Reports out of Canada today confirmed what many suspected regarding the death of 31-year-old Cory Monteith, one of the stars of the his Fox TV series Glee. Although this precise details have not been determined his death was the result of heroin and alcohol consumption.
On a purely human level this is a very tragic story, a young man haunted by demons since his teenage years found fame and success only to be brought down by those demons.
The pending question for the Glee writers is how to deal with the death and how to write out the character Finn Hudson. At the end of last season his characters seem to be headed towards a more significant role this year and consequently it will be a difficult question for them to answer.
For my own part I humbly suggest that rather than try to whitewash things they instead try to gain something positive out of the sad events. Specifically I think that they should have Finn die in the same way that Cory died, as the result of substance abuse.
I say this not out of any disrespect to his memory but rather because it presents the producers with an opportunity to give the fans of the show a powerful lesson. Many of the show’s fans are teenagers and young adults facing the same pressures that Monteith did.
Although in the abstract they are aware that Cory died of drug use in some ways it would be more real to them if Finn died in the same way and if just one of them can be drawn away from the world of drugs and just one life saved that would be well worth the decision.
Obviously whatever happens is up to the producers and writers but I would hope they would consider such a bold move.