How joining the Glee' club might just save the world

I've laughed. I've cried. I've sung along to bad Journey and Rihanna songs. I've even re-thought my long-held belief that being a theater critic reviewing musicals week-in, week-out would be the worst job in the newsroom.

All of this because of a silly, sentimental, soap-operatic and absolutely beautiful Fox TV series called "Glee."

At its best, "Glee" - about teenage misfits who find their identities and common ground through singing - reaffirms the positive role music can play in our lives, no matter who we are or which cheerleader we've been tricked into thinking we knocked up.

At its worst, the series still proves that a fluffy, farcical, scripted TV series can be way better for this world than bottom-feeder reality shows.

"Jersey Shore," I'm talking to you. Not that you read newspapers.