One is the Loneliest Number: Unpopular GG Opinions

[NumberCruncher]

I like "Ace" as well.  I didn't find it condescending since it was really meant to be a term of endearment rather than a statement about Rory's journalistic skills.

[snarktini]

I love Ace! Then again, that's one of my nicknames and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

[JayInChicago]

5 hours ago, Melancholy said:

 Lorelai doesn't need to be shortened. The nickname lowers the stature of the name to inferior names like ... Lauren

Haha OUCH

[Melancholy]

10 minutes ago, JayInChicago said:

Haha OUCH

Lol. No offense. Lauren is an ok name. I just don't like it as much as Lorelai.  

[timimouse]

I despise all things Logan Huntzburger but if I had to pick one thing about him that I can tolerate is that he calls her "Ace" with a warmth that I can appreciate. But I hate him. So my feelings towards the nickname is more apathetic than anything...

but speaking of nickname, what always grates on my nerves is when Lorelai calls Rory "Kid" and Christopher calls her "Kiddo". I don't know why but I roll my eyes every time they do.

[Melancholy]

Predictably, I'm fine with Lorelai calling Rory "Kid"- even though it's not my favorite endearment- but I hate Christopher calling her "Kiddo". When Lorelai comes up with a term of endearment for Rory, I can be assured that she means it and she's not just posing. 

I don't know if this an UO but if we're talking about nicknames, Lorelai had a very cute habit of varying up incongruous pet-names of endearment for Luke, mostly when they were dating. Particularly, I'm at a great mid-way point between "Hee!" and "Aww" when Lorelai calls Luke "doll".

Edited December 14, 2016 by Melancholy

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

I didn't care for them as romantic partners but I lol'ed when Lorelai called him  cutesy names. I reasoned she secretly wants to torture him.

I liked Logan's Ace for Rory because his use of her real name was strictly reserved for when he was seriously addressing her. Which was rare given his playful nature. It made both use of her name and Ace more effective.

Edited December 14, 2016 by Deputy Deputy CoS

[Melancholy]

8 minutes ago, Deputy Deputy CoS said:

I didn't care for them as romantic partners but I lol'ed when Lorelai called him  cutesy names. I reasoned she secretly wants to torture him.

I think Lorelai both wanted to torture and humiliate Luke with the cutsey nicknames AND hard-core deeply meant all of the affection and love behind every term of endearment. And that's why I ship them! :-) 

Edited December 14, 2016 by Melancholy

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

1 minute ago, Melancholy said:

I think Lorelai both wanted to torture and humiliate Luke with the cutsey nicknames AND hard-core deeply meant all of the affection and love behind every term of endearment. And that's why I ship them! :-) 

Teasingly right? Because there was certainly no ill intent on her part lol

[junienmomo]

3 hours ago, Melancholy said:

I think Lorelai both wanted to torture and humiliate Luke with the cutsey nicknames AND hard-core deeply meant all of the affection and love behind every term of endearment. And that's why I ship them! :-) 

That's classic LL banter. She knows she means it yet teases, and he responds as if it bothers him, but it doesn't. And she knows that he really enjoys it and he knows that she knows he know. They have a complicated relationship LOL.

Spoiler-free (are we still doing that?) the banter at the end of Fall was exactly that way, only I never saw Luke in any earlier episode/season so obviously betray the fact that he was teasing. It was adorable.

[Sweet Tee]

Quote

Predictably, I'm fine with Lorelai calling Rory "Kid"- even though it's not my favorite endearment- but I hate Christopher calling her "Kiddo". When Lorelai comes up with a term of endearment for Rory, I can be assured that she means it and she's not just posing.

Agreed.  It just sounds so fake with Christopher because they don't have a close relationship.  He probably only pulls it out when he forgets her actual name.  Ace is annoying because I agree with others that he sounds so condescending when he says it.  I'm sure MC is a fine person and I've never watched The Good Wife, maybe he's great on there.  But, he never did Logan any favors as far as I'm concerned.  And the Logan/Christopher parallels might not hold up under scrutiny (I don't care enough about either character to bother) but I have always thought that they both have that same smirky, smug look plastered to their faces and I find that off putting.

[Aloeonatable]

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Big ditto on hating Ace. Just reinforces his supercilious attitude.

Not such an unpopular opinion. I hate it as well. 

 

18 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Smirky, smarmy, smug-face.

Yes, I do like Matt in the GW, but as Logan, no.

[Guest]

I like him calling her Ace, but didn't like it in the revival when his fiancee' was sleeping in the room.  It seemed to me then he was calling her "Ace" to disguise her identity in case Odette woke up.

[txhorns79]

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I loathe Richard in those episodes. What he did to Jason was unprincipled, immoral, and most likely illegal, and somehow Jason was the evil one for suing and trying to salvage his career. 

Eh, Jason joined Richard's firm as a way to get back at his father.  It's not like he was acting out of some high principle.  Having said that, I don't think Jason was evil for suing Richard.  I do see though why Lorelai could not continue in the relationship.    

Quote

Smirky, smarmy, smug-face.

God yes, he was very punchable.  

Edited December 14, 2016 by txhorns79

[Melancholy]

9 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

Eh, Jason joined Richard's firm as a way to get back at his father.  It's not like he was acting out of some high principle.  Having said that, I don't think Jason was evil for suing Richard.  I do see though why Lorelai could not continue in the relationship.    

Yup. Plus, we never get the details of what Jason did but it's a little fishy that Jason was the only one of the two that Floyd accused of potentially actionable conduct. Jason's "I'm on the ethical line but I don't cross it!" excuse wasn't exactly comforting. It actually made him look fishier. 

Lorelai was pretty infuriating. Insist on hiding the relationship, putting Jason in a very uncomfortable position of lying to Richard for months since Jason was the one dealing daily with Richard. Then, argue Richard had to make business choices because of the relationship she wouldn't admit to for the last few months. 

[hippielamb]

On Tuesday, December 13, 2016 at 0:18 PM, amensisterfriend said:

 

I know, right?! I felt like her Parenthood character had all of Lorelai's worst flaws and pretty much none of her strengths.  

So I realize there is far deeper and more insightful Rory/Logan analysis going on and more substantive issues to comment on, especially in the wake of the revival, but my UO is that I just cannot STAND how he calls her Ace. It's a small, silly thing to care about, but for some reason it drives me crazy. (I know, I know--that's a short trip :)) I get that some think it's endearing, and I'm usually a nickname fan myself. But the Ace thing...it's this feeble attempt at cuteness but is somehow just so forced and makes Logan come across as even more condescending.  And it's a name far better suited to a puppy than a person. 

Yeah. She is more beaten down by life than Lorelai but still... It was definitely a way to distinguish her from Lorelai. 

"Ace" feels a little condescending, but Rory doesn't seem to mind it. If a guy I was sleeping with called me that, it wouldn't go over well. Seems to be their thing though. 

 

On Tuesday, December 13, 2016 at 2:04 PM, Kohola3 said:

Yep, hated Lor as well.  But then I pretty much hated anything related to Christopher.

Heh. I love "Lor" (big surprise lol). They've known each other since they were kids. There's people I grew up with that call me a name that anyone else couldn't get away with. I do hate it when someone shortens my name though, so I can see why that nickname would be annoying.

 

7 hours ago, deaja said:

I like him calling her Ace, but didn't like it in the revival when his fiancee' was sleeping in the room.  It seemed to me then he was calling her "Ace" to disguise her identity in case Odette woke up.

Ooh I hadn't even thought of that! It gives the scene new layers. 

[nolieblue]

I liked when Logan called Rory Ace at the beginning of their relationship but i hated it in the Revival. It felt patronizing and not all that sincere. 

[katha]

Aspects of Rory's storyline in the revival had potential, but as always they flopped it all hardcore and didn't do anything interesting with it. I didn't mind that she struggled with her career, it happens, she's in a tough field and everyone can fall on hard times or realize that they're not cut out for certain sides of jobs they thought they'd love.  Having a perfect life at 30 is the fairytale ideal, for various reasons it doesn't work out for loads of people. The problem then came in with Rory's reaction to it. The whining, the entitlement, seeing her scoff at job prospects she thought were "beneath her", talking about being broke with her jet setting life and her various trust funds. I think if she'd actually been shown to face adversity and try her best to change her situation, then even failing wouldn't have been an issue. You could always say, at least she tried. But IMO it didn't much look like she tried, she fell back into her usual spiel of passivity, seeking protection from other people and entitlement.

[Melancholy]

I understand and sympathize with Rory scoffing at the Sandee Says job as beneath her. A writer's reputation and pedigree are crucial and follow them for the rest of their professional lives. I think that if a writer spends long enough and writes enough silly listicles or tabloid gossip stuff, that's the type of writer that they become and they probably won't be hired for anything more impressive. After going to Yale and even being hired by prestigious outlets to write serious, important pieces and, by example, the Conde Nast guy complimenting her pieces as particularly erudite, she'd have a big problem becoming a glorified gossipy writer at a millennial website. Since Rory does have a big support network, I think it's unrealistic to expect that she'd easily take to debasing her dream to survive. 

Rory probably worked very hard at the Stars Hallow Gazette. That was a big undertaking. To dive into a newspaper and overhaul it as a "Who reads the Gazette for the articles?" into a article-filled publication. I think her story would have benefited from more time in that storyline. I would have liked to see scenes of Rory reaching out to people like Doyle to write reviews and explaining the newspaper enough that Doyle would get all invested ala "What idiot got rid of the poem?!" 

[AllyB]

This is an odd one but I've been thinking about Gilmore Girls for the last day or two and I think that right from the very start ASP's problem was that she made Richard and Emily far too wealthy. A lot of the 'jeopardy' and drama that the characters experienced never felt as real as it could be because of the Gilmore wealth and position. With them both coming from Old Money and accepted society Lorelai's pregnancy was embarrassing but didn't risk their social status too much. When Straub tried to be a bully about it, Richard was able to stand up to him as an equal. While Lorelai would have felt suffocated living with them, the full extent of how she cut them off when she left never felt deserved. Coupled with the fact that the life Lorelai found with Maya and the rest of Stars Hollow was far too charmed compared to reality.

I can't help but think that if Richard and Emily had come from lower middle class backgrounds and Richard had worked his way into his vice president position, there would have been more genuine drama. He wouldn't have had family money to supplement the lifestyle they had. When Lorelai got pregnant it would have jeopardised their tenuous social standing to the point where Staub's wish to have Lorelai quietly go away would have been harder to stand against. He could even have tried to threaten Richard's employment prospects. Lorelai would have felt guilt at possibly being held responsible for destroying the life they had made. And unable to look to them for support in keeping Rory. I could even envision a scenario where Emily and Richard contemplate moving city and trying to pass Rory off as a surprise 'late in life baby.' So Lorelai runs away because she feels it's the only way to be Rory's mother.

Then the drama in 2000 would be so much more. Lorelai asking them for money would be a bigger deal, because they don't have this fantastic wealth that Rory's school fees barely dent. It would be money that really mattered to them, meaning their investment in Rory's future isn't as simple as just signing the cheques. Lorelai would have been less blasé about borrowing from them if they were less wealthy. The emotional drama would be ramped up because Emily and Richard believe that they would have supported Lorelai how she wanted if she had asked them. But Lorelai can't ever know if that's the truth or hindsight on their part. Rory would have felt more pressure to succeed and have been treated as less of a magical golden child. While the kids in Chilton would have had more reason for snobbery. The season 5 Huntzberger drama would have made more sense, as Rory would have had a lower social standing than Logan. And his family's disapproval along with the crushing weight of Mitchum's criticism would have been a genuine reason for Rory to crumble as the stakes would have been higher for her.

Edited December 23, 2016 by AllyB

[junienmomo]

The Gilmores didn't have nearly as much money in the first season. Their house was much more modest and they didn't take e.g. extra European vacations because of the cost. Maybe not so curiously the cost of two first class airfares and an extended stay in Europe would have been about the same as the cost of Chilton.  Maybe they were heavily leveraged in non-liquid assets when Lorelai came asking for money.

Trix had money; Richard didn't. He put his retirement at risk for his business. Emily was never described as having any money; she did have the pedigree of DAR eligibility. Trix' death resulted in some inheritance for Richard, but I don't recall how much. He never discussed being head of her charitable foundation or stuff like that.

They grew richer as the drama of the late seasons demanded. They put on a monstrously large fake wedding on very short notice. Emily wanted to buy a jet time share. They could afford to endow a building at Yale, the most absurd thing. Yet they were trying to hobnob with the Huntzbergers, arguably billionaires. Sorry, but Emily and Richard had a maid and a cook and a valet at one point. Not exactly in the billionaire social strata. 

[Miss Slay]

Huh? Richard and Emily were always characterized as an old money Connecticut family. Emily went to Smith and Richard went to Yale - for a certain generation an absolute sign of money. Think about the setting of the show - Hartford. A known birthplace for old money families. 

[junienmomo]

4 hours ago, Miss Slay said:

Huh? Richard and Emily were always characterized as an old money Connecticut family. Emily went to Smith and Richard went to Yale - for a certain generation an absolute sign of money. Think about the setting of the show - Hartford. A known birthplace for old money families. 

Ah, if your disagreement was about my comment, let me clarify by elaboration. 

Richard's family had Money with a capital M. Trix controlled it and clearly raised him with it. That doesn't mean he had a large inheritance or net worth before Trix died. We have no data on that, except to know she certainly didn't give him the funds to start his own business. 

There's no data on Emily except her DAR eligibility and her going to Smith.  There was probably also money involved, and it's safe to presume it was way above Star Hollow lower case 'money' and way below Huntzbergers MONEY. 

[HeySandyStrange]

Not that it is easy to guess financial status in GG, since it changes on a whim, but I always thought Emily and Richard were millionaires but not billionaires like the Huntzbergers. They have status and family stature within their social circle, but I don't think they have the wide scale influence that the Huntzbergers have either. But I think the old Gilmore money and lineage puts them on the same playing field as the Huntzbergers and other wealthier families, so it isn't surprising to me that they demand and often get the same amount of respect as someone with more financial wealth.

Quote

There's no data on Emily except her DAR eligibility and her going to Smith.

She mentioned her uncle donating to the hospital that Richard was in in F&S, so you could conclude she comes from a fairly wealthy family herself. I really would've loved to know a little more about Emily's background, tbh.

[tarotx]

I think the Huntzbergers are worldwide old money and definitely billionaires.  I think the Gilmore's are old money but Richard and Emily were wealthy but it seems that their families held the big money until they started dying off. But that is just headcanon. 

[Guest]

I think they had to be pretty wealthy even in the first season to go to different charity functions multiple times a week.  Typically if you don't give enough, you stop being asked to attend.

[Viqutorious]

I think it is the writers idea of wealthy. I have family members that are multi millionaires and they don't live like that. My sister has a maid service once a week a beautiful home, but not a mansion and an awesome vacation home.  They aren't old money Hartford though.

Richards job makes zero sense to me. An executive VP with an insurance company does not have the salary nor the prestige to fit their lifestyle. He should be the CEO or part owner to make it realistic. My husband has a similar job and while we are comfortable we certainly aren't close to the tax bracket they live in.

[clack]

As senior VP, Richard is making, at most, $200,000-$250,000 per year. Probably about what AS-P earned in a week.

If Richard is a multi-millionaire, which he must be to be contributing art works to museums, building hospital wings, etc. why then is a mere employee, worried about his pension? That never made sense.

And what also has never made sense : fabulously wealthy Hollywood business people who portray the non-Hollywood wealthy with such incomprehension and disdain. Doesn't AS-P have servants ( excuse me, "assistants")? Go to charitable events? Belong to organizations? Go on expensive vacations? 

Edited December 25, 2016 by clack

[junienmomo]

55 minutes ago, clack said:

And what also has never made sense : fabulously wealthy Hollywood business people who portray the non-Hollywood wealthy with such incomprehension and disdain.

There  was never any special snowflake that was more special than ASP herself. It takes a lot of hubris to say the things she's said in response to valid criticism. 

[starri]

8 minutes ago, junienmomo said:

There  was never any special snowflake that was more special than ASP herself. It takes a lot of hubris to say the things she's said in response to valid criticism. 

Is it hubris when she's the self-appointed Dorothy Parker of the 21st century?  Because if Dorothy Parker was alive today, she'd totally be making a bunch of quickly-outdated pop cultural references spoken at warp speed and calling it wit.

/S

[Kohola3]

Quote

Because if Dorothy Parker was alive today, she'd totally be making a bunch of quickly-outdated pop cultural references spoken at warp speed and calling it wit.

And dressing like the Cat in the Hat.

[AllyB]

On 12/25/2016 at 3:14 AM, CheeseBurgh said:

Richards job makes zero sense to me. An executive VP with an insurance company does not have the salary nor the prestige to fit their lifestyle. He should be the CEO or part owner to make it realistic. My husband has a similar job and while we are comfortable we certainly aren't close to the tax bracket they live in.

The way I rationalise is is that Richard has a very good job and a very good salary that he would live very comfortably on, especially as he is of the generation that could buy an absolutely brilliant house on the salary he would have earned in that role. Maybe not the Hartford Mansion they had, but certainly something like Lorelai's or the Twickham house. We know Richard comes from a wealthy lineage of Yale attendees. So presumably in addiction the money he borrowed from Trix at one point, he probably also had a trust fund from his grandparents (probably both sets) and from his father. Emily also likely had either a trust fund or a great inheritance from her mostly unmentioned family. I imagine that Emily's family were unlikely to have been as wealthy as the Gilmores but she still gained quite the nest egg from them. And that is how they had the mansion and the servants. If you have no debts, no mortgage and investments that run your mansion you can live very, very, very nicely on Richard's salary.

And that's what I think made the show a lot less interesting than it would have been if they just had Richard's salary to live on because they had come from modest backgrounds. They would have been wealthy people but not able to turn to the magic pot of money whenever Lorelai needed it. Lorelai's pregnancy didn't really create enough jeopardy in their lives to justify the outcome. They could still have had Lorelai's rejection of their world and their bewilderment at it, without the Gilmore's being so fabulously wealthy. We could still have had Rory being drawn to their lifestyle and Lorelai's discomfort at it.

[4evaQuez]

I have what may be considered a very odd unpopular opinion, but I've felt this way since the original airing of the 6th season of Gilmore Girls. I've never understood what was so awful about Rory following Emily's footsteps in life. In the fourth/fifth season, Richard looking down on Emily and Emily's life is part of the reason for their separation. I believe he even describes Emily's life as "frivolous." This is seen again in the sixth season when Richard realizes he'd made the wrong decision regarding Rory. He realizes this when he sees Rory is following in Emily's foot steps. Emily even confronts Richard about this revelation when she asks, "you mean my life?"

What I didn't understand about the writing of Gilmore Girls is that there was often an implicit and sometimes explicit narrative that something was wrong with Emily's life, yet Rory is seen as not only happy but thriving following in Emily's footsteps. We see Rory as more passionate in her DAR meetings and planning charity functions and events then we'd ever seen her crafting, writing, researching or editing at the Yale Daily News. Often, she seemed quite detached from the Yale Daily News to me. I think this point is underlined when Rory returns to Yale, yet she is still active with the DAR and its events. I don't remember Rory being passionate about the Yale Daily News or even journalism as a whole during her time away from Yale. Was Rory even seen reading a newspaper during that time?

My unpopular opinion is that I would have loved for Rory to return to Yale, finish her degree in English and then segue into event planning. I would have loved if Rory realized that journalism was not for her, but that something more structured that emphasized planning and organization was more her forte. I also think this could have been a good way to show that the Gilmore Girls, despite their many differences, were a lot more similar than they realized. Emily thrived with organization and event planning, Lorelei, although she would have vehemently denied it, also thrived in organization and event planning. She, too, seemed happiest when she was planning and executing an event at the inn. It would have been a great way to come "full circle" as ASP would have loved to do but also allowed for true character growth.

[Taryn74]

6 minutes ago, 4evaQuez said:

I also think this could have been a good way to show that the Gilmore Girls, despite their many differences, were a lot more similar than they realized. Emily thrived with organization and event planning, Lorelei, although she would have vehemently denied it, also thrived in organization and event planning. She, too, seemed happiest when she was planning and executing an event at the inn. It would have been a great way to come "full circle" as ASP would have loved to do but also allowed for true character growth.

Totally agree!

[Enigma X]

It seemed to me that ASP was telling us (and not showing us very well) that Rory was more like Richard.

[tarotx]

Rory and Logan read the paper together. But I agree Rory looked happy doing the DAR stuff. She was very good at managing the different personalities and it just worked. At first, I thought that it was going to be a segue in Rory working at the DragonFly inn since what Lorelai does there is actually similar in a lot of ways. I also thought it showed that Mitchum was right about seeing this Personal assistant trait in Rory. I always thought she should have taken that Criticism and reflected how she could take that trait to work for her. I thought Event planning was going to be that. Then I thought they were going to show that being an Editor at the Yale Daily News was going to show that Rory was good at moving people to where they need to be. Then when Logan and Rory got closer and Mitchum started praising Rory, I thought the show was going to have Rory and Logan get Married and her being more the Mitchum Traveling/Organising their family empire and Logan more her partner. But that was probably just my shipper heart. 

34 minutes ago, 4evaQuez said:

I have what may be considered a very odd unpopular opinion, but I've felt this way since the original airing of the 6th season of Gilmore Girls. I've never understood what was so awful about Rory following Emily's footsteps in life. In the fourth/fifth season, Richard looking down on Emily and Emily's life is part of the reason for their separation. I believe he even describes Emily's life as "frivolous." This is seen again in the sixth season when Richard realizes he'd made the wrong decision regarding Rory. He realizes this when he sees Rory is following in Emily's foot steps. Emily even confronts Richard about this revelation when she asks, "you mean my life?"

What I didn't understand about the writing of Gilmore Girls is that there was often an implicit and sometimes explicit narrative that something was wrong with Emily's life, yet Rory is seen as not only happy but thriving following in Emily's footsteps. We see Rory as more passionate in her DAR meetings and planning charity functions and events then we'd ever seen her crafting, writing, researching or editing at the Yale Daily News. Often, she seemed quite detached from the Yale Daily News to me. I think this point is underlined when Rory returns to Yale, yet she is still active with the DAR and its events. I don't remember Rory being passionate about the Yale Daily News or even journalism as a whole during her time away from Yale. Was Rory even seen reading a newspaper during that time?

My unpopular opinion is that I would have loved for Rory to return to Yale, finish her degree in English and then segue into event planning. I would have loved if Rory realized that journalism was not for her, but that something more structured that emphasized planning and organization was more her forte. I also think this could have been a good way to show that the Gilmore Girls, despite their many differences, were a lot more similar than they realized. Emily thrived with organization and event planning, Lorelei, although she would have vehemently denied it, also thrived in organization and event planning. She, too, seemed happiest when she was planning and executing an event at the inn. It would have been a great way to come "full circle" as ASP would have loved to do but also allowed for true character growth.

 

[Lady Calypso]

27 minutes ago, tarotx said:

Rory and Logan read the paper together. But I agree Rory looked happy doing the DAR stuff. She was very good at managing the different personalities and it just worked. At first, I thought that it was going to be a segue in Rory working at the DragonFly inn since what Lorelai does there is actually similar in a lot of ways. I also thought it showed that Mitchum was right about seeing this Personal assistant trait in Rory. I always thought she should have taken that Criticism and reflected how she could take that trait to work for her. I thought Event planning was going to be that. Then I thought they were going to show that being an Editor at the Yale Daily News was going to show that Rory was good at moving people to where they need to be. Then when Logan and Rory got closer and Mitchum started praising Rory, I thought the show was going to have Rory and Logan get Married and her being more the Mitchum Traveling/Organising their family empire and Logan more her partner. But that was probably just my shipper heart. 

I mean, I'm not a Rory/Logan shipper anymore, but I agree with this. We've seen Rory work more at event planning than her actual field. We've barely seen her actually write, which is why I don't buy that Rory is going to be a writer. She can write essays, sure, and we hear that she's done some publishing. But can she actually make it as a writer? I feel like it's more ASP trying to insert herself as Rory, hence the self reflexive and very meta title of her book. College Rory found her calling in event planning more than writing, and I had to eventually accept that it was going to be more of her path. Well, until ASP didn't go down that route. It's why I thought becoming a teacher at Chilton was actually a nice balance. It incorporated Rory's ability to talk to people and being able to still do some writing on the side. 

Just watching the revival made me realize how wrong the journalism/English path was for Rory in terms of her career. It's because we were never really shown her pursuing it onscreen, besides probably only four different times. And hey, she even became an editor, which is telling people what to do and a little less about the writing aspect. 

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

2 hours ago, 4evaQuez said:

I have what may be considered a very odd unpopular opinion, but I've felt this way since the original airing of the 6th season of Gilmore Girls. I've never understood what was so awful about Rory following Emily's footsteps in life. In the fourth/fifth season, Richard looking down on Emily and Emily's life is part of the reason for their separation. I believe he even describes Emily's life as "frivolous." This is seen again in the sixth season when Richard realizes he'd made the wrong decision regarding Rory. He realizes this when he sees Rory is following in Emily's foot steps. Emily even confronts Richard about this revelation when she asks, "you mean my life?"

What I didn't understand about the writing of Gilmore Girls is that there was often an implicit and sometimes explicit narrative that something was wrong with Emily's life, yet Rory is seen as not only happy but thriving following in Emily's footsteps. We see Rory as more passionate in her DAR meetings and planning charity functions and events then we'd ever seen her crafting, writing, researching or editing at the Yale Daily News. Often, she seemed quite detached from the Yale Daily News to me. I think this point is underlined when Rory returns to Yale, yet she is still active with the DAR and its events. I don't remember Rory being passionate about the Yale Daily News or even journalism as a whole during her time away from Yale. Was Rory even seen reading a newspaper during that time?

My unpopular opinion is that I would have loved for Rory to return to Yale, finish her degree in English and then segue into event planning. I would have loved if Rory realized that journalism was not for her, but that something more structured that emphasized planning and organization was more her forte. I also think this could have been a good way to show that the Gilmore Girls, despite their many differences, were a lot more similar than they realized. Emily thrived with organization and event planning, Lorelei, although she would have vehemently denied it, also thrived in organization and event planning. She, too, seemed happiest when she was planning and executing an event at the inn. It would have been a great way to come "full circle" as ASP would have loved to do but also allowed for true character growth.

I agree and wish they'd divulged more into the society wife/ professional woman dynamics when Rory stayed with her grandparents.

In response to the bold, Rory wasn't more passionate about the DAR job although she was good at it. She was equally good as the YaleDaily News editor.

Quote

 I always thought she should have taken that Criticism and reflected how she could take that trait to work for her

She wanted to but was shot down when she broached the subject with the one person whose opinion she held in the highest regard.

Edited December 29, 2016 by Deputy Deputy CoS

[Melancholy]

I do think there were big problems with Emily's life. Although, I found her sympathetic on account of them instead of jeering at her for leading a problematic life that was imposed on her.  Emily's whole career rests on remaining valued by her husband while he controls the money and status that sustains her whole life. It's a very precarious life that chews up and spits out a lot of women because they give their best years to their husband who'll trade them in for a new model or abuse or ignore them for aging. It wasn't as bad for Emily because Richard truly loved Emily and frankly, he was a pretty undersexed introverted guy who mainly liked reading and business above all. I believe Richards exist but I don't think they're the rule and increasingly, I bet they're the exception. However even with Richard, Emily rightfully felt precarious because her whole life mission was one man. It made it all the more understandable that she'd hover and go nuts and OTT exercising her natural boss-muscles on maids and offspring and DAR ladies because she was societally discouraged from being a boss for a living. The Revival gives evidence to be glad that Rory didn't decide to be Logan's Emily and devote herself to socially developing his career because he's less trustworthy and faithful than Richard. 

Lorelai figured out how to build a strong, fulfilling life out of event planning because it's her own business, not a life mission to please one man.  It was a fairytale climb, though, where she got pivotal help and built an idyllic niche which isn't the same anymore in today's world of Airbnb, small towns losing some "haven away from it all" luster in the Smartphone Sharing Economy age, etc. (Which I think the Revival captured.) That said, Rory could get the same or better help and I think there are niches in lucrative, independent hospitality/event planning.  

I think Rory liked the planning of DAR events but she was chafing at being under Emily's dictatorial thumb and having a strings-attached life with her grandparents. It'd be different but that dynamic exists as a trophy wife. I also think she longed for verbally creative intellectual work and being with young peers on that wavelength beyond her romance with Logan. That was behind Jess succeeding at convincing Rory to leave E/R. I still think that side would be best fulfilled by teaching and writing. 

Edited December 29, 2016 by Melancholy

[junienmomo]

Emily boxed herself in and never made a choice to live differently. I think she even refused to see that she could be more. To be fair, she married into this role at a time when it was still valued  and touted as the American dream. She refused to believe that dream was different for her daughter and granddaughter, and especially for herself, because I think she absolutely was in denial that she needed more and it was only obtainable outside of the society wife role. 

Rory was possibly molded by Lorelai into fulfilling the Richard role while Lorelai was busy interpreting the Emily role for herself as a single mother.

Richard did what Emily told him to do in society without complaint until he faced work challenges that he thought she couldn't understand. Then he changed, openly defying her role, eventually revealing a secret life e.g. Pennilyn Lott, effectively making Emily realize that her life was more precarious than she had previously thought.

Rory did what Lorelai wanted, up to and including studying for a journalism career at a prestigious university, until she faced life challenges that Lorelai couldn't understand, namely boys and dating while not giving up personal aspirations. Then she changed, insisting on dating boys her mother didn't care for like Jess and married Dean. That change progressed through the rest of the seasons, in some ways leaving Lorelai as adrift as Emily was. 

[Melancholy]

6 hours ago, junienmomo said:

Emily boxed herself in and never made a choice to live differently. I think she even refused to see that she could be more. To be fair, she married into this role at a time when it was still valued  and touted as the American dream. She refused to believe that dream was different for her daughter and granddaughter, and especially for herself, because I think she absolutely was in denial that she needed more and it was only obtainable outside of the society wife role. 

Rory was possibly molded by Lorelai into fulfilling the Richard role while Lorelai was busy interpreting the Emily role for herself as a single mother.

Richard did what Emily told him to do in society without complaint until he faced work challenges that he thought she couldn't understand. Then he changed, openly defying her role, eventually revealing a secret life e.g. Pennilyn Lott, effectively making Emily realize that her life was more precarious than she had previously thought.

Rory did what Lorelai wanted, up to and including studying for a journalism career at a prestigious university, until she faced life challenges that Lorelai couldn't understand, namely boys and dating while not giving up personal aspirations. Then she changed, insisting on dating boys her mother didn't care for like Jess and married Dean. That change progressed through the rest of the seasons, in some ways leaving Lorelai as adrift as Emily was. 

Really good Lorelai/Emily and Richard/Rory  analysis. 

[Keith1980]

On 12/14/2016 at 2:42 AM, Deputy Deputy CoS said:

I didn't care for them as romantic partners but I lol'ed when Lorelai called him  cutesy names. I reasoned she secretly wants to torture him.

I liked Logan's Ace for Rory because his use of her real name was strictly reserved for when he was seriously addressing her. Which was rare given his playful nature. It made both use of her name and Ace more effective.

Even as a Logan cynic I would agree with that.  There's something quite old fashioned and sweet about the address too.  I don't have a problem with it.

My unpopular opinion is that I'm not actually a massive Sookie fan.  I enjoy her most for her banter/falling outs with Michel and Lorelai at the Inn etc...  I quite enjoy her and Jackson as a couple, but then some of the stuff featuring them post marriage grate on me.  I just don't find Sookie as funny or engaging and many of the other characters.  She's a bit of a middle of the road character IMO.

[Ambrosefolly]

I like Christopher, and feel bad for his situation even if it was his own making, and wish they didn't make him such a loser to push Luke and Lorelai, even though I never was a fan of the Christopher/Lorelai coupling. As a thirty something that still doesn't have it together, I can relate to Christopher more than Lorelai.

[Melancholy]

8 hours ago, Ambrosefolly said:

I like Christopher, and feel bad for his situation even if it was his own making, and wish they didn't make him such a loser to push Luke and Lorelai, even though I never was a fan of the Christopher/Lorelai coupling. As a thirty something that still doesn't have it together, I can relate to Christopher more than Lorelai.

Chris's crappiness really did push a perception that Lorelai should pick Luke. The show set up this love-triangle but it wasn't a even-handed triangle because Chris was was rendered so inviable because he was the dead-beat dad to one of the main two protagonists. But I don't know that Chris was written as he was for Luke. I think it served different purposes. It made it far more "Lorelai and Rory against the world"- which is the key theme of the show. In the story about Rory re-connecting with morally grey family with a troubled past, it keeps the spotlight much more on Richard and Emily to not tell a story about Rory becoming similarly close to her dad in her teen/college years. I don't know how much of it was intentional- but I also think Chris's behavior explains a lot about Rory's unhealthy romantic relationships. 

[Keith1980]

On 12/14/2016 at 2:21 PM, Aloeonatable said:

Not such an unpopular opinion. I hate it as well. 

 

Yes, I do like Matt in the GW, but as Logan, no.

Yes his casting in the Good Wife makes more sense. 

[hippielamb]

18 hours ago, Ambrosefolly said:

I like Christopher, and feel bad for his situation even if it was his own making, and wish they didn't make him such a loser to push Luke and Lorelai, even though I never was a fan of the Christopher/Lorelai coupling. As a thirty something that still doesn't have it together, I can relate to Christopher more than Lorelai.

I like him a lot too. He's the only one of Lorelai's guys that I really care what happens to him in his life, separate from her. I do love their relationship however. I didn't care for how they used him in season 6 and 7, it was all about contrasting him with Luke. He deserved better. 

[ghoulina]

You know who I really liked for Lorelei? Besides Luke? (Because, while not my favorite couple on the show, and they had issues, baby, I do really love the two of them when they're good.) Alex. I think Alex would have been a good fit for her. He liked coffee. He did his own thing, but didn't try to force it on her (booking the spa for the fishing trip). He got along with her friends. He was witty and could banter with her, without being super neurotic (Jason) or unreliable and annoying (Christ, sorry, can't stand him). They both had kids. I've only seen this show one billion times, but was there ever a definitive reason why they just stopped seeing each other? 

[shron17]

1 hour ago, ghoulina said:

but was there ever a definitive reason why they just stopped seeing each other? 

The actor got another show, as I recall.  And Lorelai and Alex just drifted apart.  We only got this when Lorelai and Sookie were discussing Max:

Quote

LORELAI: I don't know. I don't know what I'm feeling or what I'm looking for these days, and I hate that. 'Cause it's so wishy-washy, but it's true. I mean, technically, I'm still seeing Alex, although it's more intermittent than ever. I'm not even sure I wanna get back together with Max. The kiss just happened out of the blue.

[ghoulina]

Thanks. Yea, I didn't think there was ever an official breakup. 

[Keith1980]

Chris is my least favourite of the male characters on the show or at least out of the men in the Gilmore's lives.  At first he came across quite well but I just find him to cynical as a character and very self-centered.  He really stepped over the line during Emily's plot to split Lorelai and Luke up.  Yes it was her plan, but Christopher knew what was going on and played along anyway. 

As a mother and daughter relationship, Lane and Mrs. Kim top the Gilmore's.  Of course Rory and Loreali are fantastic and totally believable.  But I think their stories work as well as they do because of the characters they come into contact with. And part of their charm is how their relationship is based on the same core values.  For growth I think the Kim's are more developed.  And the chemistry between the actors is great. 

Though I love Lane and her band I'm not sold on her relationship with Zach outside of the band.  I just don't think he cares about her and without the interaction from the other members of the band their relationship isn't as interesting IMO.