[8.7/10] Another outstanding episode. There’s a lot to unpack here, so let’s start with the B-stories.
Lane moving out of her mom’s house and into her own apartment is a really nice little plot. There’s so many well-done little details, from Lane’s cousin remaining silent downstairs but asking a million questions upstairs, to the bandmates moving in together and realizing they have no practical sundries, to the look on Lane and Mrs. Kim’s faces as the move becomes official. It nicely captures the panic of being on your own for the first time, and the exaltation for Lane when the simple act of saved room on the shelf means she has a space, and a place, of her own. This has been one of the best storylines this season, and each step continues to impress.
There’s also some nice B-plot comedy going on with Luke’s reaction to Kirk’s dog-walking business. Luke and Kirk have a certain Laurel and Hardy sort of dynamic that’s very entertaining, and Luke’s bewilderment and Kirk’s space-case commitment to everything brings the laughs.
And it’s not really a story, but I love the scene where Luke gives Lorelai the check for the $30,000 she needs, and Lorelai insists on dotting every “i” and crossing every “t.” It’s a very sweet moment, that speaks both to Luke’s willingness to help and Lorelai’s insistence on doing things the right way. The two are so good together, and it just makes me root for them to finally get together even more.
I was less on board with the Dean material. I like Dean well enough, but he’s never been an especially dynamic character. There’s meat in the idea that he has a completely unobjectionable homelife, where everyone is nice and caring to him, but he’s unsatisfied with it and still carries a torch for Rory. It’s just hard to take it as anything but WB-style melodrama, and I kind of cringe in anticipation of where it’s likely to go.
Still, the main plot of the episode is fascinating, funny, and touching all at once. It comes down to Richard and Emily quietly feuding, Rory and Lorelai reuniting after being separated in their busy lives, and those two paths intersecting at the mall of all places. As I’ve pretty well revealed in these write-ups by this point, I love when Gilmore Girls does these intergenerational story, and seeing the three Gilmore women (save Gran) break bread with one another is delightful and even affecting.
It’s amusing to see Emily, in an effort to get back at Richard (who was being a real shit) and his comment about her shopping habits by buying everything she wants at a department store. The way she performs a West Wing-style walk-and-talk in that store is remarkable, and her total command of the situation, while subtly revealing her distress, is amazing. There’s lots of great comedy writing there with how all three Gilmore Girls, not to mention the staff, react.
But there’s also some really good and warm interpersonal moments. The scene with the three of them at the food court is great, particularly when Emily offers her admiration for how well Lorelai handled her business call, and Lorelai chalking it up to learning that level of confidence and command from Emily herself. Lorelai’s reassurance to her mom that Emily “has a life” and people who love her is really sweet, and is another interesting brick in the wall for their complicated but strong relationship.
The ending of the episode is pretty damn great too, with Lorelai and Rory reunited and back to their old tricks. Their conversations about emails are amusing, and the way they can fall back into these old rhythms, despite the fact that they have to schedule their time now, is heartening as they verbally joust with Luke in his diner, i.e., their natural habitat.
It’s a striking contrast from the ensuing scene with Richard and Emily. It’s a well-composed sequence, with the physical distance between the two of them representing the emotional distance, and the ticking clock accenting the awkward silences and pregnant pauses that hang in the air. It’s also a well-written closer, where the glass apples, signifying Emily’s act of rebellion, goes entirely unnoticed by Richard, chalked up to another longstanding heirloom, and signifying the unseen feeling that Emily is grappling with. It’s a piercing juxtaposition, and one that portends difficult things for the elder Gilmores, in contrast to the righting of the ship with the younger ones. Let’s hope all four manage to work things out.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2017-11-10T03:45:13Z
[8.7/10] Another outstanding episode. There’s a lot to unpack here, so let’s start with the B-stories.
Lane moving out of her mom’s house and into her own apartment is a really nice little plot. There’s so many well-done little details, from Lane’s cousin remaining silent downstairs but asking a million questions upstairs, to the bandmates moving in together and realizing they have no practical sundries, to the look on Lane and Mrs. Kim’s faces as the move becomes official. It nicely captures the panic of being on your own for the first time, and the exaltation for Lane when the simple act of saved room on the shelf means she has a space, and a place, of her own. This has been one of the best storylines this season, and each step continues to impress.
There’s also some nice B-plot comedy going on with Luke’s reaction to Kirk’s dog-walking business. Luke and Kirk have a certain Laurel and Hardy sort of dynamic that’s very entertaining, and Luke’s bewilderment and Kirk’s space-case commitment to everything brings the laughs.
And it’s not really a story, but I love the scene where Luke gives Lorelai the check for the $30,000 she needs, and Lorelai insists on dotting every “i” and crossing every “t.” It’s a very sweet moment, that speaks both to Luke’s willingness to help and Lorelai’s insistence on doing things the right way. The two are so good together, and it just makes me root for them to finally get together even more.
I was less on board with the Dean material. I like Dean well enough, but he’s never been an especially dynamic character. There’s meat in the idea that he has a completely unobjectionable homelife, where everyone is nice and caring to him, but he’s unsatisfied with it and still carries a torch for Rory. It’s just hard to take it as anything but WB-style melodrama, and I kind of cringe in anticipation of where it’s likely to go.
Still, the main plot of the episode is fascinating, funny, and touching all at once. It comes down to Richard and Emily quietly feuding, Rory and Lorelai reuniting after being separated in their busy lives, and those two paths intersecting at the mall of all places. As I’ve pretty well revealed in these write-ups by this point, I love when Gilmore Girls does these intergenerational story, and seeing the three Gilmore women (save Gran) break bread with one another is delightful and even affecting.
It’s amusing to see Emily, in an effort to get back at Richard (who was being a real shit) and his comment about her shopping habits by buying everything she wants at a department store. The way she performs a West Wing-style walk-and-talk in that store is remarkable, and her total command of the situation, while subtly revealing her distress, is amazing. There’s lots of great comedy writing there with how all three Gilmore Girls, not to mention the staff, react.
But there’s also some really good and warm interpersonal moments. The scene with the three of them at the food court is great, particularly when Emily offers her admiration for how well Lorelai handled her business call, and Lorelai chalking it up to learning that level of confidence and command from Emily herself. Lorelai’s reassurance to her mom that Emily “has a life” and people who love her is really sweet, and is another interesting brick in the wall for their complicated but strong relationship.
The ending of the episode is pretty damn great too, with Lorelai and Rory reunited and back to their old tricks. Their conversations about emails are amusing, and the way they can fall back into these old rhythms, despite the fact that they have to schedule their time now, is heartening as they verbally joust with Luke in his diner, i.e., their natural habitat.
It’s a striking contrast from the ensuing scene with Richard and Emily. It’s a well-composed sequence, with the physical distance between the two of them representing the emotional distance, and the ticking clock accenting the awkward silences and pregnant pauses that hang in the air. It’s also a well-written closer, where the glass apples, signifying Emily’s act of rebellion, goes entirely unnoticed by Richard, chalked up to another longstanding heirloom, and signifying the unseen feeling that Emily is grappling with. It’s a piercing juxtaposition, and one that portends difficult things for the elder Gilmores, in contrast to the righting of the ship with the younger ones. Let’s hope all four manage to work things out.