"Glee" Episode 210 Recap: Little Brittany Lou Who

You know how some of you were saying in the comments that you couldn't tell if I liked Glee or not sometimes? Yeah. You're not gonna have that problem in this recap. They had me the first time they mentioned "The Island of Misfit Toys."

The teachers at McKinley are exchanging Secret Santa gifts, powered by Coach Bieste. Will, after enduring a "let's be friends" chat with Emma, draws Sue's name.

Brittany is decorating her locker for Christmas while Artie helps. "Last year I left my stocking up over Christmas vacation, and an entire family of mice started living in it," she tells him as she hangs an ornament. "Their Christmas gift to each other was rabies."

Artie, it turns out, wants just one thing for Christmas: For his parents to stop friend requesting him on Facebook.

"What are you asking Santa for?" Brittany asks him.

Artie is all, huh?

"Artie, the roads to the North Pole are getting treacherous," she says earnestly. "You need to write your letter to Santa and get in the mail today. And remember, even the smallest envelope is heavy for an elf."

"No way," Artie breathes as she walks away, having apparently just met her two seconds ago. If there was ever anyone who could more obviously (and charmingly) grow to high school age and still believe in Santa than Brittany S. Pierce, I have no idea who it could be. Wake up and smell the candy canes, Artie!

Now, if you happened to come to my house any time during the holiday season, you'd find the "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" DVD next to my television set. I think the whole show is a beautiful metaphor about being an outsider and even about growing up queer (hello, Hermie the gay elf, I mean, dentist). It's kind of like stop motion animation Glee in the North Pole with reindeer.

So when I realized they were decorating a Christmas tree while singing the "Island of Misfit Toys" song ("The Most Wonderful Day Of The Year"), I actually stopped taking notes and just stared, mesmerized, at the screen. And I kind of never stopped until the commercial break. Thank Santa for DVRs or this recap would be a little sparse on details.

We have Quinn dancing around singing, "Wake up! Don't you know it's time to come out?" We have Brittany as the spotted elephant! We have Artie, who I couldn't even find it in my heart to hate this week, making little choo-choo motions with his hand.

Then we have Mr. Schue the douche coming in and spreading some Christmas gloom over the whole scene.

"Hi, guys," he says, bewildered. "What's this?" 

Turns out Glee Club's own Charlie Brown, Finn, found the tree at the side of the road, and Santana scored some free ornaments. "The guy who lives next door finally killed off his elderly mother, and when they carted him off they left the house wide open, so … I think she was a holiday hoarder."

Puck contributed the presents under the tree: "I lifted them from a display at the mall," he says. "But don't worry, they're empty."

Will doesn't like the rag tag Christmas his kids are putting together, and he definitely doesn't like that they're seen as misfits by the rest of the school even after their triumph at Sectionals two years running. His prescription: To go caroling throughout the school to raise money for homeless kids.

"We're gonna be killed," says Quinn.

But Finn's optimistic. "No, guys. It's Christmas. A time for miracles. We gotta try this."

That's right, says Will. "This year, Glee Club's going full Santa."