The Third Lorelei originally aired March 22, 2001.  It was written by Amy Sherman-Palladino and was directed by Michael Katleman.

Episode 18 Overview: We meet the original Lorelei, who is visiting the Stars Hollow Gilmores.  She offers to set up a trust fund to pay for Rory’s education- which Emily wants to keep to herself.

We open with Friday night dinner, where everyone is quiet.  Emily brings up the discussions the Kennedy family would have at dinner. Richard comes in and tells everyone that his mother is coming to visit, which prompts Emily to freak out.

Emily is in the basement, trying to find everything that Lorelei 1 ever gave to her, so she could put it around the house.  Rory asks about her on the way home, and wants to like her great-grandmother.

At Chilton, Rory is working on a group assignment with Paris, Louise, Madeleine, Tristan and a few other people.  Paris is annoyed that only Rory is taking the assignment seriously, and wants everyone to meet in the classroom on Saturday and Sunday.  Seriously, what kind of school is that that students can come in on the weekend to do their homework?  Shouldn’t they be learning to meet at people’s houses or something?  This is a very strange fictional school.

At the inn, Lorelei gets a call from her mother, who wants her hat rack back.  Meanwhile, Rory and Tristan talk about the kiss.  He says he’ swearing off girls, which makes Rory laugh.  She tells him he’s going out with the wrong girls, and that he should ask out Paris.

Rory and Lorelei go to Friday night dinner, which Lorelei is excited about because she wants to see her grandmother making her mother uncomfortable.  Rory tells her to be nice, but Lorelei just laughs.  Richard calls his mother Trix, and she meets Rory for the first time.  They talk about different things throughout the night, including Rory’s education and how Richard and Emily are paying for it.

Rory brings coffee and donuts to the study group in the morning, and Tristan asks Paris out in the hallway.  Paris comes to Rory for fashion advice, because she doesn’t want to go to Madeleine and Louise.  She is certainly calmer than Madeleine and Louise, but they would probably be better at it than Rory.  Rory loans Paris an outfit from her mom’s closet because Paris doesn’t have a great wardrobe.

There’s another dinner with Lorelei the First, who doesn’t like the idea of Lorelei borrowing money from Richard and Emily so Rory can go to a good school.  She offers to have a trust fund made available to right immediately, so it can be used for school.  Lorelei’s excited, but Emily isn’t, because it means Lorelei will pay back the money, and they’ll never see Rory or Lorelei again because Emily doesn’t have something to hold over Lorelei’s head.  Emily is convinced that Lorelei will lose Rory the way Emily lost Lorelei.  Seriously, Emily and Lorelei have a very different relationship than the one Rory and Lorelei have.  From what we know of Lorelei and Emily’s relationship so far, there’s a good chance Emily was going to lose Lorelei no matter what happened.  Rory is always going to need Lorelei, because they’re best friends.

Lorelei is letting Emily’s comments get to her, so she doesn’t tell Rory away.  She uses Rory being asleep as an excuse, but plans to tell her after a reassuring talk with Sookie.

Emily talks to Richard about how she wants him to ask Trix to take the money back.  She knows Lorelei the First will never like her, but she worries Lorelei won’t come back if she takes the money.

At Chilton, Tristan tells Paris that he sees them as friends and that Rory set them up.  Paris isn’t happy that Rory set them up, because she doesn’t want to be with a guy Rory rejected first.  Then Rory is annoyed with Tristan for telling Paris and thinks it’s because he’s not over summer…when it’s really because he likes her.

At tea, Emily and Lorelei fight about Lorelei not telling Rory right away.  Lorelei the First trusts Rory with the money, but doesn’t trust Emily and Lorelei with it.

The episode ends Rory telling Lorelei that she probably won’t be getting that outfit back, and Lorelei telling Rory about losing out on a lot of money.

Favorite scenes: Friday night dinner, Emily freaking out about Lorelei the 1st coming, Lorelei talking to the dog statues

Pop culture: Kennedy’s and Camelot, Henry VIII, Barbie, Marx Brothers

Final thoughts: I thought this episode was just okay.  We do see the lengths Emily will go to in order to keep Lorelei coming back for Friday night dinner, and we also see a little bit of the tension between Emily and her mother-in-law.  Lorelei and Emily still don’t have the best relationship but you’d think Rory has gotten close enough to her grandparents to still go visit them every once in a while.  Marion Ross is great at Lorelei the First, and I’m glad that she makes a few more appearances over the next few seasons.  It gets 2 mugs of coffee.