Rory's Boyfriends

I started watching Gilmore Girls when it first started airing. I loved the witty banter and the speed at which everyone talked and of course I loved the relationship between Lorilei and Rory. Being that I was in school for more of the seasons, I never saw all the episodes so when I found out my sister in law was a fan and owned all the seasons I borrowed them from her so I could see the whole story line. I have continued to watch the reruns because, lets face it, there is no show on TV right now that comes close to matching the magic that was Stars Hollow.

As I watched the entire series, I was struck by some thoughts on Rory's dating life. I know she was raised without a Dad in the picture and that her Mom wasn't exactly the greatest role model when it came to choosing men, but hearing some of my friends talk about their favourites among Rory's boyfriends made me cringe. So I'm finally putting pen to paper (pixel to screen?) and airing my thoughts on all things Rory's boyfriends. Hopefully my daughter will make much better choices when it comes to the men she dates.

Dean – The first time
At first he seems really nice. Unfortunately all he really has going for him is that he's tall and can change the water bottle for Lorilei. Sure he puts up with their crazy bits and their movie nights, but if you look at the character of who he is, it should make any girl run in the other direction.

He's clingy. Other than having a job at Doosey's he really doesn't do much. Or so it seems when he whines to Rory every time that she is busy and can't hang out with him. He has no other friends. That's weird to me.

He has no ambition. No plan for life. Rory is always telling him he can do better and he doesn't believe in himself. I understand he's a high school student so maybe he doesn't have his whole life figured out, but I hate the way he talks down about himself and has major self-esteem problems. Always needing reassurance for everything. It's that clingy nature again.

But even if you overlook that, there are still some major flaws. The biggest one for me is his jealousy. It's like he owns Rory. He can't handle her being near any other guy, even if its for a class project where she had no say in the matter. Worse he blames Rory for these encounters and clearly doesn't trust her. She spends so much time trying to reassure him. It's just tiring to watch. I find Dean to be manipulative. It drives me crazy. The biggest kicker though? When he told her he loved her and then got mad when she didn't say it back! Oh I was livid! Obviously he has no clue what love is and if he expects her to reciprocate because HE was ready to say it, then he obviously has no care for her heart. I was happy when they broke up over it.


Dean – The second time
I was so sad when they got back together. But then I thought maybe, just maybe, Dean would have seen the error of his ways and been a little bit more thoughtful when it came to Rory's feelings. Nope. We have the same Dean. But now he's jealous of Jess and paranoid about everything. I think it was because of this paranoia and need to be reassured all the time that drove Rory right into Jess's arms. I don't blame her one bit. I couldn't stand to date such a flimsy man. I got so frustrated every time he was on screen because they didn't have conversations, they just had fights. Ugg!

Jess
I both loved and hated Jess. I loved that they actually had things in common. I loved that he was smart and funny. That they would talk about some deeper things. However, he was also a jerk who took her for granted, was rude to everyone around him (Warning! Warning!) and was a little too “bad boy” for perfect little Rory. Again, he was super smart, but had no ambition. For being a girl who gets straight A's I don't know how she couldn't handle being with someone who obviously had brains but couldn't apply himself. And of course, because he was a coward, he left without saying goodbye.

No boyfriend phase
This brings me to my favourite part of the series. When Rory doesn't have a boyfriend. She's at Yale and all awkward around boys and it made her a bit more real to me. She makes friends with Marty. I really liked him. They got along, had fun and at this point he wasn't a jerk. She should have gone for him.

Dean – The third time
Ah but alas, she can't get over Dean. Even though he's married. Which, again speaks of his character. He's barely broken up with Rory and he's dating Lindsey, then after barely dating they get married. I think this guy is needy and can't handle not having a woman to take care of him. But really he only wants Rory, cheats on his wife with her. There's a gem of a man... So the third time, they again spend all their time trying to make it work, but all they do is fight. They basically blame each other for their miserableness, which is kind of true.

Logan
Marty admits he likes her. Sad day because she likes Logan, who is a jerk. He treats people like crap but is such a smooth talker, (almost) everyone likes him. What?! I guess he's fun to be around, but he's so full of lines I can't handle when he opens his mouth. He's an entitled little brat that just lives off his parents, and is all upset that his dad wants him to take over the company. Okay, I can understand not wanting to be forced into a career, but then don't take the freebies! For not wanting the career being forced on him, he sure has no ambition to do anything else. Okay, let's just take note of this pattern in Rory's boyfriends! Good grief!
Somewhere in here Jess comes back. This is when I liked him best. He was writing, printing, had a purpose and seemed to have grown up quite a bit. Sadly, she keeps Logan.
Marty – dates one of her friends, and sadly, acts like a jerk. I like to think this was written in so that the fans would get over wanting them together. Or maybe just me.
Finally at the end of the series Logan proposes to Rory. She's not ready (because she has things she still wants to do with her life), but Logan doesn't understand this. He gives her an all or nothing ultimatum. Again, really gotta wonder what these people call love. She chooses nothing. I'm a little shocked, only because by this point I've decided she has no backbone when it comes to men. I think this is the best choice she has ever made!