Reba takes it upon herself to keep Van sober when she suspects he has a drinking problem; Kyra and her band are invited to perform at a USO event for soldiers leaving for Iraq.
Cheyenne asks Reba to talk some sense into Van when he stops going to church, but when Reba's efforts fail, she takes her problem straight to the church's handsome new minister (Patrick Fabian).
The family learns that Cheyenne no longer wishes to pursue a career in dentistry after she turns down Brock's offer to intern at his office; Barbara Jean is called for jury duty.
Dorothy decides to do something with her life by signing up for a comedy spot at the Comedy Barrel, but Sophia is unimpressed; Blanche is having tax problems, but decides it's nothing that a négligée won't put right.
After a confrontation with Luke, Jess travels to California to stay with his father, Jimmy (Rob Estes); Lorelai learns the money her father gave her will make Rory ineligible for financial aid.
Rory makes a moving valedictory speech on graduation day; Rory discovers Lorelai is making a huge sacrifice to pay her tuition; Richard and Emily present their granddaughter with a lavish gift.
Lorelai and Rory return from their backpacking adventure in Europe; Sookie confides the sex of her unborn baby to Lorelai; Luke returns from his cruise with surprising news; Lorelai fails to show up at her parents' Friday-night dinner.
An up-and-coming novelist confronts an old flame from the past after returning to her hometown to look after her stubborn grandfather and his pumpkin-themed store.
Natalie tries to bring feuding neighbors together in her new condo building. Her unexpected ally is the building's super who prefers to avoid getting involved.
Jennifer Shannon puts the winning bid on a vintage Welte-Mignon player piano at the estate auction of a wealthy philanthropist, but soon realizes that the late owner may have led a less-than-charitable life before being murdered.