'Glee' is back, and it's better than ever

When TV producers tell you their show is coming back bigger and better than ever, you generally want to take that with a grain of salt.

However, in the case of "Glee," it's absolutely true. After a four-month absence, the show returns Tuesday. And the next three episodes are bigger and better than the first 13.

More music. Better production numbers. More laughs and drama. Better continuity.

But it's still the same "Glee." It's still full of heart.

"I think we locked into a one-of-a-kind mixture of heart and soul that makes you root for these people," said executive producer Ryan Murphy.

But "Glee" is better, in no small part because the show's producers and writers have a better grasp on what they're doing. It wasn't like there was a template for a successful weekly musical.

"I think we are making the storytelling and the music go together in a more organic way because we've had more experience to figure this out," Murphy said. "When we started, none of us had done a musical before, so it was a real learning curve."

Viewers will quickly notice that there's more music.

"Last year, it was odd that some episodes would have two musical numbers and some would have six," Murphy said. "So I think in this season, so far it's one number an act minimum."

And, with the exception of the first episode — which aired in May 2009 — all of the first 13 episodes were produced before any of them aired. And the producers learned what worked and what didn't after the fact.

They were thrilled that the stories of Kurt (Chris Colfer) and his father (Mike O'Malley) and Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) and her sister were so well received.

On the other hand, Terri's (Jessalyn Gilsig's) hysterical pregnancy wasn't popular. Particularly playing out at the same time as Quinn's (Dianna Agron's) real pregnancy.

"I feel people got a little babied out, so in the back nine (episodes), other than the birth of Quinn's baby, you won't really see that much of it," Murphy said.

Fans will also notice that the show sort of backs up a bit and starts over.

"When we did episode 13, for all we knew, it was a series finale," Murphy said.