Episode Report Card Pamie: B | 125 USERS: C+ YOU GRADE IT One Down, Two to Go
By Pamie | Season 4 | Episode 16 | Aired on 2004.03.02
It's Digger. He asks how everybody's doing. Lorelai says that Richard is a mess, and that Emily starts working at a truck stop next week. Digger asks how she's holding up. Lorelai says she's fine, and thanks him for asking. Digger says that's what he's there for. "Really?" Lorelai asks. "No," says Digger. "I have to get your father's signature on some papers." Digger goes to the study door as Lorelai tells him to be careful. Richard opens the door, sees Digger, and dissolves into tears again. He hugs Digger tight, weeping, clutching a Scotch glass.
Lorelai finds Emily lighting a fresh cigarette with the butt of her old one. Lorelai tells her that it was Digger at the door, and that he needed Richard to sign some papers. She asks if she can put some of the baskets away and write a few thank-you notes. Emily tells Lorelai that they have a few Post-Its in the kitchen. Lorelai sits and says she knows how hurt Emily must be about the letter, but that there's still a lot of stuff that has to get done. Emily suggests that they call Pennilyn Lott to plan the funeral, since she's the one who was supposed to be planning it anyway. Sookie comes back in, smiling. She asks if it's going to be okay to set up a buffet in the dining room. Emily wonders if Pennilyn Lott would set a buffet up in the dining room. Emily thinks they should toss some cheese cubes in the coffin, stuff a few toothpicks in Gran's mouth, and "let the people go to town." Lorelai says that the dining room will be fine. Sookie leaves. Lorelai excuses herself to talk to Digger.
Digger asks Lorelai if she saw the hug: "It didn't end! It was the hug that wouldn't end. And he was wearing a robe." You know, if this episode didn't decide to have everything happen off-camera, like the upcoming funeral we're spending a full hour focusing on, that would have been a good place to unveil Digger and Lorelai's relationship, just with his holding her hand and Richard (or maybe only Emily) seeing it. But, whatever. Instead they quirk it up, and Digger admits that he's no good at dealing with tragic situations, or people in need, or emotion, really. And that's a huge strike against Digger for me. Now I don't trust him again. Clearly there's something weird about his not wanting to attend the funeral of his partner's mother. And he's not planning on going, probably because he'll be robbing the family blind while they're at the service, due to the papers he just had Richard sign, and when Richard sobers up he'll be financially ruined and Lorelai will be pregnant. Digger says that when he was ten, he lost a family member a month, and it was very traumatic. Lorelai lets Digger out of the funeral, but tells him he'd better lie to Richard and say he was there. Digger says he's very comfortable with that arrangement.