Gilmore Girls premiered on The CW on October 5, 2000, and became a flagship series for the network. Audiences loved Amy Sherman-Palladino's quirky, sometimes hard-to-follow, quick-witted dialogue that was a hallmark of the series, and the talented showrunner went on to create another fast-paced comedy, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, that included the same trademark sardonic and scintillating wit.
Arguably, later seasons of Gilmore Girls fell off the wagon, so to speak. Still, the worst episode of Gilmore Girls is the one that took Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel) from a confident, capable go-getter and turned her into an unfortunate victim. "Blame Booze and Melville" stands as the worst episode because it was character assassination against Rory.
Lorelai (Lauren Graham, Evan Almighty), 32 years old, has always done things her way. Raised in a world of money and cotillions, she was wilder than the other girls. Pregnant at age 16, she chose her own path, and, in true style, walked with flawless posture right out the door. With fire and determination, Lorelai has worked her way up from maid to manager at the historic Independence Inn, all while keeping sight of her dream to open her own inn with best friend Sookie (Melissa McCarthy, Samantha Who?)
, the hotel's hopelessly clumsy culinary genius. Lorelai's 16-year-old daughter, straight-A student Rory tries to prove herself at the exclusive Chilton Preparatory School, a daunting new world of girls with attitudes and boys with shiny cars. But when Rory meets Dean, the attraction hits her like a ton of bricks and single mom Lorelai begins to notice in Rory her own dreams and rebellious youth.
Rory Gilmore is a Motivated and Confident Character on 'Gilmore Girls'
Gilmore Girls followed the lives of single mother Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her teenage daughter, Rory, in their fictional town of Stars Hollow. Lorelai had Rory at sixteen and was estranged from her parents until she allowed them to get to know Rory and help pay for her private school tuition. In exchange for tuition, Lorelai and Rory must have dinner with Emily (Kelly Bishop) and Richard Gilmore (Edward Herrmann) every Friday night so that they may get to know their daughter and granddaughter better.
The premise of the show is about the different mother-daughter dynamics: Emily and Lorelai are always in conflict and have very different views on life, andin opposition to that, Lorelai and Rory are BFFs.
Rory's intellect and drive are hallmarks of her character. She attends a prestigious prep school where she is constantly rivaling the competitive Paris Geller (Liza Weil) for the top position in the class. In the early seasons, Rory is focused and determined. She dreams of being a journalist and does everything she can to achieve that dream, including setting her eyes on attending Harvard.
While she is accepted into every Ivy to which she applies, Rory ultimately chooses her Grandfather's alma mater, Yale, and is seemingly on a path to success. Sure, Rory has bumps in the road, mainly in the form of love interests and other typical teen troubles, but she always seems humble and grateful. She works hard, and with the help of her well-off grandparents, Rory is rewarded with every opportunity imaginable. Despite her immense privilege, Rory always seemed deserving of her fortunes. However, in Season 5, Episode 21, "Blame Booze and Melville," this all changes.
"Blame Booze and Melville" Assassinates Rory Gilmore's Character
To preface, Rory certainly could have been better in previous seasons. She had an affair with her married ex-boyfriend Dean, which was a significant departure from her honest, moral character, but it did reveal her to be just as imperfect and human as the rest of us. Shows need conflict, and the conflicts that Rory and Lorelai faced changed appropriately as Rory grew up.
However, in Gilmore Girls Season 5 Episode 21, "Blame Melville and Booze," the series fails Rory completely. This isn't just conflict to drive the narrative;it completely dismantles everything Rory was to viewers. Rory was fallible, sure, but she was never one to give up.
In Gilmore Girls Season 5, Rory begins an internship at a newspaper owned by Mitchum Huntzberger (Gregg Henry), her boyfriend Logan Huntzberger's (Matt Czuchry) father. She assists Mitchum and learns her way around the news office. The beginning of Episode 21 shows a confident Rory navigating the ins and outs of the bullpen with ease. She sets up a staff meeting and joins the team during the meeting, while Mitchum leads.
After the meeting, Mitchum offers Rory feedback on her internship now that it has ended. He tells her that he has mentored many young people in his day, and in his opinion, she doesn't have what it takes to be a journalist. He tells her journalists need tenacity, and that from what he has seen, she doesn't have the gumption to cut it.
Watching this episode of Gilmore Girls years later, this moment hits differently. Mitchum is one hundred percent right in his assessment. The Rory who showed up and did "what was asked of her" does not have what it takes to cut it in journalism. He points out that she had the perfect opportunity to offer her thoughts in the staff meeting, which she didn't do. Her response is defensive, saying she didn't know if she should and is just an intern. He then explains that someone with the guts and determination to make it in the news world would have spoken up if only to be noticed.
This pivotal moment in Gilmore Girls takes Rory from a persistent (even if flawed) go-getter to a dejected victim. Instead of taking the opportunity to evaluate herself honestly (a challenging task for anyone), she is defiant and petulant. She takes his words as gospel and decides not to fight but to accept his limited view of her. Was he right about her internship?
Yes. Was he right that she would never have what it takes to become a journalist? Of the old, driven, bookworm Rory, the answer would have been no. That Rory would have taken the feedback and applied it to her next internship and done better. She would have fought for what she wanted. Instead, she defies all five seasons of character building and does something so un-Rory-like that it just feels wrong.
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