Musical comedy-drama Glee has been off the air for over six years, having ended its broadcast with just over one hundred and twenty—mostly successful—episodes. The show was a critical darling during its first couple of seasons, earning high ratings from television buffs and music lovers alike.
Like many other beloved shows, however, Glee took a somewhat expected turn for the worst as it progressed. If the ridiculous storylines and unlikeable characters weren't enough to ruin the series, the song covers certainly did it. Not that Glee had never crossed a few lines before, but there's no denying the decaying quality of some of the show's last musical performances.
10 The Story Behind "Ben" Ruins The Performance
When Blaine gets hurt and has to miss out on Michael Jackson week at McKinley, Kurt, Rachel, and Finn try to cheer him up with a rendition of the late singer's song "Ben".
Despite the nice intentions behind it—and the fact that the song is one of the King of Pop's most iconic earlier solos—there's no separating "Ben" from its origins as the theme song for the eponymous film about a boy and his pet rat Ben. Once the viewer realizes Kurt and his friends just serenaded his injured boyfriend with a song about a dead rat, well, the scene just completely loses its spark.
9 "Let's Have A Kiki/Turkey Lurkey Time" Proves That There's Such A Thing As Too Much Camp
Not even Sarah Jessica Parker and her army of colorful drag queens could save this mashup of the Scissor Sisters' "Let's Have a Kiki" and the cast of Promises' "Turkey Lurkey Time." While the show was certainly counting on the campiness of the songs and the various performers in the number, the result is simply disastrous.
"Let's Have A Kiki" was already ridiculous enough, but once Rachel pops in singing about turkey the performance reaches levels far beyond what Glee had ever achieved before. Maybe they should've skipped writing a Thanksgiving episode if they didn't have a good song to go with it.
8 "A Little Less Conversation" Made Hispanic Viewers Cringe
Glee fans know that Will's performances are questionable at best and completely horrendous at worst. His version of Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation," a strange mariachi remix set to a cringeworthy matador dance, definitely falls in the latter category.
While the performance was certainly meant to be offensive by showing Will's complete disregard for the Spanish language and the difference between the Latino and Spanish cultures, there's no denying "A Little Less Conversation" is one of the worst covers in the show's history. Props to Mike and Brittany for dancing through the cringe, though.
7 Brittany Didn't Deserve To Suffer With "Dinosaur"
Since the beginning, Glee has stereotyped its characters by giving them a particular idol or a singer whose songs they tend to perform above all others. Given her slight vocal and physical similarities to Kesha, Heather Morris' ditzy cheerleader Brittany got saddled with covering the singer's "Dinosaur."
Morris does her best to sell the performance with her incomparable energy and her cheerleader backup dancers, but even she can't turn such a terrible song into the party anthem it's meant to be.
6 "I Still Believe/Superbass" Is The Worst Mashup In The Show's History
What starts as a beautiful cover of Brenda K. Starr's "I Still Believe" quickly turns into madness when Sue steps in to sing Nicki Minaj's "Starships" with her Cheerios. The mashup is so bizarre and out-of-left-field that only an outrageously unapologetic show like Glee could get away with it.
"I Still Believe/Super Bass" is a perfect example of the series' state in later seasons, when it deviated into far more ludicrous territory in favor of shock value and surreal comedy. At least Jane Lynch seems to be enjoying herself as she raps Nicki's iconic verses.
5 "The Chipmunk Song" Is Glee's Worst Christmas Song
"The Chipmunk Song" is one of the reasons why Glee's "Previously Unaired Christmas" special is the show's worst-rated episode on IMDb. By far considered the worst Christmas carol the cast ever covered, the Alvin and the Chipmunks song is definitely one of the writers' oddest choices.
Kurt, Santana, and Rachel's drunken antics during the number are cringeworthy, and their voices are so distorted by the horrifying Chipmunk effect that the cover is barely distinguishable from the original song. Perhaps the Christmas special should've stayed unaired after all.
4 "The Thong Song" Is Will At His Worst
One of Glee's most meme-worthy performances, "The Thong Song" is known for being Will's cringiest and most infamous cover. It has it all: Will's terrible rapping, his strange b-boy dance moves, and a flustered Jayma Mays who looks far more uncomfortable than her character, Emma, was probably meant to be.
While the scene is a turning point in Emma and Will's relationship, it has been immortalized as one of the worst performances of the first season. Having to hear Matthew Morrison mention the word 'thong' and 'butt' several times is enough to garner it that dishonor.
3 "Blurred Lines" Should've Never Made The Cut
Not only is the original "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke an offensive song about trespassing the lines of consent, but the teenage Glee characters also perform it while twerking on stage alongside their teacher. There are so many inappropriate elements in the performance that it's a wonder it even made the cut in the first place.
In fact, the entire episode where the cover is featured, "The End of Twerk," is about Will trying to get the entire school to twerk and rebel against Sue, their principal. The audience probably let out a collective sigh of relief when Will got fired for singing a song trivializing sexual violence with his students.
2 The "Gangnam Style" Performance Is 2012 In A Nutshell
The Glee cast's "Gangnam Style" performance is perhaps the most 2012 thing to ever exist. The K-Pop smash hit was featured as one of the New Directions' choices for Sectionals, mere months after the song's music video went viral on Youtube. The musical number is often regarded as Glee's worst despite being Tina's first and only solo, with showrunner Ryan Murphy saying he found the song's inclusion "mortifying".
With the rise of K-Pop in the West over the last few years, there's no doubt Glee would've featured artists like BTS and BLACKPINK in a special episode. K-Pop fans are definitely glad the show ended before it happened.
1 "The Fox" Is The Weirdest Glee Performance Ever
Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis' "The Fox" was already a strange song to begin with, but Glee somehow managed to make it even more bizarre. The performance plays like a fever dream—much like the entire episode it's featured in—with the entire main roster of characters wearing animal ears and holding puppet versions of themselves as they sing the nonsensical lyrics.
Several members of the cast have commented on their dislike for the performance, including Darren Criss, who recalled the musical number as "absurd but fun," and Lea Michele, who openly called it her least favorite Glee cover. In the end, the audience never gets to find out what the fox says, and it's probably better that way.