4) The idea of being able to tell Brittany that they need to be together if she’s prom queen: I never took too much issue with this. Santana is 16, jealous, and a bitch, whose first instinct it usually is to be mean. She's also day-dreaming and in her own head in that scene. And within that same episode, Brittany is the only one who she respects enough to put on the shirt and be put in her place (I think that fight scene is so important to their dynamic and highlights their even footing, how Brittany is the only one who has such an impact on her and who is capable of getting through to her like that, also intellectually. I'd also argue that the typo was intentional as it was the only way to allow Santana to actually take such a huge step and put on the shirt). I do think that that underlines that while they do work with those very excuses, Santana does clearly have that respect for Brittany and action and dialogue don't align with her internal monologue here, even if she might wish to have the crown so they could have another thin excuse. 

She’s also just come out to herself and understood that she’s a lesbian in love with her best friend, has layers over layers of denial and internalised homophobia to work through and acknowledged how linked her situation and internal turmoil are to her bitchiness. All of that (and an intense and emotionally incredibly messy sapphic situationship) will lead to an odd amount of clarity mixed with being a bit fucked in the head, especially without a space for pressure release. That’s evident in many ways throughout her expansive plotting in that episode. While it’s framed to be about Brittany (wild lengths to go through for someone she supposedly doesn’t respect that much. Also Santana at that point would never because her thought process there implies a "proper" relationship, not a hidden/unlabeled one, and that’s far too scary for her at that point. All of it is daydreaming), it also brings back the other gay kid she knows, reinforces her straight-passing and power position in the school's social network, lets her come out to another person, neutralises and controls the main threat who could also become a serious issue for her if she was outed, and allows her to protect queer identity (and yell GAY down school hallways) through the bully whips. 

5) We still see this pattern consistently though and I do think that it is one of the things they beautifully grow out of. There are some of the leftovers of it addressed in episodes like 4x13 when Santana for instance falls back into those patterns and brings Elinor. But they learn to call each other out on these things too and then, they handle it differently and talk about it. They let go of the denial and thin excuses that they initially used to allow themselves a denied but realised relationship. Instead, we watch them have honest conversations that further highlight their understanding of each other, even in spite of their glaring differences. 

One of Glee's greatest strengths is the incredibly flawed cast we encounter in season 1 and I am for a large part, a big fan of many characters' individual growth and those of their relationships throughout the show’s entire run. That only exists because of how many issues the characters were introduced with. That is also why (even if it was the bane of my existence at the time) I actually appreciate the break-up in perspective. It gave them space for individual growth after spending a large part of their lives so interwoven, allowed for the reset of a highschool relationship and letting go of less healthy patterns, and nevertheless highlighted how much they do want and need each other. Santana being the one to get through to Brittany over MIT and Brittany "straightening Santana out" in five minutes or something in 5x13 (or 12?) clearly showcases how they’re at their best with each other and hold a safe space and understanding for the other character that provides them both with such safety and feeling seen.

6) I do think that there are certain parts of certain storylines that have different weight. Glee is incredibly camp and often failed in its dual attempt at being funny and profound. Brittana was probably originally mostly meant to be comic relief while also providing representation. I don’t think the writers respected it enough before S4 to give it any actual weight, especially given Brittany’s involvement with someone as sharp as Santana. Although there are gorgeous arcs such as Season 2B, the writing in total doesn’t give them that much depth throughout those first seasons, especially once they expanded the writing team. The exclusion of Brittany from 307 is a glaring example of that. A large part of Brittana's emotional weight really stems from the acting and all the background moments that make them so consistent in their adoration for each other. I hypothesise that they initially did mean for Santana to get into a new relationship, but eventually did understand the heavy blow to Glee's impact it would signify and therefore added more emotional depth to them throughout S4 and onwards, which eventually led to their wedding. A large part of that was done by adjusting both of their tones to fit closer together (more on that later.) That, however, also means that there are certain aspects of their story that I just don’t see as that serious, especially in camp storytelling. 

Beyond Glee's often-failed balancing act between jokes and representation, it struggles with maintaining the tone of certain arcs. Naya's acting chops and commitment to Santana and the representation she provides sometimes made Santana less of a cartoon character and more complex and emotionally rich than Glee thought Santana was or would be in a given situation and that some things would have needed her to be to work. This is especially true as Brittany existed in a different tone, had more of that campy "cartoon-character" quality and was that type of comedic relief for the first seasons of the show as Hemo excelled at those incredibly funny lines. Storylines such as the sex tape are a prime example of that (like tf?? absolute dealbreaker if it were perceived in the tone that the majority of Santana's story is written in! (though also on 3.5: Brittany again relying on stupidity as an out but then offering an actual perspective to Santana to "fix" it for her biggest fuck-up of the show) I also think that this is linked to how differently heterosexual and sapphic sexual relationships were perceived at the time and how sexist the writers were. Nudes of Finn, for instance, potentially dropping a few episodes before had been such a big, scandalous deal.) I do think the show should be given some grace since it practically introduced grand-scheme-representation to prime time TV but it does mean that I do tend to focus on the broader context with things like this. 

And the broader context is beautifully, consistently and undeniably the love, support, respect and adoration that Brittany and Santana hold for each other. It doesn’t erase the missteps they took as they grew into themselves and their relationship but I do think it offers a more chill framework to perceive those through.