Hello! Welcome to Return to Stars Hollow - a spoiler-free, retrospective podcast about Gilmore Girls! This is the podcast for Season 5 - Wrap Up.
You can direct download the episode here: S5End Podcast
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The next podcast will post on Thursday, August 10, 2017 for S6E1 - New and Improved Lorelai.
The Lorelai vs Rory storyline feels unbalanced to me. By the end of the episode I know how Lorelai feels, but Rory is still a mystery.
ReplyDeleteLorelai goes from stunned, to trying not to think about it, to expressing confidence she clearly doesn't feel, to turning it all on her parents-- but the last scene of the episode is where we see that her underlying emotion about it is heartbroken.
Rory also expresses a variety of emotions through the episode: acting confident with Paris, excited about slothhood, anxious when asking where Lorelai is during the court date. But there's no scene of Rory by herself that tells me what she really thinks about all this.
The way she's acting is pretty out of character for the Rory we know. She seems content to go along for the ride and let her grandparents run things, she doesn't want to do anything in particular except be a sloth. When she meets with her lawyer, she asks one question and no follow-ups. That's not Rory the planner. Are the writers trying to tell us that Rory's suffering from depression?
I like it when the writers pair up two characters who don't normally interact: in this case, Luke/Paris and Emily/Michel. I'd never thought of it before, but Luke and Paris both rant a lot! The similarities between Emily and Michel are more obvious, but it's pretty fun to watch Emily match wits with someone who can out passive-aggressive her.
I can't believe we're already in season 6. I'll try to make this the last time I say this, but I used to hate this part of the series, but now I love it and I'm here to defend it. I'm really excited to get into it and hear everyone's opinions.
ReplyDeleteI can't really argue with what Ellie says about Rory in this episode, but it didn't bother me. The way I read it is that she's lost, she made this decision and she's trying to stick with it. She doesn't really want to think about it. So I think it makes a lot of sense that she goes along with anything and anyone who supports her in this. The one point where the change in Rory's behaviour really struck me was at the party when she went dancing. Just remembering earlier Rory not liking parties and not knowing what to with herself, but people do change and she's been with Logan a while now so it makes sense that she gets more comfortable in these situations too.
I also loved Paris. Her line about Rory being her only friend, she doesn't leave the room until I'm done talking, was really great and sad at the same time. It's also very Paris that she's looking at this mostly from her own perspective. She's not arguing with Lorelai that it would be good for Rory to go back, it's good for Paris, she needs her.
We've heard so much about what a great person Rory is, and this was just a small mistake that won't happen again, it's no big deal. I love that we get the judge here giving a different perspective. It is a big deal and just because Rory is young and white and beautiful and goes to Yale and her grandparents are rich, it doesn't mean that she can do what she wants and live without any consequences for her actions.
I can see where Lorelai is coming from, but I think she's in the wrong here. Her not coming to the court date is a big deal. She's the one cutting Rory off right now because she doesn't agree with her. It's easy to see how her relationship with her parents came to be the way it was. They all tend to go to the extreme and are incredibly stubborn once they've made up their minds about something.
The last scene is heartbreaking though. Lauren Graham is so good at crying and the way she pulls herself together again when Luke comes in.
Fashion question: Is Richard always wearing the gold necklace he's wearing to bed? I don't think he does or at least I never noticed it. It's such a weird choice for the character.
I just listened to the Season 5 - Wrap Up Podcast and want to offer my two theories about two characters which may impact how one might view them going forward.
ReplyDelete1. Marty. The character Marty is on the high-functioning end of the Autism-Asperger Syndrome Spectrum. (Think Bill Gates or Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory.) This would explain the way he speaks, his lack of eye contact and occasionally awkward social interactions. I think Rory somewhat gets him and is kind to him.
2. Mitchum Huntzberger - When Mitchum Huntzberger offered the internship to Rory it was part of an evil plan that was developed after the introductory dinner with Rory and the Huntzbergers.
I, too, took the concern that Logan's mother and grandfather expressed about Rory wishing to live as a career journalist (traveling the world, following stories wherever they take her, etc.) at face value.
I also believe that the writers intended to show the power and finesse of Mitchum Huntzberger and his ability to the problem by giving Rory an internship then telling her she didn't have "it" thereby pushing her to consider stepping off of the path to journalism and on to the path of becoming the kind of wife (unpaid manager of family, home and social lives while maintaining perfect hair, make-up and wardrobe) they all believe Logan will need. It worked! Moreover, I believe that Logan was complicit. I think he was surprised by what was said at dinner. I think after he dropped off Rory after the dinner to go think that he actually called home. I think that the evil plan was explained to him and that he was in agreement. Upon hearing the plan, he was relieved of all concerns and was happy to resume spending happy time with Rory. After all, Logan is a clever fellow and is used to getting what he wants. Also, in the very end, as Rory noted, Logan did not say his father was wrong in his assessment of her potential as a successful journalist - even making the feedback so vague and subjective that there would be nothing she could do to remedy the concern. It makes one wonder if this sort of steering bumped Emily from the path of which she may have dreamed for herself when she was a younger woman.
Lastly, regarding the break from Yale, I agree with Rory that in certain communities, a break from attending classes to explore academic and professional options and goals is not uncommon. Gap Years are even encouraged and valued at some institutions.
BTW, to Mareike's fashion question about Richard, I'm going to think of it as his version of a shoulder blade tattoo.