One is the Loneliest Number: Unpopular GG Opinions

[dirtypop90]

^ That's really what I was attempting to get at. Chris didn't fit in their world and they wouldn't accept her with him because he would pull her away from them.

[Guest]

I think the townies were rude to chris for no reason other than the writers having no subtitly. They treated him like a pariah from the get go.

[elang4]

I think the townies were rude to chris for no reason other than the writers having no subtitly. They treated him like a pariah from the get go.

To be fair though, he didn't do himself any favours! He made it clear that he thought they were all weird.

[dustylil]

I think the townies were rude to chris for no reason other than the writers having no subtitly. They treated him like a pariah from the get go

 

Christopher did try to stiff a local shopkeeper when he first arrived in town. He was a known deadbeat father and we were given to believe that the town was very protective of Rory. So I think the townies had some reason for not greeting him with open arms.

[Guest]

Having a credit card declined is an example of financial irresponsibility, not trying to stiff anyone. It's not as if he wrote a bad check and attempted to skip town.

[marineg]

Even Lorelai deep down knew they weren't right for each other. In Partings, during her therapy session in the shrink's car, she says that she is ready to get married and have kids. But in Merry Fisticuffs, when Christopher mentions having more kids, she says she is not ready and wants to wait a bit.

[timimouse]

Having a credit card declined is an example of financial irresponsibility, not trying to stiff anyone. It's not as if he wrote a bad check and attempted to skip town.

I think using your credit card and knowing fully well that you have poor credit is just as bad as writing a bad check. You're asking someone to trust that they will be paid when you know you don't have the means to cover said payment. It wasn't like there was something wrong with that credit card as he knew the same thing would've happened if he tried any other. The townies heard about that incident right away and after having seen Lorelai raise Rory on her own for 16 years and that was the first time they were even meeting him AND the first impression was a poor one, can you really blame them for not liking him?

[txhorns79]

I think using your credit card and knowing fully well that you have poor credit is just as bad as writing a bad check. You're asking someone to trust that they will be paid when you know you don't have the means to cover said payment. It wasn't like there was something wrong with that credit card as he knew the same thing would've happened if he tried any other.

 

I think the key difference is that having a credit card declined means you don't get the item you wanted and no money is exchanged.  With a bad check, you've gotten the item, the vendor is out money without even a guarantee they will get the item back and you are in much deeper trouble both financial and legal.   

 

 

The townies heard about that incident right away and after having seen Lorelai raise Rory on her own for 16 years and that was the first time they were even meeting him AND the first impression was a poor one, can you really blame them for not liking him?

 

I don't know, during the other times Chris showed up in Stars Hollow (prior to the marriage) was there really any sign that anyone cared about that incident? 

[Guest]

I think using your credit card and knowing fully well that you have poor credit is just as bad as writing a bad check. You're asking someone to trust that they will be paid when you know you don't have the means to cover said payment. It wasn't like there was something wrong with that credit card as he knew the same thing would've happened if he tried any other. The townies heard about that incident right away and after having seen Lorelai raise Rory on her own for 16 years and that was the first time they were even meeting him AND the first impression was a poor one, can you really blame them for not liking him?

 

A declined credit card costs no one anything.  A returned check usually has fees associated with it; in addition, the merchandise is gone before it doesn't clear.  If someone is living off of credit cards, they are unlikely to know exactly how close they are to their credit limit at any point in time - as interest and fees accrue, someone might not realize they've reached that limit.  

 

If an incident where a credit card was denied causes people to treat someone poorly 7 years later, I don't think that is on the person being treated poorly.

[hippielamb]

I think the townies were rude to chris for no reason other than the writers having no subtitly. They treated him like a pariah from the get go.

That seemed weird to me too. For the first six seasons, we saw that the townies treated Lorelai like their queen. You would think they would have been nicer just for her benefit. You could say they were disappointed she didn't marry Luke but Lorelai was much more involved in town events than Luke. It rang false to me. I think it was the writers heavy-handed way of saying Chris doesn't fit in with the town, therefore he can't be with Lorelai.

[dustylil]

For the first six seasons, we saw that the townies treated Lorelai like their queen. You would think they would have been nicer just for her benefit. You could say they were disappointed she didn't marry Luke but Lorelai was much more involved in town events than Luke. It rang false to me. I think it was the writers heavy-handed way of saying Chris doesn't fit in with the town, therefore he can't be with Lorelai

 

The townies were perfectly civil to Max and, as was noted earlier,  the town threw the couple a lovely engagement party in the Second Season. He had barely  been to the town, let alone assimilated with the natives. So while a number of the Stars Hollow citizenry liked the idea of Luke and Lorelai as a couple,  I don't think they were all that  disappointed that she wasn't planning to marry him. Of course,  by the way the Luke and Lorelai relationship imploded  in Season 6, the residents may well have lost interest in the Fay Wellington and Art Brush of the early twenty-first century.

A number of characters in the series were unsympathetic from the time we first met them and through their continued behaviour. Opinions certainly vary but Anna Nardini,  Liz Danes, and Christopher Hayden are some on my list. Christopher's history as a deadbeat father, the failed bookstore purchase, and his screaming at Lorelai in the  diner may could make  him seem to a casual observer in the town that Christopher wasn't  particularly likeable or responsible. So the lack of fondness for him in Season 7 didn't strike me as either unsubtle or heavy-handed.

[txhorns79]

Christopher's history as a deadbeat father, the failed bookstore purchase, and his screaming at Lorelai in the  diner may could make  him seem to a casual observer in the town that Christopher wasn't  particularly likeable or responsible.

 

Never before has a declined credit card been treated as such a seminal event.  I bet the townies gather their children around the campfire on dark and scary nights to tell ghost stories about the curse of the declined credit card! 

 

I'm trying to remember if any of the townies ever even mentioned that particular moment, or Lorelai and Chris' fight at Luke's outside those episodes again.  Heck, I'm trying to think if the townies expressed much of any kind of emotion over Chris not being much of a part of Lorelai and Rory's lives before Christopher Returns?  Did they ever bring it up again?  If so, how regularly?  I suppose that the townies could all secretly be holding grudges against Chris for those reasons, and they could be so deeply eccentric as to hold grudges on behalf of a third party, even after the third party has married the guy against whom they were all holding grudges.  However, who is actually benefiting from the grudge at that point, and how does it not just serve to hurt the third party?  

 

Though I'm amused thinking of Lorelai then confronting a townie over all this, and being told that they don't like Chris because his credit card was declined once five or six years earlier!            

Edited April 14, 2016 by txhorns79

[Melancholy]

I don't even think the townies were bad to Chris. I still stand by what I wrote earlier: 

 

 

This whole "The town is being MEAAAN to Chris because they don't want Lorelai to pick her own guy but instead get locked into a perfectly Stars Hallow romance with Luke" really felt a self-serving fiction that Lorelai told herself to partly project how she was still love with Luke and felt Luke was a better man than Christopher but was lying to herself in this ill-advised marriage on the town.

 

Lorelai was upset that they didn't as fun of a welcome wagon and Chris wasn't made part of the town's social season. The first is trivial and the latter is more incumbent on Chris to make himself part of an existing a social scene. I really don't think the town had a BIG PROBLEM with Chris, either for his crappy parenting (they seemed to be into him before) or because Lorelai didn't end up with Luke (the town had issues with that relationship too, even if they loved both members). The town didn't show a grudge against Chris, just that they didn't warm to Chris which isn't surprising, given CHRIS'S STATEMENTS ABOUT STARS HALLOW ARE MORE OFFENSIVE THAN ANYTHING A TOWNIE DID TO HIM. If I'm going to note that someone had a problem with the other, it'd be Chris's repeated insults that the people in are crazy, his classist mocking of Jackson as a "farmer" showing a general contempt for Stars Hallow townies and their simpler jobs (didn't Chris also mock Luke for being a diner- guy?), and his insulting donation to end the knit-a-thon. (And it WAS insulting. I don't see Chris just donating the total amount a fancy-shmancy Hartford charity run by Emily Gilmore or something planned on raising for that evening. I bet Chris's attitude would still be that you have to sit through the charitable event before that people blocked their schedules for and people like Emily invested time and money into making a nice event.  This was a micro-aggression that everyone's time would be better spent by NOT community-knitting for charity by contrast to eating fancy hors d'oeuvre and drinking for charity.)

[photo fox]

If having a credit card declined makes one a bad person, then there are a lot of desperadoes out there. I think most of my friends and family have faced that embarrassing situation; I know I have. When I used to cashier, it happened a lot. It can be a sign of financial irresponsibility or malfeasance. It can also be caused by an honest mistake, a math error, a bank system issue, or a previously unknown daily limit. The last one is what tripped me up, by the way.

So I hope that the good people of Stars Hollow wouldn't hold such an insignificant thing against someone forever. I know it never made me think less of any of the people who were declined when I cashiered, most of whom immediately whipped out another form of payment and completed their transaction.

Things happen.

[GreenScreenFX]

Yeah, I highly doubt anyone would fault a declined credit card as a reason to regard someone as "shifty".... There are too many reasons why this might happen.

[Melancholy]

Still while I'm hearing the majority on this credit card discussion, I think it was made clear to everyone that this wasn't a bank issue or a harmless little math mistake on Chris's part but a sign that he was extremely poor and wasn't in touch with his finances enough to not make empty promises of gifts to Rory or he was desperately poor and hoping for a Hail Mary pass with this credit card where it'd be accepted, even if he probably wouldn't pay the final bill. Chris looked ashamed when he admitted that there was no need for Andrew to run the card through more than once. Rory immediately got it and then, she looked embarrassed. They couldn't finish the transaction with another type of payment. Chris made a not-believable sounding promise to come back the next day and pay for the book...and he never did. The town caught on and gossiped so much about it that Lorelai heard about it before the next morning. This wasn't a non-event to the town.

 

I just don't think the townies held a grudge over it into S7, including through when Chris was rich enough to buy Andrew's bookstore and turn it into his ping-pong room (The Social Network). It was unfortunate and unflattering enough to be the gossip special for a day- but it's not an especially juicy sign of horrible character.

Edited April 14, 2016 by Melancholy

[txhorns79]

I just don't think the townies held a grudge over it into S7, including through when Chris was rich enough to buy Andrew's bookstore and turn it into his ping-pong room (The Social Network). It was unfortunate and unflattering enough to be the gossip special for a day- but it's not an especially juicy sign of horrible character.

 

And honestly, what would they be even holding a grudge over concerning that event?  Even for Stars Hollow, that would be all kinds of crazy. 

[Taryn74]

If having a credit card declined makes one a bad person, then there are a lot of desperadoes out there. I think most of my friends and family have faced that embarrassing situation; I know I have.

 

I went to the store one time and couldn't even finish out my $14.xx purchase.  I wanted to crawl through the floor.  The cashier tried to talk me into letting her pay for it and then I could pay her back next time I was in the store (it's 5 minutes down the road so I'm there all the time)  but I was just so embarrassed I was almost in tears at that point so I very nicely told her 'thank you, but no' and left.

 

It was unfortunate and unflattering enough to be the gossip special for a day- but it's not an especially juicy sign of horrible character.

 

I agree, it was just something to keep the tongues wagging for a day or two (and I think that was more about just wanting to talk about Chris because this was the first time any of them had met him than anything).

[GreenScreenFX]

Lol... There was an atm at my university that had $ 5 dollar increments ...... Needless to say I was down about 2.50.. So sad.

I ate garbage that day

[Taryn74]

And because I have nothing better to do than research stuff about Gilmore Girls, ha, I just looked up to see how much the Compact Oxford English Dictionary costs.  New on amazon . com is $377 and some change.  O.O  I'm just gonna leave that info right there.....

 

And fwiw, even though he didn't go back the next day with a different card like he half-heartedly said he would, the next time Chris came to Stars Hollow (in PLG, just a few months later) he had bought it.  He made a joke about needing a car instead of a motorcycle to carry it.  I like to think he went back to Andrew's bookstore for it, too.  :)

[hippielamb]

So while a number of the Stars Hollow citizenry liked the idea of Luke and Lorelai as a couple,  I don't think they were all that  disappointed that she wasn't planning to marry him. Of course,  by the way the Luke and Lorelai relationship imploded  in Season 6, the residents may well have lost interest in the Fay Wellington and Art Brush of the early twenty-first century.

Lol! I don't think they were that overly invested either, I just put that out as a possible option.

I thought it was odd because we had seen Patty be friendly to Chris (even as recent as Lane's wedding) before and she was less so in the knitting episode. Sookie's comment about marrying an outsider seemed to enforce the idea that he wasn't one of them.

Though I'm amused thinking of Lorelai then confronting a townie over all this, and being told that they don't like Chris because his credit card was declined once five or six years earlier!

Hahaha that would take the cake! They could have a meeting about it. I think it was mentioned on the Stars Hollow website when his card was declined but I doubt they are still holding on to that 6 years later.

[shron17]

I really think the way Stars Hollow treated Christopher had more to do with Lorelai's actions.  If someone you knew was engaged to someone you also knew and liked eloped with a person you barely knew all of 6 months later, would you be all positive and welcoming?  I think I would be cautious and pessimistic that the marriage would last.  It makes sense to me that they would be nice to Chris when he visited but have trouble accepting him after he moved in.

 

If I'm going to note that someone had a problem with the other, it'd be Chris's repeated insults that the people in are crazy, his classist mocking of Jackson as a "farmer" showing a general contempt for Stars Hallow townies and their simpler jobs (didn't Chris also mock Luke for being a diner- guy?), and his insulting donation to end the knit-a-thon.

But was any of this said in front of anyone besides Lorelai and Rory?  I can accept that many of the townies either sensed or imagined Chris was looking down on them but they didn't have proof.  And I don't think his donation to the knit-a-thon was insulting, just ignorant and misguided.  Most of the knitters save Lorelai seemed quite happy to go to the movies where it was warm.  Since Chris hadn't lived there long, I can't imagine why he wouldn't run his idea by Lorelai before writing the check.  It wasn't like she didn't know he had enough money to cover it.

Edited April 14, 2016 by shron17

[Guest]

Still while I'm hearing the majority on this credit card discussion, I think it was made clear to everyone that this wasn't a bank issue or a harmless little math mistake on Chris's part but a sign that he was extremely poor and wasn't in touch with his finances enough to not make empty promises of gifts to Rory or he was desperately poor and hoping for a Hail Mary pass with this credit card where it'd be accepted, even if he probably wouldn't pay the final bill. 

 

 

So now his big flaw would be.... having credit card debt?  

 

Also, while the town viewed his knit-a-thon donation as problematic, he didn't understand why. He didn't do it to insult them.  At that point, he had gotten used to throwing money at his problems, and I think he truly saw this as one of those situations. "Hey, they don't like me.  What can I do? Oh, they're raising money for a bridge? I have money! Here you go!"  Clueless, perhaps. Out of touch? Yes.  But not insulting.  

[Melancholy]

So now his big flaw would be.... having credit card debt?  

 

I don't think it's a BIG FLAW that the town could rightfully bear a grudge against him for years. But no, it's not a great first impression. It's not responsible to have credit card debt so bad that his cards get declined and he can't give his daughter a gift the first day he comes to see her town. And understandably set tongues a'wagging that first day he came to town. 

 

 

Also, while the town viewed his knit-a-thon donation as problematic, he didn't understand why. He didn't do it to insult them.  At that point, he had gotten used to throwing money at his problems, and I think he truly saw this as one of those situations. "Hey, they don't like me.  What can I do? Oh, they're raising money for a bridge? I have money! Here you go!"  Clueless, perhaps. Out of touch? Yes.  But not insulting.

 

I don't think he intentionally insulted them. However, his attitude was that it's a silly, annoying event where it'd better to cancel the event if the money is raised. It was insulting to the townies who love that stuff. Again, I just really doubt that he'd fund a high faulitin' charity in such a way that it cancelled a fancy shcmancy event. For an event like that, Christopher would mock it but he'd have some respect for its worth in continuing and entertaining the people he grew up with. 

[txhorns79]

I don't think he intentionally insulted them. However, his attitude was that it's a silly, annoying event where it'd better to cancel the event if the money is raised. It was insulting to the townies who love that stuff. Again, I just really doubt that he'd fund a high faulitin' charity in such a way that it cancelled a fancy shcmancy event. For an event like that, Christopher would mock it but he'd have some respect for its worth in continuing and entertaining the people he grew up with.

 

In fairness, the "fancy schmancy" events typically have fundraising goals substantially higher than the Knit a Thon, and they would continue with the event, even if they made their goal because it's always better to take in as much money as possible.  I think Christopher just didn't understand that the fundraising was beside the point of the Knit a THon.  It was more a misunderstanding of the town.   

 

 

And understandably set tongues a'wagging that first day he came to town.

 

I'm pretty sure Miss Patty's tongue was a'wagging before the credit card was declined.  I love her, but she's a walking felony!

[readster]

 

In fairness, the "fancy schmancy" events typically have fundraising goals substantially higher than the Knit a Thon, and they would continue with the event, even if they made their goal because it's always better to take in as much money as possible.  I think Christopher just didn't understand that the fundraising was beside the point of the Knit a THon.  It was more a misunderstanding of the town.

That was Christopher though, he just didn't get things at all. I'm not talking about how he felt hurt that Logan didn't ask him instead of Lorelei about proposing. He threw the old: "I'm her dad" card out. Especially, when Logan really knew Rory and Chris had a very fragile relationship and things were still reeling from the divorce, or what ever the hell you call getting married in France illegally. Or when Richard had his first heart attack: "Oh, umm... I'll call you later Lore." Or when he should have stood up to Emily when she tried to get him and Lorelei back together and break up Luke and Lorelei. He couldn't go: "Thanks for making me sound like a prize winning dog, Emily." "Now wave goodbye to my daughter and get the hell out." Should have been his response. 

[Smad]

Honestly I'm more surprised at them embracing Lorelai again like nothing happened once Christopher was gone. But as for Chrisopher? For me the credit card thing only played a role in so far as they knew the guy was financially unstable. Rory is a beloved child of the town. And there is her 'father' with no money. Not to mention that by S7 his absence in Rory's life should have been a fact every townie was aware of. Also depending on how much people knew, Christopher was a factor in the previous L&L break-up. And he was around a few times in S6. Since I doubt they knew the whole story regarding the final L&L break-up, from an outsiders perspective it looked like Lorelai dumped the townie for the new millionaire. Once Lorelai got with Christopher she kept herself seperated from the town. I'm pretty sure they also got wind of Christopher looking for a house away from SH. If I lived in SH, even if I only knew the basics, I wouldn't be welcoming to a deatbeat.

[takalotti]

I don't think he intentionally insulted them. However, his attitude was that it's a silly, annoying event where it'd better to cancel the event if the money is raised. It was insulting to the townies who love that stuff. Again, I just really doubt that he'd fund a high faulitin' charity in such a way that it cancelled a fancy shcmancy event. For an event like that, Christopher would mock it but he'd have some respect for its worth in continuing and entertaining the people he grew up with.

I'm not one to normally "defend" Chris, but his decision to donate the entire money goal wasn't just based on his opinion of the event being silly or annoying. Babette and Miss Patty (and others?) were all complaining about the cold and such. He thought that THEY found it silly and annoying and thought he'd be seen as a hero for ending their suffering. He just didn't realize that that's kind of how they have fun.

If Emily were running a fancy schmancy fundraiser and was complaining the whole time about all the work it was taking, I wouldn't be shocked if Chris threw money at that, too.

And I don't think his donation to the knit-a-thon was insulting, just ignorant and misguided.  Most of the knitters save Lorelai seemed quite happy to go to the movies where it was warm.

While I agree that his donation was just ignorant and misguided, I don't agree that the other knitters were happy. It's been a long time since I watched the episode, but they seemed disappointed to me. To them, sitting around complaining together was fun. But it's not like you can complain that someone donated money so they just awkwardly said, "Oh, uh, thanks?" and shuffled off.

[dustylil]

Honestly I'm more surprised at them embracing Lorelai again like nothing happened once Christopher was gone

 

Why shouldn't they embrace her? Her engagement to Luke ended badly and some months later she married Christopher. So what? Now I  certainly question Lorelai's  taste in spouses, but theirs  was scarcely the only awkward relationship around. Other than - understandably so - Lindsay's family, no one in Stars Hollow seem to be bothered about Rory's involvement in ending the marriage of Dean and Lindsay. And Dean himself remained employed. As well,  I don't recall any eyebrows being raised at Luke publicly beginning his involvement with Lorelai within a few weeks of filing for divorce from Nicole.  

 

I don't think the townies were all that concerned or showed much interest in the private lives of other residents - unless it would directly impact on them or the economy and well-being of Stars Hollow. That would scarcely be the case by late Season 7.

[Smad]

Why shouldn't they embrace her? Her engagement to Luke ended badly and some months later she married Christopher. So what?

Has nothing to do with her relationship to Luke. From an outsiders perspective Lorelai withdrew from the town as soon as she got involved in Christopher. The guy is loaded and they looked for a home outside of Stars Hollow. Other than Lorelai, Rory and Sookie no one really knew the whole picture of what happened. If I were a Stars Hollow citizen I would come to the conclusion that she ditched the middle class guy for the millionare and ditched the rest of the town with it.

[txhorns79]

I don't think the townies were all that concerned or showed much interest in the private lives of other residents - unless it would directly impact on them or the economy and well-being of Stars Hollow.

 

I thought you just made a number of comments arguing that you thought the townies treated Chris coldly because they didn't like his past treatment of Lorelai and Rory, and were deeply concerned that he had his credit card declined once? 

 

 

It's been a long time since I watched the episode, but they seemed disappointed to me. To them, sitting around complaining together was fun. But it's not like you can complain that someone donated money so they just awkwardly said, "Oh, uh, thanks?" and shuffled off.

 

Yeah, they just appeared annoyed and confused to me. 

Edited April 15, 2016 by txhorns79

[Guest]

I also don't see any evidence that the townpeople at large would have known Chris didn't pay child support. Lorelai seems to keep some things private. I think, given the lack of apparent animosity between Chris and the Gilmore Girls, most people would assume that he sent support checks from wherever he was.  Other than perhaps Sookie and Luke, I really don't think his finances impacted how people viewed him in Stars Hollow.

[dustylil]

smad,   my  apologies for misunderstanding  your earlier post. But in what way did Lorelai withdraw from the town once she became involved with Christopher? She was still living in Stars Hollow - as opposed to travelling extensively on his dime or moving in with him.  Indeed, the pair lived in her home after they married. She also continued to operate her business. I don't specifically recall  her attending town meetings but she did take part in community activities like the Knit-a-thon.

 

As to the townies knowing Christopher did not pay child support, I agree it would not have been a matter that Lorelai discussed with many people, if any. However, the fact that she and Rory lived in a potting shed for several years might have been an indication that they were living just on her wages as a maid and that their financial resources were extremely limited. And people might draw their own conclusions from that.

[Smad]

smad,   my  apologies for misunderstanding  your earlier post. But in what way did Lorelai withdraw from the town once she became involved with Christopher? She was still living in Stars Hollow - as opposed to travelling extensively on his dime or moving in with him.  Indeed, the pair lived in her home after they married. She also continued to operate her business. I don't specifically recall  her attending town meetings but she did take part in community activities like the Knit-a-thon.

Yes Lorelai still lived in SH. Yes she still had her business. But I wouldn't be surprised of they didn't know Lorelai and Christopher were looking for houses elsewhere. Also Lorelai didn't go to town meetings for months. Or town events for that matter. The Knit-a-Thon was the first one since she ended things with Luke and got with Christopher that she attended. But that was episode 9 of the Season and that means months between end of S6 until that episode. And I don't think she went to a town meeting until after she and Chris broke up (though I could be wrong there). Looking at it from an outsider, average SH citizen POV it seemed liked Lorelai ditched the townie for the non-townie millionaire and then was above the townies and the town.

 

 

As to the townies knowing Christopher did not pay child support, I agree it would not have been a matter that Lorelai discussed with many people, if any. However, the fact that she and Rory lived in a potting shed for several years might have been an indication that they were living just on her wages as a maid and that their financial resources were extremely limited. And people might draw their own conclusions from that.

I'm not talking about child support. But Rory has lived for years in Stars Hollow with no sign of a 'father' anywhere. That certainly wasn't private knowledge. People can draw their own conclusions simply from his absense.

[timimouse]

Personally, I don't think she withdrew from the town after marrying Chris. I don't think they were married long enough for us to even get that impression. In fact, she worked really hard to get him to fit into the town and if she was withdrawing herself, why would she bother? Just my opinion....

[dustylil]

I'm not talking about child support. But Rory has lived for years in Stars Hollow with no sign of a 'father' anywhere. That certainly wasn't private knowledge. People can draw their own conclusions simply from his absense

 

Oh, I agree. I was responding to the comment of deaja about the townies not having any evidence that Christopher didn't pay child support. To me that small potting shed spoke volumes.

Looking at it from an outsider, average SH citizen POV it seemed liked Lorelai ditched the townie for the non-townie millionaire and then was above the townies and the town

 

Luke married a non-townie and moved to another community entirely (well, at least part-time) and didn't suffer any opprobrium from the citizens of Stars Hollow. Why should Lorelai?

Edited April 15, 2016 by dustylil

[Smad]

Personally, I don't think she withdrew from the town after marrying Chris. I don't think they were married long enough for us to even get that impression. In fact, she worked really hard to get him to fit into the town and if she was withdrawing herself, why would she bother? Just my opinion....

She withdrew from the town since she ended things with Luke. And her relationship with Christopher basically began right after. She focused solely on him and work only so she wouldn't have to leave her bubble. Or probably just so she wouldn't run into Luke. I mean just the fact that they didn't get the Welcome Wagon until the Knit episode shows how absent Lorelai has been from the town. It's been months between the start of S7 and the Knit episode.

 

I've also just watched the scene again where they get the wagon. For me it kind of supports my view of how the townies see it. Both Babette and Ms. Patty are cordial to him. But Patty actually says things like Christopher must be bored senseless in SH, there is hardly any night life and she calls him 'a worldly guy'. Ms.Patty is closer to Lorelai than most average SH citizens but even she seems to think that Lorelai dumped small town business owner Luke for city millionaire Christopher. They also know Lorelai comes from the rich world and once she dumped the townie for the millionaire she wasn't really seen in town, like she is above it all. Yes I know she was still living in SH and still had her Inn but for all they knew L&C were looking for the perfect house elsewhere and only bothered to show their face in town for grocery shopping until then.

 

If I were an average SH citizen that would be exactly what I think. One must also remember that Lorelai showed up with the millionaire to Lane's wedding. I certainly would think that she dumped small town Luke for millionaire Christopher and then figured herself to be above all the quirky town festivals and meetings. Which is why I was surprised that Lorelai didn't even get a little bit shunned by some people once she dumped rich boy and came back to the lower status people.

[txhorns79]

To me that small potting shed spoke volumes.

 

I'm not sure what kind of child support you imagine Lorelai would have been getting from Chris had he been paying it, but it isn't as though it would have likely been enough for Lorelai to have afforded much beyond the potting shed living arrangement.  And honestly, while Chris should have been paying for support, it speaks volumes to me about what kind of involvement Lorelai wanted from Chris that she apparently never forced the issue.   

[photo fox]

If Lorelai ditched her friends, who supported her and her daughter emotionally for years, for her hot new rich husband, that says more about Lorelai than Chris, IMO.

[dustylil]

Didn't the townies know Lorelai was from a moneyed background? If wealth  was that important to her that she dumped her small town fiancé for Moneybags Hayden why didn't she go back to Hartford years ago, eat some crow and live a life of ease and luxury?

[txhorns79]

If wealth  was that important to her that she dumped her small town fiancé for Moneybags Hayden why didn't she go back to Hartford years ago, eat some crow and live a life of ease and luxury?

 

She's very eccentric and her pride is such that she'd essentially let her house collapse before she admits she needs her parents' help. 

[moonb]

If I were an average SH citizen that would be exactly what I think. One must also remember that Lorelai showed up with the millionaire to Lane's wedding. I certainly would think that she dumped small town Luke for millionaire Christopher and then figured herself to be above all the quirky town festivals and meetings. Which is why I was surprised that Lorelai didn't even get a little bit shunned by some people once she dumped rich boy and came back to the lower status people.

Ha, that's the sort of thing Lorelai the third might do, but not Lorelai the second....pardon my joke at later seasons Rory's expense. By season 7 Lorelai has lived more than half her life in Stars Hollow - it's incredibly difficult to imagine her leaving or most of Stars Hollow suddenly holding her background against her.  After all they might have some idea of her complicated relationship with her parents and her upbringing. 

 

Imo, the townies' season 7 treatment of Chris didn't have much to do with him personally; it was a nudge to the audience (or beating us over the head) that Chris was ultimately Mr Wrong for Lorelai. I thought the same about a lot of Lorelai's season 7 behavior with regard to revisiting her parents' ideas about what was right for her. 

 

I could see Stars Hollow ultimately treating any of Lorelai's SOs as a little disposable, honestly - except for Luke, of course. You could argue that Lorelai is a younger and less salacious Miss Patty - a prominent town figure in her own right with men in her past, but ultimately her own self-made woman. Sure, Max got an engagement party, but he barely interacted with Stars Hollow beyond Rory, Sookie and Luke. Same thing with Lorelai's other relationships except for Christopher and Luke. The townies might simply not think of Lorelai's boyfriends or husband as permanent figures because she's a big presence herself - and they're used to her relationships, even a marriage, failing. I could even see that extending to Chris's lack of child support: younger Rory had Lorelai to take care of her, so why would Chris's finances or lack thereof even make a difference?  

[marineg]

I'm not a huge Lorelai fan but saying that she stepped away from town business is just wrong. There is no one more involved on the town goings-on than Lorelai. Except maybe for Taylor. And Miss Patty. And Babette. And Kirk. But that's it. So she didn't go to town meetings for a few months. So what? She had just broken up with Luke and didn't want to run into him. It was his town before it was hers after all. Haven't we all been in the situation where we stop going to a particular place to avoid an ex. I mean for god's sake, Rory was willing to give up coffee so she could avoid Logan. AND SHE LOVES COFFEE!

 

Now that being said, yes, her attitude changed after she married Christopher. But it had nothing to do with the town. It was her own self-protection mechanism to avoid her feelings for Luke.

[hippielamb]

This conversation is very interesting to read. It's been awhile since I watched season 7, I tend to pick & choose my favourite episodes from that season so pardon me if I am mistaken. I thought the only town meeting she missed was the one with the pickle stink and that was because she wanted to avoid Luke. Given his comments to her after the break-up, I don't blame her.

[marineg]

I thought the only town meeting she missed was the one with the pickle stink and that was because she wanted to avoid Luke. Given his comments to her after the break-up, I don't blame her.

 

Exactly. That's what I'm basing my theory of missed meetings on. And that was months before she got married and Christopher moved in. Plus she still went to the Knit-a-thon, the Hay Bale Maze/Spring Fling Festival and other town meeting later in season 7. She also organized, or rather helped Rory organize Lane's baby shower in Miss Patty's studio, and had a freaking second graduation party throw by the ENTIRE town. She was involved.

 

I just think that this comes down to the fact that the Palladino team was gone by then and the were the ones who were great at incorporating town life in the stories. Most of the cool/funny/weird town events happen in the first six seasons. Season Seven was very much lacking in that aspect.

Edited April 16, 2016 by marineg

[hippielamb]

Exactly. That's what I'm basing my theory of missed meetings on. And that was months before she got married and Christopher moved in. Plus she still went to the Knit-a-thon, the Hay Bale Maze/Spring Fling Festival and other town meeting later in season 7. She also organized, or rather helped Rory organize Lane's baby shower in Miss Patty's studio, and had a freaking second graduation party throw by the ENTIRE town. She was involved.

I just think that this comes down to the fact that the Palladino team was gone by then and the were the ones who were great at incorporating town life in the stories. Most of the cool/funny/weird town events happen in the first six seasons. Season Seven was very much lacking in that aspect.

She is their queen, after all. :)

Lorelai participating in town events always seemed more important than town meetings and since Luke usually avoided the townie festivals she had a lower risk of running into him.

I think I read somewhere that Daniel Palladino was the one who wrote the townie episodes. It would be hard to replicate that quirky town humour and make it feel natural.

[dustylil]

since Luke usually avoided the townie festivals she had a lower risk of running into him

 

Although with April now in his life, the likelihood of him attending festivals - daughter in tow - was greater.

[marineg]

Although with April now in his life, the likelihood of him attending festivals - daughter in tow - was greater.

 

True. Although she left for New Mexico quite quickly and Anna was always very hard on Luke anytime they did something together than involved more than them filling salt and pepper shakers in the diner.

Edited April 17, 2016 by marineg

[2Old2BAFangirl]

I absolutely love this show!  With that said, I'll give my extremely UO and run like hell away! :)

 

I like Dean.  I didn't find him scary and abusive - I think that's just Jared Padelecki being ginormous and having that petulant voice.  I know everyone hates Dean but even watching every episode of this series more times than I'd like to admit, I still like him.  He just seems like a love crazed teen in the beginning. After he marries Lindsay, he does piss me off with his choices but he's still a teenager and teenagers are usually not as smart as they think they are. Anyway, I still like Dean.

 

On the other hand, I absolutely hate, detest, despise Kirk.  I find nothing funny, entertaining, or endearing about Kirk at all.  I just hate him. 

 

Ok, I'll go now.

[Viqutorious]

How would anyone in town know that Christopher now is wealthy? It wouldn't be public knowledge.