15 Times Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life Gave Us All the Feels

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Promotional Image via Netflix/EW

6. Emily On Her Own

Richard’s death has changed Emily. As a woman whose identity was tied to her husband for 50 years, Emily is discovering who she really is for the first time. She has never made any purchases or big decisions for herself because she has always had someone there to do it for her. Besides the time she and Richard separated, Emily has really never been on her own.

Instead of viewing this change as an obstacle, Emily jumps right in, full of excitement and joy at the idea of tackling her new life. The scene where she tells Lorelai she bought a house in Nantucket is heart warming and a little sad; Emily is finally moving on from her life with Richard. She no longer seems crushed by her grief.

For the first time Emily and Lorelai are switching places. Emily is now the independent one taking charge of her own life while Lorelai is entering marriage and a traditional partnership. We see the scenes of Lorelai’s wedding interspersed with images of Emily alone at the Sand Castle looking content. The ending of Emily alone on the beach with her glass of wine looking happy for the first time perhaps all season is enough to make anyone cry. It’s so different from the image of Emily during her separation from Richard in season 5 of Gilmore Girls where she returns to their empty mansion and breaks down in tears. That was their home, this one belongs only to her.