Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life Season 1

[cantbeflapped]

5 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

The last four words? I'm with Kelly Bishop: Eh. As soon as Rory starting asking Christopher about why he didn't fight harder to stay in her life, I knew Rory was pregnant. Ugh.

In hindsight, I feel so clueless for not picking up on it.  I'd even heard the pregnancy theories about the last four words.  But, I'd forgotten those famous words were even coming up and I just thought what a fascinating scene....I guess Rory is getting some closure on dad issues?  I still find it an interesting scene but for different reasons now.  

[random chance]

50 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

All I can think about is how this is How I Met Your Mother 2.0, in which the showrunners are so insistent on having their original ending and having it go their way that they completely dismiss everything that happened before that final episode, character progression and all. SCREW THE FANS, AMIRIGHT ASP?

That's a great analogy. In many ways ASP is her own worst enemy. Kind of like a lot of her characters.

46 minutes ago, clack said:

Lane, girl, you were so bright, so brave, so energetic, so alive. Now, you're working in your mother's shop as your day job and playing drums in a local weekend jazz duo?

Hey come one, she can still be bright and brave and energetic even though she's not doing amazing things like sitting in a hotel bar taking notes for a book about crazed, drunk Mrs. Doctor Who!

[JAYJAY1979]

No mention of Jackson/snookies third child....no growth for logan...and harsly any Lane/Mrs Kim.

At least we had a brief scene of Lanes tqin boys..and Paris being in the medical field...so at least ASP had to use a few elements from season 7.

The fact she didnt watxh season 7 makes me fully believe shes immature and unable to gice credit to another show runner foe giving the series a jolt.  She is lucky she was show runner for 6 seasons since a lot of the creators usually are removed as show runner much earlier.

Sutton Foster...decent actess...but overrated.  I didnt really watch bunheads so I wasnt in the mood to watch ASP work through her grief at Bunheads failing on this revival.

Winter was pitch perfect...Fall pretty good....spring had some good moments with the therapy scenea and Paris (no louise and madeleine..unforgivable)...summer..pointless

[Viqutorious]

Just now, JAYJAY1979 said:

 

No mention of Jackson/snookies third child....no growth for logan...and harsly any Lane/Mrs Kim.

 

 

Logan regressed, he was charming, monogamous and more mature in season 7.

[Lady Calypso]

6 minutes ago, JAYJAY1979 said:

At least we had a brief scene of Lanes twin boys..and Paris being in the medical field...so at least ASP had to use a few elements from season 7.

Maybe, but we see Lane's twins in only two shots of the entire revival, but I guess it's better than not showing them at all. And Paris being in the medical/fertility field was good, even though the sacrifice was her and Doyle getting divorced. 

[chitowngirl]

You can tell Amy was in charge of Winter and Fall & Daniel was Spring and Summer. The musical went on too long! It seems like lazy filler instead of telling the story.

At 33, Rory is in a much better place than 22 to have a baby. Lane has 10 year old twins, Paris has kids, Jackson seems to be raising their kids without Sookie and Rory is much more comfortable around kids than she used to be.

But who was putting out the Gazette while Rory was pounding out the beginning orphans her novel? I did like that Esther was always filing!

[random chance]

13 minutes ago, JAYJAY1979 said:

Sutton Foster...decent actess...but overrated.  I didnt really watch bunheads so I wasnt in the mood to watch ASP work through her grief at Bunheads failing on this revival.

Ahaha it does seem like that's exactly what she was doing! That or trying to sell Netflix on the idea of picking it up.

[amensisterfriend]

I actually find some dark humor in how the apparent solution to Rory's complex career woes is to...write about herself. Because, I mean, what could POSSIBLY be more compelling and fascinating than the story of the Gilmore girls, am I right, AS-P?! ;) And the Gilmores totally need to indulgently focus on THEMSELVES a little more; they've never done quite enough of that. 

It's like another (unintentional?!) jab at how self-obsessed the Gilmores are or maybe ASP subconsciously congratulating herself on having chosen to tell the Gilmore girls' stories all those years ago. Or maybe none of those things, but I found it grimly amusing somehow :) 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

1 hour ago, cantbeflapped said:

In hindsight, I feel so clueless for not picking up on it.  I'd even heard the pregnancy theories about the last four words.  But, I'd forgotten those famous words were even coming up and I just thought what a fascinating scene....I guess Rory is getting some closure on dad issues?  I still find it an interesting scene but for different reasons now.  

I'm with you, Cantbeflapped.  I absolutely did NOT pick up on it until I read this thread.  I feel so much less clueless now that I know I'm not only not the only one but am joined by one of the most knowledgeable and insightful GG fanatics here! I figured they just needed a way to get Christopher into the script in a cameo.

ETA: The two times my daughter groaned audibly was when we saw the title of the book was "The Gilmore Girls" and when the final four words were uttered.  Oh, and we both find anything Life and Death Brigade related to be a large shark to be jumped, so we just sort of winced and cringed through that part. Otherwise, we pretty much are this show's bitches so we loved it.

ETA2: One last question and MY GOD I hate to ask this because it sounds awful but ... as long as comments are being made about the apparent work that Lauren Graham has had done ... was  Michel's nose always sort of weirdly lopsided? Did Yanic Truesdale have any kind of medical issues or work done? I LOVE him but we both noticed it immediately so wondering if anyone else did.

Edited November 26, 2016 by PamelaMaeSnap

[racked]

I can't remember what season this happened in so I will post it here to be safe - did we get any closure or even more info on the letter Emily said Lorelei wrote her? She was so distraught by it and Lorelei so insistent she didn't write it. Who could have? 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

3 minutes ago, racked said:

I can't remember what season this happened in so I will post it here to be safe - did we get any closure or even more info on the letter Emily said Lorelei wrote her? She was so distraught by it and Lorelei so insistent she didn't write it. Who could have? 

No, I don't think we did and that drove me NUTS ... would love to know about that ...
I'm guessing there is no follow-up planned for this follow-up? The letter, Emily's life in Nantucket, oh, and Rory's baby.

[elang4]

3 minutes ago, racked said:

I can't remember what season this happened in so I will post it here to be safe - did we get any closure or even more info on the letter Emily said Lorelei wrote her? She was so distraught by it and Lorelei so insistent she didn't write it. Who could have? 

I thought that too! At first when Lorelai rang Emily from the mountains, I thought she was going to confess. I don't think it was addressed again. I believe Lorelai though.

[Nilo]

I remain convinced the letter was from Lorelai the First (Trix).  Others have suggested one of the many maids.  I really wish it had been readdressed since, clearly, Emily was (understandably) very upset about it (and had been for 30+ years) and Lorelai was so convincing in her denial.

[Randomosity]

32 minutes ago, racked said:

I can't remember what season this happened in so I will post it here to be safe - did we get any closure or even more info on the letter Emily said Lorelei wrote her? She was so distraught by it and Lorelei so insistent she didn't write it. Who could have? 

As that scene about the letter was happening, since Lorelai denied it, I thought maybe a spiteful maid who had just been fired? Or perhaps one of Lorelai's frenemies at the time, wanting to get her in trouble? Trix?  I can't recall what they said was in the letter, if they referenced the content.

[FictionLover]

So if there is a season 2, can anyone see a type of prequel telling Rory's book? It would be difficult to cast a competent young Lorelai but it could work. I think I would like that better than more of this.

[chitowngirl]

I loved Emily's new house! The view!!!

[tarotx]

Imo if ASP wanted to tell her story her way, she should have found a way to have had that happen in the time period she wanted it to happen-a year or so after Rory graduated from Yale. And then tell us where she would have these characters 10 years later and why. I get the actors are aged 10 years so a flashback couldn't have happened but there are ways. I think I get where these people are now and maybe a why but in many ways that isn't what was told to me. We pretty much got ASP's 8ish season told 10 years later and it just felt like everybody is stuck not just in a cycle but a time loop ish life. 

Edited November 27, 2016 by tarotx

[ZuluQueenOfDwarves]

5 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

You can tell Amy was in charge of Winter and Fall & Daniel was Spring and Summer. The musical went on too long! It seems like lazy filler instead of telling the story.

At 33, Rory is in a much better place than 22 to have a baby. Lane has 10 year old twins, Paris has kids, Jackson seems to be raising their kids without Sookie and Rory is much more comfortable around kids than she used to be.

But who was putting out the Gazette while Rory was pounding out the beginning orphans her novel? I did like that Esther was always filing!

I think the whole St. James/Belleville family is up at the epiphany farm where Sookie is trying to save the world with high-yield, sustainable crops (that is what she's doing there, right?) and Jackson came down to the festival solo as both a visitor and vendor. Sookie was supposed to join him, but some breakthrough plot device at the farm kept her in there. 

[Taryn74]

My daughter's thoughts on the "musical" as sent to me via a series of FB messages.  She cracks me up so much.

Okay why do I need to see 20 minutes of this terrible play about stars hollow

I just don't understand why they didn't show me like two minutes and then change scene

I want to shoot my eyes out right now

IT'S LITERALLY 10 MINUTES LONG

I just watched all of it

I was expecting some better jokes thrown in or something

I feel like I was watching a mst3k without the jokes

What is wrong with the dude who wrote it

He looks dead

[Daisy]

This revival is seriously "be careful what you wish for."

There were parts i loved, parts that were so charming, and then 1/2 that i was like seriously? I feel like I did when I found out my parents were Santa. just feeling the magic die with that revelation. 

I do think AS-P and DP should have watched Season 7. it would have at least given this a little bit more nuance. But what is most disappointing is that everything that Rory flat out said (in tears mind you) - that she's not a "cas, girl" (and then in retrospect a one night stand kind of girl) and that 10 years later, she's more than fine being "hey don't ask don't tell." (and I did read something somewhere that it's akin to slut shaming and I hope I'm not giving that out. If she was a kind of girl who likes getting some - go for it. But the thing is something Rory wasn't comfortable with). It did hurt that after Dean + Lindsey that she was good with being the other woman again. (and I hate Logan for basically putting her in that situation). They both just suck. 

I just hate that the show i liked and had a decent end - decided to take all of that, spit on it and give an unnecessary cliff-hanger and make you just feel sad for everyone. (except Emily. Emily was always the awesome). 

[Smad]

Well reading what people have to say I'm glad I didn't watch. This way I can remain blissfully unaware about anything post-S7. Nothing I have read so far would make it worth it to actually see the revival so I'm not going to. Thanks to all of you for all your detailed discussions.

[Daisy]

5 minutes ago, Smad said:

Well reading what people have to say I'm glad I didn't watch. This way I can remain blissfully unaware about anything post-S7. Nothing I have read so far would make it worth it to actually see the revival so I'm not going to. Thanks to all of you for all your detailed discussions.

you're welcome. 
I really wish i could rewind time, and it was thursday and i just go "nope.  just don't bother." 

[kieyra]

I really liked it, and I really didn't expect to. My background is that I was a hardcore viewer and fan (and L/L shipper) when the show was airing, haven't kept up with the fandom much since then, and one of my favorite shows currently is You're The Worst, which makes everyone on GG look like saints.

My BF, who has only seen the first three seasons or so and is not a big TV viewer, was instantly hooked and pushed for us to binge the whole thing this weekend. We enjoyed everything except the trademark DP townie thing that went on way too long (the musical). It felt like he was trying to bask in the reflected glow of Hamilton or something. We web-surfed for those ten or fifteen minutes. Apart from that, we both loved it, and we cackled a lot. 

This felt like an "authentic" revival to me, and it was a lot of fun--when I'd expected flat, warmed-over trash. I could see the arcs each character was on for the season--which means they put some *thought* into those arcs. I laughed, I had feels, and the emotional beats contrasted nicely with the wacky ones. The dialogue and pop culture references were on point.

I never had a problem with Rory turning out not to be a perfect virginal princess once she hit the real world and the complexities of romantic relationships. (I certainly got tired of the word "Whory" back then.) An actually angelic character would get boring fast. I did find her aimlessness to be a little OOC, but it served two purposes: 1) actually kept her in and around Stars Hollow for a year, for show purposes; 2) allowed for some commentary on the phenomenon of finding yourself utterly lost around age 30. I know I did. And journalism is something of a dying profession, isn't it? Not shocked she's struggling, but I'm also not sure her auto-biography is the path to success. 

And from a thematic/storytelling standpoint, all three Gilmore women needed to be "lost" and searching for something. 

TL;DR: Had no problems with Rory's arc and don't think she's a terrible person. At all. (Again, though, You're The Worst, Catastrophe and Fleabag are some of my recent fave shows.)

Emily's arc was sometimes puzzling but very engaging. (What was the deal with Ray Wise?) Kelly Bishop acted the hell out of it.

If I had one nitpick, it's that I've lost the threads of why Lorelai is so hostile towards Emily, and I think the show failed to remind me. I know Emily could be incredibly controlling, manipulative and intrusive, but we didn't see as much of that in the revival, so Lorelai occasionally came off as vicious for no reason. 

L/L was as good as I could have hoped, given that the show more or less squandered their ridiculous chemistry after season 4. Luke's final long speech to Lorelai was amazing, though. 

Never liked Logan and hope that's over. Oddly, I came away rooting for Jess. (Back in the day I had no time for his brattiness.)

I complained about the Palladinos as much as anyone back in the day (and save me from the quirky DP townie scenes, ugh),  but it was clear they went into this with a fairly strong vision, and they pulled it off. And underneath the quirk, the show still has the same heart I originally fell in love with.

Edited November 27, 2016 by kieyra

[cantbeflapped]

6 minutes ago, kieyra said:

And underneath the quirk, the show still has the same heart I originally fell in love with.

Totally agree.  I also loved it.

[kieyra]

Also, I'm a cat person, and the revival left me wanting both a dog I could cook steak for, and a tiny piglet to bottle-feed. 

[Lady Calypso]

18 minutes ago, Smad said:

Well reading what people have to say I'm glad I didn't watch. This way I can remain blissfully unaware about anything post-S7. Nothing I have read so far would make it worth it to actually see the revival so I'm not going to. Thanks to all of you for all your detailed discussions.

Maybe just wait for someone to maybe just upload highlights, so you don't have to shift through six hours of watching for maybe forty minutes of good content. Then you can decide whether it's worth it! Because there were some good moments, through all of the crap over top of it. 

[Taryn74]

18 minutes ago, kieyra said:

Emily's arc was sometimes puzzling but very engaging. (What was the deal with Ray Wise?) Kelly Bishop acted the hell out of it.

That reminds me, did he imply in Fall that they got married???  Or did I misinterpret that?  I haven't seen anyone comment on it so now I'm wondering.

[kieyra]

Obviously people are free to do what they want, but I'd encourage folks to read some TV critic reviews and/or check out the first fifteen minutes or so before dismissing it out of hand. The NYT was mostly positive on it, for example:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/23/arts/television/review-gilmore-girls-a-year-in-the-life-netflix.html?_r=0

I was very happy to have some comfortable escapism this holiday weekend, given recent events. It felt very nice to be back in Stars Hollow. 

[kieyra]

1 minute ago, Taryn74 said:

That reminds me, did he imply in Fall that they got married???  Or did I misinterpret that?  I haven't seen anyone comment on it so now I'm wondering.

I don't think so, but I know the line you're referring to. He said something like "I wish my wives had been so understanding". It was a weird little scene I didn't understand, but mostly because they never established what was going on between them. It felt like he was making some bullshit excuse to leave, and Emily was just bored with the whole thing. I *think* it was meant to show that she had no interest in being anyone's wife but Richard's, but it was pretty cryptic. Part of the larger theme of Emily being tired of "bullshit", I guess.

I did love her going in and de-romanticizing whaling. We were laughing our asses off and cringing at the same time. 

[Taryn74]

2 minutes ago, kieyra said:

I don't think so, but I know the line you're referring to. He said something like "I wish my wives had been so understanding". It was a weird little scene I didn't understand, but mostly because they never established what was going on between them. It felt like he was making some bullshit excuse to leave, and Emily was just bored with the whole thing. I *think* it was meant to show that she had no interest in being anyone's wife but Richard's, but it was pretty cryptic. Part of the larger theme of Emily being tired of "bullshit", I guess.

Well, what he actually said was "I wish my first three wives had been so understanding" (I went back and checked) which is what made me wonder if that was supposed to imply that Emily was now his wife and he wished the others had been more like her.  But if so, the way Emily was playing it was very strange, like you said she was really acting like she was over it all LOL so I don't know.

[kieyra]

1 minute ago, Taryn74 said:

Well, what he actually said was "I wish my first three wives had been so understanding" (I went back and checked) which is what made me wonder if that was supposed to imply that Emily was now his wife and he wished the others had been more like her.  But if so, the way Emily was playing it was very strange, like you said she was really acting like she was over it all LOL so I don't know.

I see what you mean. I don't think they would have played Emily re-marrying in such an oblique way, but the whole thing with him felt underwritten. It may have just been a poorly-worded line. 

[vanillamountain]

Quote

Luke and Lorelai not talking about kids at this point in their relationship was ridiculous, especially at their ages.

I actually agree with the poster in another thread who pointed out that it feels like Amy Sherman-Palladino wanted to end the show with a pregnancy - and since Lorelai is (presumably?) past childbearing age**, she made Rory pregnant instead of Lorelai. The original series always seemed like it was foreshadowing a "surprise" pregnancy for Luke and Lorelai (i.e. the episode where Lorelai had cravings for apples and thought she was pregnant; the episode where she dreamed that she was pregnant with Luke's children; the episode where she and Emily talked about buying a house because Luke and Lorelai were planning to have children, etc.) Since Amy Sherman-Palladino has said that she didn't like the way Rory's storyline ended in Season 7 and that she had "bigger and better" plans for her, I really want to believe that she wouldn't have been cruel enough to make a 22 year old Rory single and pregnant before she even got her career together.

** = I say "presumably" because according to Wikipedia, there are many women who are 48 and over who have conceived healthy children naturally. Hell, Janet Jackson is 50 now and pregnant, so maybe Lorelai could have taken fertility treatments or something.

[kieyra]

I was unspoiled for the pregnancy reveal and fairly shocked, but it had a certain "history repeats itself" resonance.

That said, it doesn't seem like a good time in Rory's life to have a kid. But I guess it wasn't a good time in Lorelai's life either.

[racked]

37 minutes ago, vanillamountain said:

I actually agree with the poster in another thread who pointed out that it feels like Amy Sherman-Palladino wanted to end the show with a pregnancy - and since Lorelai is (presumably?) past childbearing age**, she made Rory pregnant instead of Lorelai.  fertility treatments or something.

Very interesting idea, it hadn't occurred to me that those four words would have been Lorelei saying she's pregnant rather than Rory but it makes sense. 

The more I sit with it, the more I see what people mean about the storylines feeling frozen in time. 

[Tahitigirl]

A few miscellaneous thoughts...

Re: Taylor, I can't remember him mentioning a wife but in the episode when Kirk was the mail carrier and mixed up all the mail, Babette said something at a town meeting about getting Taylor's girlie magazines. 

As for Michel, Rory made a comment in a very early episode about him, "I'll tell all the ladies what a stud you are," or something to that effect. His response was, "I believe that message has already been sent."  In later seasons reference was made to him dating but nothing was mentioned about the person/people he dated.

I thought there was a trailer showing Rory with Michelle Obama and there was speculation that she had a White House position after the campaign. But that clip wasn't even in the show. What's up with that?

Sookie was a disappointment to me.  The personality just wasn't the same.  Kelly Bishop slipped back into her role with the least awkwardness, in my opinion. She rocked it the entire time.  Even Lauren Graham seemed to try too hard at times.

As far as character development and life circumstances are concerned, it really seemed like this should have taken place 4-5 years after Season 7, not ten. 

Overall, though, I'm glad they did it and I'm glad I watched. 

[amensisterfriend]

I'm worried that instead of making me appreciate (at least parts of) the original series more by contrast, my dislike of this revival has tainted how I now view the preceding seasons as well. I was already in a stage where I was feeling disillusioned with aspects of the show, and this revival has me wondering whether these characters and this show was ever a fraction as good as I once thought. Sorry to get maudlin on you guys, but I totally relate to the analogy someone used about how this was like reuniting with an old friend you had such fond memories of, only to discover that you no longer connect at all and wonder how you ever loved this person in the first place. I'm truly happy for my fellow fans and friends who liked it, but I almost wish I hadn't seen it at all and that for me the show had just lived on in my imagination and the occasional fanfic. I remember how excited I was to first fall in love with this show and then convert my mom into a diehard fan as well. (My mom has been battling cancer for over a year now, which might explain why I'm more emotional about this than any sane person should be!) Rory and Lorelai's relationship actually meant something to me and my own mom and bonded us more closely together, GG helped me through a couple of bouts with depression, and my obsession with this show helped me connect online to people I've come to consider genuine friends (a few of whom are probably reading this!), so it's sad to feel so disillusioned with GG right now. I feel like I'm going through a minor breakup with a freaking TV show! It's not you, Gilmore Girls, it's me---well, to be honest, it's at least partly you. ;)

[cuddlingcrowley]

56 minutes ago, Tahitigirl said:

Sookie was a disappointment to me.  The personality just wasn't the same.  Kelly Bishop slipped back into her role with the least awkwardness, in my opinion. She rocked it the entire time.  Even Lauren Graham seemed to try too hard at times.

True! But I feel LG was better in the Revival than in the later seasons of of GG, especially S7 where she had this constant droopy face with wet eyes. I loved her energy here. There were MANY moments I felt like I was watching early seasons' Lorelai.

 

2 hours ago, kieyra said:

If I had one nitpick, it's that I've lost the threads of why Lorelai is so hostile towards Emily, and I think the show failed to remind me. I know Emily could be incredibly controlling, manipulative and intrusive, but we didn't see as much of that in the revival, so Lorelai occasionally came off as vicious for no reason. 

Ha! I find that hilarious because "especially vicious" is how I found myself describing Emily a lot during the revival. She was on top form! From her funeral rant where she accused a clearly tipsy, exhausted Lorelai of "dishonoring" her father on porpose, to crapping all over the L/L relationship numerous times, going on an immediate attack mode at Lorelai inquiring about her "friend" and so forth. It seemed like in a every one of the episodes (save the last) she had a cutting word to throw at Lorelai.

Lorelai, on the other hand, seemed a lot softer on Emily than we've ever seen before.

[hypnotoad]

Quote

I loved Emily's story, especially her pride at buying the Nantucket house in her own name. For someone of her age and social class, that's a big deal. Her life revolved around her husband's, and while I think she and Richard were equal to a certain extent—her support definitely made him the success he became—she was still Mrs. Richard Gilmore more than she was Emily Gilmore.

They handled Edward Herrmann's death beautifully. I really liked how it was a theme through all four episodes.

Oh I agree. I enjoyed Emily's arc the most. I so loved her buying that house.

I actually liked the revival overall. Some of it was weak - like that damn musical but for the most part it was GG. I think the Lorelai/Emily relationship was always the most interesting to me (far more than that friendship thing Lorelai had with Rory) and that continued in the revival. I think Kelly Bishop and Lauren Graham just click together.

I was a Luke and Lorelai shipper throughout the original show and I loved seeing them still together and finally marry - though I did find it a bit hard to believe they hadn't already married.

I never really liked Rory much beyond probably season 2 or 3 and she really wore me out in this. I don't mind that she was still finding her way but I also don't think being the editor of the home town paper would be such a bad thing. Because no matter how many times other characters say it - she really isn't all that. I hope she does go back and teach. That seems like the best option for her. Also? Hated the whole thing with Paul and really didn't find Logan any more fascinating than I used to. The sleeping with Logan while he's engaged to someone else just felt off to me. I would like to think that Rory learned something from being the other woman and sleeping with a married man.  I don't know, no judging or shaming, I just didn't like it.

I have to admit I laughed really hard over the secret bar! I probably found that way more amusing than I should have. I also laughed when Lorelai and Luke finally got engaged and he said something about (paraphrasing here because I'm too tired to try and find it again) there was no turning back now unless one of them died and she said 'And now there is no need to write wedding vows.' or something like that. It made me laugh.

The scene that got me the most was Lorelai calling Emily and telling her the story of the mall with Richard. It was well written and well acted. I got all kinds of feels with that!

I think the final 4 words would have been far more impactful if they had happened 10 years ago and it would have felt far more like history repeating itself. But Rory is  now 32 and let's face it there is no way she's really broke. Are we to believe that Richard left money for Luke to franchise but didn't leave money for his only grandchild?!?

Winter and Fall were my favorite two episodes. Spring was okay and Summer was all kinds of meh.

Edited November 27, 2016 by hypnotoad

[Eyes High]

2 hours ago, kieyra said:

I was unspoiled for the pregnancy reveal and fairly shocked, but it had a certain "history repeats itself" resonance.

That said, it doesn't seem like a good time in Rory's life to have a kid. But I guess it wasn't a good time in Lorelai's life either.

At the risk of sounding cynical, if you're a working woman it's never a good time to have a kid. 

[lovelynn]

I regret watching this revival. I preferred the season 7 ending. Rory on the campaign trail choosing herself. Am I to just assume she gave up on political journalism, that it didn't work out for her. 2016 was a big year for political journalists, so while I understand how it would be problematic to have her covering those stories it seems a more likely thing to turn to than editor of the gazette.

Luke was never my preference for Lorelai, but I don't quite see how they would remain together with such horrible communication. Babies are a big deal, you talk about them early on.

[tarotx]

If you really loved the show, I think you will adore the Revival so don't let our sadness or disappointment make you not watch it. Imo it was good but terribly sad in many ways because of who or where these people are in their lives. It feels like this is where ASP wanted the show to go-back when it aired but those 10 years matter and feels wrong for these characters 8-10 years later. While the sadness feels right for a year of change, endings and starting over, the circumstances and actions feel frozen from the point the creators knew they weren't going to get their finish 11 years ago. Except for Emily and that is why I enjoyed her journey the most. Though it was a bit much at times. I feel like there needed to be some editors or someone to help guide what the creators wanted to tell. I feel like this revival could have benefited a bit from network or an outside producers nudge here and there. 

Edited November 27, 2016 by tarotx

[Smad]

3 hours ago, kieyra said:

Obviously people are free to do what they want, but I'd encourage folks to read some TV critic reviews and/or check out the first fifteen minutes or so before dismissing it out of hand.

Serious question: Why should I? I never pay attention to what critics say, for one. Most tend to not be fans and even if they are they have certain expectations themselves that when not met will make them give something a bad review. Second, I prefer the view of the actual fans here largely because there are some whose opinion will mean a lot to me due to my experience that I'm kind of on the same wavelength with them about certain things regarding this show. So I'd trust their view a whole lot more than some critic. I've done the same with the X-Files revival, read from people whose opinion I trust and ended up not watching it. I have no regrets.

The only thing that I would be interested in watching that sounds great is Rory's story. And that's only because since S5 I have gotten a perverse pleasure out of special snowflake Rory getting worse and worse as a character. The only storyline though that sounds good is Emily's but even there people seem to be split on the details so whatever.

[random chance]

20 minutes ago, tarotx said:

I feel like there needed to be some editors or someone to help guide what the creators wanted to tell. I feel like this revival could have benefited a bit from network or an outside producers nudge here and there. 

It was the same with Bunheads. ASP needs an editor, or someone who lets her know when she's veering too far into whimsyland or trashing a character for no good reason. (You can write someone out of a show without ruining them! I've seen it done elsewhere!)

[Minneapple]

Other than the Stars Hollow musical (which I'm pretty sure is still going on even though the episode ended), I loved it. Fall was the best episode and the scene with Lorelai, Michel and Sookie was my favorite. It just felt like old school Gilmore Girls more than the rest of it. 

I honestly had to go back and watch the Rory/Chris scene again after the final four words. Because yeah, she's totally looking for advice on not letting the dad (Logan, right?) be involved in the child's life. I will say that I'm glad ASP didn't put in any crazy pregnant lady symptoms for Rory.

I liked Jess when he was encouraging Rory and being a friend to Luke. Not so much looking moony after Rory, which seemed to come from out of nowhere.

I liked Emily's arc the best, but surprisingly I enjoyed Rory's arc as well. I was in Rory's shoes not long ago -- career sort of dead-ending, trying to figure out what to do -- so maybe that's why.

1 hour ago, Smad said:

Serious question: Why should I? 

You should at least try to watch it to form your own opinion about something rather than basing it on what everyone else is saying. Even if it's like 15 minutes, then contribute to the discussion about why you hated it.

[ChlcGirl]

7 hours ago, hypnotoad said:

I have to admit I laughed really hard over the secret bar! I probably found that way more amusing than I should have. I also laughed when Lorelai and Luke finally got engaged and he said something about (paraphrasing here because I'm too tired to try and find it again) there was no turning back now unless one of them died and she said 'And now there is no need to write wedding vows.' or something like that. It made me laugh.

The scene that got me the most was Lorelai calling Emily and telling her the story of the mall with Richard. It was well written and well acted. I got all kinds of feels with that!

I think the final 4 words would have been far more impactful if they had happened 10 years ago and it would have felt far more like history repeating itself. But Rory is  now 32 and let's face it there is no way she's really broke. Are we to believe that Richard left money for Luke to franchise but didn't leave money for his only grandchild?!?

Winter and Fall were my favorite two episodes. Spring was okay and Summer was all kinds of meh.

I also found the Secret Bar to be one of the few things I actually enjoyed, especially the shout out to The Wire, but I'm a bit confused about what happened to Casey's, site of Chris & Jackson's man-date and Lorelai's tequila-fueled karaoke.  Continuity, Amy, is your friend.

I also agree that Rory being broke is laughable.  Not only would Richard have left her something, but she had Trix's trust fund that was set up in S1 or 2, PLUS Christopher had money and talked of setting aside money for Rory and Gigi in S6.  That's just sloppy storytelling, there.

Edited November 27, 2016 by ChlcGirl

[Viqutorious]

I watched the revival a second time and I thought it was much better. I think the fact that the cast aged threw me for a loop on my first watch. It has some serious flaws but overall they did a pretty good job. 

I agree, Emily has the best storyline by a mile. I was hoping for more Paris! 

[kieyra]

The way everyone had talked up all the aging, I was expecting much worse. The main issue for me was LG's somewhat unfortunate filler injections, but I'm sure being an actress over 40 is no picnic and I don't judge her at all. And from some angles they weren't so obvious. Everyone else looked good, and some of the boys looked amazing (Jared Padalecki).

Oh derp, I just realized why Peter Krause had a cameo (I never watched Parenthood). At times the endless string of cameos was distracting, only because of those moments of "who is that? Is that Rachel Ray? Why is she here?" and "Oh look, it's the ballerina from Bunheads", and "oh, there's the lady from the podcast I used to listen to who mentioned they recorded in the same building where Netflix was working on GG, guess she talked someone into giving her a scene". (True story.) 

[ChlcGirl]

19 minutes ago, kieyra said:

Oh derp, I just realized why Peter Krause had a cameo (I never watched Parenthood). At times the endless string of cameos was distracting, only because of those moments of "who is that? Is that Rachel Ray? Why is she here?" and "Oh look, it's the ballerina from Bunheads", and "oh, there's the lady from the podcast I used to listen to who mentioned they recorded in the same building where Netflix was working on GG, guess she talked someone into giving her a scene". (True story.) 

With all those cameos, would it have KILLED them to cast Vincent Kartheiser as the wookie guy?  Or even Paul?

[Viqutorious]

Luke looked rough to me and his toupee didn't help.

2 minutes ago, ChlcGirl said:

23 minutes ago, kieyra said:

 

With all those cameos, would it have KILLED them to cast Vincent Kartheiser as the wookie guy?  Or even Paul?

Rumor has it Vincent is a very odd guy.

[kieyra]

3 minutes ago, ChlcGirl said:

With all those cameos, would it have KILLED them to cast Vincent Kartheiser as the wookie guy?  Or even Paul?

I kept wondering, did he and Alexis have any tiny blue-eyed babies yet? Must google.

4 minutes ago, CheeseBurgh said:

Luke looked rough to me and his toupee didn't help.

I think rather than "rough" it might be "almost 60", which the actor is. I thought he looked great for almost 60.