2011
- Production
- 2ARC14
- Writer
- Ian Brennan
- Director
- Eric Stoltz
Facts from the source article.
Plot
Principal Figgins schedules a cautionary assembly about underage drinking and asks the glee club to perform a song on the dangers of alcohol. Rachel sings a song she wrote about her headband to Finn, then throws a house party for the club to gain inspiration for Regionals. Former member Kurt and his crush Blaine also attend. Most attendees get drunk, and during a game of Spin the Bottle, Rachel and Blaine share a long kiss before performing "Don't You Want Me" as a karaoke duet. Blaine spends the night in Kurt's bed, fully clothed; Kurt's father Burt tells Kurt to ask permission next time, and Kurt asks Burt to educate himself on gay relationships. On Monday, the hung-over glee club performs "Blame It"; Will thinks the song glorifies drinking and deems it inappropriate for the assembly.
Production
The episode was written by co-creator Ian Brennan and directed by Eric Stoltz, his second time directing Glee after "Duets. A blind item about a "popular gay character" possibly questioning his bisexuality after an "encounter" sparked speculation centered on Blaine. AfterElton.com noted Murphy's statement and a concurrent Out magazine article where Murphy said Blaine would question whether bisexuality is real but ultimately decide he is gay. Murphy later summarized the episode's moral as "don't play spin the bottle while drunk on wine coolers. The episode includes Glee's first original song, "My Headband," sung by Rachel and written by Brennan and composer James Scott Levine. Cover versions featured are "Don't You Want Me" by The Human League (sung by Criss and Michele), "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer" by Rudy Toombs (sung by Morrison and Jones), "Tik Tok" by Kesha (performed by Morris and New Directions), and "Blame It" by Jamie Foxx and T-Pain (with Riley and McHale as leads). "One Bourbon" marked Jones's singing debut on the show. Recurring guest stars include Mike Chang, Sam Evans, Lauren Zizes, Becky Jackson, Shannon Beiste, Principal Figgins, and Blaine Anderson.
Reception
The episode first aired on February 22, 2011, on Fox, drawing over 10.58 million American viewers and a 4.4/12 Nielsen rating/share in the 18–49 demographic, tied for the highest of the night with NCIS. Viewership and ratings slightly increased from the previous episode, "Comeback." In Canada, it drew 1.89 million viewers, ranking fourteenth for the week; in Australia, 1.02 million viewers made it the sixth most-watched show of the night; in the UK, it attained 2.53 million viewers on E4 and E4+1, the most-watched cable show of the week. Critical reaction was split. Kevin Fallon of The Atlantic called it "Glee at its best: cartoonish, outlandish, and loud—but still oh-so true to life." IGN's Robert Canning rated it 8 out of 10, calling the main storyline "comical and human." ScreenCrave's Candace Bulter also gave an 8 out of 10, writing that the episode "puts on the beer goggles to put alcohol-related issues in perspective" but "leaves something to be wanted." The A.V. Club's Emily VanDerWerff gave it a "B−," noting the underpinnings are "not terrible, just overstuffed." MTV's Aly Semigran found it "a wasted opportunity" that left "something of a sour taste," and BuddyTV's Jen Harper concluded, "Geez Louise, Glee. What's happened to you?"
More in Glee Season 2 Episodes
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced