Popcorn and Twizzlers

At the news that Amy Sherman-Paladino was leaving Gilmore Girls, I felt that the show took a big hit. Paladino IS Gilmore Girls!

Maybe this is the direction Paladino had wanted the show to go anyway, as she assured views that she had taken her replacement under her wing and had laid out her grand plan to that person.

Now, I am a loyal viewer. I have watched since the series premiere. However, this season has had plenty of episodes (i.e. plenty of opportunities) to continue of the vein of fine writing, dialogue and comedy. It has fallen short of the mark, in my opinion.

Luke and Lorelai broke up and barely ever have a scene together anymore. They made Lane and Zach get pregnant with twins after one night of bad sex on their wedding night...and oh yeah, they got parasites there and spent the whole honeymoon barfing. Lorelai got back together with Chris and, oh yeah, they just got married WITHOUT RORY in Paris. Rory herself has become very boring and self-centered and her romance with trust fund baby Logan is fizzling out to this viewer. Luke, my favorite character, is left to having only scenes with April. While I love these scenes, it feels like Luke is on a completely different show than everyone else.

Where is the baudiness of Miss Patty? Where is the scratchy rasp of good-hearted Babette? Where is Taylor Doose out on another crusade (or tirade) of making Luke's eyeballs pop? Sure, there was that incident of the car through Luke's restaurant, but really, the prominent Town Selectman is barely seen anymore.

Where is gentle, remembers-where-she-came-from Rory? Her interactions with her best friend, or closest thing to it, are slim and don't carry the same quality they once did.

Every episode, I am hoping that the show will get back to WHY people liked Gilmore Girls. Lorelai and Rory are barely ever interacting or have storylines that INVOLVE each other. The show is called 'Gilmore Girls', but it seems like each Gilmore Girl has gone her own way and the feel of the show is very much divided.

Lorelai and Rory both seemed to have come a long way, personality wise, in good ways and in bad. I am finding Rory to be too uber-confident in her looks, her intelligent, her "breeding stock". Everything is TOO EASY for her now. I know she worked hard to get where she's at (though being in a prep school and attending Yale certainly paves the way for her) but everything is so elitist in Rory's world and she has become the type of "mean, judgmental person" that she criticizes.

Lorelai has become wishy-washy on everything. Her personality used to vibrate the screen. It seems like too many zippy pop-culture references. Yes, pop culture references have always been a part of the show, but it seems like Lorelai is spewing them out like word vomit instead of having a bit of real dialogue.

I can't quite put my finger on exactly WHY the show feels very different. Oh wait, yes I can: Paladino is gone and the spark is not there anymore.

Bring back the quaint town of Stars Hollow and all its eccentric, wacky inhabitants. Bring back the sweetness of Rory, the strong-willed Lorelai, and the gruff but lovable Luke! Ahem...pretty please?