Cordia's Review of S1E5 - Cinnamon's Wake

No More Clams

Cinnamon’s Wake

Season 1, Episode 5

Original airing: November 9, 2000

My Rating: 62

The Good:

This episode did a nice job of moving along the love lives of both Lorelais while giving us a glimpse into the soul of the town.

Rory’s story was incredibly awkward in parts, but that sort of fits her age. While I didn’t really like the bus or grocery store scene (I felt Dean came on too strong and confident), the idea of Rory being practically out of control around him felt true to her character. She doesn’t know what to do and when she finally blurts out that she’s interested, she then reacts by running away. Dean handles it all quite well and his smile at the end felt deserved.

Lorelai and Max are beyond adorable together. He really does understand her priorities concerning Rory, but he sees her as more than just a Chilton mom. I think it speaks well of him how much he pursues Lorelai and also his willingness to back off when he thinks she’s made up the cat funeral to avoid dating him. He’s a man who knows what he wants and is willing to work for it. But he’s not willing to circumvent Lorelai or Rory’s feelings, and that’s good.

I really enjoyed the Sookie vs Luke subplot. It makes perfect sense to pit them against each other since their both cooks/chefs who control their respective culinary worlds. It’s also entertaining to see Luke’s brusque nature contrasted against Sookie’s effervescent bubbling. I really love their accord at the end between some kind of puff and mom’s meatloaf.

I think the best thing about this episode was our first glimpse into the weirdness that is the overall nature of Stars Hollow. Babette and Morey hauling their oversized cat, Cinnamon, around town in a decked out Red Rider wagon was excellent. Especially because no one really seemed to bat an eye at it, other than Lorelai and Rory. But the real small town feel comes when Cinnamon passes away and what seems to be the entire neighborhood turns out in support for Babette and Morey. I was quite teary through most of the last third of this episode.

The Bad:

The thing I didn’t like about the bus and grocery store scenes was Dean. He’s not quite on the Tristan level of sexual harassment, but he does tease Rory into extreme discomfort while slightly violating her personal space. I think he’s way too comfortable and aware of himself for a 16 year old boy. His apology at the end feels very Hollywood. I just don’t think his character is very strong at this time and I don’t know what Rory sees in him.

Favorite Moment:

One of the highlights of this episode is how it shows the connections throughout the town. Even for something as strange as a cat funeral, everyone is supportive. I thought this was shown really well when Rory tells Morey she’ll never eat clams again and he starts to tear up. How strangely supportive of her! But extremely appreciated by Morey.

The Bottom Line:

Rory and Dean are on a good path, but definitely need some tuning. Their relationship is just a little too awkward right now. Lorelai and Max are quite fun to watch and this episode really worked for showcasing the tight-knit and understanding community of Stars Hollow.