I appreciate “Concert Interruptus” a lot as it moves a lot of storylines along, like Luke and Lorelai’s friendship, and Rory and Paris’ friendship too, which is one of my favorites in that show. It is one of the few episodes in the first season with no Richard and Emily, which also changes the feel of the show a lot. And there is no Dean! That makes me very happy too.
So first, a summary: Stars Hollow is having a rummage sale to save a falling bridge, and Lorelai is organizing it. Sookie gets tickets to see The Bangles with Rory, Lorelai and Lane. Rory has a group project with Paris, Madeline and Louise, who Lorelai offers the tickets to. Rich girls behave like brats though and Lorelai has to be the mom.
SPOILER ALERT. I have seen all the seasons before, so I am reviewing retrospectively. SPOILER ALERT.
I love all town functions and shenanigans! Although a rummage sale is technically not a town event, it is a very town-minded thing to do, to try to save buildings and stuff by doing charity and fundraisers. I like it a lot, probably because I never had that. It is pretty nice, to see all these quirky humans come together, and to see Lorelai organizing all the quirky humans. You can see she really loves that town and those people, which is super cute.
I know I have said this before but I never get tired of saying it: Tristan is such a sleazebag. I am very annoyed that Paris has a huge thing for him, although I guess we all have those people we have been into that later on we look back and want to slap ourselves hard in the face. The way he creepily stares at Rory the entire class (no, it is not cute, it is creepy), the way he uses Paris’ attraction towards him to, in his sleazy little head, make Rory jealous – and I love that it never works on her, at all – the way he often physically corners Rory in different episodes. It is gross.
The scene where Rory tells Lorelai that Lane decided to be “stupid” and tell her mom the truth rings too familiar. My mom and I would keep a lot of things from my dad when I was a teen, partly because she was the one who made a lot of day-to-day decisions so she could allow me to do things that my dad would’ve in all likelihood said “no” to, and in part because if it weren’t for that, I would have never done anything or gone anywhere ever. I was always “smart” about that. In my head, I also would blame friends of mine for not wanting to lie or sneak out because it never made sense in my head. Lane did try to be honest with her mom, more than once, but I feel her struggle a lot, because it is hard to be a teenager when you are completely separate from what your parents expect or want from you.
In this episode, as I was saying, we see a bit more of Luke’s story and his relationship with Lorelai as well. While I think he was being absolutely inappropriate and entitled when he snapped at Lorelai for wearing Rachel’s hoodie, I can’t help but feel sad because I also have relationships that get me from 0 to on-absolute-edge in 3 seconds. There are always those people who bring that snappy monster out. But I wonder, did he not have any relationship for the past 5 years? Did he not have any relationship all those years? That seems like a thing he has in common with Lor. But also, this show only has long-assed, serious, monogamous, straight relationships and that upsets me a bit. How come no one has one-night-stands, or casual dates, or a queer relationship, or hell, not even a threesome or whatever? I don’t understand. Humans can have such a variety of relationships, all super interesting to explore. In this episode Lorelai comes to know Luke a bit more and empathize a little more too. They have a friendship that speaks to me a lot: they snap sometimes and don’t understand each other a lot other times but they have enough love for one another to make things okay. It is also a subtle yet lovely thing Lor does at the end of the episode, when she gives the hoodie back to Luke. To me, it says “this is your memory, and you will heal when you heal, and I want to respect that and step away from it”. Which is kind, but also smart, because Lorelai is not Rachel nor does she ever become a replacement for her.
Another friendship that I love and honor every day is Paris & Rory’s, but also Paris, Madelaine and Louise’s. I have heard people say that Madelaine and Louise hanging out with Paris is unrealistic because they’re so different in every way. I think it is extremely realistic, especially in high school. Paris talks about knowing Tristan since they were kids, which makes me think she probably knows M & L since forever as well. People who we become friends with very early on in life share with us a love that is almost sisterly, and that bond is often stronger than common interests, at least up to high school or so. They also serve different functions in their “trio”: Paris keeps the other two academically in check, Madelaine and Louise are Paris’ connection to the world outside academics and outside her own checklist of things to do to get to Harvard. In later years, Rory and Paris will become closer and closer, which is only normal, since they are both badass women who deserve the world. Together.
Lorelai: It just seems like you guys (Rory with Paris, Madelaine & Louise) have kind of a bonding thing going on. It might be fun!
Rory: But what about you?
Lorelai: No, no, you and I have bonded already. In fact if we bond any further, we will be permanently fused together.
My favorite line.
Okay let me tell you a story: my mom loves The Bangles. I like the Bangles a lot, but I discovered them during this very episode, and then my mom and I would play The Bangles all day in my house. Great stuff. I love the fact that it is, again, a girl band. This show is all about the ladies, even in those small things.
The whole deal with Lorelai getting Madelaine and Louise out of the party never comes up again, which I think is strange. I mean, I would have done a similar thing probably, but still, it *is* very uncool from a 16-year-old-bratty-girl’s perspective. Regardless, when Paris tells Rory that that’s probably the best night she’s ever had, my heart and soul melt. Paris often tries to pretend she does not want friendships and fun nights because to her, academia is easier than feelings and human relationships (which my younger self can kind of relate to), but she does need humans. We all do.
In this episode we see a bit into how those friendships are going to be later on: Louise and Madelaine partying it up in college, Rory and Paris in their Ivy League lives. High school may allow for dissimilar, unlikely friends to stay together, but once college and different time zones happen, people stick to the people that think the most like them. I like the fact that this is a very real thing that happens, and that the writers never condemn one or the other, nor do they judge any of the characters (even when sometimes they should?). Even when characters fuck up, the writing shows the possible outcomes of that, but it rarely judges anyone for their choices.
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