Gilmore Girls

 Review

Common Sense Media says

A coming-of-age drama that's great for teen girls.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

Find out more

Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

Find out more

Parents say

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that, thanks to its potential to stimulate relevant conversation, they would benefit from watching this show with their teens. One of the two central characters is a single mother raising the daughter she had as a teenager. Themes of class, tenacity, and family dynamics are common threads. The program delivers positive messages about diversity and learning. Characters of all races, shapes, and sizes are positively represented. All of these positives outweigh any iffy episode-to-episode content, which is why we rate this show "on."

  • The show embraces diversity, learning, and acceptance and stresses the importance of family relationships.
  • Rory is a responsible teen-turned-young woman, and she and her mother have a relatably loving-but-complex relationship.
  • Not applicable.
  • Some kissing and suggestive language, sex is implied off-screen, couples shown in bed together.
  • Words like "ass," "bastard," "hell," "bitch," "damn," and the like are used fairly frequently.
  • Lots of pop culture references.
  • Adults occasionally drink cocktails; excessive behavior is met with negative consequences. Some episodes address underage drinking.

What's the story?

GILMORE GIRLS follows the relationship between single mom Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and her daughter Rory (Alexis Bledel), who act more like best friends than mother and daughter. They live in the fictional town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, where Lorelai runs an inn. Lorelai's parents, Emily and Richard Gilmore (Kelly Bishop and Edward Herrmann), have a central role in their granddaughter Rory's life -- often to Lorelai's annoyance.


Is it any good?

 

Gilmore Girls has made significant strides as an intelligent, well-written program featuring strong female leads and a diverse cast. The show has won considerable praise from critics and male and female viewers of all ages. Chock full of pop culture and literary references, the material is exceptionally clever.

Tweens and teens alike will gain great insight from the lead characters. Rory loves and respects her family, reads for fun, and has the body of a normal teen. She makes mistakes and learns from them and is the kind of girl parents have been clamoring for on television for years. But everything isn't always so starry in Stars Hollow. The series touches on a number of mature and real-life circumstances, including underage drinking, the celebration of waywardness, divorce, first loves, first times, single-parenting, and friendship.


Explore, discuss, enjoy

  • Families can talk about Rory's decisions. Is she self-aware, or does she make choices based on the influence of others?

  • How does Lorelai's relationship with her own parents impact Rory's relationship with her grandparents?

  • What positive aspects are there to the show's central mother-daughter relationship? Are there any negative aspects?


This review of Gilmore Girls was written by
Teen, 16 years old
March 15, 2011
 
A classic tv show for the ages
One of the best tv shows ever, very very smart, funny, and often very moving. Brilliant writing, acting. Original characters.
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 15 years old
January 21, 2010
 
Starts out perfect for tweens, and then grows up with your teen
I started watching this show after school while doing my homework when I was around 12. This show had a huge effect on me. Whenever I felt like there was no way I could get along with the adults in my life, this show was always there to guide me back to believing that our lives were not that different after all. This was one show that I could sit around with my parents and watch, without them complaining about, poor acting, dialog, or just sheer stupidity. The two main characters were actually very big role models for myself, and guided me to try my best in school (such as Rori) but also try to have a good attitude towards life itself. The first seasons I think are great for younger girls. Some of the later ones are a bit more adult, but I grew up while watching this show, so it adjusted with my maturity.
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 13 years old
November 17, 2010
 
best. Show. Ever, after heroes and star trek.
I LOVE THIS SHOW. I especially loves it because of Jess (Milo Ventimiglia)...
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Parent of 10 year old
May 7, 2011
 

Flag as inappropriate 
Adult
February 19, 2011
 
Perhaps thé perfect TV-series to get your child(ren) get acquainted with everything that might be called "life"
I have to be honest: the moment I decided to review this brill TV-series, I reckoned it to be fit for ány age. But when I came to think of it deeper, I really came up with the notion that perhaps only teens from 11+ (give or take a year or two, depending on how mature your child(ren) is (are)) can fully appreciate this show. Again, being honest: I reckon this show as not containing things that might shock your child(ren). In fact, in a certain way, all is life-like, but without the sharp edge. Every parent knows that sooner or later his/her child learns about the birds and the bees, and so many other things that may qualify as "that's life". This show might be thé source of all of that for your child. Because it not only shows the nice, fine, and pleasant aspects of it all, it also shows that, like everything, all comes with good ánd bad, thus showing the consequences of it all. For almost everything major happening in this show, there's a balance of 'pro vs. anti', which creates an opening for you and your child(ren) to debate about it, share eachothers thoughts. Below are some topics of the show, followed by the storyline it involves with, and concluding with my review of Talk About concerning that topic. * Religion | Storyline: Lane Kim (Rory's best friend) doesn't believe in anything but music, while her mother is a very strict Korean christian, all of which make Lane turne out to be a very creative girl involving hiding everything; from CDs to (potential) relationships, and from lavalamps to her dreams. | Talk About: how do you see religion, and how does your child(ren) see it? Is there room for personal views, eventhough they may not be the same? * Virginity | Storyline: Rory's friend/rival Paris confesses to her that she lost her virginity, and reckoned it great but weird at the same time. Rory, after Paris asked for her experience, confesses that, although in her second relationship (first being Dean, second being Jess), she's still a virgin, because she doesn't feel 'ready yet'. In a later season, however, she looses her virginity to Dean, who is, at that time, married with another girl. It wasn't a secret, though, that they both still loved eachother, eventhough they were in other relationships. With both situations, the 'no glove, no love' (i.e. do it safe) is emphasised. | Talk About: what does it mean to have sex, and loose your virginity? Is it OK to have sex with someone who loves you, and you love him/her, eventhough one of the involved persons is already committed? Is there a 'wrong vs. right' in such a situation? What may be defined as being 'the right person'? * Pregnancy | Storyline: Lorelai, unmarried, had her child (Rory) when she was a teen. | Talk About: if having sex, what kind of consequences does it may have? * Virginity part 2 | Storyline: Lane Kim falls in love with a bandmate of hers. Eventhough she loves to try everything her mother told her not to, she remains virgin until she is married with this guy from her band, which turned out to be 'the one' for her. She didn't like sex (on her honeymoon), though, and she even praises her mother for making sex sound so wrong, for 'it is'. She turns out to be pregnant of twins, eventhough she used a (discount Mexican), though. | Talk About: this might be THE opportunity to speak about condoms and pregnancy in general; are they safe (enough)? If having sex, what are the basic steps to make it safe? And if something happens, is it something that your child(ren) can say to you? * Relationships | Storyline: Lorelai seems to runaway from the relationships she has with men. | Talk About: is a relationship scary? Why is it/isn't it something to runaway for? Again: what may be defined as 'the right person'? * Family | Storyline: Lorelai has many ups and downs with her parents, and although she and Rory are mostly girlfriends first and parent-child later, they also have some highs and lows during the 7 seasons. Another example is Lane Kim; coming from a strict Korean family, during the seasons she and her mother get estranged from one another, though they ultimately seem to share a relationship nearly as close as Lorelai and Rory seem to have, being able to talk with eachother as full-grown adults.| Talk About: what does family mean? Is there a point in which you and your child(ren) can see eachother as fully-grown adults/human beings?What might mark that point? Is everyone allowed to have his/her own ideas? * Social status | Storyline: The parents of Lorelai, Richard & Emily Gilmore, are of a certain high-class society, which is something that Lorelai just wanted to escape, because of its many rules and etiquette. In later years, she does her best to be 'working-class', for 'high-class' stands for strings and etiquette, and 'working-class' stands for indepence. | Talk About: what are the social classes in society? Are there many differences? Is a certain social class happier or unhappier, or even better off/ not better off than another? Are there simularities in how social classes experience life? And there are many other topics in this show that create a great opening for you and your child(ren) to talk about! My reason for giving it an "On for 11+" rating: there are so many references in this show (from film to music, and from TV-series to TV-personalities), that even many adults don't understand it all. However, the topics in this show should be seen by 11+ children, for it gives them a (for parents) safe glipmse of the teenyears that are ahead of them. I also would like to mention, though, that it depends per child; if a child is 10, but very mature for his/her age, then he/she might like it, but if a child is 13, but not as ready, than I would hold it of just a bit. It does, however, involves the objective common sense of a parent.
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Adult
December 21, 2010
 
e.g. Perfect for older kids, but not tweens
A good show but there are a few parts in cars where it gets a little racy
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Kid, 11 years old
December 28, 2010
 
Perfect for mature tweens
Great for mature 11 year old girls (like myself) and older. ever since I watched the first 5 minutes of the pilot episode, I loved it.
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 17 years old
August 16, 2010
 
13+
You say 10 or 11+, but you have to remember there is implied sex and lots of making out. I would say its more for 13+. But anyways, i LUV the show! its too bad it ended.
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 14 years old
March 19, 2011
 

Flag as inappropriate 
Parent
April 28, 2011
 
love it!!!
Love the show, great message and good role model!
What other families should know:

Flag as inappropriate 

This review of Gilmore Girls was written by
TV rating:TV-14
Networks:ABC Family, CW
Cast:Alexis Bledel, Lauren Graham, Scott Patterson
Genre:Drama

This review of Gilmore Girls was written by
 

Review It

Share your review with others

Hang on! You need to be a member to post your review.
A safe community is important to us. Please observe our guidelines.

Learning Products Quick Finder

Great alternatives handpicked by our editors