Glee was one of those shows that you had to watch with a box full of tissues by your side in order to properly get through. This was due to the fact that the series presented a roller coaster of emotions in practically every episode from start to finish. There were so many heartbreaking moments in the series, making it is almost impossible to keep track of all the times we cried our eyes out while shakily updating our Facebook statuses in order to announce to the uninterested internet that we were “Proud Gleeks.” (RIP 2009.)
What were some of those aforementioned soul-crushing moments from the Fox musical series? Read the list to find out!
10. SANTANA’S GRANDMOTHER FAILING TO ACCEPT HER
One of the most heartbreaking moments in the series was watching the tough-as-nails Santana get ostracized by her grandmother for identifying as lesbian. Santana is a character who puts on quite the mean front. At first, we assume she is just a typical popular mean girl, yet as the series progresses we realize she puts on a tough-girl act in order to prevent herself from getting hurt.
During this moment, it is so difficult to discover the lack of acceptance our favorite cheerio must face from her own family. Unfortunately, the lack of acceptance for the LGBTQ community is all too common within family units. It is one thing to not be accepted by your peers but it’s another to experience this within your own bloodline.
9. FINN AND RACHEL BREAKING UP BEFORE COLLEGE
Don’t act as though you didn’t sob like a newborn baby when Finn broke up with Rachel in order for her to fulfill her dreams as an artist! Unlike most breakups which result from needs failing to be being met, Finn and Rachel were still very much in love with each other and they were in a healthy and fulfilling relationship. Finn showed his true selflessness when he ended things with the aspiring broadway starlet in order to prevent her from being held back from her dreams.
Perhaps the most tragic breakups come from when you are still in love with that person but you both want different things out of life. Finn and Rachel were a lovely couple because they were both willing to make big sacrifices for each other in order to make the other person happy. We probably sobbed harder than Rachel did during that scene, and that girl was a crying mess!
8. KURT’S COVER OF “I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND”
One of the most iconic episodes in TV history was “Grilled Cheesus” in the second season of Glee. In the episode, the glee club comes to terms with their views on religion and God. This all comes about as Kurt’s dad is suffering from a heart attack and we are uncertain whether or not he will ever wake up.
Just when it seems likely that he will die in the hospital, Kurt sings a beautiful cover of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” by The Beatles as he recalls his dearest memories with his father. It is certainly a tear-jerking moment and it makes us feel for Kurt in a way that we ever have before. Luckily, his father makes it out alive, and he eventually makes a full recovery.
7. THE GLEE CLUB SMILES DESPITE BEING BULLIED
In the episode from season 1 titled “Mattress”, the glee kids are relieved to discover that their club will not be featured in the yearbook. The kids are thrilled about this because in all of the previous years of their club being featured in the yearbook, they had been severely bullied by people making offensive drawings in sharpie all over their faces.
Rachel Berry seems to be the only person who desperately wants their club’s photo to be placed in the yearbook so her days before stardom can be properly captured by the school. At the end of the episode when they are now able to be featured in the yearbook, they sing “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin despite the fact that they are continuously getting tormented by their classmates. The lyrics “smile though your heart is breaking” plays in the background as the kids get their yearbook pictures trashed with cruel defacings by the rest of the school.
6. DISCOVERING SUE’S RELATIONSHIP WITH HER SISTER
At first, we as fans of the series were lead to believe that Sue Sylvester was just a cartoonishly evil mastermind, yet it wasn’t until we met Sue’s sister that we realized she could actually be quite selfless and beautiful. Sue will do absolutely anything for her sister Jean, and she will drop everything in order to make her best friend smile. Sue has always been extremely protective of Jean who faced much ridicule in the past for living with down syndrome. Because of Sue’s relationship with Jean, she is able to treat Becky from The Cheerios like an equal and she refuses to treat her any differently just because she happens to live with down syndrome.
5. JEAN SYLVESTER’S DEATH
In one of the most heartbreaking episodes in television history titled “Funeral”, Sue’s sister tragically passes away. The aftermath of her death reveals a side of Sue that we never expected to see before. This side of her is vulnerable and broken which is a heavy contrast to her usual tough and comical persona. Sue allows the glee club to arrange the funeral yet admits later that she only did this to fill up funeral seats considering the fact that Jean didn’t have many friends.
Is it humanly possible for this episode to get any more heartbreaking? Turn out, yes. In a beautiful moment, we see Will and Sue putting aside all of their differences to share earnest love and support for one another. The kids sing “Imagination” from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory during the funeral because it was Jean’s favorite song. After this, Sue is forever grateful to Will and the rest of the glee club.
4. KAROFSKY’S ENTIRE STORYLINE
David Karofsky was a character who hid the truth of his identity. In a small and closed-minded town in Ohio, Karofsky felt as though he had to put on a front in order to fit in with the rest of his peers. At first in the episode “Never Been Kissed” his character continuously bullies Kurt for being gay, yet fans were met with utter shock when Karofsky passionately kissed the boy he had been tormenting for so long.
Later on in the series, the closeted macho jock attempts to commit suicide for feeling as though he can never be his true self. The whole storyline is tragic considering how so many young people feel as though they cannot be honest about their identities because they fear how the rest of their peers will react.
3. COACH BEISTE’S STORYLINE IN “NEVER BEEN KISSED”
In this episode, the glee club members feel as though they need a “cool down” method whenever they get uncontrollable sexual urges. What do they think of to destroy these urges? They think of Coach Beiste. When she discovers what the kids are doing behind her back, she is humiliated and considers quitting her job at Mckinley. She then confides in Will, crying over the fact that she is seen as an ugly joke. Beiste admits to Will that she has never been kissed. Will calls her beautiful inside and out and kisses her. It is a beautiful moment, and the best part is that he doesn’t do it out of pity. He truly sees her as a beautiful woman, and we agree with him fully.
2. WHEN SANTANA MAKES BRITTANY FEEL STUPID
We always took Brittany’s lack of logical thinking as a joke because often that was how it was meant to be perceived. Her lines that emphasize her stupidity are presented for the purpose of deriving laughter from audiences. Yet in one particularly tear-jerking moment in the series, Santana makes the implication that Brittany is dumb. Brittany then breaks down into tears confessing the fact that Santana was the only person in her life who never referred to her as stupid. Now all that has changed and Brittany feels completely self-conscious about how the world perceives her.
Later on in the series, we discover the truth of Brittany S. Pierce: that she is secretly a genius. We’re talking Einstein level, folks.
1. THE EPISODE DEDICATED TO FINN/CORY’S DEATH
And of course what was perhaps the most tragic episodes of all came after the death of beloved actor Cory Monteith, who played Finn Hudson throughout the series. The entire episode was dedicated to the flood of emotions the characters/cast members faced after his sudden death. Monteith was in a serious relationship with actress Lea Michele, who plays Rachel Berry. Seeing her mourn her on-screen/off-screen boyfriend was almost unbearable to watch. There were several soul-crushing moments in this episode, including Santana’s scream of horror and sadness in the middle of her performance that was dedicated to Finn. We then later discovered from actress Naya Rivera who plays Santana that this was not a part of the script, and her scream was an unplanned reaction to her shock of Monteith’s death. Overall it was a lovely episode to honor a lovely person. May he rest in peace.
What moment from Glee broke your heart the most?
