‘Glee’ season 5 spoilers: A look at Lea Michele, Naya Rivera, and many more

Odds are, you are still in the process right now of waking up from a “Glee” finale haze. Thursday night was a strange episode, and not necessarily for all of the right reasons. Rachel Berry’s story was somewhat marginalized, which is the first time that we’ve ever been able to say anything remotely of the sort for a “Glee” finale. Not only that, but the entire New York crew was largely shafted as we saw New Directions unsurprisingly earn their third straight trip to Nationals. The only two moments that genuinely came as a surprise? Seeing how Unique was the one who catfished Ryder (though Marley lied about it at first), and then finding out the way in which Heather Morris’ Brittany was going to leave the series for a while.

What we are trying to do here is figure out where the stories go next for all of the people remaining … that is, if they get enough screen time to make it happen. Given the way in which the season was broken up, we expect almost everyone currently in high school back for more, with the possible exception of Vanessa Lengies given that she has a pilot over at ABC. (Note: This is all speculation, but based on solid evidence.)

Rachel – There’s a part of us that wants to celebrate Rachel if she lands the role in “Funny Girl,” but there is also admittedly just as much of a part of us that wants to see her fail. Sound cruel? It’s not intended to. What we mean is that this year has all come pretty easy for Rachel save for having a nasty boyfriend. Sometimes, the biggest breaks come in unsuspecting places.

Kurt – Chris Colfer and Darren Criss are almost sure to have more scenes together after that engagement-themed cliffhanger, which probably has Klaine fans shaking their TVs like a magic 8 ball hoping for another result.

Santana – We’re going to say it, and not because we want to see Brittana fans cry: Santana will probably get a new love interest. With Brittany off the show for a while, it only makes sense that she would try to move on. We’re not saying it’s permanent … so don’t turn into a singing / dancing version of the Hulk just yet.

Puck / Mercedes / Mike – Good luck getting any airtime at all next year, unless the show shifts from their current plan.

Ryder – There is still enough of a story left to tell for Blake Jenner to be back. “Glee Project” aside, we also think that he gave the best performance of any new cast member this season.

Marley / Jake – Moving on, since we’re bored by them now. The same goes for most of New Directions, since it’s hard to talk about characters who are obviously still in high school.

Joe Hart – This is the only real question mark among the current students, given how little of him we saw. Samuel Larsen has made it clear that he wants to return, but Ryan Murphy and / or the people budgeting the show were willing to make him disappear recently. We think he will be back, but only as a background player.

If you want more scoop on what could be coming up, Jacob Artist also shared recently some of his thoughts on what the new season will bring. One clue: There is no mention of anyone rapping. (Cheers to that.)

Photo: Fox