Cordia's Review of S3E5 - Eight O'Clock at the Oasis

Eight O’Clock at the Oasis

Season 3, Episode 5

Original airing: October 22, 2002

My Rating: 58

The Good:

The highlight of this episode was definitely Rory and Jess’ scene at the end. Not only were they displaying some incredibly intense eye contact, but it was nice to see them being friendly again. I really liked Jess stepping in to help out when Rory obviously wasn’t going to ask him. And I found it very intriguing that he took the nice guy route and turned the water back on so Dean could play the hero. In the past, he probably would have hung around and made a big deal about saving the day before Dean arrived. But here he actually gets out of the way to help Rory avoid a fight.

Other moments I really enjoyed in this episode were both of Michel’s scenes and Richard protecting Emily’s lifestyle.

Michel got to actually do something a bit significant this episode and it was very enjoyable. I wasn’t at all surprised to find Michel not only enjoys auctions but sees them almost as a sport. He has specific requirements to help maintain his focus and strategies for when to bid.

I always enjoy the small moments when Richard displays just how much he cares for Emily. We’ve had a few of these in the past where he seems to just understand her and her needs in a way that only a long married couple can do. While I think he’s phone call to Lorelai was abrasive and he’s attempting to handle the matter in a very heavy-handed manner, the fact that he is attempting to handle the matter at all was significant. He doesn’t care about Emily’s first cup of tea except for the fact that she cares about it. And he’s going to do whatever he has to do to help her be happy.

Some specific moments I enjoyed revolved around a lot of the characters teasing each other in different scenes. I thought the dialogue was particularly good this episode for many people.

·         Rory teasing Luke about the breastfeeding child

·         Rory teasing Lorelai about liking the guy at the auction and her ridiculous phone conversation

• Emily teasing Lorelai about what will be in the auction
• Emily and Rory ganging up on Lorelai at the first Friday Night Dinner to tease her about liking Peyton
• Richard teasing Emily about all of the antique furniture in their house

The Meh:

While there wasn’t anything particularly terrible in this episode, I did feel like both major plot storylines were just not very funny. Jon Hamm was unfortunately not very engaging in his short interaction with Lorelai. I actually felt like he was brushing her off, so it was weird to see her pursuing a date so intently.

I thought the new neighbor, Dwight, was the type of over-the-top Stars Hollow that we get at times. He really lays it all out there immediately about his miserable life before the Oasis and how greatful he is to Lorelai for watering the lawn. There’s absolutely no subtlety to this storyline which becomes more and more apparent when we get inside the themed home and have to hear the very loud and abusive voicemail left by his wife.

Favorite Moment:

My favorite moment is definitely Jess turning the sprinkler back on in silence and stepping out of the way. It was surprisingly sweet to see him do that.

The Bottom Line:

Overall, I enjoyed some moments of this episode, but it just didn’t hit for me in the way I think it was intended. It seems like this was supposed to be a very funny filler episode and I mostly snoozed through it waiting for the Jess and Rory scene at the end.