Gilmore Girls 4.02 "The Lorelais’ First Day at Yale"

Gilmore Girls 4.02 "The Lorelais’ First Day at Yale"
Original Air Date: September 30, 2003 (Recap date: February 14, 2008)
Photos, Recap & Discussion

Discussion Questions:

• Is it Nicole, or her lawyers, making the divorce messy?
• Is Rory a little intimidated by Tana, who is so young to be there?
• Why does Lorelai come all the way back to Stars Hollow to shop?
• Do you think Paris just needed a friend?
• Why was Rory so homesick so quickly?
• Do you think Rory would have made friends as quickly without Lorelai?
• Why doesn’t Lorelai try to get the mattress stored by Yale?
• Did Lorelai order all that food knowing it would lead to a party?
• Who do you think is more sad – Rory or Lorelai?

Gilmore Girls Episode Recap & Photos:

Rory is packing her beauty products – the ‘essentials’ became a whole bag of things. Lorelai will be driving Luke’s truck – and has no idea how to drive a stick. Lorelai is not satisfied with Rory’s ‘going to college’ photo.

Rory stops for her breakfast at Luke’s, on the house. Lorelai is still attempting to get Luke’s truck there. She couldn’t get it out of reverse, so drove in reverse all the way there. Lorelai calls his truck macho, says it doesn’t like women. Luke is stressed about getting his truck back on time, and dealing with divorce papers. Rory’s Yale special breakfast – sausage wrapped in pancake tied with bacon.

Nicole’s lawyers are making the divorce messy. Luke makes a lawyer joke about the "Dewey Cheatum & Howe" firm, which doesn’t go down well. Lorelai runs back in with the diagram of the gears – she had it upside down.

They arrive to Yale. Rory is greeted and given her room key. Lorelai didn’t arrange to get the old mattress disposed of, though she lies to say she did.

Rory goes to her dorm room but is more distracted by the campus rule book and her torn map than by her room. Lorelai points out the fireplace and eventually forces Rory to a do-over of walking into her room for the first time so she’ll notice it all.

Rory is being made fun of for taking notes during the orientation. They take Rory’s student ID photo and she’ not even looking at the camera. One of Rory’s suite mates is there, but is silent. Rory and Lorelai go to greet her, and her first words are "I’m adopted." Her name is Tana Schrick. She seems…. interesting. She’s not good at small talk, so she memorizes random facts. Tana is 16 in a couple of days – youngster! Odd but nice.

It’s time for Lorelai to go back home, and it’s hard. Someone comes in with a mini fridge – Lorelai freaks and decides Rory has to have one. Peeping into another room, Lorelai realizes they should have a rug, some flowers, a fan, and they forgot trash cans. Lorelai won’t be able to sleep unless Rory has everything.

Lorelai drives back to Stars Hollow where Luke is being lectured by three of Nicole’s lawyers. They won’t believe he wants nothing in the divorce and want to bring in more of the firm, threatening he will get nothing without his own lawyer (which is what he wants!). Luke desperately pulls in Lorelai as his character witness. Lorelai’s eloquent speech ends with a note that when she thinks of Luke, ‘she thinks nothing.’ So Luke says he does want something. Tells a story of being stuck on the cruise seeing a guy playing glasses 3 nights in a row. He wants those 3 hours back.

Lorelai has the truck full of trip #2 stuff, and the Yale mattress. They bicker about who keeps the mattress. Lorelai wants Luke to store it for her.

Tana comes in to tell Rory that another suite mate is there. A weird girl with the name of a city… and Rory hears Paris. Paris goes for a hug and tells Rory she wanted it to be a surprise. Paris introduces her life coach, Terrence. There to help her with anything she needs. Paris has learned to ignore things she cannot control. Turns out, after Terrence heard about Rory, he thought that Paris’ life journey with her was not complete, so Paris’ dad made a call to make them suite mates. Rory glares at Terrence.

Luke drove Lorelai back to Yale in order to ensure his truck would return without the mattress. Lorelai says ‘no’ in amazement of seeing Paris, the life coach and her craft corner. Paris dealing with her stress is comic. Luke has dragged the mattress back to the suite. Lorelai says goodbye to Rory again. Rory goes to her room and looks sad.

Rory pages Lorelai to come back. Lorelai wants to take Luke’s truck again for speed, and her car is making weird noises. Luke caves in. Lorelai arrives and Rory envelops her in a hug. Rory got homesick and ‘wanted her mommy’. Doesn’t feel properly socialized to live on her own. Feels manipulated to go to Yale. Angry at Lorelai for leaving so easily. Rory has her ID and, aside from a bad photo, it says "Rony Gilmore." Lorelai offers to stay the night. Rory is torn between having her be there and be seen as pathetic – the former wins.

Lorelai has organized a take-out test night for the roommates, with food of various ethnicities organized around the room geographically. With the addition of 9 pizzas, Lorelai announces to the hall that it’s a party and all are invited. The party is a hit – Lorelai is a hit, and Rory is a hit. And they now know where all the good food is.

Someone on the guy’s floor is howling, so Lorelai howls back. More join in. Rory joins in.

This last goodbye is easier. Lorelai has brought back the mattress. She promises to get it picked up by charity.

Rory gets a visit from some girls on the floor who have "Lorelai’d" the good coffee and muffin places. Rory already knows where the coffee is from – the original Lorelai had found it. They invite Rory to go to the assembly and to "lose" their IDs so they can get new ones.

Lorelai goes back to her empty house and just looks around…

Image: TheWB.com

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