A week ago I wrote a piece on how I wanted to live in Stars Hollow. Throughout the days that followed, my email box was flooded with questions regarding what I thought of the revival, “A Year in the Life” that aired three years ago today, November 25, 2016.
I can’t believe that it’s already been three years since we had Lorelai and Rory dangled in front of us like carrots on a string, but back to my point, I thought this week, I’d share my thoughts on it.
May 15, 2007, was a dark day for me. As I sat on my couch sobbing, I watched the final episode of Gilmore Girls. For seven years, I laughed, loved, and cried with Lorelai and Rory, Richard, Emily, Christopher, Luke, and all the other crazy and loveable characters of the show set in a magical little town that I’d give my right arm to live in.
Being the super fan that I am, it was no surprise that the Hubs got me the series box set one Christmas. Ever since that fateful holiday, I’ve watched all the seasons probably hundreds of times, and each time I come to the end and the last episode goes to the credits, I feel lost, like the show that was such a big part of my life is gone forever all over again.
Perhaps it’s stupid to feel the hollowness in my chest. Stupid because not only is it just a TV show, but all I have to do is pop in the first DVD of the first season and watch them all over again . . . which is pretty much what I do. It can’t be over if I can watch it any time I want. Sure, the episodes aren’t new and don’t have that “what’s going to happen next” excitement. Sure, I can not only name every episode and can pretty much recite them all, but that’s beside the point. Because no matter how many times I’ve seen each season, looking down at all those DVD’s is still a comfort.
I have 153 episodes right at my fingertips to watch and enjoy any time I want.
Knowing how obsessed I am, you can imagine how utterly ecstatic I was when I learned that Netflix was bringing the show back for four ninety-minute episodes called Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.
WHAT!?!?!?! YES!!!!!!
*SPOILER ALERT* If you haven’t watched the new episodes don’t continue reading.
Even if I didn’t have Netflix on my TV at the time, I waited and counted down the months, weeks, and days until November 25th. It was finally happening. Did I want more than just four ninety minutes episodes? Of course. But at this point, after nine years, I would have loved having one.
Unlike some fans, the series finale in 2007 didn’t leave me with unresolved feelings. It was apparent that Luke and Lorelai got back together, that Rory was jet-setting off to become a successful journalist, and Richard and Emily would spend the rest of their lives getting to know their daughter again on a deeper level. Everything was tied up in nice, neat bows. I had zero complaints.
I didn’t care about those mythical last four words that the writer said in multiple interviews were so important to her. They really meant nothing to me since I felt all the loose ends of the series were taken care of.
And then the revival happened . . .
After six long hours in front of my computer, I sat, not only wondering what the blue heck happened to my show, but I was left utterly shocked at the ending. So shocked that even hours later, I wandered around my house performing my daily chores in a haze of confusion because while they ended the series in 2007 with tied bows, those precious last four words that the writer had dreamed about for so long left me dangling off the side of a cliff.
Deep down I can see the full circle the creators tried to accomplish. Unfortunately, they didn’t set it up in a series of scenes that would leave us feeling that circle. Not to mention, there were some scenes and storylines that left me sitting there wondering what the heck I was watching. I mean, seriously, the musical? What was that? And why did it drag on for 20+ minutes?
While some would say that they knew what those last four words were going to be, I didn’t. I didn’t even have an idea. I thought they would be said from Luke to Lorelai or Lorelai to Rory. Never would I have guessed they would be . . .
“Mom.”
“Yeah?”
“I’m pregnant.”
Uh . . . now what?
The way that they wrote the script just leaves the audience with a hole in their chests, that unless they give us at least one more season, just four more episodes in the span of another year in their lives will never be filled. Does Rory tell Logan? What does he do? Does she still get with Jess (mirroring the Luke and Lorelai story)?
No matter how much those words were important to the original writer, they didn’t tie up any ends. They just created new ones for the fans. I’m glad that the woman finally got her words out. I just wish she wouldn’t have trampled all over her fans to get them. If she doesn’t ever give us more, she’s ruined one of the greatest shows on television to date for millions of people.
In the end, I loved seeing the beautiful cast of characters all over again. I hope I will see more of them. If not, I still have my DVD’s.
angelachristinaarcher.com 
There a few TV shows that I wish I could’ve written for, and it sounds like you would’ve been good as a writer on Gilmore Girls.
I watched countless interviews with one of my favorite TV show creator and writer. In the interview about his finale episode, he said that fans don’t want any surprises. They want to believe their favorite characters are continuing to go on doing what they were always doing but you just can’t see them anymore. He used the TV show Friends as an example, stating that they all moved on to different lives and out of their city apartments. He thought that was a mistake. So, he left one of my favorite shows just the way I would’ve wanted it to end.
Sounds like your creator/writer of Gilmore Girls didn’t really care about the fans, but more about herself.