All 99 ‘Glee’ Episodes, Obsessively Ranked

By Rae Votta • March 17, 2014

Over the years, Fox’s Glee hasn’t just been a show—it’s become a cultural force. Since airing its pilot on May 19, 2009, 

the Ryan Murphy creation has grown from a little-series-that-could into a cultural institution, spawning hit after hit on the charts, nationwide tours, Hollywood careers and, most importantly, a loyal legion of followers. From the beginning, the show tapped into a world that swung the camera away from the popular kids and focused on the outcasts of McKinley High, a fictional school based in Lima, Ohio that struck chords all too real. Viewers saw themselves and identified in the often highly realistic, sometimes ludicrous situations, spanning from bullying and teen pregnancy to more general themes like love and loss, most notably with the 2013 death of cast member Cory Monteith.



Throughout the years, Gleeks have borne witness to relationships that flourished and withered, soaking up acapella covers along the way. The show has played host to iconic moments in its 99-episode run: the cast performing “Don’t Stop Believin’” on the pilot, Blaine dedicating “Teenage Dream” to Kurt and pretty much everyone getting a slush to the face. And it’s become a magnet for celebrity cameos, attracting everyone from Eve and Britney Spears to Neil Patrick Harris and Gwyneth Paltrow, the latter of whom won one of the show’s four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series. On March 18th, Glee will air it’s 100th episode. The show will celebrate by bringing back a host of its original cast and beloved special guests, and by restaging numbers from episodes past. As Glee looks back, so do we. The often love-it-or-hate it series inspires a wide range of opinions on which moments were the best and worst. And so we attempted a definitive list of the series, in order from worst to best. From the dark spots of Season 3 that most fans wish they could forget to the nostalgic “perfect” episodes of the initial 13, the first 99 episodes of Glee have definitely been a rollercoaster. Ride along.