Another Mother's Day weekend is set to unfold and while I happily applaud this moment of time dedicated to celebrating all of the maternal figures in our lives,some of the folks out there buying those last minute gifts and making those long distance calls are dreading the fights and guilt trips that usually crop up from the high expectations that this holiday makes upon everyone.
Truth be told,family relationships are not always harmonious which is a good thing. Being in sync on every subject for every occasion is a bit much,not to mention creepy and possibly leading to behavior strange enough to qualify for an A&E reality series.
A good pop culture example of this is the backbone of the former hit show and female friendly favorite,Gilmore Girls. While Lorelai and Rory had one of the most simpatico mother-daughter connections in TV history,those two had their share of spats,fights and major league misunderstandings that balanced out their sweetly savvy BFF bond.
For the offbeat amusement factor,let's take a look at a handful of the battles between the Misses Gilmore and other mom related mishaps that have kept things interesting over those seven seasons:
SHE MEANT WELL: A few of the fights between Rory and Lorelai have sprung up from one or the other trying to help fix a situation or kickstart a new and much needed one. While in Season One Rory was dismayed to find out that Lorelai had invited Dean over for their weekly Movie Night,that spontaneous action did make her romance with Dean get off to a good beginning. Her initial response was completely understandable but not worthy of comparing Lorelai to her mother,the queen of social manipulation:
PASSIVE AGGRESSIVE,MUCH?: Sometimes Emily's influence as a subtle hint dropper did affect Lorelai's behavior as another Season One disagreement came about due to jealousy of Rory's growing relationship with her grandparents that was ten times more affectionate than Lorelai ever had with them. With Rory's refusal of joining her mom into an excuse to ditch the dreaded Friday Night dinner,Lorelai resorted to irrational logic and sniping over a sweater to make her displeasure known:
Lorelai's relationship with her mother Emily is pretty much the polar opposite of the one she has with Rory. The reason for that was best summed up in a third season episode where Emily tried to build an emotional bridge between them on a spa weekend together and Lorelai had to be honest and tell her,"Rory and I are best friends first and mother and daughter second. You and I are mother and daughter always."
That's not to say that Lorelai and Emily never see eye to eye or look out for each other when need be. During a particularly stressful visit from her mother-in-law Trix,Emily got some advice from Lorelai on how to cope with Gram's constant put downs and controlling behavior,which she used in an inspired manner that earned a quiet bit of praise from her daughter:
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: Emily's full-on ire can be hard to handle in person,as Luke discovered when confronted by her at his diner in season four. Not being a big fan of high tech gadgets,Luke became a quick convert to speed dial in order to be rescued from the wrath of Emily. The only one capable of dealing with that level of self-entitled force was ,of course,Lorelai who had to lay the hammer down,perhaps a tad stronger than she meant to:
In talking about moms on Gilmore Girls,it would be almost a sin to leave out the most formidable of them all,Mrs. Kim. The constantly controlling antics that drove her beloved yet fearful only child Lane to lead a couple of secret lives were motivated by love and concern,unmindful at times of the damage being done to their emotional relationship.
Over time,Mrs. Kim did soften her hold on Lane's activities but not without putting up a good fight first. When Lane desperately wanted her rock band boyfriend Dave to take her to the prom,Dave was the one who made the impassioned plea for them and even went so far as to read the entire Bible in one night to win her mother's approval. Granted,this is more of a negation than an argument but since it was a battle for Lane's happiness,I think it should count:
In the end,all disputes between characters in Gilmore Girls got settled and most fences wound up being mended. Even Lorelai and her mom shared a few fun moments together,altho not without a sly dig from at least one of them when the moment presented itself. It wouldn't have been Gilmore Girls without someone getting the last word in,after all. Hopefully,your Mother's Day will be just as lively and less contentious than the usual Lorelai and Emily run-in:
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