Gilmore Girls 2.03 "Red Light on the Wedding Night"

Gilmore Girls 2.03 "Red Light on the Wedding Night"
Original Air Date: October 16, 2001 (Recap date: December 11, 2007)
Photos, Recap & Discussion

Discussion Questions:

• Do you think Max fits well into the Gilmore life?
• Did Lorelai get cold feet when Max stayed over? Why?
• Do you think Luke would go to Lorelai’s wedding?
• Did Lorelai consider that Max wanted to be more than a husband? Also a father to Rory?
• Did Lorelai assume Max would conform to her life? That she would not have to change?
• Does Lorelai doubt her love for Max after hearing Emily’s story of marrying Richard?
• Why did Lorelai call Christopher?
• Is Lorelai really forgetting to make Max keys? Or is that symbolic?
• Why does Luke make the chuppa if he is cynical about marriage (and hurt)?
• Did you see how Lorelai and Luke were standing under the chuppa? Did she realize this when she said "yeah, you only get married once"?
• Is Lorelai comparing Max to Luke in any way? How do you think they are different?
• Is Lorelai reading too much into how other people love each other when she decides she doesn’t love Max the right way?
• Why does Lorelai run?
• In the last scene, is the stop light meant to represent something? What?

Gilmore Girls Episode Recap & Photos:

The summer has sped by – it’s now 2 weeks before the wedding, Max is back, and Lorelai & Rory are sampling wedding cakes from Weston’s. Rory shows the three mock-up invitation options, and Lorelai picks the Mussolini quote: "We have buried the putrid corpse of liberty." Lovely. Rory asks:

"Is it right to be sampling wedding cakes when Sookie is making yours for free?"

Oh, bad Lorelai! She rationalizes that if eating cake is wrong, she does not want to be right.

Kirk is interviewing to be Lorelai’s wedding photographer but, aside from some nearly-nude (or fully nude) self portraits, he is showing pictures other people took! Lorelai invites Max to spend the whole weekend at her place – a trial run for when he’ll live there.

Max suggests a double date with Rory & Dean over the weekend. First night there, he cooks the girls dinner. To their awe. Max is charmed by their crazy movie watching habits and laziness to get the phone. Going to bed, Lorelai whispers to Rory ‘this is weird‘ – meaning, the first time a man has stayed over with Rory there.

Lorelai cannot sleep. She comes down to wake up Rory saying there is a "boy in her room" and that it’s weird. Lorelai wants to talk about how Rory feels about it all – but Lorelai just needs to vent her own fears. That their life will change. But she is happy. Rory encourages Lorela to get used to it – in her own bed.

Luke critisizes Max’s misuse of trees (buying 3 papers) but then says ‘top of the morning to ya’ and compliments Max’s outfit.

Max takes a while to order – upsetting Rory & Lorelai’s pace. He encourages them to do what they do, that he’ll go by his own pace.

Taylor is installing Stars Hollow’s first traffic light outside of Luke’s. Little fight ensues. Lorelai asks Luke if he’s coming to her wedding, but he avoids the question.

After steak and many potatoes, Dean and Max are stuffed. Rory and Lorelai run to ice cream. Dean tells Max that their eating habits are just one thing he needs to be aware of. Later, he’s unsure of how to deal with the parenting bit - Lorelai is very relaxed about Rory & Dean and has no firm boundaries. Which is hard for Max to deal with. Lorelai says that anything that needs to happen, she’d do.

Max is disturbed – he wants to know what his "role" in the house will be. Lorelai admits she has not given thought to how their lives would merge. He is annoyed, but forgives her. And leaves the room mumbling about breaking Dean’s late night cranky rule.

Sookie asks Lorelai what she wants for her bachelorette party, all during the unveiling of the traffic light. The town feel ‘infantalized’ by the instructional panel. Luke, meanwhile, tries to argue against Taylor’s insanity. Luke shares his pessimistic view of marriage – that two people who grow and evolve must stick themselves in a box. That it is restricting and unnatural.

They try to sneak Rory into the "Queen Victoria". Max’s bachelor party is cut short when his brother gets a concussion. Lorelai rants on and on about Rory being famous and the bouncer lets her in. It’s a drag club. The evil Michel invited Emily!! Lorelai is already ‘happy’ having had a quart of wine for dinner.

Emily shares her own pre-wedding story – her nerves and dreams of Richard. Sweet – so in love! Lorelai seems disturbed. Emily talks about how safe she felt – how wise and honored. Sookie is so moved she calls Jackson. And Rory texts Dean. Lorelai seems almost pressured to check in on her man too. But instead of calling Max, she calls Christoper.

Christopher knew about Max from Rory, but not that it was serious. Chris asks about Max’s CD collection – the two of them using it as a reading on who a person is. Max’s CDs are generic. Lorelai says she wanted to tell someone (Chris) who knows her really well that she was getting married. He congratulates her. Lorelai asks if Christopher can picture her married. He says yes, to the right guy. Lorelai sits back down. Everything is "fine."

Nursing a hangover, Lorelai is at the Inn. Max comes to the Inn since he doesn’t have a set of keys to the house yet. She forgot – again. He’s reading something into it. And accuses Lorelai of thinking only of herself. Rory got a concerned call from Christoper and confronts Lorelai about calling him. Lorelai tries to blame it on the alcohol. They all just want Lorelai to be happy.

Luke, oh Luke! He is delivering the chuppa he made for her! He saw it in a magazine and carved it for Lorelai and Max to get married under. Luke apologizes for putting down Max – says he’s a good guy. Lorelai asks if he meant all those things about marriage – he says it may be right for some people. Lorelai wants to think that people can evolve together.

"I guess if you can find that one person who will put up with all your crap and want to change you, or dress you, or make you eat French food, then marriage can be alright… But that’s only if you find the right person."

Lorelai says nobody has ever made her a chuppa before. Luke says you only get married once. The two stand under the chuppa and she agrees – you only get married once.

Lorelai runs into Rory’s room and with a big smile, tells her to pack. She is supposed to get married that weekend, but wants to take a road trip. She and Max are not getting married.

"Because I didn’t want to try on my wedding dress every night."

Rory jumps right into the road trip – to help her mother. Rory knows that Lorelai needs to get away. 5am the next morning, they are driving away.

"We’re almost there and nowhere near it. All that matters is that we’re going."

They are on their way – practically there already. But… the darned new stop light halts their progress.

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