An evening of ""The Donna Reed Show"" reruns infects Dean and both Gilmore Girls -- Dean expresses a longing for the type of family represented by the show, Lorelai helps Luke spruce up the diner with a fresh paint job and new curtains, and Rory dresses up like Donna and fixes a 1950s style dinner for Dean while petsitting Babette's new kitten; when the baby chick that's the subject of Rory's midterm project gets loose in the house, Lorelai frantically calls Luke to help her search the house; both Sookie and Emily force Lorelai to confront her feelings for Luke; Christopher roars into town on his motorcycle, and agrees to stay at Lorelai's and Rory's during his visit.

Wanting to play a greater role in Rory's life, Christopher settles in for his visit and lets Rory give him the grand tour of Stars Hollow. When his parents arrive in Hartford for a visit, Emily invites everyone to Friday night dinner, which turns out to be an unqualified disaster after Richard nearly comes to blows with Christopher's father over critical comments about Lorelai. In the aftermath of the ruined dinner party, Richard retreats to his study to calm down, Emily makes a plate for Rory in the kitchen and reassures her how much she is loved and regarded, and Christopher finds Lorelai on the balcony of her old bedroom and comforts her by repeating a little romantic history. The next morning, Lorelai awakens with a start, horrified that she forgot to help Luke paint the diner after dinner on Friday night. Grabbing a jacket, she races to the diner still clad in her pajamas, and begs Luke's forgiveness. He shrugs it off at first, but appears somewhat wounded when he realizes that L

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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

To Lorelai's horror, Kirk asks her out on a date after being encouraged by Luke; Emily's lunch with Lorelai at Luke's ends badly; Christopher shows up uninvited at Friday night dinner and quarrels with both Lorelai and Rory before Emily asks him to leave; Rory runs into Jess and they each betray their hurt feelings -- Rory about Shane and Jess about not hearing from Rory all summer; and Francie targets Paris and Rory for a world of trouble if Rory doesn't stop Paris from running the student council like a dictatorship.

Luke and Nicole have a successful first date; Jess and Dean trade verbal blows; Sherry goes into labor with only Lorelai and Rory for company; Lorelai reminisces about her pregnancy and Rory's birth; Lorelai introduces Emily to modern entertainment technology; Richard and Emily decry Lorelai's and Rory's plans to backpack through Europe; the war between Paris and Rory continues when Paris picks a photo of the ""Franklin"" staff for the yearbook that has the worst possible shot of Rory.

Danny is jealous when Glenn's article gets picked up by the New York Times; Rory discovers that Logan, the son of a newspaper magnate, is also on the staff of the paper; Paris wages a fierce campaign to get the religion beat, and takes an ecumenical approach to alienating the local clergy; desperate for a story idea for her features assignment after several concepts fail to pan out, Rory uncovers a secret Yale society which counts Logan as a member, and enlists his cooperation in getting a story on the group; Sookie becomes upset when the Inn's accountant suggests dropping lunch temporarily to save money and Norman Mailer stakes out a table in the dining room to work and give interviews, and refuses to order anything from the menu except iced tea; Lorelai and Rory show up for Friday night dinner, and when they discover that neither Emily nor Richard are home, decide to order pizza and eat on the living room floor; Christopher calls Lorelai in a panic when Sherry suddenly decides to mo

Jackson is the soul of patience as Sookie suffers from mood swings and pregnancy food cravings; Paris's decision to fast for Ramadan to bring authenticity to her writing takes its toll on Rory and Marty; against Lorelai's advice, Michel persists with his plan to foil the bathrobe bandits and nearly gets arrested; Emily decides to start dating again, and calls on a reluctant Lorelai for advice; Jackson is so overwhelmed by his duties as selectman that Miss Patty is forced to resort to a ruse to get him to preside over the town meeting; Lorelai invites Christopher to lunch at the Inn and decides to surprise Rory by inviting her as well, but it's Lorelai who's surprised by the tension between father and daughter, which erupts into a heated argument out of Lorelai's earshot; Lorelai feels guilty for lying to Rory when her daughter asks about Luke's reaction to the lunch date with Christopher; Luke helps T.J. with some plumbing problems at the new house; Emily appears to have a wonderful t

Wanting to make peace with Rory, Christopher shows up at Yale, but she brushes off his attempt at compromise. When Lorelai learns that Christopher's father dies, she spends the evening at his place trying to comfort him, then disdains to tell Luke the truth about where she was. Also, Emily & Richard are briefly reconciled when they find and take in a lost dog.

Rory offers to help Logan write an article for the Yale Daily, but she is disappointed when he doesn't invite her to be his date at a book signing party thrown by his father. When Richard sees Emily talking to man she dated, he rear-ends her car, forcing her to ride home with him. The Gilmore's reconcile and decide to renew their wedding vows. Emily warns Christopher that Lorelai and Luke are getting serious and he had better do something quickly if he hopes to end up with Lorelai.

Emily and Richard renew their vows in front of 100's of their closest friends with Lorelai as Emily's Maid of Honor, and Rory as Richard's Best Man. Luke gets in a fight with Christopher over Lorelai. Logan comes to the ceremony with a girl that looks like his girlfriend, and Rory gets jealous. Rory confronts Logan and Logan and Rory go a level up from flirting.

The Prodigal Daughter Returns is the name of an episode for the American comedy-drama series Gilmore Girls.

After a long absence, Christopher reappears in Lorelai and Rory's lives. Luke struggles with what the new person in his life will mean to him and his relationship with Lorelai. Lorelai and Rory enjoy their first Thanskgiving at the Dragonfly Inn, and Rory receives surprising news about Logan. Meanwhile, on the eve of an important gig for the band, Lane has to deal with Zach's jealousy over a song Brian wrote about her.

Emily tells Lorelai that she'd like to get to know her future son-in-law better and asks her to invite Luke over for dinner - Lorelai purposely fails to mention that the wedding has been postponed... The Yale Daily News staff finally fires Paris and chooses Rory to be the new editor. A furious Paris kicks Rory out of the apartment, Logan subsequently convinces her to move into his place. Christopher tells Lorelai about Rory's new living arrangement.

Lorelai offers to help Christopher out by babysitting his 4-year-old daughter, G.G, and is horrified by the toddler's terrible behavior. The next day, Rory and Logan attend the wedding of Logan's sister, Honor. While helping the bride and her three bridesmaids get ready, Rory is devastated to learn how Logan spent his time during their recent breakup.

Lane and Zack's wedding is coming up and since Luke is busy, Michel is Lorelai's first choice as a date for Lane and Zack's wedding, but he gets Celine Dion tickets and bails. Rory suggests that Chris go as Lorelai's date and Chris is totally psyched to do it. Grandma Kim is a Buddhist and doesn't know that Mrs. Kim is a 7th Day Adventist. At Lane's wedding, Lorelai collapses and Christopher is there to take care of her.

Stars Hollow needs a new town troubadour and there are many hopeful people trying out, much to Taylor's dislike. Lorelai finally confronts Luke about their long engagement and Rory and Logan spend their last night together before he must go to London.

Lorelai wakes up next to Christopher after she breaks-up with Luke. Rory receives a model rocket as a going-away present from Logan and struggles to decode its significance. Kirk crashes into Luke's diner. Luke tries to get Lorelai back, but she informs him that she slept with Christopher. Christopher calls Lorelai and says, "That other night was incredible and I hope it can happen again." Lorelai replies, "That night was a mistake and it cannot happen again."

Luke punches Christopher after finding out Lorelai slept with him. After not being able to go on the trip to Asia with Logan, Lorelai throws Rory an Asian-themed party, but Rory finds out that Lorelai slept with Christopher and gets upset. Lane and Zach return from their less-than-perfect honeymoon in Mexico. Lane reports to Rory that sex is overrated; learning that she is pregnant does not help her opinion. Luke and Lorelai begin to deal with their break-up.

Lorelai begins to wonder if all the choices she's made have been due to her trying to rebel against her mother. Christopher tells Lorelai that he loves her.

Lorelai and Chris begin to date. Christopher forgives Sherry after she sends him a letter apologizing. Rory returns to Yale for the fall semester of her senior year. April is staying with Luke temporarily while her mom, Anna, is out of town. Richard starts at Yale as a guest lecturer. Rory covers an art exhibition for the Yale newspaper and meets her new friends, Lucy and Olivia.

Logan returns to town on business to acquire an internet company and pays Rory a surprise visit. Rory is thrilled but, during a dinner with Logan's colleagues, realizes that she has no connection to his new business world. Lorelai and Christopher fight about Gigi going to Paris to be with Sherry for a few months. Christopher asks Lorelai to go to Paris with him.

Lorelai and Chris attend Yale Parents' Weekend where they find Emily and Richard. Chris takes Rory and all her friends out for dinner after feeling guilty that he wasn't around when Rory was growing up. At the end, she shows her commitment to her duties as editor of the newspaper by gathering the troops to report on a story.

Lorelai and Chris fly to France to take Gigi to see her mother, Sherry. Once there, Chris proposes to Lorelai and the couple return to Stars Hollow as Mr. and Mrs. Hayden. The joy of Rory's trip to the country (Stars Hollow) with Lucy and Olivia is dampened by Rory's breakdown regarding her fears for the future, and the unexpected appearance of a past friend who disavows having known Rory. Zach and Lane find out they're having twins and break the news of their impending parenthood to Mrs. Kim, with unexpected consequences.

Rory is angry that she could not attend Lorelai and Chris's wedding. Logan is moving from London to New York City. He and Rory fight about an article she wrote. April develops appendicitis and Luke takes her to the hospital.

Chris and Lorelai tell Emily and Richard about their marriage. Lorelai becomes determined to make Christopher liked by the people in Stars Hollow. Anna tells Luke that she is moving across the country and taking April with her, in which Luke tells Anna he will fight for custody. Rory moves in with Paris, after moving out of Logan's apartment. She attends a party at Lucy's apartment; Marty reveals to Rory that he still has feelings for her. Luke's evident feelings for Lorelai are still apparent in his behavior.

Luke and Lorelai share a moment when Luke introduces her to Liz's new baby, and Christopher witnesses the scene. Lorelai and Christopher get into a fight over what Lorelai wants versus what Christopher wants. Luke contacts a lawyer over his custody troubles with Anna. Christopher and Luke fight in the town square. Logan discovers that Rory and Marty have been pretending that they just met, and he reveals the truth to Lucy. Emily gives Lorelai advice about her marriage.

Luke asks Lorelai to be a character reference in his custody case. Rory comes back from London from Chirstmas with Logan, where she and Logan have made amends. The Gilmore girls celebrate Christmas a month late. April sneaks out to see Luke.

Rory makes amends with Lucy while Christopher finds the letter Lorelai wrote for Luke's character reference. Rory witnesses a frightening sight while at Richard's Economics class. Sookie is acting weirdly so Lorelai makes Jackson confess: Sookie is pregnant again, even though Sookie told Jackson to get a vasectomy.

Richard is in the hospital with Emily, Lorelai and Rory in the waiting room; Logan comes to be by Rory's side. Lorelai calls Christopher to let him know, but cannot reach him. Luke hears about Richard and comes running to help.

Richard is feeling better and preparing to leave the hospital. Michel's dog Chin Chin dies and Michel guilts Lorelai into holding his memorial at The Dragonfly. Rory has a crush on the teacher's assistant that is filling in for Richard and confesses her "self-destructive" feelings to Logan. Lorelai and Christopher end their marriage after he calls her out on still having feelings for Luke.

At Rory's graduation party at her grandparent's house, Logan proposes to her. Emily and Richard sing Rory a graduation song. Rory is caught off-guard and says she needs time to think about it. After Rory graduates from Yale, she tells Logan that she can't marry him. Logan tells her it's all or nothing and Rory decides to decline. Logan ends their relationship.