Rory Gilmore: Poor little rich girl?

[qtpye]

8 minutes ago, dmc said:

I am not saying people can't be friends with their parents, but that relationship shouldn't supersede the parental one.  Frequently, Rory would do or say things that I would have been in serious trouble for...that Lorelei shrugs off.  

She always saw Rory with rose-colored glasses and that was a big part of the problem. She was so desperate for Rory to be her BFF that she did not really parent her the way she should. 

[dmc]

8 minutes ago, qtpye said:

She always saw Rory with rose-colored glasses and that was a big part of the problem. She was so desperate for Rory to be her BFF that she did not really parent her the way she should. 

Honestly Lorelei lives a bit of a weird life.  I didn't notice it when I was younger but she really only has one friend.  Her and Suki really don't hang out a lot.  I think Rory is the person she's with most of the time.  And people tell her this all through the show.  Emily tells her that Rory should be doing things with her classmates.  Headmaster Charleston tells her as well.  They all notice that Rory is missing a lot of the experiences typical of a girl her age to hang with her mother.  Lorelei really is living through Rory.  As opposed to carving out a life of her own.  She doesn't really have any hobbies or interests.  Her main interest is Rory.  Then any time she does something on her own, its connected to Rory like dating her teacher.  

I hate to say this but a lot of what Emily and Richard say about her is accurate.  

 

 

Edited May 24, 2021 by dmc

[Hera]

A friend of mine pointed out not long ago that Lorelai wasn't actually qualified to teach Rory anything about romantic relationships because she herself had never been in a functional one. The biggest, most important relationship of Lorelai's life in the early seasons was Christopher, and that was when she herself was a teen. It would also explain her getting so invested in Rory's own teenage relationships, since she has no perspective telling her that these relationships feel more high-stakes than they usually end up being in the great scheme of things. The whole time I rewatched the original series, I just wanted to shake her and say, "Rory is very unlikely to end up with Jess OR Dean. Relax, lady and stop caring so much!" Seriously, no one who is not in high school (including people who are younger than high schoolers) should be that interested in the love lives of people who are.

I also agree that Rory's problem was not that she was an only child. To be honest, I'm surprised that anyone is still trying to advance the idea that only children are more prone to selfishness or anything else. You can take pretty much any personality trait and come up with a just-so story for why someone has it based on their family/childhood: "She's selfish because she didn't have siblings growing up, so she never learned how to share." vs. "She's selfish because she had so many siblings growing that if she wasn't protective of her things, they'd get stolen or broken," or, "He's not good with authority because his parents never set any limits and so he doesn't think anyone has the right to tell him what to do," vs. "He's not good with authority because his parents were really strict and so he rebels against anyone who tries to tell him what to do."

Anyway, back to the topic. It's weird that Lorelai remains so convinced of Rory's infallibility, even after Rory misses her college graduation because she ditched school to go to New York to hang out with Jess.* I get that the fact that it was really out of character for Rory was the point because it spoke to the strength of her feelings for Jess, and that teenagers sometimes do dumb, selfish things that they haven't thought through. But still, if I were Lorelai, that would have been the point where I would have realized that there was at least one major flaw my kid had to work on before being sent out into the world.

 

*Side note: why didn't Chilton ever call Lorelai to find out why Rory didn't turn up? My public high school was all over unexcused absences; I can't imagine that a swanky private school wouldn't immediately call the parents to check on a student who just didn't turn up to school one day.

Edited May 25, 2021 by Hera

[Katy M]

5 hours ago, Hera said:

I also agree that Rory's problem was not that she was an only child. To be honest, I'm surprised that anyone is still trying to advance the idea that only children are more prone to selfishness or anything else. You can take pretty much any personality trait and come up with a just-so story for why someone has it based on their family/childhood: "She's selfish because she didn't have siblings growing up, so she never learned how to share." vs. "She's selfish because she had so many siblings growing that if she wasn't protective of her things, they'd get stolen or broken," or, "He's not good with authority because his parents never set any limits and so he doesn't think anyone has the right to tell him what to do," vs. "He's not good with authority because his parents were really strict and so he rebels against anyone who tries to tell him what to do."

i agree with your stance against generalizations.  I think in Rory's case, though, Lorelai conentrated a lot of effort into Rory that she wouldn't have been able to if she had had to spread it around to more than one kid.  Also, with more than one kid, (even though it already boggles the imagination), they woudln't have been able to eat every single meal out, so I think Rory and the other kid(s) would have had to figure things out like cooking.  I actually would be interested to see an AU of Rory's life where she has a younger sister. Is this sister more beloved than Rory?  Is she a complete rebel, screaming out in destructive ways for all the attention Rory gets?  Does she get to go to Chilton, too, or does she get Rory's sloggy seconds?

[Taryn74]

8 hours ago, Hera said:

"She's selfish because she didn't have siblings growing up, so she never learned how to share." vs. "She's selfish because she had so many siblings growing that if she wasn't protective of her things, they'd get stolen or broken," or, "He's not good with authority because his parents never set any limits and so he doesn't think anyone has the right to tell him what to do," vs. "He's not good with authority because his parents were really strict and so he rebels against anyone who tries to tell him what to do."

Such a great point! There's a podcaster I listen to occasionally who always says something I find really important -- we like to think that most people form opinions rationally, but that's not true. People form opinions emotionally, and then they come up with "facts" to rationalize their opinion. Your statements are the perfect example of that. In both cases the "facts" sound like a completely reasonable rationale for the final opinion, but they are the complete opposite of each other.

[andromeda331]

8 hours ago, Hera said:

A friend of mine pointed out not long ago that Lorelai wasn't actually qualified to teach Rory anything about romantic relationships because she herself had never been in a functional one. The biggest, most important relationship of Lorelai's life in the early seasons was Christopher, and that was when she herself was a teen. It would also explain her getting so invested in Rory's own teenage relationships, since she has no perspective telling her that these relationships feel more high-stakes than they usually end up being in the great scheme of things. The whole time I rewatched the original series, I just wanted to shake her and say, "Rory is very unlikely to end up with Jess OR Dean. Relax, lady and stop caring so much!" Seriously, no one who is not in high school (including people who are younger than high schoolers) should be that interested in the love lives of people who are.

I also agree that Rory's problem was not that she was an only child. To be honest, I'm surprised that anyone is still trying to advance the idea that only children are more prone to selfishness or anything else. You can take pretty much any personality trait and come up with a just-so story for why someone has it based on their family/childhood: "She's selfish because she didn't have siblings growing up, so she never learned how to share." vs. "She's selfish because she had so many siblings growing that if she wasn't protective of her things, they'd get stolen or broken," or, "He's not good with authority because his parents never set any limits and so he doesn't think anyone has the right to tell him what to do," vs. "He's not good with authority because his parents were really strict and so he rebels against anyone who tries to tell him what to do."

Anyway, back to the topic. It's weird that Lorelai remains so convinced of Rory's infallibility, even after Rory misses her college graduation because she ditched school to go to New York to hang out with Jess.* I get that the fact that it was really out of character for Rory was the point because it spoke to the strength of her feelings for Jess, and that teenagers sometimes do dumb, selfish things that they haven't thought through. But still, if I were Lorelai, that would have been the point where I would have realized that there was at least one major flaw my kid had to work on before being sent out into the world.

 

*Side note: why didn't Chilton ever call Lorelai to find out why Rory didn't turn up? My public high school was all over unexcused absences; I can't imagine that a swanky private school wouldn't immediately call the parents to check on a student who just didn't turn up to school one day.

It bugged me that Lorelai remain convinced of Rory's infallibility straight through college and the revival. I get in high school when Rory was still a pretty good kid and the faults Rory had there was still plenty of time for those to be worked out as she grew up. Its after that I don't understand how she still has it. Rory changed a lot in college and her unlikeable traits became more of who she was. She was spoiled, privilage and unable to handle any kind of criticism. She messed up a lot. The biggest one of course being her deciding to drop out because one person told her she didn't have it and going to her grandparents because Lorelai wasn't on board with her dropping out. But after the months of separation and Rory acting like a spoiled brat. She comes home and Lorelai lets it go. That should have made Lorelai see faults in her daughter. Nope, she just glosses it over and everyone acts like Rory didn't do anything wrong. That just continues into the revival. Lorelai makes fun of the 30 crowd despite the fact Rory's pretty much in the same boat. The only difference is we can see Rory didn't even bother to try. She's completely unprofessional, she doesn't prepare for an interview, she drops assignments and falls asleep during one. She jets back and forth from London and has her stuff in various people's house. How does she still see Rory so perfect? It makes no sense. She should be seeing Rory as she is and also disappointed in her daughter. Rory was given so many opportunities but she doesn't do anything with it. She's still treating men like crap. Lorelai in the early seasons called Rory on her crap. She seem to have a little more of better perspective of her daughter in the early seasons. How does she end up so completely blind?   

[qtpye]

1 hour ago, andromeda331 said:

It bugged me that Lorelai remain convinced of Rory's infallibility straight through college and the revival. I get in high school when Rory was still a pretty good kid and the faults Rory had there was still plenty of time for those to be worked out as she grew up. Its after that I don't understand how she still has it. Rory changed a lot in college and her unlikeable traits became more of who she was. She was spoiled, privilage and unable to handle any kind of criticism. She messed up a lot. The biggest one of course being her deciding to drop out because one person told her she didn't have it and going to her grandparents because Lorelai wasn't on board with her dropping out. But after the months of separation and Rory acting like a spoiled brat. She comes home and Lorelai lets it go. That should have made Lorelai see faults in her daughter. Nope, she just glosses it over and everyone acts like Rory didn't do anything wrong. That just continues into the revival. Lorelai makes fun of the 30 crowd despite the fact Rory's pretty much in the same boat. The only difference is we can see Rory didn't even bother to try. She's completely unprofessional, she doesn't prepare for an interview, she drops assignments and falls asleep during one. She jets back and forth from London and has her stuff in various people's house. How does she still see Rory so perfect? It makes no sense. She should be seeing Rory as she is and also disappointed in her daughter. Rory was given so many opportunities but she doesn't do anything with it. She's still treating men like crap. Lorelai in the early seasons called Rory on her crap. She seem to have a little more of better perspective of her daughter in the early seasons. How does she end up so completely blind?   

 

4 hours ago, Katy M said:

i agree with your stance against generalizations.  I think in Rory's case, though, Lorelai conentrated a lot of effort into Rory that she wouldn't have been able to if she had had to spread it around to more than one kid.  Also, with more than one kid, (even though it already boggles the imagination), they woudln't have been able to eat every single meal out, so I think Rory and the other kid(s) would have had to figure things out like cooking.  I actually would be interested to see an AU of Rory's life where she has a younger sister. Is this sister more beloved than Rory?  Is she a complete rebel, screaming out in destructive ways for all the attention Rory gets?  Does she get to go to Chilton, too, or does she get Rory's sloggy seconds?

This also begs the question..." Would everyone be so enamored of Rory if there was no Lorelai constantly pumping her up"?

Lorelai fully admits that Rory is the daughter that Emily and Richard wished they had. Even though we, the audience, admire Lorelai for her achievements, her parents will always look at her as a failure. They expected much more from her than being an innkeeper that married a diner owner.

Rory might have not had any siblings but Lorelai acted like a quasi sister and remained the eternal fuck up. When Rory turned out to be a good student and an easy-going people pleaser, it must have seemed heaven-sent.

I remember in the pilot that someone could not believe that Rory and Lorelai were mother/daughter instead of sisters. This always seemed a little far-fetched to me since, even though Lauren G is a beautiful woman, I would never mistake for AB's sister, at that time.

Also, I think the elephant in the room is that Lorelai never wanted Rory to be like her. I don't mean just not being a teenage mother (which is understandable).

Stars Hallow loved "The Gilmore Girls" because Rory is calmer one of a very vivacious pairing. We see when Rory is in the real world and she does not have Lorelai as a sounding board, therapist, and all-around president of the Rory Gilmore fan club, she tends to fall flat on her face because she is left to her own devices.

I also hated the way Lorelai just took Rory back when "her grandparents were being mean". She should have said, "Well, Rory I will always love you but it's time you were out on your own since you want to make your own decisions." This did not mean kick her out, but make her see that actions have repercussions.

By the way, did anyone else find that Rory and Lorelai gorging on junk food and never gaining a pound charming back in the day but a little too precious, now?

 

Edited May 25, 2021 by qtpye

[Taryn74]

4 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

It bugged me that Lorelai remain convinced of Rory's infallibility straight through college and the revival

I can kinda understand Lorelai still wanting to see Rory as "perfect" while she was in college, because at the time Lorelai was still so desperate for Rory to turn out different than she did. If Rory turned out well, it was vindication that Lorelai had raised her right even if it went against everything her parents wanted. Rory's failure was Lorelai's failure, in a way, and Lorelai wasn't ready to face that yet.

By the Revival, though, that ship had sailed and everyone still seeing Rory as the Golden Child was just pathetic and defied belief.

3 hours ago, qtpye said:

I remember in the pilot that someone could not believe that Rory and Lorelai were mother/daughter instead of sisters. This always seemed a little far-fetched to me since, even though Lauren G is a beautiful woman, I would never mistake for AB's sister, at that time.

Ha ha, for sure. Lorelai didn't look that young.

[scarynikki12]

To be fair that guy was surprised at how young Lorelai was to have (what he thought was) a full grown daughter and peaced out when he learned Rory’s age. He never thought they were sisters. 

[qtpye]

On 5/25/2021 at 3:20 PM, scarynikki12 said:

To be fair that guy was surprised at how young Lorelai was to have (what he thought was) a full grown daughter and peaced out when he learned Rory’s age. He never thought they were sisters. 

I just never thought that Lorelai looked young to have a child Rory's age.  I thought LG was beautiful but she never looked "young" to me like Anna Faris.

Anna was also on a show where she had a daughter as a teenager and she seemed much too young to have a daughter that age.

Again, I am sure some will disagree.

Here is a video from a 19-year old that came to GG late.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 17, 2021 by qtpye

[cleo]

So admittedly I skip a lot of Rory's scenes but I felt kind of bad for Logan with the proposal. She chased this guy for how many yrs? 

But it was a dumb way to propose for sure.

[Taryn74]

4 minutes ago, cleo said:

 I felt kind of bad for Logan with the proposal. She chased this guy for how many yrs? 

*whispering* I did too.

6 minutes ago, cleo said:

But it was a dumb way to propose for sure.

I really think Logan believed they were on the same page and that Rory would be delighted with a proposal in front of her beloved family. Other than her (huge) problems with his family, and the period of time they were broken up and she felt he had cheated on her, I don't think she ever gave any indication she wouldn't be thrilled to be married to him. Her turning him down was probably out of the blue as far as he was concerned.

[FictionLover]

1 hour ago, Taryn74 said:

*whispering* I did too.

I really think Logan believed they were on the same page and that Rory would be delighted with a proposal in front of her beloved family. Other than her (huge) problems with his family, and the period of time they were broken up and she felt he had cheated on her, I don't think she ever gave any indication she wouldn't be thrilled to be married to him. Her turning him down was probably out of the blue as far as he was concerned.

I don’t like her storylines at all but I thought he was a jerk. She was open to him leaving the country to work and now that it was her turn to spread her wings, it was his way or the highway. 

[JustHereForFood]

I am probably projecting, but I think everyone who proposes publicly, without explicitly knowing that that's what the other person wants, deserves to be turned down if only for that reason 😃.

[cleo]

This is a legit question- how was it his way or the highway? Did he say she couldn't take the job?

It's funny I feel like it's the reverse. She was upset when he took the long distance job and then spent all her time wanting him to prove he was still into the relationship. And then she gets a job and is like- see ya! 

 

ETA just remembered the job came after. Still. It really says something about how much I dislike Rory when I see Logan as the injured party lol. And then I gather she hooked up with him in the revival? She just picks people up and drops then as she wants to.

Edited June 21, 2021 by cleo

[Katy M]

43 minutes ago, cleo said:

This is a legit question- how was it his way or the highway? Did he say she couldn't take the job?

It's funny I feel like it's the reverse. She was upset when he took the long distance job and then spent all her time wanting him to prove he was still into the relationship. And then she gets a job and is like- see ya! 

 

ETA just remembered the job came after. Still. It really says something about how much I dislike Rory when I see Logan as the injured party lol. And then I gather she hooked up with him in the revival? She just picks people up and drops then as she wants to.

I don't see either of them as the injured party in this instance.  

From Logan's pov, for whatever reason, he had to get married, or at least engaged, right that second. I don't know why he felt that way, but his feelings and needs are his.  So, if Rory were more important to him than getting married right away (which apparently he didn't anyway, as he is only engaged in the revial, right?), then that's his choice and she obviously wasn't htat important to him.

From Rory's pov: she wasn't ready to get married right then and there.  I would definitely want to be out of school for a year or 2 before making that lifelong commitment myself, so I understand. But, again, if she couldn't live without Logan and this was what he was offering, now or never, she would have taken the now.  She chose the never.

They both knew what they wanted out of the 2 choices they were offered and they chose accordingly.  And lived happily ever after. OK, apparently not, but we have no reason to believe that they necessarily would have been happily ever after had they gotten married.  

[cleo]

Ah. I didn't realize he had given her some kind of ultimatum. I barely watch her scenes. Actually that is the case for most of the last 2 eps for me.

[Katy M]

59 minutes ago, cleo said:

Ah. I didn't realize he had given her some kind of ultimatum. I barely watch her scenes. Actually that is the case for most of the last 2 eps for me.

I don't care that much for the later seasons so it's def been a while, so I looked up the transcript.  They didn't put the names of who is talking, but I thinkit's easily figured out:

 

I'm sorry.

I can't.

I love you, you know how much I love you.

I love the idea of being married to you.

But there are just a lot of things right
now in my life that are undecided,

and that used to scare me,
but now I kind of like the idea

that it's just all kind of wide open,

and if I married you, it just wouldn't be.

So, what? I go to San Francisco,
you stay in the East,

and we see each other occasionally?

Well, we can try long-distance.
We've done it before.

Do you really think that's gonna work?

I think it would be hard, but...

I don't want to do that, Rory.
I don't wanna go backwards.

If we can't take the next step...

- What?
- I mean...

Does it have to be all or nothing?

Yeah, it does.

But we could at least try.

What's the point?

So...

So?

Goodbye, Rory.

[Cetacean]

1 hour ago, Katy M said:

 She chose the never.

 

Actually Logan chose the never. She specifically asked him if it was all or nothing and he is the one that said yes.

[Katy M]

Just now, Cetacean said:

Actually Logan chose the never. She specifically asked him if it was all or nothing and he is the one that said yes.

Well, yeah, they both chose the never.  He's the one that gave the choice of now or never, though by saying that.

[Cetacean]

2 hours ago, Katy M said:

Well, yeah, they both chose the never. 

Nope. She said they could try.  He said he didn't think there was any point and he ended it with "good by, Rory".  She left it open, he closed the door.

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, Cetacean said:

Nope. She said they could try.  He said he didn't think there was any point and he ended it with "good by, Rory".  She left it open, he closed the door.

Yeah, she said they could do the long distance thing, they'd done it before and he said Nope.

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, Cetacean said:

Nope. She said they could try.  He said he didn't think there was any point and he ended it with "good by, Rory".  She left it open, he closed the door.

I think you're misunderstanding what I'm saying. He gave her the ultimatum of now or never.  Fromt hat ultimatum, she chose never.

[Hera]

On 6/20/2021 at 6:47 PM, cleo said:

So admittedly I skip a lot of Rory's scenes but I felt kind of bad for Logan with the proposal. She chased this guy for how many yrs? 

I don't think it's fair to say that Rory "chased" Logan for years on end. They were in a relationship for a couple of years—no one was chasing anyone. The only time she could have been accused of chasing him is when she agreed to date him casually even though she would have preferred to be exclusive, and that was pretty early on. When she went to call it off with him, he was the one who balked and insisted on becoming exclusive instead. The only chasing that happened after that point was Logan getting her back after they broke up.

In all honesty, I thought the proposal was dumb and didn't make sense for Logan's character. I've said it before, but a guy in his mid 20s with an Ivy League degree and a large fortune wouldn't be ready to get married. Not now, and not in 2007. I could see him assuming Rory would move to California with him and breaking up with her when she decided not to (I lived a version of that myself, albeit with someone far less posh than Logan), but the marriage proposal was because the writers wanted the drama of it and to give Emily the opportunity to fret over Rory's marriage prospects.

12 hours ago, JustHereForFood said:

I am probably projecting, but I think everyone who proposes publicly, without explicitly knowing that that's what the other person wants, deserves to be turned down if only for that reason 😃.

Right there with you. I feel the same about asking the parents' permission. I wish Lorelai had said no on the grounds that he was someone with the sort of retrograde mindset that says that parental permission is needed, and was therefore not good enough for her daughter.

Edited June 22, 2021 by Hera
Fixing a typo

[Cetacean]

2 hours ago, Katy M said:

Fromt hat ultimatum, she chose never.

We will have to agree to disagree.  She chose to at least try a long distance romance ("Well, we can try long-distance. We've done it before."). 

He chose the never option. ("Goodbye, Rory".)

[Katy M]

52 minutes ago, Cetacean said:

We will have to agree to disagree.  She chose to at least try a long distance romance ("Well, we can try long-distance. We've done it before."). 

He chose the never option. ("Goodbye, Rory".)

She couldn't choose to try long distance because that wasn't a choice.   That's like me saying I chose to go to Harvard but I couldn't because I wasn't accepted. She only had the choices of now or never because that is what Logan was willing to do.  And Logan only had the choices of long-distance or never because that was what Rory was willing to do.

Or, using that logic, Logan didn't choose never. He chose get married now.  But again it wasn't a choice that the other party was offering.

Edited June 21, 2021 by Katy M

[cleo]

@Hera I feel like half of Rory's scenes once Logan came on the scene was obsessing and fretting over whether he was into her and how much. And that carried into season 7 when he got the job in London. So that's what I meant by chasing. 

Otherwise I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on it....

[Cetacean]

On 6/20/2021 at 8:52 PM, FictionLover said:

I don’t like her storylines at all but I thought he was a jerk. She was open to him leaving the country to work and now that it was her turn to spread her wings, it was his way or the highway. 

Yep,  that was Richie Rich in a nutshell.  His way or take a hike, no compromises allowed, nobody else's wants, needs or happiness are to be considered.  Just a self serving, demanding boor.

[andromeda331]

5 hours ago, Cetacean said:

Yep,  that was Richie Rich in a nutshell.  His way or take a hike, no compromises allowed, nobody else's wants, needs or happiness are to be considered.  Just a self serving, demanding boor.

Yep, he decided he was ready for marriage and that they would live in San Francisco and that Rory could work at a San Francisco newspaper. He didn't discuss any of it with Rory and Rory never once mentioned working on the west coast. A few episodes before when Rory was debating between taking the job at the Providence newspaper or turning it down. He told her not to worry about factor him in when deciding on jobs they would make it work. Then suddenly Logan changes his mind a few episodes later and decides everything without Rory including it would be marriage or nothing. Rory didn't know any of that. She wanted to contiune the relationship but wasn't ready for marriage. She had no reason to think that wasn't a option because he never said it was and they had talked in that other episode.  She turns him down but tells him she wants to continue their relationship when he throws her for another loop. Nope, he doesn't want to do that anymore. It was all about him and what he wanted.   

[jqdeco]

I agree with everyone that Rory became supremely unlikable once she went to Yale. Not sure if the writers just didn't know how to write for her character anymore or they really intended to make her a spoiled brat.  The first really low point was the internship with Logan's dad.  High school Rory would have pushed for actual writing assignments and not just been happy making coffee and fixing the fax machine. And high school Rory would have told Mitchum to go to hell (in a very nice way) when he told her she didn't have what it takes to be a journalist. And it would have been believable. But based on what we saw, college Rory spent her time in that internship being an administrative assistant, not trying to prove herself as a writer. And then to just have a total meltdown and give up after one negative comment? WTF? They destroyed Rory's character in one episode. And the writers never tried to redeem her or her journalistic dreams.  She should have become a party planner, because they showed she was good at that.   

[Katy M]

2 hours ago, jqdeco said:

I agree with everyone that Rory became supremely unlikable once she went to Yale. Not sure if the writers just didn't know how to write for her character anymore or they really intended to make her a spoiled brat.  The first really low point was the internship with Logan's dad.  High school Rory would have pushed for actual writing assignments and not just been happy making coffee and fixing the fax machine. And high school Rory would have told Mitchum to go to hell (in a very nice way) when he told her she didn't have what it takes to be a journalist. And it would have been believable. But based on what we saw, college Rory spent her time in that internship being an administrative assistant, not trying to prove herself as a writer. And then to just have a total meltdown and give up after one negative comment? WTF? They destroyed Rory's character in one episode. And the writers never tried to redeem her or her journalistic dreams.  She should have become a party planner, because they showed she was good at that.   

I agree with all of this.  She didn't know what she was supposed to do the first day.  Fine.  But, this internship lasted a few weeks(?).   When Mitchum didn't give her clear instructions when she started, she should have snagged him at the end of the day and said that she wanted to discuss expectations, both his and hers.  Shouldn't have taken more than 10 or 15 minutes.  Boom, bam, you know you're doing. Or at least what you're supposed to do.

But, also, she was just shy.  I've said it before and I'll repeat that there's nothing wrong with that.  But, it does not fit all professions and journalism is one of them.  Why nobody pointed this out to her earlier in life is beyond me.  

[peacheslatour]

Quote

But, also, she was just shy.  I've said it before and I'll repeat that there's nothing wrong with that.  But, it does not fit all professions and journalism is one of them.  Why nobody pointed this out to her earlier in life is beyond me.  

She sure wasn't shy about telling Headmaster Chucklehead what was what when she was late for class after that deer hit her car.

[chitowngirl]

…Or when the Puffs got caught in his office during initiation!

Rory was never “curious” the way a journalist should be, especially the type of journalist she wanted to be. Too shy to meet Christians Amanpour? Wannabe journalists would be falling over themselves to introduce themselves and bend her ear, not have their mommy introduce them. (And Lorelai? You don’t run the Dragonfly…you OWN the Dragonfly!). 

[Katy M]

31 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

She sure wasn't shy about telling Headmaster Chucklehead what was what when she was late for class after that deer hit her car.

That's true.  She was shy except when she wasn't shy.  But, what I was thinking of was that she couldn't call the Harvard alumnus and her mom had to do it for her.  She made her mom go into Chilton with her on her first day even though she was inappropriately dressed.  She had to have Lorelai make her new friends at Yale.   I would include the fact that she couldn't answer her paternal grandfather when he wanted her to say something interesting, but to be fair, I doubt that many people could under those circumstances. 

[Taryn74]

2 hours ago, Katy M said:

I would include the fact that she couldn't answer her paternal grandfather when he wanted her to say something interesting, but to be fair, I doubt that many people could under those circumstances. 

LOL, that was such a bizarre moment. Quick, Rory, out of the blue say something totally brilliant and fascinating and completely off topic of anything so your grandfather knows you haz the smartz!

[peacheslatour]

3 minutes ago, Taryn74 said:

LOL, that was such a bizarre moment. Quick, Rory, out of the blue say something totally brilliant and fascinating and completely off topic of anything so your grandfather knows you haz the smartz!

Whenever anyone asks me stuff like that I say "Did you know that ducks have corkscrew penis's and commit rape all the time? Also the average duck carries 26 different parasites."

[SJC]

34 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Whenever anyone asks me stuff like that I say "Did you know that ducks have corkscrew penis's and commit rape all the time? Also the average duck carries 26 different parasites."

BAHAHAHAHA !

[Hera]

On 7/30/2021 at 3:08 PM, Katy M said:

I would include the fact that she couldn't answer her paternal grandfather when he wanted her to say something interesting, but to be fair, I doubt that many people could under those circumstances. 

I love that scene—everyone looking expectantly at Rory and her realizing that she's meant to produce some witticism out of nowhere. Looking back, they could have mined way more drama from Straub and Francine. For instance, it might have been fun to have an episode where Rory (with or without Lorelai) attends a society event with Emily and Richard, and they have the unpleasant surprise of running into Straub and Francine, culminating in an awkward exchange where some well-meaning third party susses out that Straub and Francine are Rory's other grandparents but they have avoided having any kind of relationship with her. Or an episode where it is discovered that the Haydens have been saying/implying that they had anything to do with Rory and her achievements, only to get shut down by all the Gilmores in a rare moment of family unity (which would inevitably get undercut by some bullshit between Lorelai and her parents). Ah well, I guess the Palladinos felt like they had too many other ideas to burn through instead.

[andromeda331]

1 hour ago, Hera said:

I love that scene—everyone looking expectantly at Rory and her realizing that she's meant to produce some witticism out of nowhere. Looking back, they could have mined way more drama from Straub and Francine. For instance, it might have been fun to have an episode where Rory (with or without Lorelai) attends a society event with Emily and Richard, and they have the unpleasant surprise of running into Straub and Francine, culminating in an awkward exchange where some well-meaning third party susses out that Straub and Francine are Rory's other grandparents but they have avoided having any kind of relationship with her. Or an episode where it is discovered that the Haydens have been saying/implying that they had anything to do with Rory and her achievements, only to get shut down by all the Gilmores in a rare moment of family unity (which would inevitably get undercut by some bullshit between Lorelai and her parents). Ah well, I guess the Palladinos felt like they had too many other ideas to burn through instead.

It is funny that dispite all the society events that Lorelai and Rory (more Rory) did go to for the Gilmores they never did run into the Haydens. They ran in the same circles. 

I always wanted a scene where Lorelai sends Rory's Princeton acceptance letter to the Haydens with some smart ass comment about it not being good enough for Rory. Given how Straub went on and on about Princeton and blamed Lorelai for Christopher not going. And maybe another scene where Emily and Richard run into them and make a snooty comment about Princeton not being good enough for a Gilmore. 

[SJC]

10 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

Emily and Richard run into them and make a snooty comment about Princeton not being good enough for a Gilmore. 

That would be exceedingly watchable. 😏

[SJC]

Rory's arc is deeply disappointing. She ended on a hopeful note in the OS, but that turned sour in AYITL.
It's unsettling how she never gets back on track career-wise.
It's demoralizing how her character came to an end. No career to speak of, no home of her own & her love life was in disarray.
I personally believe that Amy intended this from nearly the beginning. Paris told Rory that valedictorians don't succeed later in life, in hindsight this is forboding.

[chessiegal]

57 minutes ago, SJC said:

I personally believe that Amy intended this from nearly the beginning.

It took me over 15 times of watching GG (yes, I've really seen it that many times, if not more), and I've said it before, but I think ASP intended Rory to fail from day 1. She didn't get to do it in the original series since she wasn't the showrunner in Season 7 because of her hissy fit. So she fixed in AYITL.

[SJC]

4 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

ASP intended Rory to fail from day 1.

Yep !
Dissatisfying, isn't it ?

[chessiegal]

58 minutes ago, SJC said:

Yep !
Dissatisfying, isn't it ?

I don't see it that way. If the final 4 words that Amy says she had in mind from the beginning are at the end, I think she was just bringing it full circle. Although a pregnant no job 21 yo with an Ivy League degree is in a better place than her mom.

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, chessiegal said:

I don't see it that way. If the final 4 words that Amy says she had in mind from the beginning are at the end, I think she was just bringing it full circle. Although a pregnant no job 21 yo with an Ivy League degree is in a better place than her mom.

Then why, in the reboot did they make her such a nonentity?

[SJC]

4 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

such a nonentity

And why so little on her emotions/feelings about Richard's death? 😢
Why so little of her with Lorelai? 😩

Edited August 2, 2021 by SJC

[andromeda331]

I'm still not sure Amy intended Rory to fail from the beginning. I don't think that's how Amy sees Rory. Mostly because how Rory was treated in the series and in the revival. Rory never really gets called out for any of her horrible behavior. She became horrible in college. But no one ever called her on it. She was handed things and treated like she's this great person despite what we're shown. Same in the Revival she forgets about Paul but its a joke. No one ever calls her on it. She doesn't have a career because she won't chase stories or do anything that she doesn't like. Sure she gets fired from the ghostwriting job because the person found out Rory had been badmouthing her behind back. But there's no real consequences for it. There's no Rory realizing she messed up or anyone else pointing it out to her. Same when she did a crappy job interviewing for the job or that she fell asleep during a story. We are shown Rory being a crappy person and doing a bad job with no consequences or anything but no one ever acts like she is just like in the series.  

Edited August 4, 2021 by andromeda331

[SJC]

Interesting analysis, andromeda331.

I have heard more than once that Rory is based on Daniel Palladino.

[peacheslatour]

Quote

I suspect they don't have a particularly positive view of it, otherwise Rory probably would have been part of it. I also think the Life and Death Brigade basically covered everything they would have done with a sorority anyway, 

They also did the Puffs already.

[SJC]

On 8/3/2021 at 4:41 PM, peacheslatour said:

They also did the Puffs already.

Did much of anything come of that ? IIRC Rory dropped out & Paris joined.