It’s a debate that has existed in Gilmore Girls rewatch circles for ages: which of Rory’s (Alexis Bledel) boyfriends is the best? Some fans will be vindicated (and others sorely disappointed) at the cheeky answer provided by none other than Kelly Bishop, who portrays the formidable, often hilarious and definitely haughty old-money matriarch Emily, grandmother to Rory.
“I have to admit I’m Team Logan, although I really love the other two,” she said in a recent Instagram interview conducted by Gallery Books, the Simon & Schuster imprint that is publishing her forthcoming memoir.
She continued, “But there is something about Logan. There’s something about his acting that I particularly liked in working with him, is he had a very manly quality, where the other guys were like boys, great boys. But Logan was like an old movie star, like a man.”
Logan Huntzberger, who is portrayed by Matt Czuchry, appears in the long-running and much-beloved WB dramedy only in Season 5, as a classmate of Rory’s at Yale University. He comes from a legacy newspaper dynasty and is the first of Rory’s love interests to call her out on their shared privileged background — something Team Logan defenders argue is a good match for her.
Previously, Rory dated Milo Ventimiglia’s Jess, a bona fide leather jacket-clad bad-boy who has a penchant for classic American literature, with whom she had an on-and-off, intense relationship. There was also Dean (Jared Padalecki), her quasi-first love, with whom she eventually had an extramarital affair.
As avid audience members will recall, Logan proposed to Rory at the end of the show’s run, though she turned him down to take a job as a traveling journalist. The pair later reunited in the four-part 2016 Netflix revival Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, as the two engaged in an affair while both being in other relationships. Rory, who also caught up with Jess, later revealed that she is pregnant, though the identity of the baby’s father was unconfirmed.
As September rolls around, viewers on social media have often dubbed it the season of the annual Gilmore Girls rewatch, for the show’s evocation of cozy, autumnal small-town vibes — gigantic cups of coffee and falling multi-colored leaves aplenty. The series, from Amy Sherman-Palladino, aired for seven seasons beginning at the turn of the millennium. While not a huge ratings hit during its initial run, the series has since cultivated a dedicated base of loyal watchers, thanks in part to social media, 2000s nostalgia and depiction of heartfelt relationships.
For her part, Bishop will soon release The Third Gilmore Girl, Sept. 17. The book, which will have an accompanying New England tour, will trace the Tony-winning actress’ career from her Broadway beginnings through her time at the beloved tight-knit community of Stars Hollow.
