6x19 I Get A Sidekick Out of You

[6.1/10] Argh. I don’t know what else to say. This is the sort of episode that should be a treat, particularly with Amy Sherman-Palladino writing and directing. Richard and Emily’’s vow renewal, with its multiple moving parts and chances to dash around a party setting, paid real dividends for the show both comedically and dramatically, and this should be the same.

But it isn’t. The comedy is broad and hackneyed without that extra sparkle and pop that Sherman-Palladino normally brings. Bits about Kirk trying to get “yummy” bartenders, or Jackson and Sookie worrying about their babysitter, or “58 seats and 62 koreans” smack of hoary old comedy tropes without the clever dialogue to prop them up that the show’s creator usually brings to her scripts.

And you know, what? I didn’t even mind the Lane-Zach stuff. Sure, I’m skeptical at various people saying, “they’re going to be really happy” but whatever! It’s what you say at a wedding. There’s lots of great Kim family material in this one. I love that Mrs. Kim’s mother looks down on her life the same way that Mrs. Kim did with Lane, and that Lane is in a proud tradition of Kim family rebellion. I got a big kick out of Mrs. Kim trying to give Lane the birds and the bees talk, and their moment at the end of the ceremony (involving extra-thick earplugs) is very sweet. Heck, I even enjoyed Zach being too attached to his robe.

Plus, the show does a nice job of capturing the vibe of wedding toasts. It’s a small thing, but something about Brian razzing Zach for past goofy actions, and Rory reading a note Lane gave her elementary school feel so true to life and add that touch of verisimilitude to a very artificial and T.V. episode. Heck, even the background flirtation and hookup between Brian and Kyon is fun (plus Kyon gets a good burn on Lane via, of all things, Avril Lavigne vs. Joy Division).

But man, the show is trying so hard to make Lorelai/Chris happen, and to make Luke/Lorelai not happen, and it just doesn’t work. They’re trying to make Chris the adorable good dad type, and it just isn’t believable from the character or the performance. He’s supposed to be cute and/or unexpectedly dependable with Lorelai, when he’s tolerable at best.

And god, Lorelai here. I know I’ve railed about characters feeling out of character in this season, but even if you can accept Lorelai getting drunk at commandeering the mic to give a self-centered toast, the whole “I’m never getting married..especially not on June 3rd” bit is waaay too on the nose. I get what Sherman-Palladino is trying to do here, reflect Lorelai’s anxieties about being an old maid while people younger than her seem headed for wedded bliss, but there’s no nuance or subtlety to it.
So here we are, in a situation where it’s super convenient that Christopher is present when Luke was absent, and looks after Lorelai, and Lorelai will no doubt have a blow out with Luke over her not telling him (and presumably he finds out via Rory’s picture?), and he finds out that Christopher slept over, or god knows what else and we’re back in drama land.

Look, if you want to break Luke and Lorelai up for satisfying reasons, then just pull off the damn band-aid and do it already. I’m tired of having the show draw this out, pulling the characters further and further away from who they are and have been, and telegraphing Lorelai picking the guy who’s inexplicably turned into a saint over the guy who’s inexplicably turned into a jerk. Sherman-Palladino and company can do better.