Town Meeting: Will the Real Adult Please Stand Up (Season 1 E11 “Paris is Burning”)

I Am All in again.

Oh it's you.

I Am All in Town meeting with Suzanne French and Tara suit An iHeartRadio podcast. Hi guys, welcome back to another episode of I Am All in Town meeting with myself, Tara and Suzanne.

Hello.

Hello, I apologize if I saw a little nasally. My allergies are all over the place today.

It's one of those days.

But this episode, oh do I have some bones to pick?

Yeah? I you know, this is one of those episodes that I don't. I don't always watch it, and you know, because you kind of always go back to your favorite episode.

Yeah, yeah, and this is not one.

That I rewatch very often, so it was kind of interesting. There were some things in there like oh I forgot about that or whatever, but really, you know, Lorelai.

And Max, both of them, oh so annoying.

Like we needed some adults in this episode, and I think the adult was Rory.

Rory. Well, let me just backtrack a little bit.

This is season one, episode eleven, Paris is Burning, and it air in January eleventh, two thousand and one. And I agree with you. I was I was team Rory this whole episode. I was like, there were just so many things that I was like, Lorla, I wouldn't do this, like what's happening? And I guess, I guess I'll just jump in. My one thing is this rule they had, which I agree is a great rule that she.

Doesn't Rory does not see who Laura.

Lies dating, and I think that's totally fair. I mean, yeah, she's a little bit older now, but still it's weird. But the part when she had to fix her skirt so Rory had to open the door for Max, and why were they talking for so long between the front door scene that was way too long, so then moving to the living room which was way too long to then Rory saying goodbye and called him Norman and Laura I still know where to be found.

Yeah, that whole Like I did agree that that was kind of really drawn out, Like the whole awkwardness thing. We get it. We don't need to be like beaten over the head of it. So I agree that that kind of hold Rory Max, and yeah, that would be completely awkward. Like if your mom started dating your teacher and then he's like showing up at your house and wants you to call him his first name, that would be completely awkward.

But yeah, like we didn't have to spend so much.

No, I did think the Norman part was funny, just because sorry, Rory is so just like what in the world is happening? And I think that Alexis played this part and this what she was given this episode, I think she really nailed it.

Like, yes, I totally felt like.

This sounds weird, but she actually seemed like a little kid to me in this episode. Like it was the first time where I kind of really jumped into a season one of.

She's just a kid.

She's like sixteen, and because sometimes with her dealing with lore I, she's like the adult, and this time it was kind of like, oh, innocent little Rory is She's really innocent? You know.

Yeah, yeah, I did notice that as well. Especially you know, there were some of the scenes where you really kind of felt bad for her because really, Laurel I is putting her in a bad position. She's already not accepted by her peers, like she's already having a hard time in school, and now she has to be completely embarrassed

Yeah.

I also, and I'm sure people listening will comments on Instagram and be like, no, we had this, But I never knew of a parent day like that. Like obviously there were parent teacher conferences where it was at night, and like, I'm sure, you know, Susanna with your kids, you'd go in and meet all the teachers and stuff like that, But do any schools actually do this where parents come and go to every class with every student and then just stand in the back for forty minutes?

Yeah? I that was not something that I am familiar with. That just seems logistically like it would be difficult. I mean yeah, like forty fifty people in the room. I mean how.

Listening to the whole lesson plan like it just it didn't make And that's kind of why I had so many like bones to pick with this episode.

And we'll get into the nitty.

Gritties of things we saw, But there were just so many things that weren't consist for me that I'm like, it just does none of it makes sense for it to happen.

And and the one thing too that pops up that I see mentioned is how she says that, you know, English Lit. Is her first period. So we go to Max's classroom.

And then they go to lunch.

And they went to lunch like you do have lunch after first period.

Well yeah, I mean unless it was like recess, but I don't think so. I don't know.

Rory had a plate of fried chicken.

And you know, parents did not notice the food law.

Like, she had a full meal in front of her. So it wasn't like my kids' school they have what they call nutrition break where it's like right, and it's you know, and it's not long enough for lunch, but it's longer than to just.

Get a little break. I get it right.

This was like she had a full on meal in front of her.

Yeah, the whole thing with them, like because it was the end of Max's like lesson and they're all standing.

I'm like, you're telling.

Me they stood in the back of the room for an hour and list and then they have to go to the next class, Like as a I don't have kids, but as a parent, I'd be like, I am not saying for this whole thing exactly.

I already went to school. I don't need to do it.

And the other thing that I kind of bugged me was We're coming off these episodes that are such great Lorelei Luke episodes that it was really weird for me that like Max and Loreli were regularly dating all of a sudden, like it we kind of just like forgot about Luke.

Yeah, yes and no, Like obviously.

Luke's in the episode in the beginning, but it just felt like a I wonder if they filmed this out of order a little bit, because we just had these moments that were great and they had their you know, they were flirting and the hospital and Luke came to the rescue, and this time it's like, oh, yeah, I'm fully dating Max. I'm like, wait, yeah, I needed like a buffer in there somewhere.

Right right, So wait, what was the airdate again on this one?

January eleventh, two thousand and one, so this.

Was there was probably been a break after.

Yeah, I guess you're right, this is coming after like Christmas.

Break break because the last two episodes we talked about.

They aired back to back.

It was like the twentieth and twenty first.

Of December, so maybe as a binge at feels.

Maybe, but still I mean, yeah, And I thought it was you mentioned Laurel I doing things that you didn't think she would do. The whole scene with her sitting on the countertop eating food out of the pan at Bax's house, Like that was like, why would you Why would she be sitting on the countertop.

Also when she like opened the book to read it there.

I'm like, what what in the world, Like she was like so serious and one like this has to be a joke.

I know that was a weird I thought that was a weird scene. So maybe we should go back to the beginning because I want to talk about the opening when they had the dog adopt in the town square and then we heard that weird story about the hamster, which sounds like animal abuse to me, I don't know, not feeding your hamster and continually stuffing kleenexes in there or paper towel.

I also felt like that the story was a little too long for me, Like I felt like it was a little like it was all kind of drawn out.

Yeah. But one thing I did notice. I don't know if this is really him or not, but in one of the cages, one of the dogs looked like paul Anka. So I wonder if they because they obviously had to hire all these animals for that scene, I wonder if he was just one of the ones that they brought in. On the lower right, there's a cage with a fluffy, kind of long haired, shaggy dog in it. It looks a lot like Pauling.

I also was wondering if in this moment they kind of were thinking like, oh, we we.

Should eventually give Lorlia dog.

I don't know why, maybe because I was already thinking like, well, she gets the dog later, and they said all this stuff, how she can't take care of a dog, you know, and I kind of wondered, I'm like, was the plan to eventually give her a dog?

Yeah? I don't know. That's a good question.

I mean, that's way. I mean, what season that paul ank could come in?

Oh, it wasn't until later. It was at four broke up with Luke.

No, it was I'm trying to read, well, no, wasn't it when she wasn't talking to.

Rory that was it, Yeah, because she replaced Rory with paul Anka.

Yes, yes, yes, okay, yeah, so I just was I mean, again, like this is season one, so we're so early into it.

But you know, I feel like Amy probably was thinking, well.

If we keep going, I'm like, give her a pet just to retract everything we just said.

That scene did have my favorite line from the episode, when they were reading from that card everything that the whatever, that dog was, that they were looking at everything that hates and then Laura says, oh, look we found the dog version of Oh, a.

Dog version of you. That was a good line. There were some witty moments in this.

There was that, and then I feel like Rory had some great moments. The Norman thing just made me laugh. She's like, what's the movie Psycho. She's like, oh, well, Psycho was on earlier, and I'm like she would just randomly like turn on the TV and watch Psycho.

You know.

Yeah, I did notice a clown pillow.

I noticed one when Rory opens the door for Max and they're walking to the couch and it's in the back and the piano is still there, and the monkey lamp is there.

Yes, all of the classic Laura I things.

Seven dollars a monkey.

I actually didn't remember the piano beating this far into season one. I thought it was only in the first couple of episodes. So when I also noticed the piano, oh my god, it's still there. One thing I did notice about this episode talking about them walking in the living room, there were a lot of unique camera angles in this episode.

Yes, you know, it's so funny.

I looked up the director, who, by the way, was sorry if I butchered the last name, David Petraka, but I didn't know who it was because I was like, these are some angles that I've never seen, Like it was like from the top of the stairs, which was which was a cool angle.

I actually wish we got more of that.

Yeah. Yeah, And there were some different angles like in the kitchen and the living room and stuff, so I enjoyed that too.

And the scene I really liked that was so well done is when Paris goes to tell every table the rumor. I feel like the camera work there and just everyone in that cafeteria.

It was done so well.

It was like it gave me like mean girls vibes, you know, like which I don't think mean Girls was out yet or maybe close to it. But the way that David directed the episode, I was like, these were really well done.

Yeah, yeah, and I liked I liked the way they shot the Chilton stuff that in that scene particular. Is it kind of reminded me of Harry Potter almost like the big room with everybody at the tables and.

And the hall.

The stairwell above. Yeah, the stairwell that was that was a good angle too, So yeah, I kind of enjoyed those different camera angles. But you could really see the clown. My point being, you could really see the clown pillow in that one scene because you could really see from the top of the stairs the whole like living room kind of entryway set up. There was actually a second clown pillow sighting.

Oh no, I only saw the one. It was in the scene.

So a little further into the episode, when Suki was in the kitchen and she was pouring the hot water on Laurel I's feet after the after she'd gone ice skating, Uki was standing at the stove. You can see they right. It was right after Laura I made that that unintentionally rude comment about Suki being in a relationship and showed Suki's face kind of fall you can see kind of passed her into Rory's room. The clown pillow was like on the floor or on a chair. Funny I had

So that's funny.

We can grab a screenshot of that.

Yeah, that's like I wouldn't have even bothered looking.

I usually I usually take a deep.

Glance around the living room, but now I'm gonna be looking in every corner of the house.

I know, there was so many like we saw. This is I think the first scene where we saw Max's apartment, So I kept like pausing it out on all the different angles, look at everything that was, you know, behind them, on the bookshelves and stuff.

That scene where between Laura I and Suki, I feel like was also just the whole episode. Laura I was just so immature, and I thought it was really funny that they kind of gave her this like outfit and look that made her look like a kid with the pigtails and like.

M and the fluff like little scrunchies she had.

And I wonder if they did that on purpose, because she was being so immature and stuff. Maybe yeah, it was like just because sometimes, like you know, costume has to go with the episode, and yeah, because I was thinking of the the way when I watched the episode. I watched it and then I went back and thought about it. I'm like, man, she was really immature. But in that moment of this scene, I'm like, why she dressed up like a kid, And I'm like, oh, well, they just went ice skating.

It was like one of those things where I had.

To like, and she did mention when they were at Luke's with the ice skates themselves, and she did mention something about a fur trimmed costume like skating dress or something.

Uh huh.

So I think that's why they had to then do that in the next scene they had.

To like put the little foot on wrists and which, by the way, that comment she made to Suki was just so uncalled for, like real it was, and it also just kind of came out of left field, and the way she retracted so quickly, like I'm I'm glad it was like, oh, I don't know why that came out of my mouth, and I'm glad they played it out that way.

Yeah, but even then, I was like, where did that come from? You know, like it was just kind of it was mean, it.

Was I felt like it was supposed to kind of tie into the sub story of Suki then asking Jackson out, but I didn't feel like they really did justice to that storyline. No. It almost felt like they sort of threw it in at the last minute, but they didn't really flesh it out very well.

Yeah, because I understood the part where like, you know, the bickering with the zuki was a zucchini, the zucchini, but whatever it was, And like I liked that b answer because then you're like, ooh, like you know, it's one of those things where you these people who like argue but they actually have a crush on each other.

I didn't need two together, yeah, and I.

That's all I needed. I didn't need the well, you haven't been in a relationship. It's like, whether I knew that or not, it didn't really matter. I kind of liked watching how her and Jackson play out.

Yeah, it just was unnecessary, I think.

Yeah, and I felt like they may have done that because they wanted to set up Suki asking Jackson out, like maybe as a result of what Lourai had said, and it got Suki thinking, you know about maybe she should take the first step if she wants to have a relationship. I don't know, because I don't know if they would have done Suki asking him out if they hadn't had Lorlei make that comment and make Suki start, you know, you know what I'm saying, like it was kind of the chair.

I just wish it wasn't what she said. I wish it just wasn't that sentence, you know, that came out of her mouth. I feel like we could have used a different line, But I digress, Like nothing we could change.

I liked Emily in this episode. I think, yeah, I don't. I usually think that Emily is just a little over the top in her dislike of lolaural I, but I I this is one of the few times I completely agreed with everything Emily was saying, like it was such a bad judgment to act like that at your kids' school, and so I was kind of glad that, you know, Golden her that she yeah, exactly, and you know, I mean, Laurel being Emily, She's like, yeah, okay, whatever, mom, But I mean Emily was totally right.

She was totally right.

And also like when she said that and then Max and her went to the cafe and they talked about and he's like, well, I'm I could be on probation. It's like, Lorelai, did you really think that it was just gonna like go away, Like you think there was gonna be no consequences. Like the whole school knows, the headmaster knows it's inappropriate, And it's like, if you're dating, that's a whole other conversation.

Keep it outside of school.

But when you're seen kissing in your daughter's classroom, it's like a whole different level.

Of exactly immaturity.

It was just a spectacularly bad decision. That's why I'm like, you know, couldn't they just be the grown ups and both of them control themselves? Like why, I don't know. I just I felt bad for Rory in this episode.

I also just to kind of give Alexis her kudos this episode because it was really really great and specifically with how Rory was written this episode, when she confronted Paris, it was so mature and well done and you could tell, for the first time someone actually spoke up to Paris but in a calm way. No one was arguing with her, Like Rory's just being like, do you think that was very nice? Like it was very mature of her, and I kind of showed her character. But I think this

I just let her right.

Paris, I mean actually admitted She's like, yeah, I shouldn't have said I shouldn't have told anyone what I saw. Like that's the first time we've ever seen Paris admit that she was yaw anything.

Yeah.

It's funny because I as annoying as Paris is throughout this whole series, She's one of my favorite characters because she's just I love Paris like you kind of she's a hot mess, but you kind of like her at the same time.

And this just gives her a kind of like a.

Little relatable you know what I mean, Like in the sense of that girl's been through a bunch of crap in her life though we don't even know.

And it's fun because we've always heard bits and pieces of.

Like her parents got divorced, and that one guy said, I heard that her dad has another family, and and you know she was raised by her nanny, and then that's all you really know about Paris. But you just kind of feel for her because you're like, what else has this girl gone through?

Right?

Right? Yeah, I mean you do kind of you know, Rory's having a hard time becauseeople are talking about her, but she also, you know, can understand how Paris is feeling because that's got to sock having your family's private business freak newspaper. I mean, so that was kind of a really it led to kind of that relatable moment between the two of them, which we haven't seen so far.

Also, why why were her parents divorce? Why was it written in the newspaper?

I guess just because her dad was like a big executive at a company.

I guess it's like reading like people dot com now, Like it was in my head, I was like, do they announce divorces in the local?

Would have been like you know, in the gossip column or whatever.

You know.

Yeah, it was just interesting because in my head I was like, is this the like two thousand and one version of like breaking news, CMZ, did.

You notice Paris's mom was Kelly's mom from nine to two one oh, the original?

No, because I never watched nine to two on h oh. Yeah, she was interesting.

She was from the original.

Kelly is Jenny Garth? Yes, okay, see that much.

I know.

We also do work with Jenny, so I kind of know that much. But oh, fun, that's funny. I didn't know about.

And then there was a boom mic did you kill?

But I was reading comments from our previous episodes and someone did mention the way that the episode was crop for TV could be the reason why we see a lot of boom mics and stuff.

Yeah, I think so, because it's it's wider and shorter, but but it only it seems like season one there is a ton of them, and then after that there's less. So I don't know if they changed the way that they were shooting it, or they just.

Got somebody else to hold the microphone that was that.

Could hold it out of the shot. I don't know. But in Max's classroom there's there's a boom mic in the scene where Madeline and Louise were talking about who he was dating. It's about eight minutes into it and you can actually see it for a while.

For me, it was hard to pinpoint things in this episode in the background, only because we were not really in our regular Luke Steiner Stall. Like we obviously we saw the clown pillow, but with the school being kind of and being the main point of this episode, like, there wasn't really much the background.

I just, like you said, love that.

Cafeteria scene, the hallway scene or the stairwell if it did feel very Harry Potter, which is kind of how I want Chilton to me. Just seems like the school that's been there for like hundreds of years.

Yeah.

I like the way it was done.

I kind of wish we got more of those like stairwell scenes between like Rory and Paris or Tristan and Yeah. I thought Tristan had one line in this or it was Yeah, he just like showed up and I was like, oh, there's dad, Michael Murray.

Yeah, I just want to that little kissy thing at Rory and yeah.

Her I love her facial expressions like she she just hates them, and I love that answer.

Yeah.

Yeah.

One fun thing from this episode was when they were getting the Laurel, I was cleaning out the refrigerator and she had the pizza boxes and she wanted to get the one out of the trash, and they did the Oscar Felix thing, and then they called back to that in the revival. Oh do they Yeah, Luke and Laurel I did the Oscar Felix thing when they were talking about.

I got that right.

I was like, oh, that was a good joke. Yeah, But also, why would they have a trash can like that in the kitchen?

That was my note. That's like a trash can that you have like at a park.

Yeah.

But I felt like because she was cleaning out the fridge.

And pulled it from outside, she knew she was gonna have a crap ton of stuff to get rid of, I guess, but yeah, it was a little large for just regular kitchen trash.

It was really funny with this.

She's like, oh, that was last that was the mystery pizza you know. That was a kind of a funny moment.

Yeah, And then the very end of the scene she pulls it out anyways.

After Yeah, yeah, well, I don't have anything else for this episode.

Do you Just one totally minor thing when they were at in the classroom at Parents' Day and Laureli is trying to give the book back to Max. There's there's one scene where she's holding the book like in front of her, and then it cuts to Max and Max is holding the book and then and then it cuts back and she's holding it again. So but just like one, it was in like one angle you had to look quick or you miss it. But you know, one of those different different yeah put together.

Well.

The next episode, which right away I knew what it was, is season one, episode twelve.

Double Date.

Yes, I was like, oh my gosh, this is a good I like actually almost hit play last night and I was like, no, I gotta wait, I gotta wait.

Yeah, this is this is a good episode. It's it's good. There's good town stuff. It's a good Luke and Laurel I scene. Yeah, I'm looking forward to that one.

Yeah it's not.

But I just want to make sure this is not Rune, right, it is Rune. Yeah it is Rude, Okay, yeah, I was At first, I was more thinking of the Rory Dean Lane stuff and then I'm like, that's also in the same episode as Rune. And then I was like second guessing and I'm like, whoa, this is a one hell of an episode coming.

Yeah, because Kazsuki asked, that's right out at the end of this episode. And then the next episode is where they're gonna go on the double date, but he's got his cousin in town and.

So they end up there. We go, okay, it all connects.

Okay.

I was like, man, we're really flying through season one, and it's like, I want to slow down.

We're almost halfway through already.

It's crazy. And it's also I'll just wrap up with this.

But I love shows that have like twenty two episodes in a season because think about a lot of shows we watch now they end right here at ten, eleven, sometimes twelve, but usually usually ten. So it's kind of nice that we're only halfway because it's like the journey still. We're still making that journey to season two.

Yeah, I have to say I'm not a fan of the ten episode seasons. I know, the longer seasons where you have developed.

The story and yeah, well not only that, I as much as I love to binge TV these days, I love tuning in week by week, Like I still watch Gray's Anatomy nine to one one, all these shows I still watch every Thursday, I think it's Monday and Thursdays like it's my tune in days where I'm watching the show Traders right now, which is on Peacock, but they're dropping Traders week by week, and it's so excited because I'm like, oh my god, Thursday night, I have a

Yeah, I agree. I agree.

All right, Well, then we'll see you next week to cap season one, episode twelve, double.

Date sounds good.

Meeting adjourn.

Dot Everybody Talks again.

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