I have lived and breathed Gilmore Girls since I was in elementary school when it was still airing new episodes each week on the CW, long before its’ Netflix days. Initially, I only watched the show centered around the mother-daughter duo because my sisters and my mom did, and for years I claimed to hate it for no other reason than my sisters liked it. That’s how siblings work, right? However, over time I found myself putting it on even when they weren’t around partially out of habit, but partially because I had to reluctantly admit to myself that I liked the show. I was roughly eight years old when I started watching the show and at that time, a lot of the jokes, references, and innuendos went straight over my head. Every time I watched the seven-season series through (which has been more times than I can count), I connected more dots. I truly believe growing up watching Gilmore Girls has played a role in shaping who I am today. It inspired me to have a relationship with my mom that is “best friends first, mother-daughter second” as Lorelai would say, it prepared me for potential challenges in high school and college whether it was related to friendships or academics, and so much more.
1. It’s about two women, but it’s not all about boys
If you’ve never seen the show before, first of all that makes me sad. Second, here’s the briefest overview I can give. Gilmore Girls is about a mother, Lorelai, and her daughter, Rory. Lorelai had Rory when she was sixteen years old, moved out of her wealthy parents’ home in Hartford, Connecticut at seventeen, and moved to Stars Hollow, Connecticut where she raised Rory by herself and made her way up through the ranks at the town’s local inn. The show starts off where Rory is a sophomore in high school and gets accepted into an extremely competitive private school called Chilton, and the series follows their lives from there.
Throughout the seven seasons, both Rory and Lorelai have numerous relationships with different men that range from serious relationships to casual dating. While there is almost always someone in the picture for either Lorelai or Rory at any given point, the show doesn’t focus on their relationships. It’s also clear that neither of them depends on their significant other, even when it is a serious relationship. Beyond that, both women demonstrate strong communication skills within a relationship that I think is beneficial for anyone to be exposed to at a younger age.
2. It exposes a lot of different types of relationships (romantic and otherwise) that anyone can encounter in life throughout their life (potential spoiler alert!)
As I mentioned, either Lorelai or Rory usually has a guy in the picture at any given time, and there are a handful of them that are all pretty different from each other. Rory in particular seems to encounter more stereotypical guys such as the Clinger, the Bad Boy, and Mr. Right. In my life I’ve personally associated my relationships with the Gilmore Girls guys, but I’ve also just seen it way too many times. I feel like regardless of sexual orientation and preferences, anybody could end up in relationships such as the ones in the show which are neither good nor bad, but seeing those different types of relationships before being in one personally could give a different perspective.
In addition to romantic relationships, the show also consistently follows the ups and downs of Lorelai and Rory’s friendships. And the best part is, they’re realistic so it’s even more relatable. Whether it’s Lorelai fighting with Sookie or Luke, or Rory fighting with Lane, Paris, or Lucy, they’re situations that happen to everybody. They’re typically focused on miscommunications, hurtful things that are said when someone is in a bad mood/having a bad day, or general disagreements and similar to when they run into issues in romantic relationships, their problems with friends are usually worked out in a healthy manner that anyone can learn from.
3. It portrays a positive mother-daughter relationship
Lorelai and Rory’s relationship as mother and daughter might not be everybody’s cup of tea, but it’s definitely mine. I’m not sure if it’s because we’ve watched this show together for so many years, but me and my sisters’ relationships with our mom is very similar to the main characters. We can talk about literally anything, we get emotional, we vent and rant to each other about our days or whatever is on our mind, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I can’t imagine constantly fighting with her, keeping secrets from her, barely talking to her, or having any kind of strained relationship with my mom like so many people do, and I’ll always be grateful for that. While I know we have an amazing relationship purely because she’s an amazing mom, I think watching Lorelai and Rory’s relationship opens up a new perspective on how mother-daughter relationships can be. You can be best friends first and mother-daughter second, spend more time having fun together rather than fighting, and be vulnerable with each other.
If you haven’t watched Gilmore Girls yet, please do (and let me know what you think). I’m not sure anyone will ever love it as much as I do or will have as many of their comebacks memorized, but I get so excited when people decide to start it and I can’t wait for my kids to watch it while they’re growing up.