Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life Review — Summer

A Stars Hollow Musical, inspiring words from Jess, and a new companion for Emily are just a few of the highlights from Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, “Summer.”

The third installment of the revival makes it feel like we’ve settled back comfortably in Stars Hollow. Maybe that’s because Rory is “back,” even though she refuses to admit it.

“Summer” opens with Lorelai and Rory at the community pool, having the kind of classic quick-witted banter that makes these two characters so unique in the first place. That banter also makes me question whether or not I ever want to get into a public pool again, but that’s beside the point.

Whether you like it or not, April also makes an appearance. It’s actually pretty great to see how April has grown and changed — and how she hasn’t. She has a meltdown in front of Rory, and it strikes me that those two are not entirely different from one another.

Luke’s binge-watching habits (or lack thereof) are also revealed in what feels like a typical night with the Gilmore girls.

One of the things I’ve loved about the revival series so far are the ways the characters have adapted to changes in technology. Lorelai talks of tweeting but really doesn’t get it. Luke is resistant to people using wi-fi in the diner.

Rory has to have three phones (for a while there), and Lorelai has a habit of filling the DVR with Lifetime movies. It’s exactly how you’d imagine everyone would adjust to these things — actually, it’s better.

As Rory continues to figure out what’s next in her life, an opportunity that’s really too convenient all but falls in her lap. The editor of the Stars Hollow Gazette is gone, and the local paper is shutting down. If only there was someone in the town who knew a little something about journalism…

It’s a nice touch, and the only reason the coincidence of it works is because this is the Gilmore Girls universe. On any other show, I’d have to roll my eyes, but somehow, I’m okay with it here.

It does make me ask a different question, though. Why on earth was this never a thing before? Why didn’t Rory ever intern at the Gazette, or get some sort of part-time job there?

Of course, she’d never want it to be her career because she always wanted to travel and see the world — not stay in Stars Hollow working at the local paper. But still, it seems it’s something that should have come up in the original series.

Jess stops by to see her there when he’s in town (he’s there so he and Luke can help get Liz and T.J. out of the vegetable cult), and he manages to inspire Rory in a way that only Jess Mariano can.

It always seems to be Jess who says just the right thing to get Rory back on her feet, whether its making her realize she needs to go back to Yale, or in this case, giving her the idea to write the perfect book.

And the idea for the book really is perfect. Yes, it strikes a nerve, and Lorelai isn’t fully on board with the idea at first. But it’s so incredibly fitting for that to be the thing that makes Rory successful.

Meanwhile, Michel finally drops the news on Lorelai that he is planning to leave. He feels the inn has hit its peak, and he knows there’s no way Lorelai can pay him any more than she already does. Plus, he wants to be a part of something that can continue to grow.

It makes sense. Heck, you have to wonder why Michel stuck around as long as he did. He says he won’t leave if there’s any way that the Dragonfly can grow, but the location means it just isn’t possible.

As for Emily, she has Rory worried with the changes she’s making to her lifestyle. Rory can’t help but be concerned when she called Emily Gilmore at noon and wakes her grandmother up. She’s even more alarmed to find that Emily now has a TV in her living room.

It seems at first that Emily is depressed — staying home and sleeping in because she doesn’t know what to do with herself. I think that’s the case, but she’s also starting to let go, little by little, of her old life.

She also finds a companion in one of Richard’s friends. Lorelai is definitely caught off guard by his presence, but you have to admit, at this point — and we’re a third of the way through the “year in the life” by now — Emily deserves to be able to have someone by her side. I’m glad that’s something we get to see explored.

Back in Stars Hollow, the musical is moving forward. Lorelai is part of the advisory committee for the worst, most bizarre, most insane theater production ever. And that’s saying a lot if you consider all the odd things we’ve seen in Stars Hollow.

The musical itself runs a little too long, but that seems to be the case in order to allows Sutton Foster to shine — the star of Amy Sherman Palladino’s Bunheads. In that way, it’s a nice crossover, but seeing as much of it as we do isn’t necessary.

There’s a final song that’s added later, though, and it moves Lorelai to tears.

Between the fight Lorelai has with Luke (secrets always do come out), Michel’s news that he’s leaving, and just a general feeling of unrest, she makes a decision that’s pretty darn out of character. She’s going to go do “Wild” — which was foreshadowed just a little, since that’s the book she was reading at the pool in the beginning of the episode.

Other thoughts:

• Shouldn’t Richard actually be in the family mausoleum? Early in the series, Emily notes that the family mausoleum is running out of space, and that there’s space for her, Richard, Lorelai, and Rory, but that’s it. So why isn’t that where he is?
• Who are the kids walking around with Rory and Lorelai and carrying their things?
• Carol King busting out a song on the piano! Too bad no one thought it was very good.

What did you think of this episode of Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life is currently available for streaming on Netflix.

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