--- title: Glee Series Finale: Revisit TIME's Original 2009 Review of the Show description: As the show comes to an end, look back at TIME's 2009 take on it canonical: https://time.com/3749666/glee-review-2009/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-20T16:00:21.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:04:59.994Z article:section: History og:title: Glee Series Finale: Revisit TIME's Original 2009 Review of the Show og:description: As the show comes to an end, look back at TIME's 2009 take on it og:url: https://time.com/3749666/glee-review-2009/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt257aa227e46951ae/6987842e3c163909e845251a/214glee_ep214-sc30_221_hires2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Glee og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Glee Series Finale: Revisit TIME's Original 2009 Review of the Show twitter:description: As the show comes to an end, look back at TIME's 2009 take on it twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt257aa227e46951ae/6987842e3c163909e845251a/214glee_ep214-sc30_221_hires2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Read TIME's Original Review of _Glee_ > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription.  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Mar 20, 2015 4:00 PM UTC  A scene from Season 2 of 'Glee A scene from Season 2 of 'Glee Fox  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Mar 20, 2015 4:00 PM UTC When Fox’s long-running musical _Glee_ sings its last note on Friday, it will have been after six seasons of slushies and songs. But back in 2009, when the show premiered after _American Idol_ (before returning for its regular run that fall), it wasn’t clear whether the network’s risk would pay off. After all, as TIME’s critic James Poniewozik noted back then, the top models for TV-musical success at the time were _American Idol_ and _High School Musical._ Would something that sometimes took a tongue-in-cheek approach work, or would potential fans be turned off by what they saw? Poniewozik, for one, was hopeful for the former: --- > “” --- **_Read the rest, here in the TIME Vault:_** [Chorus of Laughter](http://time.com/vault/issue/2009-05-18/page/63/) ### What Glee Club Looked Like 60 Years Before _Glee_  Caption from LIFE. Dressed in white evening gowns, The Smith Singers get a tremendous ovation following a concert in weapons room of Dutch castle at Breukelen, namesake of New York's Brooklyn. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Singers inspect a sign advertising their performance. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Relaxing exercises prior to a rehearsal are led by Miss Hiatt (standing next to microphone) in the bar of a Swiss hotel. Girls were told to yawn, shake their shoulders, lift arms in the air. Rehearsal was for a 45-minute program, including both liturgical and popular songs, to be broadcast over Radio Lausanne. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Girls rehearse in Amsterdam hotel room. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Glee Club singers onstage. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Glee Club members do some European sightseeing. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Student peers out a window at the landscape. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Bodies sprawled, girls sleep away the trip from Brussels to Lucerne. Martha Stewart wears turban because she had set her hair with bobby pins. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. 'Cindy' Bliss bids a Dutch friend goodbye. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Passing time on the train. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Smith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Taking in some European sculpture. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Singers spend time looking at art. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Smith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Students celebrate alongside many empty Coca-Cola bottles. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Downtime between performances. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Smith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Glee Club singers wear white dresses for a performance. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Smith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Smith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Smith College Glee Club in Europe, 1952. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Girls walk away from a Dutch windmill after photographing it. 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