['Glee' -- 'Pot O' Gold']

After a three week hiatus, I honestly didn't know what to expect from 'Glee' this week. So to say that I was pleasantly surprised is an understatement. It definitely wasn't as good as 'Asian F,' but it was better than a majority of Season 2, so I'll call this one a win.

Actually, call me completely shocked. To be honest, I totally didn't see that super awkward Puck and Shelby kiss coming this episode. Even though I knew it was headed there, that didn't make it any less creepy.

Not only did we get a bit of totally illegal Shelby/Puck action, we also met the much-anticipated new kid.

Ladies and gentlemen, introducing Rory Flanagan!

Let me start by making my allegiance to Damian McGinty known. You see, over the summer I became obsessed with Oxygen's 'The Glee Project' -- and more importantly, a teen from Northern Ireland with a voice like Frank Sinatra and a personality that screamed Cory Monteith 2.0. So forgive me for being more than a little excited for Damian's 'Glee' debut as McKinley's new student Rory.

The first scene introduced us to the eager young Rory, a 15-year-old foreign exchange student from Ireland staying with Brittany and her family. The only catch? Brittany, being the lovable airhead that she is, believes that Rory is a leprechaun. She also can't understand a single word he says. Fans of 'The Glee Project' may remember 'Glee' co-creators Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan creating this story line for Damian on Oxygen's search for the next 'Glee' star after being inspired by his accent.

So while Rory's on a search to get to Brittany's "pot o' gold," he's not exactly making a lot of friends at McKinley. Being the new kid, it's hard for him to fit in, and throughout the episode, he gets repeatedly teased, shoved into lockers and ignored (no slushy facials, though!).

I mean, he calls his "mommy" during school. No wonder he's a walking target for bullies. But Rory's also an optimist, and he's not going to let a little locker shove get him down. After all, "It ain't easy being green." That's right, the Irish kid got the first Kermit the Frog solo in 'Glee' history. Overall, for 'The Glee Project' winner's first song, it was a nice introduction to the charming character.

Rory also idolizes Finn, and it's kind of adorkable. I hope the big brother/little brother relationship between the two continues to grow throughout the season because 'Glee' is going to need a new leader, and Rory might just be the perfect fit for the position -- and Ryan Murphy thought so too in 'The Glee Project.'

But it looks like he's going to have a little competition from Blaine.

If you haven't noticed yet, Finn is feeling threatened by Blaine. You know, now that Finn's on his way out of McKinley, this puts Blaine in a great position to be the leader of New Directions next year, so I can understand why Finn's a little upset. After all, Finn doesn't want the New Directions to turn into The Warblers (aka 'The Blaine Show').

Not to mention, the former Warbler won the lead in the school musical, playing the Tony to Rachel's Maria. That's got to hurt, Finn. He's also been stepping up in the choir room, trying to lift everyone's spirits after Mercedes' departure by singing 'Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F)' and dedicating it to the club. Initiate fun choir room dancing sequence.

However, amidst all of the glee, Santana's not happy. You see, she's just as upset with Blaine's popularity as Finn, and she doesn't want Sectionals to be 'The Blaine and Rachel Show.' To be honest, I have to agree. As much as I love Blaine, I also love the other members of New Directions, and they haven't really had a chance to shine this season.

So with a little persuading from Mercedes, Santana decides to join Shelby's rival all-girl show choir, the Trouble Tones. But she's not going alone -- she's bringing Brittany with her. I'm really loving Shelby's diva troupe. They're going to be some serious competition for the New Directions (i.e. 'Candy Man').

Santana and Brittany definitely shared a memorable Brittana moment this week, but it was memorable for all of the wrong reasons. If Santana really wants her and Brittany to be exclusive, she's going to have to get over her insecurities -- and it starts with holding hands. Having Santana put a napkin over her and Brittany's hands was a huge slap in the face for fans who finally thought this relationship was going somewhere.

For someone as feisty and confident as Santana, I would hope that she wouldn't be afraid of a little girl-on-girl hand-holding.

Now the New Directions are down three members, and are definitely losing their spirit. That is, until Finn recruits Rory to join the club, and here's where we see Damian's true range as a singer. Rory charms the New Directions with his cover of 'Take Care of Yourself.' And I just have two words: THAT FALSETTO. Pretty good, new kid. Pretty good, indeed. Even Rachel thinks he's magical.



It was also nice to see Finn step up and lead the New Directions again. Finn has been pretty quiet this season, and something tells me that he's about to have a serious quarter-life crisis coming up. What does he want to do after high school? Rachel thinks he should pursue music, but does he really want to?

Meanwhile, Quinn and Puck are on a mission to get closer to Beth -- and to try to take her away from Shelby. As much as I love Dianna Agron, the 'Glee' writers are doing everything they can to make Quinn the most unlikable character ever. Well, let's not forget about Mercedes, who didn't boost her popularity ratings this week either.

But Quinn is just pure crazy!

Seriously, from what we've seen in this episode, I highly doubt Quinn will be winning any custody battles soon. She doesn't know the first thing about parenting, a point made very clear when she immediately passed a crying Beth off to Puck. And when are Child Protective Services ever backed up?! This is just pure craziness.

On the plus side, halfway in, we get a shirtless Puck sighting, and it looks like he's going after cougars this season. Serenading a baby with Foreigner's 'Waiting For a Girl Like You' is pretty deep, Puck. But were you singing that to Beth or Shelby? Awkward.

This week we also learned that being a mom is hard. Well, duh. Five minutes of 'Teen Mom' could have told you that, Shelby. Whether you're still in high school or in your thirties, parenting isn't easy.

And now for one of the most interesting plot developments, Burt Hummel is going to run against Sue for office. To be honest, this is perfect. Sue's on a mission to destroy the arts, and Burt's trying to save the glee club that saved his kid's life. His words, not mine.

After three seasons, perhaps no character has grown more than Burt. Now, that may sound silly -- he is a grown man, after all -- but when you take into account having to finally move on from his wife's death, remarrying, accepting his gay son and becoming a bit of a straight ally, no one has shown more character development than Burt, so it will be interesting to see him go head-to-head with Sue. I think he might actually give her a run for her Cheerio money.

Best lines of the night:

Rory, on why he loves America: "I love everything about America, especially NASCAR, your half-black president and the Victoria's Secret catalog." (Now do you see why I love him?!)

Burt, on why he wants to save the arts from Sue's budget cuts: "Your glee club saved my kid's life." (Awwww!)

Best insult of the night, Santana to Rory: "You potato eating loser."

Santana, on Brittany's special little world: "That special place where she lives? Yeah, it's beautiful, but someone's got to help her cross the street."

Sue, on West Side Story: "It still seems extraordinarily gay."

Best Brittany line of the night: "Lord Tubbington's poops are crispy and delicious." (You really need to watch to understand this one...)

Another great Brittany line: "Oh, I thought you were talking about the Selena Gomez pregnancy rumors."

Santana at her best, to Finn: "I know you want to kick Blaine right in his Warblers."

The Hell to the No line of the night, from Finn: "Brittany, stop being an idiot."

And one of my favorite Santana lines ever, to Sugar: "Let me write you a reality check, Richie Bitch."

'Glee' airs Tuesdays at 8PM ET on Fox.