Product Description

People often mistake Independence Inn's manager, headstrong single mom Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her equally willful teenage daughter, Rory (Alexis Bledel) for sisters. Lorelai and Rory cope with the same emotional ups and downs, including Lorelai's overbearing, old-money parents and the joys and frustrations of the male gender. But when Rory's attention turns from dreams of private school and Harvard to thoughts of boys and adolescent self-reliance, single mom Lorelai begins noticing more of her own rebellious youth-only 16 years ago-in Rory. This heartfelt, humorous drama appeals to young and old alike with its blend of traditional family issues and hip, contemporary attitude. Reacquaint yourselves with television's most appealing mother-daughter duo in this collectible six-disc DVD set, which contains all 21 episodes from the first season including the pilot episode.

Gilmore Girls has been honored with an AFI Award and two Viewers for Quality Television Awards, and it was named New Program of the Year by the Television Critics Association. Series star Lauren Graham ("Townies," "NewsRadio," and "Bad Santa") was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series and received two consecutive nominations for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series from the Screen Actors Guild. Graham has also won two Family Television Awards. In addition, series star Alexis Bledel ("Tuck Everlasting") has won a Young Artist Award and a Family Television Award. The series, Gilmore Girls, won a Family Television Award for New Series and was named Best Family TV Drama Series by the Young Artist Awards, which also honored series star Keiko Agena in the supporting young actress category.

Gilmore Girls is the first series to make it to air supported by the Family Friendly Forum's Script Development Fund. An initiative between some of the nation's top advertisers and The WB, the program is intended to offer a greater array of compelling family programming on network television. The strong, loving, mother-daughter relationship portrayed in Gilmore Girls reflects the growing reality of this new type of American family.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1497 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2004-05-04
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 6
• Formats: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, French
• Number of discs: 6
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 922 minutes

Amazon.com
A very atypical mother-daughter relationship is at the center of Gilmore Girls, a comedy-drama that immediately set itself apart from the herd with smarter-than-smart dialogue and an endearing mix of whimsical comedy and family drama. Set in the Capra-esque burg of Stars Hollow, where everybody knows everyone and eccentrics abound, Gilmore Girls was less a mother-daughter show and more of a screwball buddy comedy in which the two buddies happened to be parent and child. Pregnant at 16, Lorelai (Lauren Graham) left her rich parents to bring up her daughter Rory (Alexis Bledel) on her own terms; when Rory herself turns 16, Lorelai wants to send her academically gifted daughter to the prestigious Chilton school. The catch is, Lorelai can't afford it on her own, and rather than let Rory go without, the elder Gilmore girl brokers an uneasy truce with her parents (Edward Herrmann and Kelly Bishop), who finally get a chance to bond with their granddaughter while financing her education.

It sounds like a premise potentially fraught with angst and trauma, but in reality Gilmore Girls was one of the freshest, airiest, most enjoyable shows to air on the perpetually melodramatic WB network, critically praised once viewers got hooked on its unique brand of humor. Rory's growing-up adventures, including her acclimation to snooty Chilton and romance with townie dreamboat Dean (Jared Padalecki), gave the show a teen-friendly feel, but Gilmore Girls was anchored in the adult by the luminous Graham, a brilliant comedic leading lady who could turn dramatic on a dime and never break stride. The show's hallmark was its rat-a-tat, whipsmart dialogue, delivered perfectly by Graham and Bledgel, as well as a host of wacky supporting characters who would go on to become invaluable cast members. The first season allowed the show--and its lead actresses--to bloom gracefully and establish a deep, humorous rapport that lent itself perfectly to weekly travails both comedic and dramatic. --Mark Englehart

Customer Reviews

Get More Gilmore!
"The Show That Almost Wasn't."

That's the most surprising lesson learned about the nature of television production -- as told by the show's creator Amy Sherman-Palladino -- in the WB's stellar GILMORE GIRLS release: Ms. S-P had pitched a variety of programs for WB executives, and, when they asked for more, she made up an idea on the spot -- with no preparation or background detail -- which the executives took! Then, Ms. S-P had to go and create it.

GILMORE GIRLS arguably stands as a benchmark in television history. In some ways, the program is like SEINFELD: if you don't get it, you won't get it. In other ways, it's a high quality Hallmark Channel movie-of-the-week, currently stretching out beyond its fourth season and soon to be entering its fifth. Still, in more ways, there's absolutely nothing else like it on television.

GG is far more than just the story of Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter, Lorelai "Rory" Gilmore: it's the story of the fictional town known as Star's Hollow -- the dreamland for bed-n-breakfast businesses -- and the odd assortment of characters who happen to live, work, and breathe there. While the centerpiece is clearly the Gilmore family -- a contemporization of the BRADY BUNCH, if there could ever be such a thing -- the spin of the show is, to its benefit, the plethora of wonderfully imagined and uniquely quirky townsfolk who populate the secondary storylines.

And, yes, the acting is top notch. The direction is absolutely superb. The writing is, by far, some of the most deserving work being put up on the boob tube today.

Still, GG is on the WB, meaning that it will, more than likely, never find the kind of ratings the show deserves. Like STAR TREK, GILMORE will find its true financial potential in syndication and DVD releases ... much like this current release of the 21 1st season episodes.

To my delight, I'm just discovered these television characters. My wife has watched the show since the beginning, but I always dismissed it as a "chick flick," tuning it out to spend my time on other shows. However, she convinced me to give it a chance this past season (its fourth), and now -- here am I -- writing a review for Season 1 that we watched together virtually non-stop. Others here have raved about the quality of the writing -- the true lifeblood of the program -- and I wouldn't even attempt to do GILMORE a disservice in discussing it other than to add "every good thing that's been said here is absolutely not enough to sanctify how well, apparently, every episode is written."

Honestly, GILMORE is really that good.

Truth be told, the extras are surprisingly thin -- but of good quality -- on this 1st season release, especially considering the fact that the show is currently in production for the WB. Disc 6 includes a handful of deleted scenes; a mini-doc with some revealing insights from the show's creator, cast, and crew; and some scenes from various episodes edited together in a piece that tries to capture the 'essence' of what makes GILMORE GIRLS as remarkable a television achievement as it is. One would think that Warner Brothers would've offered more -- in-depth interviews with the series cast OR, minimally, an audio commentary or two -- but, sadly, that isn't the case. As a result, one could argue that the studio -- as Amy Sherman-Palladino points out in the scant 30 minute documentary -- has underestimated the intelligence of its audience, focusing only on the commercialism of the program and not feeding the fanbase brain.

The 6-disc set is presented in full screen format. The video quality is excellent. The sound quality is excellent (there are a handful of scenes that are hard to hear b/c of verbal pacing, not production issues). Overall, this is one great package only lessened by what they chose not to provide: audio commentaries.

It's About Time
No vampires to slay. No kryptonite "Freaks of the Week." No friggin creeks that you wish the series' namesake to drown in. Nothing but a well-written, wonderfully cast show that is long overdue for a DVD release. When the first season DVD release hits shelves, the fourth season should be close to wrapping up on the WB, and hopefully will continue everything about the show that made the first episodes so enjoyable.

Set in a fictional Connecticut town called Stars Hollow, The Gilmore Girls follows the lives of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, a a single mother and teenage daughter who share a bond that is as much best friends as it is that of a mother and child. The series begins with Rory's acceptance into the prestigious Chilton Academy and Lorelai's frantic desire to make that happen, which much to her chagrin, involves the help of her own mother, Emily Gilmore (played by the excellent Kelly Bishop) and father Richard (Edward Herman). Growing up the rebellious daughter of wealthy society types and becoming pregnant at age 16 didn't exactly endear them to each other. It is Lorelai's relationship with her parents that drives much of her character's motivation.

While life as a single mother might be hard, Lorelai is not without a support system. Stars Hollow is populated with an impressive collection of colorful characters, from the gruff, flannel-wearing diner owner, Luke, to Lorelai's coworker and best friend Sookie and the annoying Frenchman, Michel.

Rory, too, has a group of close friends and even closer enemies. Lane Kim, daughter of a Korean Bible beater is the music obsessed best friend, Dean (Jared Padelecki) is her first boyfriend and Paris, her academic and social rival. As is the case with basically anything on the WB, Chad Michael Murray also finds his way into her life, as do Madeline and Louise, Paris' oversexed friends and Chilton classmates.

Some of the highlight episodes from this debut season include Concert Interupticus - which featured a Bangles performance and hinted that there might be some degree of feeling beneath Paris' chilly exterior, and Emily in Wonderland - where Emily redecorates Rory's bedroom. There are 20 more episodes, each with moments or more of genuine wit and even more genuine heart.

All of this considered, Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel, as Lorelai and Rory, are the show's driving force. Their chemistry, combined with the clever dialogue and rapid-fire delivery, have made this one of the best shows on tv. And now, at long last, on DVD!

Gilmore Girls not just for Girls
I have to admit that I'm as macho as the next guy. I like action movies, sci-fi and comedy. When I first heard of Gilmore Girls I just wrote it off as another show that I would skip. That is until I actually saw an episode. That one episode opened my eyes and forced me to expand my definition of quality television. I have never encounted a show whose dialogue was so SHARP and yet managed to stay so close to how real people would react. The charecters, both main and in the background, are memorable and unique. And I will say to anyone who asks, whoever made the decision to cast the parts of Rory and Lorilei were absolutely brilliant. The chemistry between the two just takes your breath away. It blows my mind that I have to keep reminding myself that they are not mother and daughter in real life. I think what ultimately draws me as a viewer is that way it perfectly mixes sharp dialogue, drama, humor, and most of all the way it shows not just whats going on on the surface of a person but underneath as well. I still proudly call myself a guy. Its just that now guys who are into quality television have Gilmore Girls to add to their list as well