David S. Rosenthal Movies

To help Rory (Alexis Bledel) get over her nervousness concerning her graduation, Lorelai takes her daughter out on a shopping and dining binge. Luke (Scott Patterson) joins the ladies along the way, and they all end up at a karoake bar, where Rory manages to get Lorelai drunk. What follows is a boozy but sincere rendition of a Dolly Parton song in which Lorelai reveals the depth of her feelings for Luke. Meanwhile, Zach (Todd Lowe) is offered a job opportunity that may separate him from his family for several months; and Logan (Matt Czuchry demands an answer from Rory. This episode marks the last appearance of Vanessa Marano as April Nardini. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Season Seven of Gilmore Girls begins the proverbial "morning after", as an embarrassed Lorelei (Lauren Graham) scurries home following her one-night stand with ex-lover Christopher (David Sutcliffe, billed throughout the season as a "guest star" rather than a regular). This, however, does not mean that Lorelei is going to patch things up with her erstwhile fiance Luke (Scott Patterson): he has postponed their wedding once too often to suit her, and his impulsive offer to elope falls upon deaf ears. Meanwhile, Rory (Alexis Bledel) seriously considers joining Logan (Matt Czuchry) in London, where he has been "exiled" (with a fat weekly paycheck!) by his powerful publisher father Mitchell. And in the latest in a long line of screw-ups, Kirk (Sean Gunn) and Taylor (Michael Taylor) crash their car into Luke's diner. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Gilmore Girls begins its seventh season with a new executive producer David S. Rosenthal and a new network (CW, which of course was the successor to the series' former stamping grounds, WB. Alas, Season Seven will turn out to be Season Last: unable to come to financial terms with series stars Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel (Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, respectively) the network will bring the series to an end with its 153 rd episode on May 15, 2007. It is said by some observers that this move has been implemented so that CW can clear its decks of its "aging" properties to develop its own new series; others opine that the show never really recovered from the 6th- season defection of Gilmore Girls creators Dan Palladino and Amy Sherman-Palladino, and that its ever-declining (though still respectable) ratings are the true reason for the cancellation. Whatever the case, plans to extend the series past its seventh season with thirteen additional episodes will be quietly scuttled--though the "official" finale is open-ended enough to warrant a sequel or a reunion special somewhere down the line. It cannot be denied that, no matter what the future may hold for Gilmore Girls, the series is still both willing and able to deliver plenty of "bang for the buck." The seventh season begins right where the sixth season ended, as Lorelai agonizes over her one-night stand with her former lover (and father of daughter Rory) Christopher Hayden (David Sutcliffe) following her breakup with her foot-dragging fiance Luke Danes (Scott Patterson). Though Lorelai will marry Christopher during a romantic Parisian getaway, it is clear that her heart still belongs to Luke--and he knows it. Meanwhile, Rory prepares to graduate with a journalism degree from Yale while carrying on a frustrating long-distance romance with Logan (Matt Czuchry), the son of millionaire publisher Mitchum Huntzberger (Gregg Henry). Rory also aquires a brace of new--and typically eccentric--friends in the form of Lucy (Krysten Ritter) and Olivia (Michelle Ongkingco). In other key developments, Lorelai's father Richard (Edward Herrmann) suffers a heart attack, which results in her mother Emily (Kelly Bishop) becoming even more insufferable than usual; Rory's friend Lane (Keiko Agena) returns from her disastrous honeymoon with musician Zach (Todd Lane) with the proverbial "bun in the oven"; Rory interviews for a prestigious reporting job with "The New York Times", but ultimate opts for what she considers a higher purpose in life; and, emboldened by the example of new parents T.J. (Michael DeLuise) and Liz (Kathleen Wilhoite), Luke demands that his former girlfriend Anna (Sherlyn Fenn) to be granted equal parental rights vis-a-vis their daughter April (Vanessa Marano). As all climaxes gather for the Grand Finale, Lorelei divests herself of her new husband Christopher just in time for a reconciliation with Luke, an event fueled by a drunken night on the town and a soulful karaoke rendition of a Dolly Parton tune. And just as all of Stars Hollow is celebrating Rory's graduation, who should appear from the blue but Logan Hertzburn, with a Very Important Question on his lips. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Somewhat unexpectedly, the whole Gilmore family shows up on the Yale campus during Parents' Weekend. Also in tow is Christopher (David Sutcliffe), still trying to re-ingratiate himself with Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and Rory (Alexis Bledel). Alas, Christopher's efforts to be a "regular guy" with Rory's fellow staffers at the Yale Daily News ends up a horrible, drunken fiasco. And back in Stars Hollow, Luke (Scott Patterson) seems to be making a concerted effort to get over Lorelai by dating his daughter April's gorgeous swimming coach (Rona Benson). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi