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The revelation genuinely shocks Lorelai and it takes her a few moments to fully grasp the situation. It's also especially moving as it calls back to a moment from Season 4 when Rory lost her virginity to Dean (Jared Padelecki), who was married. And the difference in how Lorelai handled the two situations is great. In dealing with the Dean incident, Lorelai acted like a mother scolding a child. But here, she is much more understanding and comforting. She realizes that Rory is an adult but more important, only human. She's even able to make a joke about it while also reminding Rory that everyone is allowed to make mistakes.

Lorelai then suggests that perhaps Rory needs some stability in her life and that joining Sandee Says, a website that's been after Rory, could be a good idea. Rory agrees and…immediately blows the interview. Granted, the CEO, Sandee Martin (Julia Goldani Telles) had all but promised Rory the job, but she should have been at least somewhat prepared for an interview.

Seriously, anyone who's been freelancing for nine years would know how important interviews are. And at the very least she should have an idea or two on hand to pitch. Needless to say, Rory doesn't get the job. She does at least get to make a Get Shorty reference, so it's not a total loss.

But if it seems that Rory has been having an extra hard time in this episode, the reason reveals itself in the end. Unfortunately, this makes her story line now feel contrived as well as frustrating, but her numerous road bumps have led her to take a detour to Stars Hollow. She's been away for most of the first half of A Year in the Life, so an extended visit to her hometown is something to look forward to in the next episode.

Stars Hollow itself has always been a big part of the show's charm. It's common for TV shows to only develop one or two settings. This usually means that characters mainly hang out at a specific coffee shop, apartment, bar, etc. And while that certainly is enough to serve the story, it also adds a layer of artifice. It constantly reminds the viewers that they are watching a show.

On the other hand, with Stars Hollow, Gilmore Girls invited audiences to a fully fleshed out town. The stories took place in various locations like Luke's, Miss Patty's dance studio, and Doose's Market, among others and it made the town become integral to the story. It added an extra level of detail that made it seem as if Stars Hollow was a character in the story. It also made it seem like it was a real place that the viewer could visit.

Because of this, it was such a delight that Stars Hollow was integral to the episode. The world fair scene was classic Gilmore Girls and it provided some great cameos. Miss Kim (Emily Kuroda) was, as always, a real treat. It's great to see that she's still tough as nails. But it's even better to see how the relationship between Lane (Keiko Agena) and Miss Kim has developed over the years. They seem much more at ease with each other. It was also fun to see the interactions between Taylor (Michael Winters) and Kirk (Sean Gunn). After all these years, poor Kirk is still trying to impress Taylor.

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