Episode no. Season 5
Episode 13 Written by Amy Sherman-Palladino ← Previous
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"Say Something" | Directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino Original air date February 8, 2005 | |
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"Wedding Bell Blues" is the thirteenth episode of the fifth season of the American comedy-drama series Gilmore Girls and the show's 100th episode overall. Written and directed by series creator Amy Sherman-Palladino, the episode was originally broadcast on The WB in the United States on February 8, 2005. The episode features the renewal of vows by Emily (Kelly Bishop) and Richard Gilmore (Edward Herrmann). Their daughter Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and their granddaughter Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel) serve as maid of honor and best man, respectively. "Wedding Bell Blues" received positive reviews from television critics.
Contents
Plot
Richard and Emily renew their vows with an elaborate ceremony and party, in which Lorelai serves as Maid of Honor and Rory as Best Man. Rory becomes upset as Logan arrives with another woman, and when confronted Logan tells her he has never been a "one-woman man." Despite this, Rory decides to pursue Logan, and is later caught by her parents and Luke in the midst of an intimate encounter with him. Christopher tries to get together with Lorelai, even though she has brought Luke to the reception. Luke walks out mad after Christopher tells him he is only temporarily with Lorelai and that he and Lorelai are destined to be together.
Production
"Wedding Bell Blues" was written and directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino, who created the series. She explained her choice: "When we did the season of Gilmore Girls where we were going to have the 100th episode, I was like, 'I’m directing that!' So, it’s good to be queen. It’s nice to be able to sit there and go, 'That’s a story I feel very strongly about'."
Following the cancellation of sitcom I'm with Her, David Sutcliffe secured a deal allowing him to return for 7 episodes, including "Wedding Bell Blues". Sherman-Palladino implied that he would cause problems between Lorelai and Luke. The wedding scenes were filmed at the Wilshire Ebell Theater in Los Angeles.
Commenting on the episode's storyline and Emily's recent evolution of character and her invitation to Christopher, Sherman-Palladino said:
Ratings
According to Time Warner, "Wedding Bell Blues" attracted the series' largest audience since November 2002 (6.3 million) and achieved a new all-time series record in women 18-49 (4.2/10) and fifth-best rating ever in women 18-34 (5.0/12). The series, which placed #2 behind only American Idol, in its time period among adults 18-34 (3.2/9), women 18-34 (5.0/12), adults 18-49 (2.8/7), women 18-49 (4.2/10), persons 12-34 (3.2/9) and women 12-34 (5.1/13). The 6.3 million viewers placed it #3 in the time period.
Gilmore Girls also improved over its year-ago performance in nearly all major demos including +33% in adults 18-34 (3.2/9), +56% in women 18-34 (5.0/12), +47% in adults 18-49 (2.8/7), +62% in women 18-49 (4.2/10) and +37% in total viewers (6.3 million).
Critical reception
Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune enjoyed the episode saying: "There are many things to like about the 100th episode of Gilmore Girls, but chief among its many virtues is that it's not a lame, "remember that one time when that funny thing happened?" compilation of highlight clips." She called the episode "meaty" for featuring relationship troubles and praised Kelly Bishop and Edward Herrmann for their performance. Bill Brioux deemed the episode "vintage Gilmore" and applauded its "rat-a-tat timing of the best screwball comedies of the '30s with witty, crackling dialogue to match."
Ranking the series' best and worst episodes, TVLine encouraged people to watch the episode as "it's thrilling to watch the mayhem unfold — even if Christopher's appearance at the ceremony sends your blood pressure through the roof."
Emily Yahr of The Washington Post named the episode the best of the show's fifth season.
The staff of Entertainment Weekly shared similar views, writing: "besides being the obvious best in the season, the hour’s also one of the greatest of the entire series. There’s nothing like a contained party to really inspire everything to boil over, even if the consequences are pretty dire for everyone involved. The episode’s pacing is off the charts, and every detail is pitch perfect, from Emily’s tipsy confession that she does find Lorelai endlessly amusing to Rory finally making a move on Yale’s resident playboy."