Hello! Welcome to Return to Stars Hollow - a spoiler-free, retrospective podcast about Gilmore Girls! This is the podcast for Season 1, Episode 11 - Paris is Burning!
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| I know this is what all my break ups look like... |
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We'll be having a one week hiatus before the next episode. So, the next podcast will post on Monday, October 27, 2014 for Season 1, Episode 12 - Double Date!
So I bit the proverbial bullet, faced my irrational fear of Alexis Bledel and watched the pilot of Gilmore Girls.
ReplyDeleteNow while I still think Alexis Bledel is a doll magicked by some blue fairies to become a real girl, I actually really enjoyed the pilot. I don't find Rory to be the most compelling character because of the aforementioned fear and horrible taste in the opposite sex but she was cute. I want good things for her.
Mostly though because Lorelei wants good things for her. Lauren Graham really grounds this whole show and is so charming and likable. The writing is very sharp, the family dynamic interesting but I were to continue watching this show, which I might, it would be because of her.
But really though I want to talk about Sam - I mean Dean - I mean Jared Padalecki trying to be a bad ass despite the fact that he looks like he is twelve and that leather jacket is about fifty sizes too big. I actually like Jared Padalecki quite a lot on Supernatural, but dear God Dean is boring. I thought Rory did a really good job in not being able to talk to him but I was not picking up any reason why she should be so flustered by this guy. Not to mention that he doesn't know what creepy means. I think staring at someone every day and knowing their exact schedule when they have no idea who you are, qualifies creepy, even super creepy.
-Derek
Yay! Glad to have you aboard, Derek. I hope you do keep watching! Glad to see you have immediately sensed the weirdness that is Dean. ;)
DeleteHey! Great podcast! I'm Ashley (you can call me thatashgirl to avoid confusion with the other Ashley who has been commenting), a former Buffy rewatch listener/commentor, and I was so psyched to see that you guys started this Gilmore Girls podcast. I've been obsessed with this show for nearly 10 years. My cousin and I spent our teen years bonding over watching the DVDs, so it holds a great deal of sentimental value for me. It's so nice to see it getting so much love from the interwebs as of late. I could talk about the show for hours, but I'll try to keep my feedback as short and sweet as possible.
ReplyDeleteDouble Date
Since I have thoughts to mention on previous episodes, I'll just say this about the most current one. Sookie and Jackson are the most adorable couple ever.
Forgiveness and Stuff
-This is possibly my favorite episode of season 1. No time like the holidays to try and repair a few wounded relationships. All of the relationship moments, from Lorelai and Luke, to Emily and Richard, to that brief silent moment between Lorelai and her father are all just so great. Lorelai and Luke's "you look good" bit always makes me laugh, and that Santa burger...I melt every time. If someone ever makes me a Santa Burger, I'd probably marry them on the spot. Kidding, but only sort of. My favorite scene is probably the final scene at Luke's as she gives him the hat, and they watch the procession. I'm Team Lorelai/Luke all the way, so that scene is like Christmas. No holiday related episode pun intended.
A few questions come to mind about Lorelai and Richard's relationship. Throughout the series thus far, I've noticed how few times we ever have moments where we see just the two of them, without Emily or Rory. I have to wonder, were we to completely remove Emily from the equation, what sort of relationship Richard and Lorelai would have, both when she was a kid, and now. I feel like, to a certain degree, we only really see Lorelai's relationship with her parents through her and Emily, as Emily is much more outspoken and not shy about placing herself in Lorelai's business. I just have to wonder if maybe Emily has a tendency to speak for Richard when it comes to Lorelai, and how he may have handled everything that happened with Lorelai had he been doing it on is own in his more reserved style. Would Lorelai have stayed at home? Would she maybe have been less rebellious?
Rory's Dance
-The final scene. I'm always somewhat amazed that Lauren Graham isn't actually a mother in real life, because she plays the role of the concerned parent sooo well. And that fight. That's just spectacular acting.
Deer Hunters
-Love the deer gag, but the Rory driving thing always brings up a blatant continuity issue that always takes me out of the episode. Following the age timeline they establish in later episodes, as of this episode, Rory is only 15, meaning there is no way she would legally be able to drive. I can never get that thought out of my head when Lorelai hands her the keys.
Pilot
-Favorite pilot episode of a tv show I've seen yet. Wasn't the first episode of the show I'd seen, so maybe that affects my view of it. Saw it on DVD well after I got hooked. Side note: Gilmore Girls is the first TV series I ever owned on DVD. It actually was the show that introduced me to the fact that it was possible to buy TV shows on DVD.
Anyway, keep up the great work. Love the podcast.
Ashley
Are you the Ashley from the Buffy rewatch? I went by Ashlie M on that show to avoid confusion. Glad you decide to join us here. I also grew up watching this show as a teen and the reruns that they still play on ABC Family. About Rory driving, I just assume that maybe the driving age in Connecticut is lower. I know in CA you can get a permit at 15 1/2 and have your license by 16. I also thought it was a bit confusing though. Not as bad as their continuity of time.
DeleteI am the Ashley that left comments during the last couple seasons of Buffy Rewatch. Ashley is such a popular name that I've gotten used to finding other names to go by to avoid confusion. Haha. My 2 best friends my freshman year of college were named Ashley too. Somehow we always were able to tell each other apart, but the looks we got from people when they heard we all shared a name were great. Haha. I agree that it is entirely possible that the driving age issue is one with some variations in restrictions depending on the state. Not to mention the fact that driving restrictions are a lot different now than they would have been in 2001.
DeleteI have never been friends with another Ashley, nothing against it, just hasn't happened. But everyone I know has like 4 other Ashley's in their phone. Lol. It sucks having such a popular name. I have so many different nicknames that people call me. The popular one right now is Crashlie. Long story but if it has the word ash in it, people assume they can call you that. That's a good point about driving restrictions being different now. It's weird thinking Gilmore Girls was so long ago.
DeleteSomething kind of cool I just found, and never realized before. Going back to the Lorelais' First Day of Chilton, during the scene where they're driving through Stars Hollow on the way to Chilton, with the Sam Phillips song playing as Rory looks back at her old high school, when they show Lorelai, you can see her talking animatedly about something. Apparently, they originally had dialogue over this part, and if you listen really carefully, you can still hear some of what she says:
ReplyDelete"All I really need to be doing is vowing to never ever make a plan ever again, which I'm doing now. Having, once again, been the innocent victim of my own stupid plans. God, I need some coffee."
Obviously she's talking about the waking up late/no clean clothes incident. Seen that episode like a million times, and never noticed that before. Just thought I'd share.
Quick comment on hamsters. I've had 5 hamsters. My 4th hamster lasted the longest and his name was Spike. Cause I had a huge crush on Spike since season 5 of Buffy. lol. Usually the female hamsters are the more agressive ones, so get male ones. My hamsters were all good, I was just too young to take care of the first 3.
ReplyDeleteI like the beginning scene in the kitchen where we get to see their morning routine. It's nice seeing Lorelai trying to study because we have only heard that she's taking a business class, so this makes it feel more realistic.
I thought Rory and Dean kissing on the bench was awkward. Can't he ever just do what Rory wants without having to make a big deal about it first? I really like that we get to see Lorelai and Rory be the supporting friends of Sookie and Lane.
Jackson's reaction to seeing Sookie all dressed up was cute. Best moment is when Jackson is about to leave but she tells him to please stay and the look on his face was so delighted. I really like seeing the contrast to Jackson as opposed to Dean or Max. Jackson is just passive and doesn't make a move or pursue Sookie, he waits for her to ask him out. He doesn't take charge or try to force conversation during the date.
Poor Lorelai, Rune is such a jerk commenting on her height all the time. You think he'd be lucky to go on a date with someone who looks like her.
More talking during the movie. That's so annoying.
Poor Luke, he was so sweet playing cards and trying to ask Lorelai out. But then when she shows interest in the end he drops it.
Todd calling Lorelai a babe was funny and just what she needed since Rune was so rude.
I really liked the scene where Lorelai talks to Mrs. Kim. It's nice to see that Mrs. Kim really does want what's best for Lane and she takes Lorelai's advice into consideration since Lane can go outside for 15 minutes now. lol. It's funny when Lane says she can go as far as the sign then sees the sign and backs up.
Lorelai’s rational for not studying sounds eerily familiar. Not with the “I have arms and legs,” but with the “I like my life okay, why bother with memorizing boring stuff for class?” thing. I even had to write about the international business practices of Walmart from a strictly business perspective. And, yeah, it’s boring.
ReplyDeleteI want to see this place where spittoons are considered formal wear….or where anyone wears a spittoon.
That kitchen scene with Sookie and Jackson! Ack! Someone just ask the other out! I’m totally with Lorelai – just call him! But maybe with a little less babbling.
I love Michel’s unintentional inspiration. I don’t think it would work particularly well with me, but it seems to work for Lorelai.
Sookie panicking while getting ready is so cute. Dating can be scary, especially if you’re going out on a date with someone you really like. I feel more for her at the point in the episode than I do for Lane. They play the similarities well – neither girl wants to show how much they like their respective guys, both pulling in a Gilmore girl to try to stave off awkwardness, etc. But we’ve seen Jackson and Sookie interacting all season, so I’m looking forward to their date so much more.
Not fond of Rory lying to Lorelai. I guess it’s because of the trust the Lorelai has in Rory and the loose rules she has, but it seems like so much more of a betrayal of that trust than when Lane lies to her mom.
Sookie looks amazing. I don’t know how she did her hair, but I want my own Lorelai to do my hair and makeup.
I know they ask the question a few times, but what the heck is a Rune? He doesn’t seem like a real human being. I know some men, especially short men, don’t want to date women taller than themselves, but I’d hope they wouldn’t compare them to bearded ladies. Especially when it’s just one pseudo-date. I know the point of the character is to be obnoxious and weird, but they may have done too good a job. Why would you be at a French restaurant and ask if there’s anything there that’s not French?
I wish we had gotten more of the reasons Lane thought she liked Todd in the first place. We never see her interact with him or be around him in any way before the date. His hair isn’t even as wavy/flowy as that first guy’s. And he wears a hat, so she can’t run her fingers through it even if she wanted to. He is pretty close to the Surfer Dude that Robin likes so much, so he’s got that going for him, I guess.
Luke’s really is much better for a first date. A snooty French place just adds too much pressure. A date at Luke’s sounds amazing, especially if Luke is there to play cards with you. Stupid Mrs. Kim interrupting Luke’s attempt to ask out Lorelai.
I do like that while Lorelai doesn’t run her house like Mrs. Kim, she at least respects Mrs. Kim’s position of authority in her raising of her kid. I think it would be very easy for the show to have Lorelai bash Mrs. Kim’s restrictive attitude towards Lane, especially when she accused Lorelai of letting Rory run around with boys and is constantly derisive of Lorelai in general. I like that Lorelai takes the high road and realizes that if she wants people to respect her method of raising her daughter, she has to respect others’ methods, even if she doesn’t like it. But she still tries to connect to and get through to Mrs. Kim in private and out of earshot of the girls.
Rory got a page? Granted, she used Lorelai’s cell phone immediately afterword, but try explaining a pager to a teenager now. Makes you feel old.
So everything with Sookie and Jackson was cute and awesome and I loved it. Especially the scene when he is dropping off the carrots in the kitchen. It was awkward, but in a humorous way. Usually I dislike awkward humor, but this was good because it had a sweetness to it.
ReplyDeleteRune was horrible, and unless the character comes back later, was completely unnecessary. The date could have been with a nondescript boring guy that just didn't click with Lorelei, it didn't need to be so bizarre. And really, it makes Jackson's choice to stay and finish the date a no-brainer. If the cousin had been even moderately likeable, it would have shown how much Jackson is into Sookie.
Dean was a condescending jerk again, big surprise there. I feel like Todd and Rune should have gone bowling together. Todd was also horrible with no redeeming qualities, and I find it hard to believe that Lane would be "in love" with him. He wasn't even cute! He looked like he hadn't showered in a year.
I liked the scenes with Lorelai and Mrs. Kim a lot. Two moms with very different parenting strategies, having a discussion. And maybe she helped Mrs Kim see she was being a little harsh.
I had a hamster and she was very nice! But I also don't really think it's the best pet, especially for children, mostly because they sleep during the day, which is a bit of a bummer of course.
ReplyDeleteThe opening scene is one of my favourites, I just love how the camera tracks their movements as they get ready in the morning.
If I remember correctly in "Kiss and Tell" when Lane and Rory were dressed as pilgrims (or whatever) and talked about Dean, Lane already mentionend a Todd that Rory and Dean should set her up with when they get together. So if I didn't imagine that, I love that they bring that detail up again in this episode. But yeah, Todd is an idiot. Compared to him, Dean seems like a really bright boy; but then again, not so much, because he is friends with this guy.
When Dean says they work on their bikes together, does he mean bicycles or motorcycles? A muffler belongs to the latter, right? and I can't really picture them working on bicycles, so I'm thinking motorcycles. Did Dean lie to Lorelai when he told her he didn't have a motorcycle or did he get it after he started dating Rory?
Like everyone else, I love Sookie and Jackson, they are so cute. Rune is also an idiot, but at least they get a few funny moments out of it. Was he really expecting to meet the woman he would spend the rest of his life with or why is he so upset to be stuck with Lorelai for a few hours? Then just have a nice evening, sit there and be quiet, and don't talk about people while you're standing 2m away from them (that moment made Jackson look not so good, too, even though he does put Rune in his place which I liked).
I love Mrs. Kim, but it's a little sad that at this point she mostly comes off as a caricature of the (korean) strict, religious mother. I like the talk between her and Lorelai and that Lorelai tries to reason with Mrs. Kim while also respecting her parenting style and her right to that, but still, something about the scene and Lorelai's argument bothers me. Sadly, I haven't quite figured out yet what exactly.
I do love Mrs. Kim's line though, "I didn't throw away the key, it's in the kitchen", makes me laugh.
It's a good thing that Max broke up with Lorelai and that she seems to be completely over him, because otherwise her (great!) flirting with Luke would be really irritating again.
Lorelai's red ensemble at the end of the episode has to be one of the worst things she's ever worn, or will ever wear.