Fans were stunned to find Rory
Gilmore with a floundering career in journalism during Gilmore Girls: A
Year in the Life. When fans last left her at the end of 2007, she was
poised to take on the world, or, at the very least, the campaign trail. What happened between 2007 and 2016, when the
revival was released on Netflix, wasn’t explained in great detail, but it was
clear that Rory’s career hadn’t exactly panned out. Was it really all that shocking,
though? Amy Sherman-Palladino may have hinted at Rory’s future failure several
times during the show’s
seven seasons.
Rory Gilmore was indecisive
Journalists who focus on hard-hitting topics have to be
decisive. They have an instinct, and they are comfortable following that instinct.
That was not a personality trait that Rory possessed. Sherman-Palladino proved
that fact time and time again.
RELATED: ‘Gilmore
Girls’: Would Rory Have Really Gotten Into Three Ivy League Schools?
Rory couldn’t choose between Dean and Jess during her high
school career, and she had a
difficult time picking a college. Later on, Rory panicked about deciding
what job she should take. She was not someone who could make an instant
decision. Rory needed a ton of time to think through every option that was
presented to her.
Rory folded under pressure
Rory was not great under pressure. While her mother, Lorelai
Gilmore, insisted she was wonderful and brilliant, Rory was prone to meltdowns
when things didn’t go here way. In season 1 of the series, she freaked out when
she arrived late for a test and wasn’t permitted to take it. In Season 5, she
lost it entirely when Mitchum Huntzberger told her she didn’t have what it took
to be a journalist, and in season 7, she unraveled when her time as the editor
of the Yale Daily News was up.
While those instances don’t necessarily make Rory a bad
person, it’s clear that Sherman-Palladino was trying to paint Rory as someone
who didn’t thrive in a fast-paced, decision-driven environment. That is precisely
the type of person who probably isn’t cut out for a career in hard-hitting journalism.
Rory, herself, worried if she had peaked in high school
When Rory joined the
Yale Daily News she appeared to be on the right path, but her time at the
paper started a little bumpy. When she was simply trying out for a spot on the
team, Rory had a piece that didn’t make it into the paper. Doyle, Rory’s editor
at the time, told her that the article was a “yawn,” to which she replied that
she spent a ton of time researching the piece. She eventually rebounded and
earned a spot on the team, but her first idea pitch was also a failure.
RELATED: ‘Gilmore
Girls’: 3 Careers Rory Gilmore Could Have Excelled At
Rory was still young when she joined the paper, but it can be
argued that Sherman-Palladino was subtly showing fans that Rory maybe wasn’t
cut out for the field that she dreamed of working in since childhood. Rory may
have had a knack for well-researched content, but her instincts regarding what
would interest the reader appeared to be a bit off.
Multiple people suggested she wasn’t cut out for journalism
Longtime fans of the series have pointed out that Rory
was very rarely reprimanded by her mother. Her grandparents similarly indulged
her. For several seasons, Rory was presented as a person who never did anything
wrong, and never failed at anything. That’s why it was rather startling when
someone pointed out that maybe Rory wasn’t cut out for something she wanted.
Throughout the series, three different people expressed surprise
and concern about Rory’s career plans. First, Headmaster Charleston appeared
confused by the disconnect between Rory’s personality and her career aspirations.
A couple of seasons later, Jess Mariano suggested that journalism seemed too “rough”
for Rory. Finally, Mitchum
Huntzberger told Rory that she was excellent at anticipating people’s
needs, but didn’t have the spark he looked for in future journalists.
–
