I had heard about this show when it started back in 2009. However, I was busy starting my family and did not have the time to check it out. Now that the kids are both in school, I have had time to watch this gem. I love the take on tunes, the mashups and the way the show approaches some very real teenage issues like homosexuality, popularity, teen pregnancy and a slew of other things that high schoolers deal with.
Glee is essentially about the glee club of fictional McKinley High School in OH. Spanish teacher Will Schuester attempts to restore the school’s show choir to its former glory with a group of outcasts in the school. He is constantly trying to defend the club against the conniving cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester, who tries to get the club dissolved in many creative ways. However, Will’s biggest challenge with the club is actually working with the students and helping them navigate their relationships, their desire for popularity conflicting with their membership in the low-status club, and dealing with larger issues like disabilities, sexuality, and teen pregnancy.
The show was well received by fans and critics, developing a large fan base and earning many awards. However, the show ended after 6 seasons when ratings declined. Although the cast changes throughout this show one thing remained the same; members of the club getting “slushie facials”. I have to say, this was something I had never seen before and I thought the running gag of the club members getting hit in the face with a Big Quench Slushie was great. I also slowly started to realize it had a larger significance in terms of the show.
The slushie, or rather the kids getting hit in the face with them, is a symbol of the identification of the glee club members. Many of the members had never been slushied before joining the club like Fin and Quinn. Also the people that quit or leave the club are never seen getting a slushie facial again, like when Quinn returns to the Cheerios. If someone is getting a slushie thrown in their face, they must have joined the glee club.
In the episode “The Sue Sylvester Shuffle”, the entire football team must temporarily join the glee club in an effort to end their bullying of the glee kids. It is at this point that a previously unseen McKinley High hockey team shows up to administer slushie facials to the football players. It becomes clear that the use of the slushie in this show is as much an induction into glee as an ostracism from the rest of the school. The slushie is symbolic of a person’s break from the general high school population into the glee subculture.
I have never made a slushie before but I have had a bunch of them. I looked up several recipes but I had to look for something that was not cola flavor. I found a variety of possibilities but I settled on Kool-aid to help with the flavor.
My first attempt at this was a huge fail! I used those little packets of Kool-aid and I kept thinking that it wouldn’t be enough flavor for an entire blender so I used four of them and no sugar. That was a huge mistake. Those little packets are highly concentrated and have no sugar added in so they are not sweet at all. I tried to save this first batch but I realized I couldn’t save it when my kids wouldn’t even drink it.
On the second attempt I had much better results. First, I stirred some sugar into the water and added the packet, just like I would do if I were just making a pitcher of Kool-aid, then once I added the ice and blended, it tasted great! The texture and the taste were great; just like a store bought slushie. I didn’t attempt to throw it in anyone’s face to be sure of total Glee authenticity, but it was delicious to drink!
Big Quench Slushie
1 cup cool water
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 packet Kool-aid drink mix (.14 oz), any flavor
4 cups ice
- Add sugar to water and stir until mosty dissolved. Add to blender.
- Add Koolaid packet and ice into blender.
- Blend and serve.
