Gilmore Girls Mondays: Week 4

Gilmore Girls Mondays is a semi-regular feature hosted by me, Molli and Jessica as we do a rewatch-along of Gilmore Girls that we started on June 1st. Each of us has a different approach, but for my posts I'll be talking about the episodes I watched each week, sharing my thoughts plus favourite quotes, scenes, etc. If you want to join in, you can tweet with us using the hashtag #GilmoreGirls, and if you want to join in the discussions, feel free to grab the graphic (please link back to our blogs) and create posts of your own, or just comment with your thoughts. Warning: if you haven't watched the show before, there will be spoilers.

Episode 12: Double Date

Episode 13: Concert Interruptus

Episode 14: That Damn Donna Reed

Episode 15: Christopher Returns

Episode 16: Star-Crossed Lovers and Other Strangers

Episode 17: The Breakup, Part II

I love that we’re getting to see more of Luke, and also learning a bit about his past. I also love that Lorelai is jealous when Rachel returns, and it occurs to her for the first time - after all these years - that maybe, just maybe, Luke might be something other than the guy who feeds her and keeps her in coffee.

I also like that we’re seeing more to Paris than just the villain. She’s still evil and horrible, but she’s also hilarious in a completely unintentional way, which I love. She’s becoming more human, more three-dimensional, and I’m starting to remember that I do eventually end up really liking her (it’s been kind of hard remembering that in these early episodes). When Lorelai and Sookie took Rory, Paris, Madeline, and Louis to the Bangles concert and all that crap went down, watching Paris just being totally chill was possibly my favourite part. When she said, all blissfully, “You know what? I think this is the best night I've ever had” I seriously cracked up. Classic.

And then there’s Christopher. Ahh, Christopher. My mother despises Christopher. She’s been semi-watching with me (she pretends to read but I see her watching the TV half the time, and she’ll chime in or laugh once in awhile), and when Christopher arrived, she groaned. I can kind of understand her feelings toward him, but there’s a part of me that’s always had a soft spot for Christopher. He doesn’t mean to be a screw-up. He and Lorelai have decades of history - he wasn’t just some one-night stand or even a fling. They’ve known each other since they were SIX. That's a lot of history, a lot of baggage, a lot of things shared - including a child.

And finally, there’s Dean. And Dean and Rory’s three-month anniversary. And Dean and Rory’s break up. And Rory’s “I’m ready to wallow now” which makes me cry every time.  *sigh* And I just love how Emily has to point out to Lorelai: “Tonight your daughter is celebrating her three-month anniversary. When was the last relationship you had that lasted that long?” Argh. You can tell Lorelai had already thought of that - she didn’t need her mother pointing it out/rubbing it in. But Emily wouldn't be Emily if she didn't do just that, right? Lorelai's going through a lot - watching people in love (which, when you're not and want to be is the most frustrating thing ever), splitting from Max, realizing she might have feelings for Luke just as his ex comes back to town, Christopher showing up and all the drama that comes with that…I really felt for her these last few episodes. She’s all over the place, but she still manages to stay strong, and be a good friend and a kick-ass mother.

Also? I seriously love Luke. That's nothing new, but really...*sighs and swoons*

Lane: “How do I look?”
Rory: “You look too good for him.”
Lane: “Just what I was going for.”



Lorelai to Rory: “I have to know where you are at all times, especially when you have my shoes on.”

 
Lorelai: “You know, it doesn't always work to just lock a kid up and throw away the key.”
Mrs. Kim: “I didn’t throw away the key, it's in the kitchen.”



Lorelai: “In this parade of stupid and dumb I'm the one twirling the flaming baton.”


Rory: “She likes washing dishes, too. She’s multi-faceted abnormal.”


Lorelai: “Um, can I make one more suggestion?”
Luke: “No.”
Lorelai: “Curtains?”
Luke: “No.”
Lorelai: “Manly curtains.”
Luke: “Oxymoron.”
Lorelai: “What did you call me?”


Dean: “You are very odd, you know that?”
Rory: “Thank you.”

What did you think of these  six episodes? Are there any that particularly stand out to you? How did you feel about Rory and Dean's breakup? Do you think Dean acted fairly or overreacted? What do you think of Lorelai finally realizing she might have feelings for Luke but then sleeping with not only Christopher but also Max?

 

Gilmore Girls Mondays: Week 3

Starting this month, along with my two online besties Molli and Jessica, I'm doing a Gilmore Girls rewatch-along. Every Monday I'll be talking about the episodes I watched each week, sharing my thoughts plus favourite quotes, scenes, etc. If you want to join in, you can tweet with us using the hashtag #GilmoreGirls, and if you want to join in the discussions, feel free to grab my graphic and create posts of your own, or just comment with your thoughts.

Episode 9: Rory’s Dance

Episode 10: Forgiveness and Stuff

Episode 11: Paris is Burning

Some really interesting stuff this week. First, in Rory’s Dance, Rory has her first dance at Chilton and she doesn’t want to go. She’s decided that she hates dances and they’re stupid and lame, even though she’s never actually been to one. Lorelai asked her if she really hated them or if it was just that she's afraid - she doesn't want Rory to miss out on experiences because she's afraid or too shy. This really spoke to me, because I was like that as a teenager, and unfortunately, I’m still like that with a lot of things. However, I did go to all the school dances, so that’s one thing!

When Emily came to see Rory off to the dance, that whole scene was just too funny. Between Rory coming out snarfing down a burrito with a napkin shoved into her dress, Emily taking pictures, and then making Dean come in so she could meet him, even though he and Rory had agreed he would honk and she’d go out…the whole thing was hilarious, embarrassing, and awkward in the best way possible. A lot of people have probably been through stuff like that, or if you haven’t, it’s done in a way that you can totally relate, which is what’s so great about this show. 

Then when Rory left and Emily decided to stay because Lorelai had hurt her back, we got to see a different side of Emily. A side that’s actually caring and - *gasp* - motherly. It was touching and funny at the same time. But, of course, nothing good can last where Emily and Lorelai are concerned, so when Rory and Dean accidentally fall asleep at Miss Patty’s and spend the whole night out, Emily freaks out. Lorelai has faith in Rory that nothing happened, but all Emily can see is the mistakes Lorelai made at Rory’s age, and she’s afraid she’ll end up pregnant. The difference is, Emily suffocated and controlled Lorelai, but Lorelai trusts Rory, and that trust has been a big factor in how Rory is turning out vs. how Lorelai did.

Then in Forgiveness and Stuff, we see Rory and Lorelai struggling after their fight. We’ve seen them argue and get mad at each other before, but not to this extent. It actually hurts to see them so angry at each other because they're supposed to be best pals, and you just want to see them make up.

Last week I mentioned I was annoyed by Dean’s attitude toward Lorelai, but this week, when Rory was gone to Christmas dinner at the grandparents' (from which Lorelai was uninvited), Dean came to see Rory and ended up talking to Lorelai. I liked that little scene - the writers of this show were so amazing at taking something serious and making you really get the significance of it while still making you laugh. I think Lorelai is seeing that Dean could be really good for Rory.

When Richard has a heart episode at dinner and has to be taken to the hospital, Luke takes Lorelai and stays with her. This is another bit I love - those little glimpses of the softer side of Luke that we've been getting so far were just a tease compared to the scenes at the hospital. He shows that he genuinely cares about the Gilmore girls, and that he pays attention, and has been paying attention all these years.

Emily is so cold and such a control freak, but she genuinely loves Richard, and that was nice to see. Some interesting character growth happening here for everyone!

In Paris is Burning, Paris’s parents are going through a nasty divorce, which makes Paris the talk of the school, which makes her even nastier than usual. So at parents' day when she sees Lorelai and Max making out in the classroom, she makes sure everyone in the school knows about it.

Lorelai and Max seem to be getting pretty serious, but when Rory inadvertently gets involved and suggests to Lorelai that they invite Max to go skating with them, Lorelai freaks out. Sookie (who asks Jackson out in this episode, which made me really happy!) points out that they’ve hit the two-month mark, which is about the time Lorelai starts to freak out in a relationship. I love their relationship, and I’m always glad to get these little glimpses of Lorelai through Sookie's eyes. Sookie is just so damn cute - I wish I had someone like her in my life. Rory and Lorelai too, of course...and Luke!

I was sad when Max and Lorelai decided to take a break. As I said last week, even though I'm a Luke girl all the way, I liked Max. And having watched the entire show and knowing what happens, I don't mind this little Max-shaped detour...the anticipation of waiting for Luke and Lorelai to get together was totally worth it. ;-) 

“I can't imagine anyone seeing you as a disappointment.” ~ Luke in “Forgiveness and Stuff”

“You have to look at what a gift says to the other person, not to you. Remember two years ago I got my mom that perfume? To me that said, ‘Mom you work hard. You deserve something fancy’. Now to my mother, it said, ‘Mom, here's some smelly sex juice...the kind I use to lure boys with’.” ~ Lane in “Forgiveness and Stuff”

What did you think of these three episodes? Which was your favourite? What were some of your favourite parts? Do you like Max? If you're watching along, what episode are you up to?

Gilmore Girls Mondays: Week 1

Starting this month, along with my two online besties Molli and Jessica, I'm doing a Gilmore Girls rewatch-along. Every Monday I'll be talking about the episodes I watched each week, sharing my thoughts plus favourite quotes, scenes, etc. If you want to join in, you can tweet with us using the hashtag #GilmoreGirls, and if you want to join in the discussions, feel free to grab my graphic and create posts of your own, or just comment with your thoughts.

*Note: I'm not actually going to share my thoughts on the episodes I watched this week. Even though I got a few episodes in, I want to give my partners in crime some time to catch up and watch the first few episodes, plus if anyone else sees this and decides to join in, you'll have a week to get started!

I was a couple months shy of turning 17 when Gilmore Girls started airing in 2000. It became an instant favourite - I loved Lorelai and Rory and their crazy, fun, slightly dysfunctional, but oh-so-special relationship. I loved Star’s Hollow and its eccentric inhabitants. I related to Rory in that I was shy and bookish and didn’t have many friends.

It was one of those shows that really spoke to me and had special significance along with a treasured place in my heart. I grew up alongside Rory, and I shared in her triumphs and failures the way you would a real life friend. I related to her and to the show in so many ways, and I consider it one of the defining shows of my youth.

Another great thing about the show: it brought my mum and me closer. She didn’t watch with me from the beginning, but when the TV in my bedroom died and we had to start sharing the main TV in the living room, I convinced her to watch it with me. She had mixed feelings at first - she liked it but found it exhausting because of all the chatter and banter and references she didn’t get. After awhile, she got used to it and started to love the show as much as I did. It became our thing, and to this day we still have Gilmore Girls related inside jokes.

The last time I rewatched the show, I watched from seasons 1-5, but I didn't own 6 and 7 yet. I didn't mind because they were my least favourite seasons - I didn't like the direction the show took, and I was really unhappy with the ending. I finally picked up seasons 6 and 7 on sale last year and I'd been wanting to do a rewatch for awhile but kept watching other shows instead. After I reviewed Lauren's Graham debut novel, Someday, Someday, Maybe, Molli suggested we should rewatch the show together, and it seemed like the perfect excuse to finally watch it again. Then Jess decided to join us, and I spent what felt like forever excitedly counting down the days until June 1st so I could be reunited with the Gilmores!

 

Do you remember how you felt when you first started watching Gilmore Girls? How old were you? How many times have you watched the series?

My impressions of Doctor Who, Series One

For ages, I saw people talking about Doctor Who on Twitter and Facebook. I had no idea what it was about, and honestly had no interest. Then, when I realized that the show was one of my closest friend’s favourites, I knew it was time to take an interest.

Luckily, my library had a copy of the first season. I was warned by several people on Twitter that it might take a bit of getting used to – that it was weird and campy and the effects were cheesy and a few other things – but that if I gave it a chance, I would love it...

They were right. The first couple episodes piqued my interest while also making me think ‘what the hell have I gotten myself into?’ Luckily I’m a fan of the wacky and weird, so I had no trouble giving it a chance, and promising that I’d at least watch the first season all the way through.

By the third episode, I knew there wouldn’t be a problem keeping that promise. I was hooked. Molli had warned me the show would cause a lot of feels, and I kept wondering how and when…and then I started to feel it by "Aliens of London", and I really started to become emotionally invested in the show. 

When it came to “Father’s Day”, I got kicked hard in the feels. I bawled like a baby. My dad died when I was ten, and even though it was under completely different circumstances, I’d give anything to have the chance to go back in time and see him again and say goodbye. I’m sure I would have gotten emotional regardless, but it hit me really hard, and that was the episode that bumped me from liking Doctor Who to loving Doctor Who.

I thought Rose was great. I did another post about this, but it was so weird seeing Billie Piper as Rose - I didn't even know she was an actress! I loved the interactions between Rose and The Doctor, and watching them figure each other out. It was obvious she got under his skin and really made him think, and I got giggly several times as their relationship progressed. And then there was Jack. Oh, Jack. What an awesome addition. I also grew to really like Mickey and Jackie, especially in the last episode when they helped Rose. 

I got so attached to The Doctor that I was dreading coming to the end. Most of the people I’ve talked to have said Ten is their favourite, and I’m sure I’ll love him too, but I got really attached to Nine. He was crazy and intense and manic, and the way he looked at Rose made my heart stop more than once. I bawled when he sent Rose away in the Tardis, and then cried even harder during his speech to her before he regenerated into Ten.*sigh*

So, yeah, I’m a convert. Can I officially call myself a Whovian after only one season?

 

Flashback Friday: Billie Piper

I just recently started watching series one of Doctor Who, and I was shocked when I discovered Rose was played by Billie Piper. I didn’t even know she was an actress…most people probably know her as Rose, but to me she was Billie, a singer I loved in the late 90s/early 2000s.

From what I can tell, she was fairly popular here in Canada and in the UK, but not so much in the US. I have her debut album, Honey to the Bee, and still actually get some of her songs stuck in my head, even all these years later. I remember when her single Because We Want To was played ALL THE TIME on the radio and Much Music.

I have a few favourite songs from the album, but I particularly love this one - it's just so much fun. There's no official video, but you can hear the song here:

Do you remember Billie's music? Are you a Doctor Who fan?

 

 

Wordless Wednesday #5 - Peephole

I've seen different versions of Wordless Wednesday around the blogosphere for years and since I'm always saying I'll post more of my photography on this blog but then never do, I thought doing my own version of Wordless Wednesday would be good incentive.

Friends has been one of my favourite TV shows for as long as I can remember. This was inspired by the peephole frame in Monica's apartment. I've lived in the same apartment for almost seventeen years and this has been here for most of them!

    

The Vampire Diaries Season 3 Finale

It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten so emotional over a TV show. I’ve enjoyed The Vampire Diaries all season, but the season finale…wow. Just wow. From the way the last few episodes went, I knew big things would be coming in the season finale, but I wasn't prepared for all the twists and turns that left my head spinning for hours afterward.

First, let me say that I’ve been a fan of the show from the very first episode. I was an avid watcher of the first season, but I missed a lot of the second season because they moved the day and time it was on (I don’t get CW, it’s on a Canadian channel for me), and then watched the entire third season, so I was kind of lost at the beginning of this season. I didn’t know where Jenna went, I didn’t know who Klaus was, and there were a few other holes that it took me awhile to fill in.

I’ve always kind of flip-flopped between Team Stefan and Team Damon. I guess if I had to choose, I’d choose Stefan - not necessarily for myself, but for Elena. I think in the long run, he’s better for her. But, because I’ve switched sides so often over the last three years, I had no idea who Elena would choose, or ultimately who I wanted her to choose. Whether you're for Stelena or Delena, you have to admit that she had a tough choice to make.

I’d also like to point out that Ric has been one of my favorite characters from the beginning, so his ‘death’ and then him becoming a vampire a few episodes ago, and then him really dying in the finale made me completely lose it. Why, oh why do shows find it necessary to kill off beloved characters?!

Anyway, my thoughts on the season finale are kind of disjointed. Because I don’t get CW, I have to watch the show Friday nights on Much Music. I don’t usually mind - Friday night is my favorite TV night, with TVD, CSI: NY, and Blue Bloods, but this Thursday night, I didn’t want to be out of the loop. I hate reading spoilers, and I didn’t want to go all day Friday avoiding Facebook and Twitter. So, thanks to TVD Addictions, I got the link to watch it online, and was able to tweet along with a gazillion other people and get everyone else’s impressions of the show.

I don’t think I have to warn you about major spoiler alerts here…if you haven’t watched the finale yet, and don’t want to know what happened, don’t read any further!

First emotional moment: When Ric found Jeremy at the bar and asked for his help finding Klaus. When he asked Jeremy to help him so Elena could live out her life, and then when she died, he would die, my heart broke a little. He always wanted what was best for Elena and Jeremy, and he genuinely cared about them. He wasn’t just their guardian, he loved them.

Tension easer: When Elijah came to the Gilbert home and they were all talking about letting the siblings have Klaus’s body, and it was so serious and intense, and all of a sudden we realize Damon’s on the phone - hilarious. His reaction was classic - “Did that concussion give you brain damage?!” It was a great way to lighten the mood.

Another emotional moment: When Elena and Stefan were talking, and Elena said it felt like everyone who left didn’t come back, and Stefan said, “I promise I will do everything in my power to make sure we all come back,” and then Elena asked him to wait, then said they could talk later, and Stefan kissed her and said, “Just in case there is no later.” I totally swooned. *sigh* The Team Stefan part of me definitely cheered then…and cried a little. And maybe even clapped.

Shocking moment: When Ric staked Klaus. I honestly didn’t think that was going to happen. I knew they'd find some way around it because they couldn't just let everyone else die, but I couldn't imagine how they were going to do it, so in the moment it was devastating.

Yet another emotional moment: After Klaus was staked and Damon and Stefan were talking on the phone, and Stefan said they wouldn’t be able to say goodbye in person, and Damon said something about a goodbye between brothers, and Stefan said, “Not us. You and Elena.” Despite the fact that Stefan loved her, he knew she had feelings for Damon and that Damon loved her, and he thought they should get a chance to say goodbye. I was amazed at his selflessness.

Another tear-jerker moment: When Elena was talking to Damon on the phone and he said, “If it was just down to him and me, and you had to make a choice who got the goodbye, who would it be?” and she chooses Stefan and says, “I care about you, Damon, which is why I have to let you go. Maybe if you and I had met first…” That broke my heart.

When my heart really broke: When they did the flashback and it turns out Damon met Elena first. “You want a love that consumes you. You want passion and adventure. Maybe a little danger.” I actually felt almost sick. I just sat there with my mouth open. And the fact that that’s what Damon was thinking about when Ric was basically about to kill him, after Elena had told him that if they had met first, things might be different. *dagger in the heart*

When my broken heart shattered: The moment Ric died. I actually wasn’t worried about Elena (although that whole thing was emotional with her dad in the car, and Stefan saving her in the flashback, then saving Matt in the present), because I know they couldn’t kill her off, but I knew there was a good chance Ric was leaving. I completely lost it. And when he appeared to Jeremy as a ghost, I literally started to bawl. I can’t decide if that was worse than a few episodes ago when everyone said goodbye to Ric and then he ‘died’ alone with Damon. Regardless, I cried like a baby both times.

Now, sometimes I’m a little dense and things go over my head, or my mind wanders and I’ll miss a few important seconds and then be lost. If it weren’t for Twitter, I wouldn’t have realized that Elena is now a vampire (or technically, she's 'in transition'). I missed Meredith saying that she ‘helped her’. So…Elena’s a vampire?? And what about Tyler? If Klaus is in his body, who was in Klaus’s body when Ric staked him? Did Bonnie switch them, and Tyler’s now dead? And if Tyler is dead and Klaus is now the inhabitant of his body, does that mean Joseph Morgan won’t be returning?

If Ric is a ghost, does that mean he’s sticking around? Matt Davis announced on Twitter yesterday that the pilot for his new show was picked up, so if he’s going to star in a new show, I’m guessing he won’t be a regular on TVD. Hopefully he’ll at least make ghostly appearances now and then. The show won’t be the same without him.

I have to say this was the cliffhanger of all cliffhangers. I know a lot of fans are in an uproar. I’m just curious, and anxious for the next season (four months…why?!), and can’t wait to have all my questions answered and see what happens. No pressure on the writers or producers or anything, but the season premier had better be as epic as the season finale! ;-)

  

Flashback Friday: Friday night TV

Flashback Fridays is a weekly meme here at Lost and Found. The idea is to talk about something from your past - a childhood memory, a favorite vacation, favorite music or movies or TV shows from the past, a special memory from high school or your days as a young adult, a big event in your life (grad, wedding, becoming a parent, going back to school, new job), games you used to play, childhood friends - anything at all. Every week, I'll post a Linky so you can link up your Flashback Friday post and we can hop around to visit each other and enjoy the reminiscing.

My flashback for today is to the 90s and the TGIF lineup on ABC. Do you remember it? I grew up with these shows, and looked forward to them every week. I remember when the shows slowly started to peter out and turned to more adult shows like Hope and Faith, which I had absolutely no interest in. I was so disappointed, and for awhile, I felt kind of lost on Friday nights. It was like the end of an era for me - all these people I felt like I'd grown up with were gone. It’s been 12 years and Friday nights haven’t been the same since.

TGIF originally started out with Perfect Strangers (which I don’t really remember, and I’m not even sure I actually watched), Just the 10 of Us (which I don’t remember at all), Family Matters, and Full House (both of which I loved). Over the years, the shows changed, but there were always at least a few of them that I watched: Step by Step (loved), Boy Meets World (LOVED), Sabrina the Teenage Witch (loved), You Wish (loved, so disappointed it got cancelled early on), Clueless (really liked, although not as much as the movie), Dinosaurs (watched it, but felt sort of meh about it), Two Guys a Girl and a Pizza Place (also known as 2 Guys and a Girl, also known as the show where I discovered Ryan Reynolds), Making the Band (anyone remember O-Town? I loved them, and it was so cool watching them become a band), Hanging With Mr. Cooper (liked), and Teen Angel (didn't like).

TGIF nights were something my mum and I shared. It was a bonding thing for us. There’s a double generation gap between the two of us (technically she’s old enough to be my grandmother - my parents had me later in life), and yet she watched these crazy, silly teenage shows with me. I know some people will never understand getting so attached to TV shows or fictional characters, but a lot of these shows really shaped me while I was growing up. To this day, I have fond memories of TGIF nights. All these years later I still miss it, and wish a network would come up with a fun lineup of shows. My current lineup (although it’s about to change because each of them is ending for the season) is The Vampire Diaries (the season finale of which was last night, and I’m still reeling…I'll be blogging about that later), CSI: NY, and Blue Bloods. 

I want to get all my favorite TGIF shows on DVD so that I can re-watch them (if I had to choose only one it would be Boy Meets World), and then have them for someday when I have kids. Maybe we can start our own TGIF family night tradition.

Do you remember these shows? Which were your favorites? Do you have a current Friday night lineup, or do you (unlike me) actually have a life and do other things on Friday nights?