Inexplicable Gilmore Girls Review: Final odds and ends

R.I.P. Lindsay Lister, Dean's ex.

Warning: Spoilers follow for pretty much all seasons of Gilmore Girls, but mostly the Revival series.

Now that I’ve reached the end of my Gilmore Girls watching, at least until the inevitable season nine, here are some random, stray thoughts I had while watching the Revival, or earlier seasons, that I couldn’t find room for to cram into another entry…

- Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel were allegedly paid $750,000 per episode, according to information obtained by Variety. That seems like an incredibly high price to pay for one of the actresses, and her name doesn’t rhyme with More In Sham. My assumption is that one actress did a solid for her fellow actress, and wouldn’t agree to the show unless their salaries matched. I’m saying this because one of them has worked regularly and solidly for the decade since the show has been off the air, while the other has mostly been relegated to straight-to-video or straight-to-streaming work.

- The most glaring omission to me from the Revival series? Madeline and Louise! They were both seemingly available, unlike some others on this helpful list from Insider. I thought for sure we would see them when Paris and Rory went back to Chilton, but instead, we got a weird cameo from (a new actor playing) Tristan. Madeline and Louise weren’t even mentioned!

The second (well, third) most glaring admission would be Liz, Luke’s sister. She would have brought some levity to the revival, plus, Luke didn’t really get much of the floor to himself in the revival. Just a really brief scene with Jess.

Quick hitters on missing cast members: It’s understandable that Lucy wasn’t there; Kristyn Ritter is a much bigger star now, and eh, she was only in half of the last season of the show, along with Olivia. (Also, Rory is awful and can’t keep friends.) The same thing goes for Dave Ryjaski, a.k.a. Adam Brody – He was awesome on the show, but he was barely on it in the grand scheme of 100+ episodes. While I stumped for him at times, Marty was 1) ultimately sleazy and 2) not that critical to anything plot-wise for the show, so who cares that he’s not in the revival? Max Medina is also absent, but again, he ultimately didn’t have much influence.

- The show made a big deal of finally “revealing” whether Mr. Kim was alive, and who he was. It’s unfortunate, because it disrupts a pet theory of mine; that Mr. Kim was there all the time, and you just never noticed him. In Luke’s Diner, there is Luke, and Caesar is the sous chef / back-up chef. Buttt, if you pay close attention to the show, there is a third guy, an Asian one, and he shows up quite often. I’m assuming it’s just a staffer that filled in as an extra when they needed someone; I don’t even think he gets a spoken line in the show. But he is clearly Lane Kim’s real father.

- So, I usually harp on minor character Lindsay Lister, a.k.a. Dean’s ex-wife, and her tragic murder / just not being on the show anymore. While I kind of do it to be funny, there is another reason I’m firmly in her corner: She’s one of the few characters on the show that exhibit positive change.

When she’s first introduced, she’s barely developed, and seems kind of whiny. And it doesn’t help that Dean is basically awful, and then cheats on her, and then gets weirdly aggressive and is a major prick in ensuing conversations. But she makes efforts to improve, and her second-to-last scene is her successfully cooking a steak dinner for Dean. (And hey, I do like me a steak dinner.)

In Gilmore Girls, my basic test for whether I like or dislike a character is whether they manage to change for the better. When it comes to this standard, Lane and Zach are the best examples, with Jess also being high on my list, although much of his “improvement” is seemingly off-screen. Emily, Luke and Lorelai have regression at times, but ultimately come out improved after 157 episodes. Firmly in the negative on this scale? Logan and Rory. That’s why they deserve each other.

Want to support Steve’s blogging? Then purchase something via the Amazon clickthru link for Your Parents Basement, Steve’s other project! To read all of Steve’s past Inexplicable Movie Reviews, click here! For Inexplicable TV Reviews, click here! For Inexplicable Video Game Reviews, click here! And for Inexplicable Book Reviews, go here!