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The writers do a lot of pairing up of characters on "Glee" but with the lack of consistency from episode to episode, some of them have turned out much weaker than I expected.
Good Character Pairings:
Puck/Artie: Established in "Never Been Kissed," we have yet to see if Artie and Puck ever acknowledge the progress they made in this episode. So far, however, I'm thankful for that one solid episode.
The degree of how soft Puck's gotten since being presented as a bully in the first few episodes was a little inconsistent with the fact that he was a full-fledged part of the group. The Puck from the first half of Season One would have never wanted to be around Tina, Artie, Mercedes and Kurt and would have made fun of anyone who associated with them. This was addressed perfectly here and clarified exactly how strong of a relationship Puck had.
Burt/Kurt: This very strong relationship that has been at the center of the show's core theme of acceptance. The differences in mannerisms and lifestyles between father and son are conveniently bridged here and Mike O'Malley's performance was strong that he was nominated for an Emmy and was promoted to regular cast member.
Figgins/Will/Sue: Figgins and Sue have a delicate balance of power. It helps that there's a very pragmatic referee in the middle of their conflicts.
Michael Chang/Tina: I like how Michael has Asian pride and that's also been used as his comic attribute a little (i.e. he goes to the same restaurant every time, he supposedly knows where every missing Asian kid is). Sorry Artie, I like these two better.
Will/Emma: They have the makings of a power couple or a couple that was meant to be but never was. The writers are pulling Will apart from Emma in a number of ways (in particular, he's picking up a lot more sexual encounters than her along the way) and still convincing me at least that they belong together
Bieste/Will: The kiss was awkward but she does test him in terms of whether he's as much about tolerance as he says he is.
Quinn/Rachel: They're rivalry over Finn had its moments in their first season and the balance of power between the two shifted quite smoothly back and forth last season.
Finn/Will: If Will is a mentor to any one person in the club, it is probably Finn. He's had more heart-to-heart talks with him than anyone else and Finn's lack of smarts makes him the one most in need of guidance.
Bad pairings:
Mercedes/Quinn: They had a nice moment of bonding but since there's been nothing since, you get the feeling that the two were paired together for just an episode just out of convenience sake because they needed a B-plot one episode.
Kurt/Finn: Finn thought Kurt was "really cool" but he wasn't into him like that. I don't see Finn actually thinking Kurt is cool to begin with. Finn's not into cosmetics or things that gays stereotypically are into, and that's all Kurt talks about (at least that's all Kurt is seen talking about). I understand Finn believing in tolerance for Kurt because he's gay, but I don't understand Finn and Kurt having much in common. Finn was probably a little homophobic (not as in gay hating, but as in having certain assumptions about Gays) before meeting Kurt and if that's the case, I wouldn't see Kurt as the guy to convince him that his stereotypical impressions of Gays are wrong considering he fits all the stereotypes.
Artie/Brittney: I think it's just a matter of pairing Brittney up with everyone but this one was a little awkward. I do admit they were running out of girls left, and Brittney's your de facto slut. If they hadn't already used up their guest star budget, I would have suggested interesting some new girlfriend for Artie if need be.
Will/Tanaka: Were these two really friends or was Will just a colleague who got into a sticky situation with him because of Emma? I don't think this was ever established. They were in an A Capella group together for an episode, but I think the show wanted us to believe the Emma situation was sticky because she was tearing two friends apart, but if Tanaka was Will's friend, I just never saw any chemistry.
Sam/Quinn: What's wrong with having some people single and some people attached to each other and having some people in between? Sam and Quinn were going to be a not-yet-defined couple with a little bit of tension and they got together way too quickly. If they're doing everything but having sex, that's too much to keep any sense of tension going already.
Will/Rachel: Rachel is self-serving to the point of sabatoge. It was because of her that the prospective 12th member was too afraid to join the group. It's true that Rachel's selfishness is acknowledged by her peers, but it's Will's responsibility to get tough with her. Will should care too much about his Glee club not to take major actions about it.
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