Crushes and emotions are everywhere, as Glee Clubbers pair up to sing ballads—stories set to music. As fate would have it, Mr. Schuester (Mr. Shu) is paired up with Rachel when she draws his name from a hat. To demonstrate the ballad concept to the Gleeks, they sing Rachel’s choice, the ultra romantic “Endless Love.” It is an painfully awkward duet, to which Rachel is oblivious, with Mr. Shu backing away, or should I say escaping from Rachel, when her eyes reveal her school girl crush, and he is confronted with the feelings that she has for him.

In a funny segment, viewers are privy to the largely inappropriate thought life of some of the Gleeks, while Rachel and Mr.

Shu are singing. Kurt fantasizes about Finn and thinks, “I could totally sing this song with Finn, but screw him if he thinks he can take the Diana Ross part from me.” On the other hand Puck’s innermost thoughts are the random, “I love the days when I don’t wear underwear…full commando.” Then we hear the thoughts of the oh-so-loyal-to-Quinn, Finn, “I’ve never noticed how great Rachel’s butt is…oh no, I think Quinn knows that I am staring at it.” Rachel’s hidden thoughts show her budding feelings toward Mr. Shu as she notices his “really pretty eyes” and realizes that he is “super-duper cute.”

Two years ago, crazy Suzy Pepper was the first crush-casualty for Mr. Shu and when he spurned her advances, she ate the “world’s hottest pepper,” which had been shipped from Mexico and kept in a jar in her locker. Her esophagus was so badly burned that she was in a medically induced coma for days. Clearly, that incident made him a bit gun shy in the “blowing off” department. So, to dissuade Rachel from her crush on him, Mr. Shu is persuaded by the guidance counselor, Emma (Jayma Mays), to gently let her down with a song. He sings a dynamic mash-up of “Young Girl” by Gary Puckett and The Union Gap and “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” by The Police, but it ends in utter failure. Only much later does Rachel get the hint, with revelation and understanding, which is introduced to her by an enlightened Suzy Pepper.

In a touching side scene, a wise Kurt, crushing on Finn, gets Finn to talk about his fears regarding his unborn baby girl. Finn sings a ballad, The Pretenders’ “I’ll Stand By You,” and relays a heartwarming message of protection and love to the baby’s sonogram. Interrupted by his mother Carole (Romy Rosemont), he confesses Quinn’s pregnancy to her. Soon after, Finn is invited to Quinn’s home to meet her parents and comes up with a plan, with Kurt, of a way to break the pregnancy news to them. You guessed it—through a ballad. The bravely sung “Having My Baby” only ended up with Quinn being abandoned and shunned by her pathetic parents, but warmly welcomed into Finn’s home.

The emotional innocence, the deeply evolving personalities and the catchy tunes make this my favorite Glee episode to date. I also have to admit to getting a bit emotional myself when the Glee Club kids, in a show of support for Finn and Quinn, sang “Lean on Me” by Bill Withers.