(S07E14) This was the one. This was the episode that pulled together all the pieces that resulted when Team Palladino smashed everything to bits at the end of season six, when Lorelai dumped an aloof Luke and fell into bed with Christopher. It's taken way, way too long to get to this point, but what I found very interesting about this episode is, despite the fact that I wasn't emotionally involved in the Lor-Chris-Luke triangle at all this year, this resolution to one of the sides of the triangle sucked me in and got me involved again.I think the dog funeral helped that out a little.
I like it when we see a lot of Michel and Sookie; it distracts the audience from wallowing in the relationship mishegas that AS-P generated late last year and David Rosenthal has been resolving ever-so-slowly. Even when Michel is in mourning, he's funny. Michel is officious, demanding, and never says the words "thank you" to anyone, but there's a reason why Sookie and Lorelai like him; they see a loyal friend underneath the snooty exterior. That's why they felt his pain about losing Chin-Chin, even though the dog was "obnoxious, aloof, and he bites." Yeah, they get snippy at him -- Sookie isn't happy about Michel saying "what if it was one of your kid's funerals?", and Lor told him to back off -- but they come through for him because they know he'll be there for them. I was just happy they didn't show the entire funeral, though the look on Zack's face when they asked him to play "My Heart Will Go On" was priceless.
Of course, "being there" was the running theme tonight; Logan is for Rory, and she's starting to like it and fear it. Chris wasn't there for Lor, and she eventually realizes that Chris is the person she "wants to want" but doesn't actually want.
More on those two in a jif. I really get tired of Rory's "goody goodi-ness" sometimes. She feels guilty about the whole silly Marty thing and now she feels she has to tell Logan about every time her heart goes aflutter over some guy in a corduroy jacket. Yeah, TA Tucker is right in her "handsome nerd" wheelhouse, and we might see more of him later, but for now, all it was was some minor palpitations and fumbled speech. Jeez, even Logan seemed a little exasperated by her, even when he tells her that he's not worried by them.
By the way, Paris' list is getting a little weird by now, isn't it? Belly dancing? I do like how Rory plays along but not really. She knows Paris so well, she realizes that humoring her is better than disagreeing with her. Though she did listen to Paris speculate that Logan was "tamed" by Rory. "I mean, he was on the Colin Farrel Expressway and about to pull into the Robert Downey Jr. rest stop." Funny line, even if the references were a bit obvious.
Ok, now to Lor and Chris. It's almost as if Chris said what every fan was thinking the last four months: that he took advantage of the situation, jumped in when Lor was vulnerable, and pushed her to marry him. Lor also said what fans were thinking for the last four months: she still has feelings for Luke, but she leaped into this thing with Chris, it never felt right, and as much as she'd like it to be otherwise, he's not the one. No shit! Both Lauren Graham and David Sutcliffe did a great job playing the breakup scene... we finally saw the Chris that Lor has loved for 20 years, and Graham just rocked the hell out of her end, bringing up emotions we haven't seen in Lorelai for quite a while. At the end of the breakup scene, all I could think of was "this is the first time all season where the Gilmore world felt right."
The chances of Lor cutting Luke completely out of her life were going to be pretty low, weren't they? Maybe if they lived in a big city, or 20 miles apart, she could lose his number. But their history and proximity was just going to be too much for her to bear. And we saw that when they waved to each other from either side of the diner window. Nicely done right there.
What do you think changed Lor from saying all the right things to actually feeling what we all knew she felt? Was it Rory telling her that she'd always be on her mom's side (the dynamic that would have always made Lor and Chris a lopsided family at best... Chris may be her dad, but Rory will always side with her mom)? Was it Sookie asking her if there was no Luke, would Chris have been the guy? Or was it Zack's moving rendition of Celine Dion? Let me know in the comments.
Now we just have to wait out the reconcilliation between Luke and Lorelai. At this point, I'd just be happy if she goes back to the diner; I've always loved the banter between them there.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
2-13-2007 @ 10:19PM
Diana said...
This was definitely the first real episode of the season. Rosenthal got stuck with this storyline and he's done his best to fix it. This was the best episode of the season no doubt. Here's hoping next week can return to true Gilmore Girls, minus all the annoying relationships.
My full comments at: http://www.mediaobsessed.com
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2-13-2007 @ 10:39PM
David said...
So what happened the last 20 minutes? I changed the channel. :(
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2-13-2007 @ 11:31PM
Pamela said...
Attention Rory---button your lip! Don't tell Logan every little thing you feel about being attracted to another guy. No matter how well he seemed to accept your confession and just brush it off, it will come back to haunt you--- it always does.
I hope this is the last time we have to see Christopher, ever. A nice quiet divorce, please, and let Lorelei make the move on Luke ASAP. As longtime GG fans, we have earned this guilty pleasure!!
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2-14-2007 @ 12:17AM
RedStarRevolution said...
I agree that Rory is waaaaaaaaay too much of a goody two shoes. Girl needs to get angry and lie sometimes, sheesh.
I also really hope that they leave Lorelai alone for a while. If she jumps right back with Luke it'll be like she's a ping pong ball, and someone who can't stand on her own feet, which is something she's all about.
But yes, this was the best GG episode of the year, and I hope there's more to follow...
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2-14-2007 @ 12:15AM
mary said...
i hope lorelai and luke get back together and stay together. i always wanted them together since day one of the show. i am so into this show. i can't think of anything else i watch on t.v. but this i will tape if i am not going to be home. i will marry luke.. lol he's a hottie.
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2-14-2007 @ 3:02AM
Sarah said...
If anyone is fan of the "handsome nerd TA" you can read an interview with him here - http://www.gilmoregirls.org/news/380.html
There are also a few really hot pictures of him. It looks like the show put a little effort into making him look extra nerdy.
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2-14-2007 @ 4:11AM
Bill said...
For some reason I thought the dog's name was Chim-Chim, named after the monkey on Speed Racer.
And "My Heart Will Go On" was surprisingly good. I thought it was going to be like that SNL sketch where a goth Will Ferrell pulled out a casio keyboard and played it over and over at the goth alterna-prom. Anyway, I think that's what set Lorelai off. I almost got a little choked up myself. Er, I mean... I changed the channel and watched boxing. Yeah.
http://popculturejunk.blogspot.com/
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2-14-2007 @ 7:38AM
Carole Moore said...
I am so glad they broke Chris and Lorelei up. My girls and I stopped watching GG when they put them together, now I can go back to the show. But please give Rory some bakcbone, when she breaks up with Logan, let that be. She deserves better and soon
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2-14-2007 @ 8:58AM
KC said...
Good commentary Joel - I very much enjoyed the episode too. Characters directly addressed the issues they had and for the first time I feel that Chris and Lorelai are really over. He isn't going to pop back up to turn her life upside down. There were a few laugh out loud moments too which has been sorely lacking as we got bogged down in the L/C stuff. I am really looking forward to next week.
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2-14-2007 @ 9:46AM
justelise said...
"What do you think changed Lor from saying all the right things to actually feeling what we knew she all felt?"
I think that part of what fed into that was her realizing that if Luke (through his diner) can even touch Michel, she was powerless to cut him out of her life. I think that Michel going into Luke's to get a burger to honor Chin-Chin just let her know that Luke plays an integral role in the lives of all of her friends, even the least likely to interact with him on a regular basis. Her chances for successfully cutting Luke out of her life without making her friendships with various townies awkward and uncomfortable were slim. She was raging against leaving Stars Hollow since the moment she returned from France with Christopher. I'm sure it wasn't because she wanted to maintain awkward and uncomfortable friendships with the townsfolk because she would have to cut Luke out of her life just to make Chris happy.
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2-14-2007 @ 10:24AM
jDub said...
Joel, I completely agree - best episode of the season. Finally! The dialogue was crisp but not overdone, we got Paris, Sookie and Michel, Richard and Emily, Rory having an adorable crush on an adorable guy, and Lorelai showing real emotions when she has seemed almost frozen for a year. I had to pause my Tivo because I laughed so hard at Paris: "Let's make them get tattoos. It'll be like we're branding them." A very satisfying hour. Bring on next season!
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2-14-2007 @ 10:44AM
homerj312 said...
You people finally like an episode because what you want to happen finally happened. It's like everyone thinks that they are the writer for this show now and that they know better than the real writers how the story should go. I can't wait til next week when something happens that you didn't want to see happen and you all trash the show again, its going to be fun.
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2-14-2007 @ 10:49AM
CastingGod said...
To all of you who think this is over..WRONG,, you really have to watch the promos. Chris is not done yet, since LOR will be with HIS Child. It will take a few weeks,but it;s coming. The promo was at the beginning of the season. If, you've TVIO'd look again. Scene with Lor and Emily.
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2-14-2007 @ 11:20AM
gail said...
Whew! thank god it was a pet
i only taped the last 10 minutes and when i heard chris ask how was the funeral, i thought the dad died!
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2-14-2007 @ 12:28PM
marah said...
I totally commend the writers for having the vision and forebearance to think this whole story out, and make it so real, and so painful. Most dramas would take the easy route, or have it be so much more obvious, and the truth is that, in real life, it's a lot harder than that, and it's not always so black and white. it is someone being 90% right, but that's just not enough, and that's definitely something we rarely, if ever, see on tv, and it's awesome that they addressed that here.
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2-14-2007 @ 12:43PM
tiffany said...
I'm glad christopher got to explain himself and they didn't COMPLETELY assasinate his character (although still, he's done a complete 180 from the beginning of the season). As one of the very few Chris-Lor fans, they deserve an actual resolution.
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2-14-2007 @ 4:04PM
Cindi said...
Glad to see Lor tell the truth to Christopher. He's just not even fun or interesting to watch and hopefully he'll go away and show up only on occasion...like Rory's birthday or wedding. Rory is Rory...why does everyone want her to be nasty? She is the epitome of what every parent wants their child to be....besides that, Lor wouldn't have raised a daughter that played games with people. More scenes with Luke would be nice....as well as all the other cast....i.e. Stars Hollow itself.
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2-14-2007 @ 6:15PM
Lisa said...
I agree, I thought this was a good episode. I'm also a chris-lor fan. I think he actually is awesome for her and she really brings out the quirkiness in him. I hope we haven't seen the last of chris, I think he is pretty HOT!
I hope that Logan and Rory stay together. I think they have come a long way and are perfect for each other. Paris' comment about having the boys get a tattoo was funny!
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2-14-2007 @ 5:10PM
Carson said...
Yes, this was the episode where they finally salvaged and restored what made the show great initially. It's been 2 years (when Luke absurdly and uncharacteristically dogged on Lor during Feb 2005 sweeps) since we've had the GG we know and love. Dave and company seem to have finally pulled this out of the ditch and back onto the road. I honestly didn't think they would do it, or could do it, I was just going to watch it crash into the series finale like a train wreck.
It took time and they didn't take the easy way out (e.g. they could have just made Chris a complete jerk) and I appreciate it.
Now - if they can get back to the quirky, light-hearted, fun nature that made me fall in love in the first place, AND STAY THERE, I'll be happy. Kirk is a great barometer, btw, for how they're doing on the fun-factor. We haven't seen vintage Kirk for ages! And where's Taylor? For a "dramedy" we've had our 2 years of drama medicine, time to amp the comedy back up.
About Rory being too goodie-2-shoes, it's her character and it's part of why we love her. I mean, I'm rolling my eyes with you, but not at the writers or the character, but at Rory, and that's part of the fun.
These last 2 episodes have finally been the good old GG we had before the Palladinos got bored (or spiteful?) and ran it into a ditch.
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2-18-2007 @ 12:27PM
Judy said...
I loved the episode too but noticed no one brought up Logan waiting for his "10:00 Coffee" (he was also checking e-mails or texting someone while talking to Rory)and then when Rory brought up the TA and the crush she had on him logan was fine with it. He had a fit with Marty.
I think Logan has something going with someone else. Alot of men when they are playing around make sure they call alot so you won't call when they are with the "other person". I think there was a reason for all the banter about how Rory and Paris tamed their men. The break-up is inevitable. Tucker, the TA is more Rory's type, kinda nerdy, into books and doesn't have Trust Fund. Although I think Logan may lose his when he buys a company his Dad doesn't want him to buy.
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