Gilmore Girls is one of my favorite shows of all time. I loved the original series so much. Lorelai, Sookie, Emily, Richard, Luke, Babette, Miss Patty- all such classic characters. I was so excited when this miniseries was announced. Unfortunately, it couldn't quite live up to my expectations.
Notice how when I listed my favorite Gilmore Girls characters, I left out Rory? Yeah, that's because I hate her. Like, absolutely despite her. I'm talking about the Rory from post-Chilton years. College and post-College Rory was so terrible. And guess what? That's 75% of 'A Year in the Life'. Whiny, selfish Rory being a terrible human being. She's just so horrible. Why she was featured so prominently in this miniseries I'll never know. But there was one Rory that I ALWAYS loved. That was the Rory that bonded with her family. When we got those touching moments, though few and far between, it was magic.
As you likely know, Edward Herrmann died a few years ago. And I still get teary eyed to think about it, because he was so great. Richard Gilmore was who kept Emily sane. That was glaringly obvious in this revival, because Emily lost her f***ing mind. But Kelly Bishop really sold it. She was great. She deserves an Emmy.
And lets talk about those final 4 words. Ugh. Why is she pregnant with Logan's kid? Despite the fact that Rory annoys me, Logan has no redeeming qualities. It upsets me that she's going to be attached to that loser for so long.
The Sookie cameo (that's ALL it was) was disappointing. It was so short, and though great, it was too hyped up. I'm so disappointed that Melissa couldn't appear in more episodes/more of the episode. And the story for why Sookie wasn't there was weak. Really weak.
My biggest problems with this revival are the lack of an actual Luke-Lorelai wedding, that Life and Death Brigade segment, Emily moving from her home (which actual mad me sad more than it made me angry), Michel leaving the Dragonfly, Logan, and Rory continuing to act like a child, despite being 30something.
Of course, this wasn't all bad. It was actually kinda fun at times. The fact that Luke and Lorelai actually got married was a nice, if predictable, ending. The scene at the empty (😢) Gilmore Mansion which showed Richard and the family happy was so nice. And it made me cry. Overall, it was just nice to see Stars Hollow again.
While the miniseries had its solid moments, it couldn't recreate the magic of the original series.This did nothing to redeem the bad final seasons of Gilmore Girls. And, without Richard and Sookie and the Gilmore Mansion, I don't want more Gilmore Girls. I hate to say that, I really do. Because I wanted to love this. You could tell that it was made with love. Amy Sherman-Palladino tried her hardest. But this did not work without Richard Gilmore, the glue of Gilmore Girls. Honestly, only diehard Gilmore Girls fans should bother watching.
Grade: B-
Score: 7.5/10 (8.5/7/7/8)
MVP: Kelly Bishop, for saving this from being a total disaster
