Mean Girls Vs. Glee: The Parallels

This week, Entertainment Weekly drew parallels between Glee and Lost, comparing Rachel to Kate, Puck to Sawyer, and Quinn to Juliet. Yet if we were to compare Glee to a movie, Mean Girls would be at the top of the list. The parallels between the characters are uncanny (albeit in a high school stereotypical way).

Ms. Norbury: Ms. Norbury is to Mean Girls what Will Schuester is to Glee. Both teachers serve as the moral compass for their students. Ms. Norbury reminds Cady that she doesn't have to dumb herself down in order for guys to like her. Will assures Quinn that high school is going to end. And both Ms. Norbury and Mr. Schuester go through messy divorces.

Regina George: Regina George is to Mean Girls what Quinn Fabray is to Glee. Both are Queen Bee alpha females who possess, beauty, wealth, and surprising intelligence. Regina's name is Latin for Queen, while Quinn's name is one vowel away from Queen. Both Regina and Quinn begin at the pinnacle of popularity, fall from grace, but show resilience and personal growth in the process.

Cady Heron: Cady Heron is to Mean Girls what Rachel Berry is to Glee. Both Cady and Rachel are strong willed and basically trustworthy, but struggle with peer pressure and the need to be popular. And although neither Regina nor Quinn would admit it, both Cady and Rachel are pretty and charismatic enough to pose threats to their respective queen bees.

Gretchen Wieners: Gretchen Wieners is to Mean Girls what Santana Lopez is to Glee. In a clique of blondes, Gretchen and Santana are the darker-toned brunettes. Both Gretchen and Santana resent their status as their queen bee's little workers. Gretchen compares herself to Brutus and Regina to Caesar while Santana sees Quinn's pregnancy as an opportunity to become top dog at school.

Karen Smith: Karen Smith is to Mean Girls what Brittany is to Glee. Every popular clique needs a "dumb one," and Karen and Brittany are walking stereotypical blonde punchlines. Karen can't spell the word orange while Brittany doesn't know how to turn on a computer. Karen and Brittany are both wildly promiscuous. Karen made out with her cousin Seth Musakowski while Brittany has made out with girls, boys, and the janitor.

Aaron Samuels: Aaron Samuels has a counterpart in Finn Hudson. Both are handsome, popular, athletic, and genuinely nice. Both were raised by single mothers. And while Aaron is manipulated by Regina and Cady, Finn is manipulated by Quinn and Rachel.

Shane Omen: Shane Omen's counterpart is Puck: hot, popular, and a bit of a douche bag. Regina cheats on Aaron with Shane while Quinn cheats on Finn with Puck. Yet both Shane and Puck redeem themselves. Shane is loyal to Regina during her fall from grace while Puck still loves Quinn even after she loses her popularity.

Janis Ian: Janis Ian is a combination of Tina and Mercedes. Like Tina, Janis is goth and bit anti-social. Like Mercedes, Janis is a master of sassy sarcasm. And their best friends, Kurt and Damian are "mayors of Gaytown."

Damian: Damian is a combination of Kurt and Mercedes.Both Damian and Kurt are "too gay to function." Damian hangs out in the ladies' room while Kurt considers himself an honorary girl. Like Mercedes, Damian is heavy-set but "at home in his body." Both Mercedes and Damian provide memorable renditions of Christina Aguilera's Beautiful.

Kevin G: Kevin G is the Artie of Mean Girls. Just compare Kevin G's Mathlete rap to Artie's Can't Touch This. And while Kevin ends up with gothic Janis, Artie dates gothic Tina.

Principal Duvall: Principal Duvall is to Mean Girls what Principal Figgins is to Glee. Mr. Duvall will "keep you here until 4," while Figgins "will not put up with these shenanigans at this school!" And while we see Duvall in a skimpy wife-beater top, we see Figgins in bed with Sue Sylvester.

The Mean Girls/Glee analogy breaks down a bit because Sue Sylvester and Emma Pillsbury don't really have Mean Girls counterparts. Still, given the parallels between the other characters, Glee would have great material for a Mean Girls crossover episode.

Sources:

'Glee' Recap: Every Now and Then I Fall Apart, Entertainment Weekly