Gilmore Girls 5.01 "Say Goodbye to Daisy Miller"

Gilmore Girls 5.01 "Say Goodbye to Daisy Miller"
Original Air Date: September 21, 2004 (Recap date: March 14, 2008)
Recap & Discussion

Discussion Questions:

• Why is Emily acting out so much?
• Did Richard not know why Emily was angry with him, what the cause of their separation was?
• Why doesn’t Dean tell Lindsay that he wants to break up?
• Does Luke think Lorelai regrets the kiss?
• Does Sookie’s happiness make Lorelai uncomfortable with the early stage of her Luke relationship?
• Why does Rory forget to ask the important questions around Dean?
• If Rory admits that she did something wrong, why can’t she talk with Lorelai?
• Is Rory developing a habit of running away from her problems? First after kissing Jess, then after sleeping with Dean?
• Why does Lorelai suggest Rory leave for Europe?
• Why does Rory want to leave for Europe?
• Is Dean being unjust to Lindsay?
• Is Rory avoiding Dean?
• Do you think Luke got the cell phone so he could talk with Lorelai for that week?

Gilmore Girls Episode Recap:

Rory and Dean are in bed, telling each other ‘I love you’. Rory says it’s the textbook definition of a perfect moment. As was ‘earlier’. They are both happy. Rory wants to choose a song to remember the moment. Rory puts on the Candyman. And that’s when Lorelai came home. And apparently Dean stuck around to listen to Rory and Lorelai talk after. Lorelai goes to Rory when she’s crying and tries to talk. Rory won’t.

Richard and Emily are feuding at ‘comical heights’ now. She is back looking for her European luggage and flaunts to Richard that she’s going to have a marvelous time and drink 2 glasses of wine at lunch (something Richard says only prostitutes do). Emily says she is ‘open for business.’ Emily finds herself locked in the basement. So she threatens Richard to climb out the window if he doesn’t come let her out. Her skirt gets stuck, so she takes it off to go out and prove her point!

Richard accuses Emily of being mentally ill. The security people come, complaining of a disturbance. Now, not only does Emily not know Richard any longer, but he thinks Emily is no longer the woman he married either. Emily says he married a woman he respected, consulted and treated as a partner. And she is no longer that.

Luke has brought naked Kirk back. His butt is full of rose thorns. They get Sookie to look at it. He mentions Luke & Lorelai kissing in his recount of his assassin-chasing story. Sookie thought that was imagined, but Luke’s hanging head shows Sookie otherwise. Sookie drags Luke off excited with:

"oh my God, you kissed?!"

Luke asks Sookie to keep it to herself. Sookie is so happy – tells Luke "this is good." Luke says "I hope so."

Dean goes home, where Lindsay is still waiting up. She mentions a missed call on his cell phone. Dean gets mad at her for answering it and for not taking a message. They fight. Lindsay tries to back out of it and be nice.

Jackson brings Davie to see Sookie & the Inn. Then Taylor yells after Michel – one shoe is missing, the other is all chewed up. Kirk thinks it may have been his fault. Taylor had read about a complimentary shoe shine.

Luke comes to say an awkward goodbye to Lorelai. Rory comes in for breakfast – she was supposed to be staying at the Inn. Sookie waves Lorelai over – so much for keeping the Luke kiss secret. She’s just bubbling over with happiness for Lorelai. Sookie says she always thought they were perfect for each other, and is so happy Lorelai has noticed him. Lorelai is still processing it all. Then Lorelai gets worried that perhaps Luke doesn’t realize she’s just processing, but that it’s good. She’s worried he may think she regrets it.

Rory doesn’t want to hear what Lorelai has to say, and Lorelai has had enough of trying to talk to her. If Rory wants to believe she knows what she’s doing, so be it. You can tell Lorelai is dying to talk with her though – to help Rory find a plan to deal with everything. Taylor brings down a list of services – Michel wrote it. They don’t offer any of them. Lorelai has Michel find new shoes for Taylor, and tells him to take his dogs home.

Lorelai calls Luke to talk. She goes into a closet to escape noise, while he goes into the back room for the same reason. Lorelai finds Paw Paw munching on Taylor’s other shoe in there. Lorelai tells Luke they didn’t have a chance to talk after she got back. But they kissed. Luke tells her it’s fine if she wants to forget it happened. Lorelai says:

"I don’t want to forget it ever happened – it was a great kiss."

Lorelai asks what Luke thinks. He says he’s relieved she feels that way. Lorelai asks:

"So you concur?"

"Dear God, yes!"

They plan to ‘discuss’ it later. That night. They both smile as they hang up.

Rory makes a call from a pay phone. Whoever she calls, she says she needs to meet. Rory, sitting inside Miss Patty’s studio, waits. Dean comes. He asks how things are at home. Rory says everything is ok. Dean takes Rory’s hands, tells her how much he likes her hair, and kisses her. Rory had wanted to talk, but words are failing her. They kiss instead.

Rory tells Lane about sleeping with Dean. And about wanting to talk with him today – to ask the questions that had to be asked, to be the adult. But when he walked in, she couldn’t think. They just repeated the events of the night before! Lane asks how it was. Rory admits it was a little scary, but they love each other. The band are freaking at Lane, since she’s missing practice, but she tells them off.

Rory asks for perspective on her having sex with Dean. She knows he’s married, but she didn’t ask anything else. Rory says talking to her mom about it all is not an option. But Lane has little advice, then has to run out because Zack is on her drums.

Lorelai is scared to pieces when she sees Emily sitting in the foyer of the Inn. She’s back for the lunch that she had been promised with Lorelai and Rory. The concept of leaving meaning lunch was cancelled is not going over well with Emily. Lorelai calls Rory to come back.

Rory sees Lindsay at the butcher, arguing about how to make roast beef. She had followed his instructions and it was still bad. She stops to listen – Lindsay is trying to make Dean dinner that night.

Emily announces that she and Richard have separated. Though the girls knew. Emily says Richard is moving to the pool house. Emily proudly says she’s going to Europe on her own, and leaving that night. Emily says her offer to escort Rory around Europe still stands. Lorelai says it’s a great idea. Rory says she’d love to go. Emily being out of earshot, Rory accuses Lorelai of trying to ship her off. Lorelai says maybe she is. But Rory can handle her own ‘life events’ and say no if she wants to. But Rory does want to go – she says it’s because of Lorelai. She wants to get away from her.

Lindsay is all dressed up, and presents Dean with a big meal. She jumps up and down when she sees that her roast is done perfectly. Hugs Dean, who laughs happily.

Rory ignores a call on her cell. Maybe Dean? Lorelai drives Rory to the airport and tells her to call if she needs to talk about anything. Rory leaves, without a hug or even eye contact with Lorelai.

Lorelai comes home and there’s a message from Luke. TJ and Liz each broke and arm and leg in a car accident, so he needs to go help them out for a week with their booth. Then Luke leaves a second message saying he wasn’t sure if they were ‘at that point in their relationship’ where she needed that much detail. Leaves a third message saying he got a cell phone. And a fourth with the number. And a fifth asking Lorelai not to change her mind until he gets back.

Lorelai picks up her phone and calls Luke right back. She asks how Liz & TJ are, and they ramble. Luke says it was a "hell of a test run," to which Lorelai flirts back, "you mean for the Inn, of course." But that you never know until you have a second go-around. Luke is driving 10 minutes from "if I lived here, I’d blow my brains out," and the episode ends with the happy small talk. 

Tags: gilmore girls, gilmore girls season 5, gilmore girls recaps, gilmore girls episodes, say goodbye to daisy miller, dean rory, luke lorelai, dragonfly inn