The stars and the creative team behind the Fox musical dramedy speak with this week’s Entertainment Weekly about the phenomenon, the season finale, and beyond.  Glee’s ratings are stellar – in fact, since the show returned from a four-month hiatus and nabbed the prime slot behind American Idol, viewership has grown 70 percent, from 7.3 million to 12.4 million.  But it’s more than just a ratings hit: Glee has become the industry’s biggest story of the year.  It has spawned three albums, and the cast’s covers of songs like Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” routinely hit the top-downloads chart on iTunes the day after they drop.  And last week, the cast embarked on a four-city tour.  “I never thought the show would even last,” says co-creator Ryan Murphy.  “I just didn’t think people would get it.  It truly is a show that the fans think is theirs, that they discovered it.”

It’s difficult to fathom, then, that the original pilot script did not contain Sue Sylvester.  “On our first phone call, Kevin [Reilly, Fox Entertainment president] said, ‘You need a villain,’” remembers Murphy.  “And I said, ‘You know, you’re right.’  I knew exactly who she is.  I said, ‘Her name is Sue Sylvester.  And she is the cheerleading coach.  And she may be on horse estrogen.”

With those three sentences, a television icon was born.  Of course, Sue’s popularity has been helped immeasurably by the woman who sports the warm-up suits: Jane Lynch.  The 49-year-old character actress has become the prom queen of this year’s TV season, winning accolades and Gleek adoration.  Off screen, Lynch is also an out lesbian and is engaged to her girlfriend.  The actress says that she’s proud to be a role model for those viewers who face prejudice due to their sexuality.  “There are kids out in unnamed spaces where it’s not a welcoming atmosphere for their sexual orientation.  And to see somebody living their life open I think is a good thing,” she says.  “I wish I had had that when I was young.” Mostly, though, Lynch loves her day job, and says Glee’s success hasn’t changed much on the set.  “It’s been wonderful and surreal,” she says, but “we all still get up and go to work and do our thing.  The bottom line is we do it because we love it, and we’d be doing it if our ratings were in the toilet.”

The members of the fictional musical choral group New Direction will have their hands full in the last few episodes of season 1.  The season finale will have the matchup Gleeks have been waiting all year to see: New Directions finally face their adversaries, Vocal Adrenaline.  Lea Michele says filming the season ender was emotional for the cast and crew.  “We are just crying the entire final episode,” she remembers.  “I don’t know how [they’re going] to edit it.”

The question now becomes: Can Glee maintain the momentum now that it’s under the media microscope?  Murphy says he’s aware of the pitfalls.  “I told [the kids] at the beginning, ‘When you burn hot, there will always be a moment when they turn on you, and then they’ll come back around.  You just have to learn how to navigate it.’ Now you can feel we’ve gone from sort of America’s squeaky-clean sweetheart to ‘Leah Michele snubs photographer!’ Like, really?”

Despite the fact that many well-known actors and actresses have either appeared on Glee or openly pleaded for a role, Murphy plans to limit the number of guest stars next year and focus on his core players.  But there is one star who might be paying a visit to McKinley High just in time for the Christmas episode: Susan Boyle.  The Britain’s Got Talent runner-up and the Glee cast are conveniently on the same record label.  And who would she play?  “I have two words for you: Lunch. Lady,” quips Murphy.  “I think Kurt would just die to give her a Christmas makeover.”

Lynch isn’t completely sure what season 2 holds for Sue, but she’s enjoying the ride.  “There is a particular sweetness,” says Lynch of her later-in-life success.  “People always say, ‘Oh, you deserve this.  You’ve been working so hard for so long.’ You know, I never felt like that.  I never felt like my ship hasn’t come in, because I love what I’ve done.”

PLUS: THE LESSER-KNOWN GLEE-CLUB KIDS

Ever wonder who those other glee-club kids are?  Entertainment Weekly introduces some of the lesser-known scene-stealing members of New Directions.

Heather Morris, who plays Brittany, toured with Beyonce before landing Glee. I did the Beyonce Experience [tour] with her and when I came back, I started working with Zach [Woodlee], the resident choreographer for Glee. He kept hiring me for more things so I built a good relationship with him.  Then I went back with Beyonce and did ‘Single Ladies.’  When I was done, he called me and said, ‘I know you’re sick of that dance, but is there any way you could teach the [Glee cast]?”

When asked whether people think his character’s name is “Other Asian,” Harry Shum Jr. (his character’s name is Mike) says It’s a funny joke.  People really clung to that, but more and more it’s a balance.  Half know me as that, half know mea s Mike Chang.”

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