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

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2. Lorelai’s Memory of Richard

A major theme of both the revival and the original series of Gilmore Girls is Lorelai’s relationship with her parents. Things were always a little easier when Richard was around. He always played the mediator, but now that he is gone Lorelai is left to deal with her mother alone. It leads to a lot of tension and anger as both Lorelai and Emily process their grief in different ways. In typical fashion, Lorelai tells an inappropriate story about her father at the funeral because she can’t think of anything else to say. And as a response Emily lashes out and makes Lorelai question her relationship with Luke.

No matter how many times Emily and Lorelai manage to hurt each other, they always find a way to come back together. While on her Wild (the book) adventure, Lorelai calls her mother and tells her a story about the time she got her heart broken and her father came to her rescue. It is a touching moment. Both actresses deliver incredible performances from Lauren Graham’s teary delivery to Kelly Bishop’s facial expressions at hearing the story for the first time.

These are women who really do care about each other, but who also have been deeply hurt by past events. Their fighting is realistic and their relationship may never be perfect. What is important is that they keep trying to build bridges and extend olive branches like this one.