Random thoughts on 3.09 - Extraordinary Merry Christmas

[wowbright]

It started out promising, and yay to Blaine and Kurt having a Swiss chalet decked in mid-century modern, but then ...

• "River" was too short.
• Never heard "Extraordinary Christmas""Extraordinary Merry Christmas" before, never want to hear it again.
• I know it was for the local television station, but could Kurt and Blaine have danced any farther apart?
• Not sure how I felt about Kurt playing up the 1950s gay.
• Sing when is "My Favorite Things" a Christmas song, or a Solstice song, or a Hannukah song, or a Kwanzaa song, or a New Year's song?
• Rory, your Charlie Brown Christmas Special moment is only appropriate during the Charlie Brown Christmas Special. Or at church. Or in your home, or during private conversation among friends. Yeah, I know my mom's all "Put the Christ back in Christmas," but it was Saturnalia first. You should have read from A Christmas Carol instead, which gets the true pagan spirit of goodwill toward all, and not just those on whom Yahweh's favor rests (Luke 2:14). How were you showing generosity and kindness to Rachel and Puck and Kurt? Explain, please.
• Could they have thought of a more condescending song to sing at the homeless shelter?

The bowtie and capri pants joke was funny, though - but I imagine it would have been lost on all the viewers in western Ohio who don't know Blaine. And it was nice to see Kurt and Blaine acting like a couple through most of the show, and Blaine looking meaningfully at Kurt while he was singing about slow kisses. Would have liked to see the rehearsal version of "Let It Snow," where they dance ballroom-style and end up making out on the couch. And would have liked to be certain that they were holding hands while Rachel sang "River." (Hmmm, that might make a good drabble. I imagine a purple and flowery and lyrical drabble - all in good ways. Anyone? Anyone?)

[Update on 12/14: I get a little less Scroogie McScroogePants in the comments section. And fantasize about Kurt singing "River."]

Comments

[mimiheart.livejournal.com]

Haven't read anyone else's comments...

I didn't like "River" at all. I kind of would rather it have been cut and let Santana have "Santa Baby".

"Extraordinary Merry Christmas" was an original song. And agreed. Although the idea of Blaine having a crush on Santa is amusing. (Seriously, the first time I heard it, that's what I got from the lyrics. It came into my dreams last night
A great, big man in red and white.
He told me that it’s gonna be
A special year for you and me.
Underneath the mistletoe
Hold me tight and kiss me slow.
The snow is high so come inside
I wanna hear you say to me!)

I don't know, I think they were playing up that they were "roommates" and "bachelors" and most certainly not gay. *wink* I thought it was hilarious.

I always hear "My Favorite Things" this time of year. I don't know why. I still loved this version of it.

Rory's little speech was tuned out and winced through and *stabbity*

That song is so... I've never been able to stand it. It's... yeah.

Missing scenes fic. We need them.

[wowbright.livejournal.com]

I didn't know about "Santa Baby" at the time I wrote this, or the cut Kurt/Blaine scene. If I had, I would have been for cutting "River," possibly, but maybe would have rather made "Blue Christmas" and "Favorite Things" shorter (I'm getting the sense that people like "Favorite Things," but since the lyrics just repeat ...) and even (sacrilege) "Let It Snow" shorter, because I can listen to the full-length version later.

I have to admit that part of what I enjoyed about "River" was hearing Rachel weak on the high note. It's hard for anybody (including Joni Mitchell) not to be weak on that note, but it was just something special to hear her in that position. Would have rather she played it up and turned the whole phrase into emotional weakness, which Joni does effectively. Today I woke up wondering what Kurt would have sounded like singing "River" and WOW. I need to hear that. I can hear it in my head and it's brilliant already. If he had any trouble with the high notes, I'm sure he'd milk it for all it was worth and have me sobbing on the floor.

Blaine having a crush on Santa! Now I have to listen again, even though I said I didn't want to!

I will have to watch "Let It Snow" over and over again to see if I can appreciate the irony. They're looking pretty dang good in those suits, so it won't kill me :) I was definitely comparing it my head to last year's "Baby It's Cold Outside" which was all eye-sex and swoony and oh oh oh! I may be able to learn to appreciate it on its own merits.

I kind of want to write an essay about all the ways in which that Band-Aid song sucks, but will instead just say that every time I hear it, I want to scream at them, "Well, the Christians in Africa know it's Christmastime, because it's KIND OF FREAKING HARD TO MISS in the liturgical calendar." I'm not going to go into that line about snow. But I will say that if I had been one of those homeless people, I would have run from the room screaming.

[mimiheart.livejournal.com]

"Blue Christmas" could definitely have been shorter. I keep forgetting it's even there. So... yeah. "Favorite Things" made me happy the whole time, though, and I bought it on i-tunes today. I liked it. Don't cut "Let It Snow"!

Just rewatched the River scene... It's not a particularly hard note to sing. I just sang it without any problem with her. If you open the vowel up to 'ah' instead of closing to "eye" it's not hard at all. I have to admit I'm not really familiar with the song, though.

Look at it this way, remember last year after BICO, when they said, "Too bad they'd never let us sing it together? They got to sing it together. It's not a flirty lovesong... not really, but they were still sticking it to the nebulous 'they'. And they were dancing on TV together. :D

Well, I'm not Christian, it doesn't snow here, and I know when freaking Christmas is. So there.

[wowbright.livejournal.com]

Your last line - ROCL! (Rolling on the chair laughing.) Seriously, I laughed so hard my stomach started to hurt. It still hurts. In the best way.

Oh, I think you just made me fall in love with "Let It Snow."

"River" - well, it's a hard note for me to sing strongly, I should say. I can hit it, but I'd rather avoid it. People who can hit it strongly, I just view as humans with magical unicorn strength.