Gilmores Swan Song

Yes, a few million eyeballs will be glued to Idol tonight, but for the last few weeks, quietly tip-toeing behind that monolith have been the last handful of Gilmore Girls’ episodes.

And tonight, we will see the last of Stars Hollow and its denizens. Unlike other shows that are splashed all over TV land just for ending their seasons, tonight’s “Gilmores” series finale is going down without an iota of fanfare. Just a few promos, a web site that might linger on until the Next Big Thing wipes it clean, and a sniffle or two from me.

Well, we’ll always have Paris Geller. On DVD, of course.

It’s weird. Some of you have chimed in before that either Gilmores isn’t worth the video it’s filmed on, or its seven seasons have passed by overrated, or just for too damned long.

But I’ve been a fan since the day, several years ago, when Husband called me over to the TV, flithered around finding something on a the VCR, then played a show that he promised I would love.

And I did. Compared to so much of the trash that passed for television, this was brilliant. The main characters and set-up were well drawn, the dialogue quick-paced and clever, and even the minor players (if you’d call talented veterans like Sally Struthers, Edward Hermann and Kelly Bishop minor) held up the rest of the fabric of the show flawlessly. It was…as if Dorothy Parker and Jane Austen had returned to life and collaborated on a TV series. And I was hooked ever since. Watching what I’d missed in syndication. Sneaking looks at the current seasons. And one by one, getting each season on DVD.

Yes, some seasons were better than others. And husband and wife creators/writers Amy and Daniel Palladino “jumped the shark” not after they left the series but the last season it was under their watch, in a plot line that still leaves me scratching my head. Why, why why why would diner owner Luke Danes, who’d adored Lorelai from the moment he met her, who was engaged to marry her for Pete’s sake, why, when he found out he had a pre-teen daughter from a long-buried relationship, why would he choose taking time to get to know his kid over marrying his beloved?

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Anyway. Even the best of shows have their stupid moments.

So tonight, when you’re watching Idol (or whatever else it is that occupies your Tuesday evenings) think of me indulging in a little sniffle or two. And even if you didn’t like it, think also of the ground this show broke, and the faith a network took in an hour-long family comedy/drama that didn’t depend on clichés, laugh tracks or cheap jokes to get an audience.

Let’s hope that after reality shows lose their luster (Will they ever, ever end? Except Survivor and Amazing Race, of course), some network will have the courage to return to entertainment like Gilmores.

Or, please, at least to more shows that require writers.

We need the work.