Over on the forums at gilmoregirls.org, there's an interesting section of posts in one of the threads. The thread itself is called "Flyswatters Club #1 - Chris loathers thread!", and in this particular section, one of the posters pipes up, "How about we vent our anger by posting our dream deaths for Christopher!" She goes on to suggest that one of Rory's books should fall on Christopher's head, he should get trampled in a Stars Hollow parade, or he should have a stroke due to his pride and stubbornness getting "backed up" in his brain.
Whoa there, girls - you may be taking it a little too far.
I'm not as extreme as the fans on the forum, but this week I'm going to explain why I don't want to see a Lorelai-Christopher relationship. (Note that this is not necessarily a case for Luke; it is a case against Christopher.) I think Christopher comes off as smug, not genuine, and seems to have ulterior motives in his actions. But that's just the beginning...
There is another thread on the gilmoregirls.org forum entitled "Christopher Apprecation Thread". Here, the many posts (not as many as the Flyswatters) list reasons why Chris and Lorelai belong together: They have more chemistry, they connect, they have a history together, Chris has turned his life around and learned from his mistakes. To this, I say a big fat "Phooey!" All these reasons do not a good husband/father make.
Obviously, it's hard to deny Lorelai and Christopher's past together. According to this helpful Wikipedia article, they have known each other since they were six years old. Yes, they do know each other well, but if you were to catalog Christopher's successes versus his failures over the time he's known Lorelai, that second column would be quite a bit longer. He was kicked out of several private schools, never completed college, missed a big chunk of his daughter's life, and struggled to make a name for himself financially until his father's death and Chris's subsequent inheritance. Hmm, I'm not sure I'd pick that Bachelor if I were on The Dating Game.
But Christopher has made strides since the inheritance to really get his act together. He started paying Rory's college tuition and has become more responsible by raising his second daughter, Gigi, without the aid of her mother. For that, I give him points. But does it mean he has fully matured and learned all his lessons? I don't think so. The Flyswatters agree; one user says, "I know that for a little while now he has been more of a dad to Rory (i.e., paying for Yale) but still he isn't around enough and has never been a big part of Rory's life." I think he needs to put in a little more time before he should be fully integrated into their lives as Lorelai's significant other.
Which brings me around to the timing of this relationship: Lorelai broke up with Luke, ending a long relationship in addition to an engagement, and then slept with Christopher immediately afterward. Okay, that was Lorelai's bad; she shouldn't have run right to his bed, but aside from that, Christopher shouldn't have gone along with it. I think a better man - a man who really knows her - would have told her she wasn't thinking clearly and suggested they wait and talk about everything before taking such a big step. He was definitely taking advantage of the situation and he also wasn't thinking about the big picture. Rory had a good point when she found out her parents slept together; things were just getting good with Rory and her father and Chris and Lorelai's relationship could potentially damage that progress.
There is no reason why Christopher can't be a part of both Rory and Lorelai's lives, but I don't see why they had to jump into dating so quickly. Why not take a step back and try things platonically for a while? Lorelai's head has got to be reeling from all that happened with Luke, so a time-out from relationships altogether would probably be good for her. I have a feeling that this Christopher-Lorelai thing isn't going to last since it's on fast-forward so early in the season. Or maybe David Rosenthal will pull a Felicity and make it all a dream - that would probably make the Flyswatters happy!
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