svgurl | snowflake challenge #4

Nice ideas for them!

Thank you! It was fun to think about. :D

This is canon to me now <3

Yay! Success. :D

I love this! I'd never considered teacher!Rory, but I like the idea of her going back to Chilton. Her coming across the next generation's Paris Geller? Now that's a GG episode I would love to see. Or her running into Max again. And seeking advice from him when it comes to teaching. I'd really hoped he'd appear in AYITL and was bummed when he didn't.

Thank you! I don't think I would've considered teacher!Rory either, until the revival. She was very comfortable in the classroom and that is when it started to cross my mind.

Her coming across the next generation's Paris Geller? Now that's a GG episode I would love to see.
Same! That would be a lot of fun.

Oh yeah, true. It would've been nice to see Max again! I guess they didn't feel like they had room for him in the episode, but I would've rather Rory run into him than Paris freaking out about notCMM!Tristan.

It makes perfect sense the more I think about it. Everyone's always saying Rory loves learning or Rory loves school. Oh wow. A teacher!Rory-centric revival is all I want now. It's the perfect next step.

While I did enjoy Paris' reaction (that bathroom door kick? Krav Maga, baby!) I was not a fan of notCMM!Tristan. Would have been great if they got the real Tristan. Or Brad! Or Max! Or Madeline and Louise!

I totally agree. I think it could really work. I didn't want a follow up before since AYITL was so disappointing but I think teacher!Rory would be a big sell.

Me either. I am assuming they couldn't get CMM back (it probably wasn't worth his time) but it was just so random. I am guessing it was a side effect of her divorce but it was just so random. Brad or Madeline and Louise would've been great! Better use of screen time imo. :D

I remember being super disappointed with AYITL first came out, too. But I think it has something to do with age. Back then, seeing Rory spiral and struggle to find herself at the age she was seemed illogical to me. I kept thinking "that's not the Rory I remember."

But I'm the type who rewatches GG every six months or so, and the last time I saw it, it hit differently. Maybe because I am now closer to Rory's in-universe AYITL age? Ha! But I have definitely warmed up to it as a revival. I just wish we'd seen more of some of the other characters. Four episodes was too short!

I definitely think that's a feeling a lot of fans shared. They expected more of Rory and were let down that she was still struggling. I was closer to Rory's age (only a few years younger) but I think getting past it definitely helped me understand her, as did thoughts from people making valid points about progress not always being linear.

Nice! Sometimes things grow on you with time. Her struggling does make sense, but parts of it really felt like ASP was just using this to create her version of s7 and it doesn't really work after ten years, like Luke and Lorelai's communication issues, and that weird musical which took up time that could've been used better. I would've liked to see some other characters too! Someone said it would've been better suited as 8 eps/45 mins each rather than 4/90 which I could see but more to flesh things out would've been nice too.

Tbh, I used to skip the musical parts. It felt so out of tone for the show. I just didn't like how Stars Hollow became a caricature of itself. As kooky as the town was in the original series, it was still relatively grounded compared to AYITL.

That said, one time I had AYITL playing in the background and caught Sutton Foster's Unbreakable. I admit I was really moved by it, especially listening to it with Lorelai in mind.

Totally understandable. It was very cringey rather than 'charming' and 'quirky', which was what I think they were going for. I am with you on the town though. Many things felt like an exaggeration or a dig toward millennials, which was also a weird choice.

You made me go back to check it out and it was a great song, especially for Lorelai. Very fitting.

Oh yeah, the thirty-something gang was so cringe. I did not like that one at all.

In retrospect it could've been nice, and treated as a supportive group. Rory never really made a lot of friends on the show and she could see she's not alone in her problems, but with the way it was treated as a joke, it was a hard pass for me.

True. One thing I liked about the original run was that Rory didn’t always get everything right away. She struggled in Chilton and in Yale and even in her journalism pursuits. AYITL!Rory felt like she was expecting everything to go her way from the very start. One of my favorite parts was her telling Jess she used to be a contender. Because by then I was rooting for her instead of rolling my eyes.

Exactly, and she may have stumbled, but she always did get back on her feet. Also she was very prepared, even when it didn't work out. So that whole scene of her coming into the interview just thinking she would get the job and didn't have any plans/ideas felt OOC.

The scene with Jess was great! I wish they had let her grieve her grandpa and tied in some of how he believed in her so much to her feeling like a failure but at least she got to be in his office, which was a nice touch.

Yeah that interview scene was really hard to watch. And when it comes to OOC, I think that was part of the problem--a lot of AYITL felt OOC. Which is exactly why when Rory's in her grandparents' house and then the background music starts to play, and then she peeks into the dining room and a flashback scene starts...gosh, that moment gave me chills.

I actually liked the Jess scenes most. Jess' off-screen character and personality development made the most sense to me.

It definitely gave me second hand embarrassment. And true- a lot of it just didn't make sense for the characters. Oh yeah, that was a great scene. When it went back to what made it work, without any exaggerations, it really was good.

Oh, those were some of my favorites for sure. I'm a Jess fan to begin with, but he definitely was the one whose arc made sense and felt recognizable from where we saw him last. I absolutely love his relationship with Luke so them getting some screen time and Jess being there for him made me very happy. As much as I wished I saw him more, somehow his lack of screen time benefited him.

When it went back to what made it work, without any exaggerations, it really was good. This!

I loved the little things he got to do. When he tore that wifi router out, that was very Jess of him. And his comment about Wild, too. I like the idea that he's the one who got Rory back on some semblance of a track. It's what he does and he's great at it.

The final two episodes definitely felt more in touch with their roots than the first two.

Agreed! He was comforting and supportive but in a very "Jess" way. He won't hold anyone's hand or be sappy but he's been at the bottom and pulled himself up with some help and knows how to guide others. I too like that he was able to help Rory find herself once again. They have a deep connection and it was shown even in their few scenes together. After she believed him when barely anyone else did, it was nice that he could do the same for her. It made me happy to see that he still loves reading so much too! :D

Oh, I love how you put it. Him believing in her after she did the same for him--it all comes full circle and that makes my heart go squee. I like the idea of how he isn't one of those constants in her life, but he'll appear almost exactly when she needs him most. As charming as Logan could sometimes be, there was always this disconnect between them once they got past the Yale of it all. The show wasn't the only thing that needed to get back to its roots. Rory did too.

Oh, thank you! I know it's hardly a unique thought, and has been out there since the whole 'you dropped of Yale' scene back in s6, but it is one of the things I love about their relationship. I love the point you made about how he may not be a constant but is there when she needs him. I was disappointed when she said they haven't spoken in 4 years but that really puts a nice spin on it.

True, even when they gave Logan a more "mature" arc, it felt there was a disconnect there and their AYITL relationship just felt like Rory was panicking about her life and regressing, regardless of what genuine feelings she had for Logan. ASP was pretty obvious with the Logan = Christopher parallels so I feel like s7 would've been more like AYITL had they still been on board.

Rory definitely needs to go back to her roots! I don't think she needs to stay there (Stars Hollow), because whatever the show likes to try to sell, she isn't Lorelai and doesn't have to be, but rediscovering herself is definitely important.

Believe me, I am still not over the way his voice almost cracks when he tells her "this isn't you" in S06. With Logan, it was easy to like the idea of him, a rich guy with an adventurous streak who pretty much yanks Rory out of her shell. But the parallel of Rory/Logan=Lorelai/Christopher felt weaker to me because, unlike Lorelai/Christopher, they always felt like they were walking on eggshells around each other instead of actually being comfortable.

It is SO good. The reveal of his book is still one of my overall favorite scenes. How he tells her he couldn't do it without her? I melt every time. I agree on Logan - they had chemistry and I liked them, especially in comparison to the whole Dean fiasco, but they always seemed to be fighting the storm and as you said, outside of a little bit, were walking on eggshells and misunderstanding one another. The Logan/Christopher parallels were more 'they were are both irresponsible rich kids with complicated parental relationships and not all that dependable at the end of the day'. But the relationships definitely weren't exactly the same, mostly because Rory isn't Lorelai.

Oh, yeah I really loved that moment for Jess. As much as I hated how he was the shortest of Rory's relationships, I like how every time he came back, there was growth to his character.

Also, yeah, Dean was a complete fiasco. I cringe a lot watching the scenes where he comes back into Rory's life.

That was one of my pet peeves with their relationship. There was so much build up and then we only saw some of their worst moments and most of the good stuff in the relationship happened off screen. I agree about Jess's growth. Even though a lot of it did happen while he was away, I like that we got glimpses into his potential even in s4, with his already showing appreciation toward Luke and reading the self help book, etc, even if how he dealt with Rory wasn't the smartest.

Same! I absolutely hated every second. So awkward.

I know what you mean. I was so bummed that we only got one season of official Jess/Rory. Barely a season. The only consolation is it was a packed one. That Thanksgiving episode alone is one of my favorite ones. That, and when he yahoo-ed the distance from Stars Hollow to Yale!

They didn't even get peace, with Dean hanging around and being weird. But they definitely had a lot of cute moments and Jess yahoo'ing the distance was one of the best. It's a shame we never got to see them go to prom together but I'm guessing Milo's contract situation played a part in how quickly they had to make the relationship spiral.

That's true. The one good thing they did though was stretch the getting together part of their relationship. I think they had the longest build up and that's what made me really invested in them compared to Rory/Dean or Rory/Logan. I especially like the episode where Rory tutors Jess. Their conversations both in the diner and in the car, and then, later, when Luke walks up to Jess and he's smoking by the lake. That was good relationship development for them, too.

Exactly, they really built up a connection and friendship between them, which was fun. Oh, I love the tutoring episode and the ice cream! Even MV said that it was his favorite R/J moment - "in cooonnness". The car accident was such a damper but also the angst! An it led to the episode where Rory visits Jess in NY, which was good. :D

For sure, Luke and Jess's relationship was great to watch. I like that Rory and Luke also had the shared moment in the diner over Jess too.

I'll admit, the angst of their relationship was part of the appeal for me. With Dean, everything was picture perfect fairytale in the beginning, horrible horrible in the end. With Logan, it felt like playing house—not exactly real. But with Jess, there was this sense that they were made of each other and good for each other, but everything else was working against them, complicating things, including themselves. And that is just *chef's kiss* for me when it comes to pairings.

That's so true and I like how they didn't try to pretend that they were perfect. With Dean, it felt like everyone was trying to convince us that he was the best most perfect boyfriend and I could see differently. On the other side, he characters were openly against Jess and you could see that he was a good guy underneath it all. But you're right about everything being against them, which does make it interesting. I do think ASP wasn't very good at writing established relationships for long periods of time, adding to their troubles.

Yeah, ASP never let her characters' relationships stay happy too long. I do admire how fast she can change things. Like with Dean and Rory. I don't remember him being the kind of person who yells in his girlfriend's face. And as much as the fact that they have nothing in common is true, it's not like it was ever put under the spotlight. And then boom! He's yelling at Rory, and questions like "What do you and Dean even talk about?" come up, and I end up going, Oh yeah, girl, he's not the guy for you.

Exactly, and some of it just seems so forced, like with Luke freaking out and dumping Lorelai or after their promises of honesty, deciding to hide a kid from her. With Dean, they did escalate his character but he did have a temper in s1 itself and the way he freaked out about her not saying "I love you back" really put me off of him then itself. In terms of them not having anything in common, it was highlighted in the forms of him being bored at the bookstore (but to his credit, willing to wait), not always understanding her determination to be all about Harvard, and the whole Donna Reed stuff showed they wanted different things. It was fine for a high school relationship though. But what you mentioned really does emphasize how wrong they were. I wish Rory didn't end up taking up all the blame and the show/Lorelai & Rory/etc put a halo on Dean even in AYITL.

Oh yeah, now that you mention it, his freak out over Rory not saying I love you was a big tell. They were fine for a high school relationship. But yeah, I didn't like how we had to go back to Dean after Jess. That felt a bit unnecessary. You're right about the whole halo thing. Even in AYITL.

As for Luke and Lorelai, the whole hiding April thing was such a dumb storyline. Like I get it, but also...sigh. I much preferred when Lorelai did know, and then the birthday party happened, and then Anna got mad. That was some good tension there. More tension than the whole hiding it thing had.

Yeah, there's one thing about being an emotional teenager and it understandable he is hurt, but he was just also such a jerk. Like this girl literally ran away after he kissed her for the first time and he was mocking her lists and her relationship with her mom? What a mess. It is interesting that the show had him behave in ways that other pivotal characters didn't see. Lorelai didn't see all the yelling, Rory didn't about Dean threatening Jess, etc. I wonder how Lorelai would've felt had she known he went to Luke and and was all "oh those GG girls won't be satisfied with guys like us" (which btw made no sense). Somehow he got a good ending though that made the most sense for his character.

It was! It also was wildly OOC for Luke and made him bad. Maybe a Luke pre-Lorelai relationship but not when they're together and engaged. I prefer that too rather than whatever we got. :\

It is interesting that the show had him behave in ways that other pivotal characters didn't see.

I love that you mention this. I swear, 95% of all the Gilmore Girl problems we see can be traced back to miscommunication and things like this. One particular example I noticed after a re-watch is how Lorelai hides that she was drinking with Christopher after Chris' dad died. Because, facts straight, it's not that bad a thing. But the only reason she hides it is because of Rory, and Rory is only acting on it because of her own experience with her dad, because she demanded he stay away from Luke and Lorelai thinking he would mess things up. It's so ironic how Rory's the one who ends up messing things up. It's so frustrating, but that's how most of the drama on the show was.

I think the OOCness is why a lot of the audience didn't like April. They blamed a new character for what was just actually an old character acting out of character. I appreciate the April we see in AYITL more. I liked her panicking and the nose ring and all of that. Weird though how formal in a way her relationship with Lorelai was up until that point. Because based on the birthday party in the original series, you would've thought they'd at least gotten a little closer.

Plus, I'm still shaking my fist at the fact that we didn't get a Luke and April and Jess scene. Or Doula! I'd hoped that we would have met an older Doula in AYITL.

Oh yeah, I definitely agree. Both Rory and Lorelai's attempts to avoid conflict seem to result in hiding things, and even though they tried to make Rory the more mature one in the early seasons, her age did come through. Christopher left them both with issues. I also think that Lorelai up and leaving Max the way she did also played a part too, because she had gotten attached to him and he was out. She was too afraid to lose Luke, which was why she was lowkey against them dating in the first place. I think you see a lot of that type of drama in tv shows, but especially the teen/CW/WB type.

Exactly. They threw her under the bus for 'coming in between Luke and Lorelai', when Luke's actions did that for him. Lorelai didn't have any issues with April; she had issues with how Luke handled it all. I'm with you that it was nice to see April grown up and having her own problems. I think the relationships were really handled like it was the s7 ASP got to write. I know Lorelai and Jess were nice to each other in the final scene but it made no sense how Lorelai was still hating on him before that.

True! I would've loved to see Jess with either of them.

Christopher left them both with issues.

Honestly, I'd never considered this before you mentioned it. I think, maybe, because Christopher was barely around, almost an afterthought. But yeah, this really makes sense! Like, they never seem to know what to do when a guy "stays" because Christopher never stayed. A level of self-sabotage just kicks in right around that time. And they both always have this longing for "the one that got away," to the point that they delude themselves into thinking certain guys—cough, Dean, cough—are this guy, when really they should be saying good riddance instead.

I've seen people talk about it before and it makes a lot of sense. When he's not there, he doesn't get mentioned by name a lot either, so it is easy to forget, but as you said, it does play out in the way they interact with the men in their lives and I feel like they go about it in different ways. People try to compare both Jess and and Logan to Christopher, depending on what side you're on, but I agree with the take that Rory's relationship to Logan can be much like Lorelai's relationship to Christopher while her relationship to Jess was more like her own with her dad, in the sense that he kept coming in and out of her life. I think that's why she wanted to stay with Dean, because Rory longs for stability and he was the one to provide her that, even if he wasn't the one she really wanted or fit with.

Rory's relationship to Logan can be much like Lorelai's relationship to Christopher while her relationship to Jess was more like her own with her dad, in the sense that he kept coming in and out of her life.

That Jess part right there just blew my mind. Oh my goodness, I feel like I'm suddenly looking at GG with brand new prescription lenses. And you're right, it totally explains the Dean thing, too!

I'm going to go sit in a corner and stare at the wall now haha.

I'm going to say she and Jess find their way back to each other.
This is how AYITL ended, though????

I like the idea of Rory as a teacher since she's such a nerd and loves learning. (I kind of agree with season 3!Jess in that she doesn't seem to have the temperament for journalism.)

Oh totally the way it ended lol

I think the Revival unintentionally did a good job of showing it as a possibility. I do believe she could be a journalist, but not quite the one she hoped to be to Jess (going into war zones, etc). He was right there but then again, set/budget didn't really show what it could've in that area.

I love these ideas for them! You should have written these for the "A Year in the Life" show and it would have made it so much better! :D

Thank you! That's very nice of you to say. There was definitely potential for the show to be a lot better than it was! Maybe I'll write a fic one day to get it out lol :D

I like these! Especially the last one.

Thank you! I couldn't resist having my shippy heart sneak one in there. :D

snowflake challenge #4

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