“Life’s short, talk fast,” was the tagline of Amy Sherman-Palladino’s beloved comedic drama Gilmore Girls, but the girls - specifically, Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her daughter Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel) - have been silent for almost a decade now, since Gilmore Girls wrapped up its seventh season. A lot has happened in that time, including the sad passing of series mainstay Edward Herrmann, who played Lorelai’s father, Richard. Now, however, Netflix is bringing back the Gilmore family (and friends) for a revival season - titled Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life - with almost all of the original cast members.
With the return of Gilmore Girls now less than a week away, a new trailer has arrived promising more of what fans loved about the series: likable characters, quick wit, heartfelt drama. The trailer also demonstrates that Gilmore Girls remains unabashed about appealing to a female audience, with an emphasis on the mother-daughter relationship at the heart of the show, and the return of all three core love interests for Rory.
It looks like the new season won’t just be a rehash of the old, however. Rory’s storyline will also tackle the modern millennial crisis of twenty-somethings finding themselves living back home again and struggling to find direction (or underwear). While this may be disappointing for those who imagined Rory might be on top of the world by this point, it’s in keeping with her character arc so far, which has repeatedly seen Rory make carefully laid plans for the rest of her life, only to end up on a completely different path. If the youngest Gilmore overcame the rocky road of her college dropout phase, she should have what it takes to get past the next hurdle.
Sherman-Palladino’s show has always been about three generations of its eponymous Gilmore Girls, and Emily Gilmore (Kelly Bishop) won’t be left behind either. Herrmann’s passing has been worked into A Year in the Life, with Emily trying to find a way to move on after losing her husband. Meanwhile, Lorelai and Luke (Scott Patterson) are still going strong after all these years - which is a relief, considering just how much drama it took before they finally got together.
It’s a testament to the cast members’ love of the show that so many familiar faces assembled for this revival - even Melissa McCarthy, who has been steadily leading comedy feature films for several years, and Supernatural star Jared Padalecki. Hopefully with so much talent back on board, this will be a worthwhile return to Stars Hollow.
Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life arrives on Netflix on November 25, 2016.
