Overview of 'Gilmore Girls' Season 2

Episode 1 - Sadie, Sadie

Release Date: 2001-10-09

Lane freaks out when her parents buy her a one-way ticket to Korea for the summer; Luke gives Lorelai a lot to think about when she tells him about Max's proposal; Lorelai finally says ""yes"" to Max and tells everyone except her parents; when Rory brings Dean to a special dinner at her grandparents' house to celebrate making it into the top 3% at Chilton and Richard attacks Dean for not meeting Gilmore standards of excellence, Rory springs to Dean's defense and creates a rift between Richard and his granddaughter; Emily is heartbroken when she finds out about the wedding from Sookie instead of Lorelai.

Episode 2 - Hammers and Veils

Release Date: 2001-10-09

Rory stresses out about being too far behind on extracurriculars, which puts a strain on her relationship with Dean; Henry expresses an interest in dating Lane; Richard and Rory patch up their differences; hurt over being the last to know, Emily gives Lorelai a frigid reception when her daughter finally tells her the good news; all of Stars Hollow turns out for Lorelai's and Max's engagement party.

Episode 3 - Red Light on the Wedding Night

Release Date: 2001-10-16

Lorelai, Sookie, Emily, Michel, and Rory go to a drag club for Lorelai's bachelorette party; Emily regales the group with stories about the week before her wedding, some of which give Lorelai pause about her own feelings about marriage; when everyone else leaves to call their sweeties, Lorelai calls Christopher instead of Max; later that evening at home, Lorelai announces to Rory that she's calling the wedding off because she's realized that Max isn't the one for her; mother and daughter decide to take a road trip to avoid the sympathies of all of Stars Hollow.

Episode 4 - The Road Trip to Harvard

Release Date: 2001-10-23

To escape everyone's reaction to the news of the broken engagement, Lorelai and Rory hit the road, and stumble upon the bed and breakfast from hell before eventually arriving at Harvard, where Rory gets a taste of college life and Lorelai muses over what might have been; Lane comes home loaded with bootlegs from Seoul; Lorelai breaks into tears when she sees the chuppah that Luke made for her; Luke commiserates with Lorelai even though he's secretly overjoyed to hear that the wedding's off; Lorelai decides to get serious about making her dream of opening an inn a reality.

Episode 5 - Nick & Nora/Sid & Nancy

Release Date: 2001-10-30

Luke's sister Liz, afraid that her 17 year old son Jess is headed for trouble, puts him on a bus to Stars Hollow to live with Luke. Lorelai finds out and offers Luke some guidance on the care and feeding of a teenager, but is rebuffed. Undaunted, she hosts a dinner party for Jess, who is sullen and angry with everyone except Rory. At the first opportunity, he takes a beer from the fridge and sneaks out to the back porch. Lorelai finds him and gives him a lecture on how good he has it with Luke. Jess tells her what she can do with her little speech and then leaves. When Luke finds out about Lorelai's meddling, they quarrel and he goes to find Jess. Taylor calls Luke the next day to accuse Jess of stealing money from the bridge fund container at the market. Luke confronts Jess about this accusation, and becomes so frustrated at his response that he shoves him into the lake. Realizing that he needs Lorelai's help, he goes to her house to patch things up, only to find that one of Babette's

Episode 6 - Presenting Lorelai Gilmore

Release Date: 2001-11-06

Richard, who has become increasingly irritable and contentious with Emily, begins to put in more hours in the office than ever. Without telling Emily, he cancels several important social engagements due to the pressures of work, which leaves her both upset and concerned about her husband. At the urging of her friends, she decides that Rory's making her debut at a society ball will be just the thing to get Richard back into the social swing. To Lorelai's amazement, Rory willingly agrees and Emily goes into high gear shopping in preparation. Dean protests loudly about the formal attire he is forced to wear and the fox-trot lessons he is forced to take from Miss Patty, so Rory promises him a lifetime of watching Battle Bots at his side if he'll be a good sport and go along with the occasion. Lorelai asks Christopher to escort their daughter on the night of the big event, and he surprises her by agreeing to come willingly. Lorelai is in for even more of a shock when he arrives on time, dr

Episode 7 - Like Mother, Like Daughter

Release Date: 2001-11-13

Headmaster Charleston decrees that both Gilmore girls need to improve their socialization skills at Chilton if they want him to write a glowing recommendation for Rory's Harvard application. Rory's first attempt to socialize leads her to ask a group of girls at lunch if she could join them. They agree and hit it off famously. After lunch, an insanely jealous Paris accosts Rory and tells her the the group that she innocently stumbled into is ""The Puffs"", Chilton's famed secret sorority. Paris would do anything to join, and she begs Rory not to bad-mouth her to the group. At the next opportunity, Rory talks Paris up to the group and they are both accepted as pledges. The Puffs ""kidnap"" Rory, Paris and the other pledges very early one morning under the guise of taking them to breakfast, but instead take them to Headmaster Charleston's office to be initiated into the group. In the middle of the ceremony, they are discovered by Charleston and the security guards. He calls their parents an

Episode 8 - The Ins and Outs of Inns

Release Date: 2001-11-20

Lorelai and Sookie gear up their plans to open an inn, but encounter a roadblock when the owner of their dream location refuses to sell the property. The unexpected arrival of Mia, the absentee owner of the Independence Inn, complicates matters even further when Lorelai begins to experience pangs of guilt at leaving Mia with the responsibility of running the Inn again. When Lorelai finally summons up the courage to tell her about their plans, Mia is supportive and enthusiastic, and announces that this was just the opportunity she was waiting for to sell the Inn. Lorelai is saddened at this news and tells Emily how much the Inn means to her as the place where she and Rory grew up together, oblivious to the pain she is causing her mother. Lorelai's emotional turmoil culminates with having her first ever argument with Sookie. After a pep talk from Luke, Lorelai apologizes to Sookie and recommits to their friendship and partnership. Stung by the loss of years and memories while Lorelai and

Episode 9 - Run Away, Little Boy

Release Date: 2001-11-27

Lorelai receives a late wedding present without a card attached, and insists that it be returned. Sookie sees to what great lengths Lorelai is going to find out who sent it, and tells Lorelai to move forward in life to get some closure on her relationship with Max. Lorelai takes her advice and accepts a dinner date with Paul, one of the other students in her business class. The date goes well, but they decide to remain friends because they don't have very much in common. When Paul appears at Luke's the following Saturday with his parents in tow, Lorelai gets ribbed by everyone in town because he's so young. Luke is uncharacteristically quiet, which Lorelai can't figure out until Sookie explains that he's had a crush on Lorelai forever. Lorelai goes to him to let him know that he'll always be a very important part of her life, and Luke brightens up again. Rory, Paris, Madeline and Louise are assigned to present the death scene from ""Romeo and Juliet"" as part of ther class participation

Episode 10 - The Bracebridge Dinner

Release Date: 2001-12-11

A blizzard prevents a group from attending the historical dinner that Sookie has painstakingly prepared at their request, so she and Lorelai decide to invite all their friends in Stars Hollow to enjoy the feast at the Inn. At Rory's urging, Lorelai also invites Richard and Emily, in an attempt to boost Richard's spirits. During dinner, Emily is hurt and angered when Richard reveals that he has quit his job without consulting her. Jess tries to get between Rory and Dean when Dean is distracted by his little sister.

Episode 11 - Secrets and Loans

Release Date: 2002-01-22

Lorelai and Rory have a major falling out after Rory goes against her mother's wishes and asks her grandparents to lend Lorelai the money she needs to repair termite damage to their house; Lane's desire to become a cheerleader causes a strain in her relationship with Rory; after an exhaustive and unproductive attempt to raise the funds she needs based on her own credit rating, Lorelai is forced to ask Emily to cosign a loan; Rory drives Paris crazy when she refuses to reveal her PSAT scores.

Episode 12 - Richard in Stars Hollow

Release Date: 2002-01-29

Richard visits Stars Hollow, and drives Lorelai and Rory crazy by passing judgment on every aspect of their lives.

Episode 13 - A-Tisket, A-Tasket

Release Date: 2002-02-05

The annual Stars Hollow charity picnic basket lunch auction sparks controversies among couples throughout town; Jess outbids Dean for Rory's basket, causing Dean and Rory to quarrel when Rory abides by tradition and shares the lunch with Jess; Jackson refuses to bid on Sookie's basket after she leads him to believe that she doesn't want to move in together; Luke comes to Lorelai's rescue, bids on her basket, and feeds them both at the diner after Miss Patty sets Lorelai up with a trio of unsuitable bidders; Henry tires of the end runs around Mrs. Kim, and calls it quits with Lane; Rory and Jess hit it off at lunch and Jess leaves with a secret souvenir -- the bracelet that Dean gave Rory, which he picks it up and holds on to after Rory drops it; Sookie and Jackson work things out so well that he proposes and she accepts; Lorelai and Rory quarrel when Rory finds out that her mother lent a sympathetic ear to Dean's concerns about Jess; after Emily agrees with her daughter's distrust of J

Episode 14 - It Should've Been Lorelai

Release Date: 2002-02-12

Christopher comes to town on a business trip with his girlfriend Sherrie in tow. Since Sherrie and Christopher's relationship is getting serious, Sherrie wants to begin bonding with Rory -- on Friday night. Without consulting Emily, Lorelai excuses Rory from The Gilmore Friday Night Dinner, and takes Christopher with her instead. When Emily finds out about Sherrie over cocktails, she has a meltdown and rushes off to the kitchen. Lorelai follows her there and finds out that Emily has always envisioned that Lorelai and Christopher would end up together. Now that she sees that this isn't going to happen, Emily blames Lorelai for always keeping him, and everyone else, at arms length. After mulling over her mother's words, the next morning Lorelai tells Christopher that she's always thought that they would get back together, too, and that's why she's never had a relationship that lasted, including the one with Max. Christopher gets very angry, refusing to accept the responsibility for the w

Episode 15 - Lost And Found

Release Date: 2002-02-26

Rory embarks upon a campaign to improve Lorelai's relationship with Jess, and convinces her to let him clean out their gutters so he can make some extra money. Luke can't stand how cramped his living quarters have become now that his sister has sent all of Jess's things to Stars Hollow, so he goes apartment hunting, first with Jess and then with Lorelai, who finally finds him a great place to live. When he finds out later that Taylor will be his new landlord, he explodes, tells Taylor to throw out his application, impulsively buys the building which houses his diner and the flower shop next door, and begins to take down the adjoining wall to expand his living space. When Dean notices that Rory isn't wearing the bracelet he made for her, she covers her shock at its loss and lies that she removed it because of a rash on her arm. She searches for it frantically all over Stars Hollow, not realizing that Jess picked it up after she dropped it on the bridge two weeks earlier when they shared

Episode 16 - There's the Rub

Release Date: 2002-04-09

When Emily and Lorelai go to a spa for a weekend of relaxation, Emily lets her hair down, kicks up her heels and ends up bonding with Lorelai in a way that only her daughter could inspire. Thrilled that she has the house all to herself, Rory hopes to spend a quiet night at home doing laundry and eating Indian food. Her plans are foiled -- first by Paris, then by Jess, and finally by Dean. In the process, she discovers that she has a surprising savior, a secret suitor, and a skeptical sweetheart.

Episode 17 - Dead Uncles and Vegetables

Release Date: 2002-04-16

Lorelai and Rory pitch in at the diner while Luke plans his Uncle Louie's funeral; Taylor is unhinged when a farmer's market opens in the town square and puts a damper on his business; Emily goes completely overboard in helping Sookie plan her wedding; Rory prods Jess into being more of a help; Luke is upset when family and friends cite Louie's unpleasant personality as a reason for not attending his funeral, but is comforted when Stars Hollow comes through for both him and his uncle in the end.

Episode 18 - Back in the Saddle Again

Release Date: 2002-04-23

Rory asks Richard for help in creating and marketing a first-aid kit for Chilton's annual Business Fair, which leads him to realize that he is unhappy in retirement and wants to start a second career; fresh from having underbid on Rory's lunch basket and the loss of the bracelet he made for her, Dean goes overboard in trying to be close to Rory, afraid that she is losing interest in him, and finally becomes resigned to her affection for Jess; at first, Michel is ecstatic when his flamboyant mother Giselle visits, but after Lorelai causes problems for him when she reveals to Giselle that Michel has been holding back from his mother, Michel quickly is driven crazy by his mother's incessant questioning.

Episode 19 - Teach Me Tonight

Release Date: 2002-04-30

Lorelai's complaint about Taylor's choice for ""Movie in the Square Night"" lands her the responsibility for picking the evening's entertainment, but her enthusiasm for the task is quickly dampened when Taylor informs her that she must make a choice from a list of free movies which doesn't include any masterpieces; against her better judgment, Lorelai agrees to Luke's request that Rory tutor an about-to-flunk-out Jess; Rory and Jess decide to take a break from studying to get some ice cream, and with Jess behind the wheel, get into a car accident which leaves Rory with a broken wrist and a totaled car; a distraught Lorelai blames Luke for the accident, creating a serious rift in their relationship; Christopher arrives in the middle of the night ready to go after Jess, but he's already left Stars Hollow to return home; Kirk's short film premieres at Movie Night.

Episode 20 - Help Wanted

Release Date: 2002-05-07

Richard opens a new office and hires a secretary with Lorelai's help; Dean comes home; Lane falls in love with a drum set at Stars Hollow's new music shop and discovers that becoming a rock drummer is her new dream in life; Rory is dismayed to discover that everyone blames Jess for the accident despite her protestations; to the consternation of all in Stars Hollow, Luke closes the diner and goes fishing.

Episode 21 - Lorelai's Graduation Day

Release Date: 2002-05-14

Lorelai and Rory have breakfast at Sookie's in an effort to avoid Luke's, but Lorelai can't avoid an awkward encounter with him at Doose's Market, where he fails to pick up on her hints to patch things up; in an effort to help Lorelai through final exam stress, Rory gets her excited about attending her college graduation ceremony and secretly invites Richard and Emily, despite Lorelai's assertion that they'd never agree to attend; after a late night phone call from Jess, Rory impulsively cuts school the next day and visits him in Manhattan; Christopher sends Lorelai a graduation gift basket filled with fun goodies and an expensive necklace; Lorelai is shocked to see Emily, Richard and the film crew accompanying them to her graduation, and must contend with an obnoxious classmate with an attitude about the rich; Rory is furious with herself when she takes the wrong bus home and misses her mother's graduation; when Rory finally arrives home, Lorelai forgives her when she realizes that th

Episode 22 - I Can't Get Started

Release Date: 2002-05-21

Sookie's wedding draws near, and both bride and groom are getting frazzled, to say nothing of Michel, who Lorelai has placed in charge of the preparations at the Inn. Lorelai finally relents and goes into the diner, where she apologizes profusely to Luke, who is polite, but cool and somewhat remote. Christopher comes to town for the removal of Rory's cast and decides to stay for Sookie's wedding. After he confesses that his relationship with Sherrie is over, he and Lorelai rekindle their relationship, much to the delight of both Rory and Emily. Their reunion is cut short when Sherrie telephones Christopher to tell him she's pregnant, and Christopher returns to Boston, leaving Lorelai devastated. Paris is running for student body president. She's commissioned Madeline and Louise to poll the student body and is shocked to find that even though she's overwhelmingly considered to be the most competent candidate, she'll probably lose the election because she's also the least liked candidate