“This is your party. You do not work. You lounge and mock those who are. Have I taught you nothing?”
One Sentence Recap: This year Rory gets two parties for her birthday: one fancy-shmancy soirée gone wrong, and one classic Lorelai blow out.
My Commentary: It’s Friday night and Emily has asked the girls to roam about the house, putting sticky notes on anything they would like to be left to them in her will. The girls are significantly weirded out, nevertheless they proceed. When Rory reiterates that she’d be happy with anything her grandmother leaves her, Emily insists that they should have what they want, a surprisingly logical rationale. Which leads me to question, why haven’t I been asked to put sticky notes on what I’d want from my grandparents? Is it insensitive to inquire about that giant candy cane that hangs over the fireplace at christmas or how about that nice, soft peacock blanket? ….Dibs?
Despite Lorelai’s pleading to give Rory a night off, Emily won’t budge. She stands firmly and announces that she’ll be throwing Rory a party on Friday. This alone doesn’t sound too bad, but if you factor in the inevitable dress code and pomposity it makes for a less than desirable way to for a sixteen year old to spend her birthday. Then add in the fact that Emily invites Rory’s entire class at Chilton, nemeses included, without asking or telling her. This is looking like the makings for a good ol’ Emily vs. Lorelai brawl.
Plot twist: as it turns out Lorelai isn’t the one throwing punches this time. In fact, she and her mother are…getting along *gasp* Noticing this, Rory doesn’t want to ruin the peace, so she sensors herself, only letting her mom know that she’s had a rough day with a vague comment: “I’ve now used the word suck so much that it’s lost all meaning to me.” However this strategy backfires when Rory looses it at the party when Emily asks her to make a toast. Rory chews out her grandmother for making the party all about herself, and while Rory may feel badly immediately after the showdown, I find myself wanting to applaud. Good job standing up for yourself, kid.
The next day is the Stars Hollow version of Rory’s birthday. This one is basically Lorelai Gilmore in party form… so, awesome. The entire town gathers and makes it a perfectly kooky night. Rory gets a cake with her face on it and disappointingly fails at blowing out all of her candles in one breath. C’mon! You’re sixteen now Rory, man up! It’s probably her lack of athleticism showing… But what concerns me more, is that when she leans over to blow out her candles, her hair and pink feather boa very nearly catch on fire. I’ve probably seen this episode dozens of times, yet this fact still gives me anxiety every time I watch. Watch out,careful not to pull a Sookie! Also, another random observation: who are all of these other high-school-aged friends gathered by the presents and cake? I mean, Rory is the most likable kid around, but we literally only ever see her socializing with Lane in Stars Hollow, and surely she hasn’t made half a dozen good friends at Chilton yet.
The party is a blast, and ends with a nice Rory and Dean moment, but let’s quickly rewind to two moments from this episode that I’m absolutely obsessed with yet seemed to half overlooked. Firstly, when Lorelai is waiting for Rory at Luke’s after her successful outing with Emily, she and Luke share some flirtatious banter, the kind of banter that makes you forget they claim to be just friends. Lorelai walks in and upon seeing no Rory says to Luke, “well you’re going to have to entertain me until she arrives. Ok, Burger Boy, Dance.” To which he promptly responds, “will you marry me?” Yes, it’s an obvious fake out. He was just looking for “something to shut [her] up,” but ohhhh myyyy gossshhh it’s little moments like these that make me want to skip straight to season five.
Also, I cannot go through this episode without highlighting the perfect birthday speech that Lorelai gives cuddled in bed with Rory at precisely 4:03 a.m. It’s obvious it happens every year because Rory knows exactly what to expect, finishing her mother’s sentences. This quick seen says everything about their symbiotic relationship. I won’t do any justice by attempting to paraphrase it, so here you go (or listen/watch for yourself!):
“And it’s so hard to believe that at exactly this time many moons ago, I was lying in exactly the same position, only I had a huge, fat stomach and big fat ankles and I was swearing like a sailor and there I was in labor. And while some have called it the most meaningful experience of your life, to me it was something more akin to doing the splits on a crate of dynamite. And I was screaming and swearing and being surrounded as I was by a hundred prominent doctors, I just assumed there was an actual use for the cup of ice chips they gave me. There wasn’t. But pelting the nurses sure was fun…”
For years now I have always associated the pain of labor with doing the splits on dynamite because of this monologue. Oof, that sounds painful. Any mothers out there care to confirm or deny?
One more quick question: Is anyone else craving a “rasquat” after watching this episode? Words cannot describe what I would give to try a rasquat. Science, get on this! Are you going to let a fictional character one-up you?
Who Won the Episode? Lorelai Gilmore! It was a close race, but I’m going to have to give this one to Lorelai. She was the all around winner in my book. To recap, she spent time with her mother without getting that shooting pain in her eye, after the Rory-Grandma falling out she managed to persuade Emily to attend their little party, she threw the birthday party of all birthday parties and she didn’t let Rory help with set up at all. No matter which party she’s at, you just can’t help but want to hang out with her in this episode. She’s a peach.
Tie for Runner Up: Emily Gilmore and Luke Danes!
Emily Gilmore was so close here! She was making such strides early in the episode. She served pudding! She served “hospital food” in a freaking crystal dish for goodness sake. What a selfless deed. AND she reached out to Lorelai for help with Rory’s gift. That’s saying something. She wanted to get a present that she would love for real, not just out of politeness and obligation.
She was doing so well, but it all came to a crashing halt when she threw a ridiculously over the top party for her granddaughter when what she really wanted was to be able to spend the night with her family, friends, and neighbors in her home–the full Stars Hollow treatment. But did Emily respect her wishes? Nope. Instead, she forced “host” a fancy cocktail-esque party and invited everyone that she hates from Chilton without even telling her! Not cool. She even went so far as to purposefully refuse Rory’s invitation to their low-key gathering simply to make a point. By the end, however, she was redeeming herself. Despite, her original decision to boycott, Emily did attend the second party, and after seeing the warm and inviting home that Lorelai created without her, Emily admits that maybe she doesn’t know her daughter as much as she claims to. Recognition is the first step to recovery. Emily could have walked away with the title this week, but the whole party hoopla is just too big of an affair to forgive just yet.
Luke Danes is another contender. His appearances may have been minimal but they proved very memorable. Mr. Grumpy-Pants-Luke actually baked a homemade coffee cake and blew up balloons for Rory on the morning of her birthday because he does care (sidebar: watch the coffee cake in this scene for some fun continuity errors; her slice jumps from being full to crumbs and back in seconds. Ohhh the joys of shooting meal scenes).
We’re getting sneak peaks into Luke’s big old softy side, and I’m loving it. And let’s not forget he literally saved the party by bringing more ice! Which also earned him a hug from big Lorelai that sparked not only my attention, but Emily’s too.
So like, how much longer do we have to wait to see more of where this is coming from? Oh, right MAX is still around! Can’t forget him!
Gilmore-ism Guide
- Barbara Hutton: American socialite, heiress and philanthropist, who was dubbed the “Poor Little Rich Girl,” first when she was given a lavish and expensive debutante ball in 1930, amid the Great Depression, and later due to a notoriously troubled private life
- Britney Spears: American singer, established as a pop icon and credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s. She’s known for this, but also this….
- Edith Wharton: American novelist famous for her works The Age of Innocence and Ethan Frome, which examine the world of the privileged
- Farrah Fawcett: American actress known especially for her big hair and red swimsuit poster
- Freaky Friday: A novel by Mary Rodgers in which a teenage girl and her mother switch bodies for a day and learn to understand each other better. It is also the name of two Walt Disney movies based on the book. The 1976 version stars Barbara Harris and Jodie Foster. The 2003 film stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan
- Henny Youngman: Popular comedian in the 1950s, famous for the line “Take my wife–please”
- I Love Lucy: black-and-white American TV series that ran from 1951 to 1957 about the wacky Lucy Ricardo wife of Cuban bandleader Ricky Ricardo. Often cited as “the most influential sitcom of all time”
- Justin Timberlake: American singer, songwriter, and actor. He appeared on the television show Mickey Mouse Club as a child, rose to fame through performing in the boy band NSYNC and now has a successful solo career
You've Been Gilmored! 