Confession: Despite having several friends who had strongly recommended this show to me, I really had no interest in watching it until Jimmy Fallon started talking about it in the weeks leading up to the Netflix reboot last fall. Jimmy's a big fan of the Gilmores. And I only do things Jimmy tells me to do.
So, in early 2017, I decided to tackle the Gilmore Girls. That's where I've been the past three months. With the Gilmore Girls. Hanging out in Stars Hollow, having coffee at Luke's Diner, Friday night dinners with the grandparents, movie night binges with Lorelai & Rory, going through the ups and downs of trying to get into Harvard, falling in love with all the boys... But it all came to an end for me on Monday evening, as I watched the last "season" of the Year In the Life re-boot, and it was such a bittersweet moment. I honestly don't know what I'm supposed to do with the rest of my life. And yes, I know I say that after every good show comes to an end, but right now, I really really don't know what I'm going to do with the rest of my life.
So I have to write a blog post about it. I have to let it all out. Otherwise, I won't be able to move on.
*WARNING* In case you are like me, and joined the GG bandwagon about 15 years too late, and are still just watching the show now as if you were living in the early 2000's, *THERE MAY BE SPOILERS AHEAD*.
First of all, let me just say... Luke & Lorelai. Has there ever in the history of television been a couple so made for each other? So destined to be together? And has there ever been such a long lead-up to the couple finally realizing what their audience has known all along?? 7 seasons. 7 SEASONS, they dragged this on. And even more hiccups in the re-boot. Like, just LET THEM BE HAPPY TOGETHER ALREADY!!!! Oh my God, I love Luke and Lorelai.
Now, Jimmy did this fun thing back in the fall that I did not get to participate in, because I had not yet started watching the show, but he discussed his top 4 favourite characters on his show (not including the Girls, they are obviously everyone's fave), and at the time, invited fans to hashtag their top four on Twitter. As usual, I'm late to the party, but here's my #top4gilmoregirls:
#1: Luke - Of course. Was there ever any doubt he'd make my list?!? I want a man just like him. *sigh*. *drool*. More on Luke to come.
(For those of you wondering, Jimmy's Top 4 was 1 - Taylor Doosey (the town mayor), 2 - Luke (of course), 3 - Kirk, and 4 - Paris Geller. Invisible 5 was Sookie.)
So, as I've previously mentioned, I loved Luke dearly. Gruff and grumpy extrerior, but with a soft ol' heart of gold, and always there to help and take care of Lorelai and Rory, even before a romantic flame flickered between he and the elder "Girl". Very early on in the series, I texted one of my GG friends, Sharon, to tell her I was already in love with Luke, and she replied something like, "Oh of course you'd go for the old guy." And I was like, "HUH? Luke is not OLD. He's like the same age as me!" But then, when I thought about it, it made sense. She watched GG in real time, so back in 2000 when it started, she was closer in age to Rory, and hence would be more interested in her boys. Watching now in 2017, I'm closer to Lorelai's age, hence more interested in her men. Ah, the trick of TV time... Anyways, one of the best things about Luke was that he never changed. I loved his "uniform" - plaid shirts, jeans, backwards cap, green jacket. And Luke's still wearing the same clothes in the re-boot. Classic. Timeless... That's Luke. *sigh*
Now, when it comes to Rory's boys, I'm most definitely "Team Jess". For the record, Jess is played by Milo Ventimiglia, who currently plays Jack Pearson on This Is Us. And I, of course, have been This Is Us'd. I heart Jack-slash-Jess. Rory's first love was Dean, who you would think I'd be all over because he's tall dark and handsome, and that's usually my thing, but I was never on-board with Dean. Dean was possessive and jealous and blech. Then there was Logan, the cute little blonde rich boy that Rory meets and falls in love with at Yale, and while I didn't dislike Logan, he was never #1 in my heart. For me, it was always Jess. The bad boy who is shipped off to Stars Hollow to stay with his Uncle Luke and immediately sets his sites on sweet Rory. The brooding, bad-tempered, fist-fighting boy, with the sweet, artistic side, the boy Rory can't seem to resist. Oh Jess. How could anyone resist?!
I also want to shine a spotlight on Lorelai, because, my God, I want to be Lorelai Gilmore. Much like how I felt about Tammy Taylor, Coach Taylor's wife on Friday Night Lights, I admire Lorelai, so much. She's seriously the kind of woman I want to be. Sure, we had a few times where we weren't in sync - usually when she was running away from Luke, and making Christopher mistakes - but overall, Lorelai felt like my kindred spirit. My TV best friend. And she loves snow just as much as I do... Aw! Lorelai!!!
So, if you are a GG fan, you probably already know all about "the final 4 words". Early on in the series, creator Amy Sherman-Palladino knew she wanted it all to end with 4 words. But there was some kind of dispute going into the final season, and she and her husband and co-creator Daniel Palladino were not involved in the finale. There was plenty of speculation amongst fans as to what those final 4 words would be, and a lot of angst over the fact that they never got to know. But THEN! The re-boot!! Netflix put out a GG reunion, "A Year in the Life", last fall, and it DID involve the Palladinos. And they DID finally get to use their "final 4 words". I'm not going to tell you what they are, because there's no SPOILER ALERT big enough to cover that one, and I don't want to ruin it for anyone else. I managed to get right to the end without finding out, and I am so glad I did not google and ruin it for myself. But let's just say... not what I was expecting. They made me gasp. I was shocked. And it very much felt like a cliff-hanger to me. Like, it feels like there is more to come. I have googled, and apparently there are no plans or promises of more, which to me feels ridiculous. I mean, there HAS to be more. You can't just leave a legion of fans on the BRINK like that!!!! Fingers crossed that there will be more.
(Funny side-note: Knowing the "final 4 words" were going to be big and important, and knowing they were coming as the final episode of "A Year In the Life" was winding down, literally everything that was said in the last ten minutes of the show, I was counting the words to see if it was the final 4 words. LOL)
Oh, and might I just say, I was thrilled with the re-boot. I can only imagine how wonderful it must have been for the fans who watched the series in real-time and had waited ten years for more. I loved that they were able to get so many of the past characters to come back, and all the references from the original that they tossed in. I also loved the way they addressed the passing of Edward Herrmann (who played Richard Gilmore) in such a bittersweet and sentimental way. It was lovely and very real. And I loved how they split it up into seasons, like four movies. My only advice to anyone who hasn't seen it yet, is to make sure to either read the book or watch the movie "Wild" first. There's a big chunk of "FALL" that you won't get if you don't know about "Wild". (I was thankful I'd seen the movie. lol)
OK. I have to end it now. I could write about this show and it's characters all day. I loved loved loved my time spent with the Girls in Stars Hollow. Jimmy Fallon described the show as "comfort food", and he couldn't have been more right. This show felt like cuddling up in a cozy blanket. It was so nice to get wrapped up in their story, For three months, I lived and breathed Gilmore Girls, and it was such a cozy, comforting way to spend my winter.
I'm really not joking when I say I miss them already...
So, any Gilmore fans out there? Who are your #top4gilmoregirls? Were you Team Jess too? What did you think about the "final 4 words"?? GG fans, UNITE! ;)
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