Gilmore Girls Episodes That Didn't Land With Fans

The CW series "Gilmore Girls" ran from 2000 to 2007, but it has only seemed to grow in popularity since its conclusion (though a 2016 four-episode reunion series titled "A Year in the Life," received only middling reviews). Each year, more and more fans gather online to debate the show's high and low points. While some "Gilmore Girls" episodes, like Season 3's "They Shoot Gilmores, Don't They?" and Season 6's "Friday Night's Alright for Fighting," sealed themselves as instant classics, other episodes, like Season 7's "French Twist," flopped.

Despite witnessing some lackluster episodes, fans are eager to queue up the series full of witty conversations over coffee, "la la la"–themed incidental music, and swoon-worthy romance (both on set and off). However, the following episodes might be worth skipping or forgetting altogether.

Season 1 instantly introduced viewers to the Gilmores' cozy, lived-in world while balancing the fraught emotions Lorelai (Lauren Graham) experiences as she reenters the world of her wealthy parents. The show hit a snag, however, with the 14th episode, "That Damn Donna Reed." Although fans enjoyed Lorelai's flirty subplot with diner owner Luke Danes (Scott Patterson), Rory Gilmore's (Alexis Bledel) storyline was highly criticized. She and her boyfriend, Dean Forester (Jared Padalecki), get into a tiff while watching 1950s sitcom "The Donna Reed Show," which Rory mocks and Dean says portrays a "nice" lifestyle. To prove a point, Rory dons a dress and apron and cooks dinner for Dean.

Viewers felt the pro-feminist message was muddled by the awkward delivery. While Rory's opinion that women shouldn't be reduced to domestic homemakers and Dean's view that some women enjoy that kind of lifestyle were both valid, Rory took it a step too far in dressing up as a '50s housewife and catering to Dean. A Redditor remarked, "I definitely think Rory should have stuck to her guns though ... cosplaying as Donna Reed?? Sure, [make] light of the situation but at what cost? SO CRINGE." Another fan commented, "[Rory] makes a point about feminism then [forfeits]? What they missed in the argument is ... why doesn't the husband cook the whole 3 or 4 course meal?"

In the first few episodes of "Gilmore Girls," Rory gets into a prestigious private school called Chilton but struggles with both the intense workload and her classmate Paris Geller (Liza Weil), who is threatened by Rory's intelligence. By the time Season 3 rolls around, however, Rory is on the path to becoming valedictorian, and she and Paris are tepid friends. Their unsteady friendship is threatened in the 11th episode, "I Solemnly Swear," when Paris' rival, Francie Jarvis (Emily Bergl), stirs up the old feud between Paris and an unwitting Rory in an allusion to the film "All the President's Men."

The episode was criticized for dragging out Francie's storyline, and some viewers were not a fan of the character, her role in starting drama between Rory and Paris, and how often she pops up — especially when Francie's motives for bringing Paris down are never made clear. Film critic David Sims wrote in AV Club, "The issues they're fighting about are essentially non-existent (Paris is mad at Rory for even talking to Francie behind her back, which ... whatever) there's just no stakes to the thing. Rory and Paris are weird friends, and they work best when they're weird friends. Why mess with that?" Similarly, one Reddit commenter said, "Any scene with Francie was skippable for me," echoing other comments in the thread.

For the 13th episode of Season 3, "Gilmore Girls" tried something new with a flashback episode. In the present-day timeline, Lorelai's ex and Rory's father, Christopher Hayden (David Sutcliffe), prepares to have a new baby with his girlfriend. The event causes Lorelai to think back to when she discovered she was pregnant with Rory at 16 and refused to marry Christopher as her parents demanded. In the present day, Lorelai attempts to bond with her mother, Emily Gilmore (Kelly Bishop), by helping her install a new DVD player, but the memory of Lorelai's letter to Emily informing her of her departure still stings.

Although many viewers thought the emotional arc of the episode was done well, the casting and acting of Phillip Van Dyke and Chelsea Brummet as teenage Christopher and Lorelai was criticized. "Not sure who was the casting director for this episode, but boy, was that an epic fail. Not only do the young actors look nothing like the adult actors, but they're also not great at the actual acting part of the whole thing. I really, really don't like those flashbacks," one viewer wrote on Reddit. In a separate post, another fan remarked, "I don't like the casting for Christopher when he's young, it distracts me." With different casting choices, this episode may have been received much better.

During Season 3, Rory dates Luke Danes' nephew Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia), who bonds with Rory over their love of books. However, Jess is troubled and rebellious, and near the end of the season, it is revealed that he's flunking out of school and that his estranged father has come to Stars Hollow to see him. Facing the possibility of not graduating and getting kicked out of Luke's place, Jess journeys to Venice Beach, California, to find his father. This resulted in the episode "Here Comes the Son," in which Jess meets his dad, Jimmy (Rob Estes), and Jimmy's girlfriend, Sasha (Sherilyn Fenn). Originally from Manhattan, Jess struggles to find his place in the sunny, relaxed setting of Venice Beach.

"Here Comes the Son" was meant to be a backdoor pilot for a new show, "Windward Circle," starring Ventimiglia as Jess. The show was scrapped due to the high cost of filming on location in Venice Beach. Viewers felt this episode was not a great showcase of the potential spin-off and didn't fit in with the established world of "Gilmore Girls." "I skip Jess' spin-off every time," a Reddit comment said. "It feels so off-pace for the show, and I don't find any of the California characters likable or charismatic. Jess seems especially miserable and just doesn't land." Film critic David Sims' review in AV Club conceded that the episode was "not quite disastrous. ... But the core premise feels inherently flawed, and there's a sense that plotting would be thin on the ground, even by 'Gilmore Girls' standards."

Rory gets back together with her first boyfriend, Dean, in the early episodes of Season 5, despite the fact that he cheated on his wife with Rory. The adults around her have very mixed reactions to this reunion. In episode 5 of the fifth season, "We Got Us a Pippi Virgin," Luke — who was dating Lorelai, (though ironically Patterson and Graham are among the stars who didn't quite get along in real life) — makes it clear he has a problem with Dean. The tension comes to a head during a double date culminating in an angry Bop It game.

Viewers disliked the episode because they felt Luke was acting out of character and the double-date scenes were too uncomfortable to sit through. "Dean and Rory are so awkward together, and Luke is weirdly mean-spirited and grumpy. ... Plus the whole scene at the house after 'Pippi,' not just Bop It, but all of it is just so uncomfortable," a Reddit fan wrote. A Redditor in a separate post remarked, "I never understood that whole story line. Why do Luke and Dean have it out for each other? ... It doesn't make sense and always feels uncomfortable. They wasted Dean's last episode on him being a jerk to Luke."

Near the end of Season 5, Rory has moved on from Dean to Logan Huntzberger (Matt Czuchry), who works on the Yale Daily News alongside Rory and whose father is a media mogul. While grandparents Emily and Richard are thrilled with the new relationship, Lorelai is skeptical of her daughter dating someone in the elder Gilmores' high-society circle. During a dinner with the Gilmores, Logan pulls a prank and steals one of Emily's antiques, which does not go unnoticed by Lorelai and adds to her dislike of him. Richard and Emily, however, don't see her side and argue with their daughter that she simply doesn't like anyone associated with them — as evidenced by her dating blue-collar Luke.

A Reddit commenter called "How Many Kropogs to Cape Cod?" "one of the cringiest episodes of the series," highlighting the subplot in which Rory fumbles her first day working at the Stamford Eagle Gazette and saying of the dinner, "Richard and Emily come off as exactly the kind of people the Huntzbergers are disgusted to be associated with as they make the most obvious commentary of all time about Logan and Rory marrying after they've been dating all of [two] weeks." Another fan on Reddit pointed out inconsistencies in Lorelai's character, writing, "What I hate most is that it honestly makes no sense for Lorelai to be acting the way she is. Why is she acting like a stranger in her childhood home? I don't know why she's behaving like an outsider and it's so un-Lorelai of her. ... The rudeness from Emily is expected, but the fact that Lorelai doesn't have any fun with it or mock it just makes no sense!"

Although "Gilmore Girls" was well-known for the close mother-daughter relationship it portrayed, things took a turn at the beginning of Season 6. Rory, dismayed at being told by Logan's father that she doesn't have what it takes to be a journalist, steals a yacht with Logan, gets arrested, and decides to take time off from Yale. Lorelai, furious, spontaneously proposes to Luke after he expresses outrage at Rory's decision but does not tell her daughter she's engaged. Their estrangement spans several episodes of Season 6, but they are forced to reunite in "Always a Godmother, Never a God," when Lorelai's best friend Sookie St. James (Melissa McCarthy) invites them both to her children's christening and asks them to be godmothers. (Fans will be happy to hear that McCarthy and Graham share a similar bond in real life.)

Many viewers did not enjoy the episode due to Lorelai and Rory's selfish behavior. At one point, they slip out of the christening ceremony holding Sookie's babies so they can argue outside. A Reddit comment noted, "They're both suuuuper out of character in this episode. These are the same women who plastered on smiles after heartbreak and drama to walk down the aisle at Sookie's wedding. I just don't buy that they couldn't keep it together for half an hour." Additionally, a critic for AV Club wrote, "There is very little to enjoy in the godmother episode," citing that "Lorelai hijacks a christening to make the event all about her rift with Rory."

Throughout the series, Rory's best friend, Lane Kim (Keiko Agena), tries to fulfill her dream of being a drummer in a rock band despite living with her strict mother's very conservative rules. By Season 6, however, Lane has found her place in a band called Hep Alien with Brian Fuller (John Cabrera), Gil (Sebastian Bach), and Zack Van Gerbig (Todd Lowe), who becomes her boyfriend. In the 10th episode of Season 6, "He's Slippin' 'Em Bread ... Dig?," Hep Alien lands an important performance in front of record-label execs. However, Zack, jealous because Brian has written a song for Lane, acts out and ruins the showcase for the band. He and Lane break up. In a subplot, Christopher returns to tell Lorelai that he has inherited money from his grandfather and would like to pay for Rory's college tuition.

Many fans of "Gilmore Girls" were already wary of both Zack and Christopher, and this episode did them no favors. A review published in Woman in Revolt criticized the way Zack's insecurities affected his relationship with Lane and wrote, "I'm not sure what kind of insane power play Zack is trying to orchestrate, but he completely destroys Hep Alien's credibility in front of the label guy. ... The fact that the writers chose for them to get back together after this f***ing nonsense is truly unforgivable." 

Meanwhile, Christopher's history of coming back into Lorelai and Rory's lives only when he can make a grand gesture was commented upon by a Reddit viewer. The commenter, who mused about the possibility of the episode being "the most frustrating of the entire series," wrote, "Add [his happiness over his grandfather's death] to the tackiness and transactional way he offers loads of money to Lorelai and Rory, which as usual is the only way he can ever show either of them love or care because why make an effort to be in either of their lives on any sort of personal level when he can just buy them stuff."

One of the most universally disliked "Gilmore Girls" episodes is Season 6, episode 15, "A Vineyard Valentine." Lorelai and Luke spend a weekend at Martha's Vineyard with Logan and Rory. Luke spends the vacation griping about the weather and forgets to buy a Valentine's Day gift for Lorelai, and the weekend is spoiled when Logan's father, Mitchum Huntzberger (Gregg Henry), arrives and tells Logan he must move to London for a year after he graduates.

Lauren Graham and Scott Patterson, who portrayed Lorelai and Luke, respectively, were rumored to have an on-set feud, but the chemistry between their characters usually left viewers none the wiser. Fans were therefore confused by Luke's behavior in this episode, calling out everything from how Luke says he has never had lobster before (despite owning a diner and living in New England) to how he doesn't buy Lorelai anything for Valentine's Day, even though he has given her romantic presents in the past. "That episode was horribly written, and Luke's behavior was straight up out of character. That whole episode they keep saying that Luke isn't a romantic guy, but that is literally not true lol he does romantic things for Lorelai ALL THE TIME. ... I just delete this episode from my mind because it makes no sense to me honestly," a Reddit commenter noted, summing up how plenty of other fans felt.

The lowest-rated episode of "Gilmore Girls" on IMDb is Season 7's "French Twist." Lorelai and Christopher have reunited after a heartbroken Lorelai ends it with Luke, who has postponed their wedding and is uncomfortable having Lorelai spend time with his daughter. Lorelai and Christopher fly to Paris together and, jet-lagged, find themselves in search of dinner at four in the morning. They impulsively decide to get married in the City of Love, even though Lorelai is extremely hesitant to elope without Rory present. Meanwhile, back at home, Rory is facing her upcoming graduation and is nervous about what her future will hold.

A critic for AV Club wrote in her review, "Unless you like watching Lorelai and Chris have jet lag for what appears to be 100 hours, the only valuable part of 'French Twist' (granted, you really have to look for it), is Rory's breakdown (and cute pink hair)." A fan on Reddit outlined several reasons for disliking the episode, concluding with, "I'm not going to begin to get into the married on a whim in France stuff, because it's so absurd. It would never happen, and it's pointless for me to be upset at this with the rest of the episode bringing me down. ... TLDR: This whole thing sucks."

Lauren Graham herself didn't seem to approve of the storyline, telling Entertainment Weekly, "It just seemed so out of character that I literally blocked it from my memory. That was my Season 7 experience" (per Bustle). "Gilmore Girls" has a special place in its fans' hearts, but these low-rated episodes may end up being skipped upon the annual fall rewatch.