Gilmore Girls ~ Season 1, Episode 4: "The Deer Hunters"

In Season 1, Episode 4 of The Gilmore Girls, called “The Deer Hunters,” Rory suffers a major setback at Chilton when she scores a D on an essay in her English class. Of course, her troubles don’t stop there. She’s further tormented by classmates who insist on calling her “Mary”, as in Virgin Mary. And, of course, there is a huge exam on Shakespeare at week’s end that will count for 20% of her grade. After the D, there’s no way Rory can possibly relax and enjoy her learning experience or even her life outside of school. Naturally, she is late for the test and then has a huge meltdown — I would have freaked out too! As happens in many episodes, roles are somewhat reversed and Rory acts as the responsible part while her mom acts as the impulsive teenager.

Other highlights:

• A deer runs into the Jeep while Rory is driving to school — not Rory hits a Jeep (and she is late for her test that has no make-ups).
• While Rory is at the intersection where the deer ran into the car, either the stop sign is facing the wrong way or she’s driving the wrong way. It’s the same later when Lorelai is driving them home from school later in the episode.
• Lorelai wears an awesome B-52s t-shirt (feel free to find the shirt and mail me one!).
• Max Medina, one of Lorelai’s future love interests, makes his first appearance.
• Lorelai calls the headmaster of Chilton, Rory’s school, Il Duce — there are a few people I wouldn’t mind calling Il Duce if I thought I could get away with it.
• The best quote in the whole episode: “What’s up, quippy? Why so silent?” when Rory freaks out in class and begins yelling at her nemesis, Paris Geller.
• This episode highlights the pressure Rory puts on herself and how much Luke cares for Rory.

This episode is packed with books, but the titles of most aren’t visible. However, I feel like I discovered a literary gold nugget! I paused, rewound, played, paused and repeated numerous times during a scene in which Lorelai and Rory are in their living room studying for Rory’s test. The living room was strewn with books. As mentioned, most of the titles aren’t actually visible or readable, but...! I was able to read one title that I haven’t seen in ANY list of books from the show! The book is Who’s Who and What’s What in Shakespeare by Evangeline M. O’Connor.

Writers mentioned:

Christopher Marlowe

Francis Bacon

Ben Johnson

John Webster

Books discussed, visible, or being read:

The Oxford Shakespeare

The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare

Richard III by William Shakespeare

Who’s who and what’s what in Shakespeare by Evangeline M. O’Connor

Shakespeare’s sonnets

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

Want to buy copies of the Season 1, Episode 4 books for your own Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge? Just follow these links: 

• The Oxford Shakespeare
• The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare
• Richard III by William Shakespeare
• Who’s Who and What’s What in Shakespeare by Evangeline M. O’Connor
• Shakespeare’s sonnets
• Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

Check out my post for Season 1, Episode 1, "Pilot" HERE.

Check out Season 1, Episode 2, "The Lorelai's First Day at Chilton" HERE.

Check out Season 1, Episode 3, "Kill Me Now" HERE.

I have started a Facebook reading group to go along with the Reading Rory's List challenge. If you are serious about the challenge and love reading, you may request to join HERE. I have done very little with the group so far, but I have big plans!

Please note, some links are Amazon Affiliate links. Make a purchase through these links may result 

in a small commission for me. However, all opinions are 100% my own.

Gilmore Girls ~ Season 1, Episode 3 "Kill Me Now" and the reading list

Season 1, Episode 3 of The Gilmore Girls begins to show Lorelai and Rory as two distinct personalities with their own interests and desires ~ at times resulting in conflict and petty arguments. At one point, the women argue over a sweater and who has bigger boobs.

Rory begins to develop a relationship with her grandparents apart from her mother. Unfortunately, Lorelai has difficulty dealing with this shift in family dynamics. At one point, she is clearly the outsider in her daughter's world rather than the center around which Rory orbits. As a mom, I know just how hard it is to occupy that space. On the other hand, with my own child, I try to view it as a sign that he is developing into a mature, self-sufficient young man.

Richard, Rory's grandfather, quotes Twain while taking Rory golfing at his club (the big reason for Lorelai's jealousy).

Although my relationship with my parents is much healthier than Lorelai's relationship with her parents, I identify strongly with her in this episode as a mom. I also identify with Rory's youthful eagerness over prospects for her future and the joy she expresses when Richard tells her that he has found copies of two books she has been wanting.

Want to watch the full episode? Click HERE to watch on Amazon.com

(may require a purchase if you do not have Amazon Prime 

~ Find out about Prime Instant Video HERE).

Two random Gilmore Girls notes....

I was quite saddened when Edward Herrmann (Richard Gilmore) passed away on New Year's Eve, 2014. His son, named Rory, by the way, told reporters that Herrmann had brain cancer. By all accounts, Herrmann was not just a talented actor, but he was also a scholar and gentleman. I would have liked to have known him.

And, have you seen the latest round of Verizon commercials? Rory's best friend, Lane, is in them! Keiko Agena is all grown up! I adore her and hope to see more of her on either the small or big screen. Check out the commercial:


Want to buy copies of the Season 1, Episode 3 books for your own Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge? Just follow these links: 

• Mencken's Chrestomathy by H.L. Mencken
• My Life As Author And Editor by H.L.Mencken
• Peyton Place by Grace Metalious

Check out my post for Season 1, Episode 1, "Pilot" HERE.

Check out Season 1, Episode 2, "The Lorelai's First Day at Chilton" HERE.

In other news, you all know that I am donating books to literacy charities and kids in need, right? Well, the original plan was to donate one book for every book from the list that I read. Forget that! I'd like to donate a lot more. Most recently, I gave 8 books to a trio of siblings that I tutor. They have very few books in their home. Until the last two years, the kids had it pretty rough. They seem to enjoy reading, but don't always have encouragement to do so. They were THRILLED! The books ranged from goofball kid-lit to serious, award winning literature.

Next up, I already have a pile of about 20 books waiting to ship to a literacy charity. Ideally, I'd like to send them to a school that is an impoverished area ~ I recall a school in the Bronx in New York once being listed as the poorest school in the nation, but if you have a nomination, please let me know! I also have been toying with donating some books to a homeless shelter or domestic abuse shelter and volunteering to do a weekly story time for the kids and weekly writing session for either the kids or the adults ~ the place I have in mind is a bit far from my home so I need to work out logistics still.

And, FINALLY....I have started a Facebook reading group to go along with the Reading Rory's List challenge. If you are serious about the challenge and love reading, you may request to join HERE. I have done very little with the group so far, but I have big plans!

Please note, some links are Amazon Affiliate links. Make a purchase through these links may result 

in a small commission for me. However, all opinions are 100% my own.

Gilmore Girls ~ Season 1, Episode 2 and the reading list

Season 1, Episode 2 of the Gilmore Girls, called "The Lorelais' First Day at Chilton," doesn't show Rory actually reading any of the books on the Rory Gilmore reading list, but several books are mentioned throughout the show, as well as several writers. Episode 2 revolves around Rory's first day at Chilton, a snooty private school where academic competition is beyond fierce.

Rory trying to open her locker during her first day at Chilton. Image Source: Fanpop.com

The characters are becoming slightly more refined compared to the first episode, but Sooki is still a bit too crazy in episode two - I'm so glad they toned her down a bit as the series went on while still retaining some of her kookiness.

I also am amazed by how little Liza Weil, the actress who played Paris Geller, has aged! She seems to have a knack for playing uptight characters and currently is in the show "How to Get Away with Murder." Other than updated makeup, hair, and clothes, she looks practically the same! Her features are a little more chiseled (she is looking quite thin...), but without the makeup and mature outfits, I'm sure she'd still look like a teenager.

Anyhow, on to the books... As mentioned, Rory isn't actually shown reading any books during the episode, although she does carry around a lot of textbooks and many books do get mentioned. Those that are mentioned are:

Want to buy copies for your own Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge? Just follow these links:

• The complete set of Harry Potter novels
• War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
• Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
• David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
• Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
• A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
• Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens 

Please note: These are Amazon Affiliate links. Purchasing through them may result in my earning a small commission.

See the list from Season 1, Episode 1 ("Pilot") HERE.
See Season 1, Episode 3 ("Kill Me Now") HERE.

Gilmore Girls ~ Episode 1: Pilot and the Rory Gilmore Reading List

This morning, while lounging on my living room floor in a pile of blankets and a sleeping bag due to holiday guests using my bedroom, I revisited the first episode of "Gilmore Girls" on Netflix. I was looking at the episode titles and, of course, being the first episode it was just called "Pilot." For some reason it struck me as really funny though.

Image source: GilmoreGirls.wikia.com

Anyhow, while I watched, I made note of the books mentioned throughout the episode. I tried to get the titles of the books shown when Rory cleans out her locker in preparation for transferring to Chilton, but I couldn't see the titles clearly enough - was my screen too small? Was my ability to freeze frame not good enough? Or were they just not visible? From other websites, it looks like some of the books mentioned were the ones from her locker, but I'm not positive that all of the books from her locker are accounted for. Anyhow, from my watching of the episode and a few other sources, I came up with this list of books from "Episode 1: Pilot" of Gilmore Girls:

• Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
• Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin
• Moby Dick by Herman Melville
• Madam Bovary by Gustave Flaubert 
• The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

Having just binge watched the entire series, finishing up a couple of weeks ago, I was struck by a few things from the first episode:

• Rory and Dean look SO YOUNG while Lane seemed to appear the same throughout the entire series.
• Emily's hair in the first episode was AWFUL! It made her look much older and as the series progressed and her clothes and hair changed a bit, she looked much better, in my opinion.
• Dean's voice is already fairly deep or developed in the first episode, but changed quite a bit by the end of the series. So did his appearance.
• Sooki stays a bit ditzy throughout, but thank goodness she didn't stay as ridiculous as she was during the first episode! I think her character would have become grating very fast had they continued with her as such a bumbling klutz! 

Check out Season 1, Episode 2 HERE.
Check out Season 1, Episode 3 HERE.