By Sophia Madeb, Arts and Culture Editor
I remember watching Gilmore Girls for the first time. Appropriately, it was in September, right at the start of my freshman year of high school. During the time allotted for prayers, my friends and I would sit in the back with our coffees and discuss just about anything other than prayers. On this particular morning, I told my friends that I had started watching the show. One of them looked me straight in the eye and asked, in an oddly serious tone, how far I had gotten. I jokingly told her that I had only watched the first three episodes the night before this interrogation. She offhandedly responded, “Oh, just wait, because you are about to get hooked.” That is exactly what happened. Even now as a sophomore in college, every fall I get the same feeling as I press play to rewatch.
Gilmore Girls, for me and so many others, is more than just a show. It has become a symbol for the fall season.
If you have lived under a rock since the early 2000s, and have never watched Gilmore Girls, the show centers around a very young, witty mother named Lorelai Gilmore, played by the talented Lauren Graham, and her bookworm daughter Rory, played by the incredible Alexis Bledel. The eccentric Lorelai had Rory at only 16 years old, and together they navigate life, love and family in their charming Connecticut town of Stars Hollow. As the town itself adds a comforting backdrop of the changing seasons from warm, colorful autumns, fading into icy, snowy winters.
The setting itself is significant, in both the aspects of place and time. Stars Hollow is the fictional town every viewer wants to live in, with its own iconic landmarks like Luke’s Diner, Doose’s Market and the Independence Inn. The town is small, the kind where everyone knows each other, and where neighbors are always extending a helping hand, especially to the Gilmore girls. Viewers fall in love with the characters, but they become obsessed with the town, longing to sit in on one of those quirky, entertaining town meetings, or sip coffee at Luke’s counter.
The time of year, the autumn and winter seasons, also catches the audience’s eye. As the town itself adds a comforting backdrop of the changing seasons from warm, colorful autumns, fading into icy, snowy winters. One cannot mistake the opening credit with the stunning golden tree, bursting with autumn leaves, as the words Gilmore Girls are displayed in white letters. The show is filled with cozy clips of Stars Hollow’s streets covered in rustic leaves, with pumpkins decorating the storefronts, and later, as the year progresses, white snow beautifully blanketing the town.
Not only does the setting leave an impression on viewers, but the fashion further complements and emphasizes this seasonal mood. Gilmore Girls has permanently left its mark on Y2K fashion. Rory’s fall wardrobe includes chunky sweaters, low-rise corduroy pants and, of course, her iconic Chilton prep school uniform. Meanwhile, Lorelai inspired viewers with her work outfits, with matching blazers and pencil skirts, as well as fun graphic tees paired with low-rise denim jeans. The fashion truly reaches its peak at their Friday night dinners with Lorelai’s parents. Rory and Lorelai wear chic dresses, trendy knee-length skirts with conservative matching tops and playful hairstyles like Rory’s half-up looks.
Friday night dinner is not the only setting that is tied to food. Luke’s Diner is a place people would kill to just to eat at the restaurant, or at least try a cup of their popular coffee. The diner is run by the grumpy yet beloved Luke Danes, who is a father figure to Rory and a possible love interest to Lorelai. Most importantly, his role is reluctantly serving the girls copious amounts of coffee, which in turn becomes a staple in the Gilmore girls diet. The two enjoy a big mug of hot coffee in the morning before heading their separate ways, behind a stunning backdrop of leaves falling beyond the glass window.
Their love for drinking an almost unhealthy amount of coffee has spilled into the audience’s lives. Many fans credit the show for influencing their own habits, especially in selecting seasonal drinks like pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin cream cold brews or simple coffees to-go like Lorelai Gilmore.
As they leave the diner, Lorelai goes to work, while Rory goes to school, where she mostly keeps her head stuck in a book. Navigating academic challenges, Rory works hard in order to succeed during her years in high school, and later goes off to a certain prestigious college. This resonates with many viewers who are starting school as well, whether it be high school, following the steps of young Rory, or college, like Rory attends in the later seasons. It’s the kind of routine that feels especially familiar in the fall, as the air begins to cool, classes start and life settles back into a steady routine.
The show also resonates with older audiences, as Lorelai, who manages the Independence Inn with her clumsy yet lovable chef Sookie St. James, faces the challenges of the workforce before the two eventually start and run their own business. Similar to Rory, who devotes herself to her studies, Lorelai and Sookie show the same determination in their careers, working tirelessly to turn their ambitions into reality. Their dedication mirrors the energy of the fall season, a time marked new beginnings to succeed. Any girl, young adult or woman can relate to these characters as they navigate the beginning days of high school, college or the workplace.
Gilmore Girls has remained celebrated since its original popularity in the early 2000s. It has become a fall tradition for many to rewatch the series in order to recapture a time that feels simpler, reverting to nostalgia that is warm, cozy and comforting. Viewers long to be a part of a world that feels less disconnected, where the characters feel like family and Stars Hollow feels like a home away from home. More than 20 years after it first premiered, the show even made a cameo at the Emmys this year, being referred to as the show that took the season of fall hostage.”
Gilmore Girls is the ultimate comfort show for the season, so grab your favorite seasonal coffee, put on your best Y2K outfit and fall back into the early 2000s. If it’s your first time watching the show, get ready to be hooked. You are in for a wild ride, and in a lucky place, because Gilmore Girls is one of those rare shows that audiences would kill to experience for the very first time again.
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