Poland deployed air force jets for the second time in a week, alerted residents and closed Lublin airport near the Ukrainian border because of drones flying in its neighbor’s airspace, its Operational Command said in a post on X.
Separately, Romanian fighter jets were launched as Russia attacked Ukrainian territory near the nations’ shared border near the Danube River. A UAV was detected inside Romania’s airspace, the defense ministry said.
Poland’s air defense systems were placed on the highest alert “amid the threat of Russian drones” over Ukraine, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in a separate post, adding that the action was “preventive.”
Residents of six Polish districts near to the Ukrainian border received emergency SMS alerts warning of a threat from the air.
Ukraine’s air defense said earlier on Saturday that two Russian UAVs had been flying in the west of the country.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a post on X Saturday that he didn’t think the drone flights were accidental as he renewed his call for the country’s allies to impose additional sanctions on Russia.
Poland has became highly attuned to its air security after an unprecedented incursion of about 20 Russian drones earlier this week. Polish and allied forces shot down at least three UAVs for the first time since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The country is set to receive additional air defense support from its North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s allies as a result of the events.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Saturday that it will take a few days to determine whether the drones were intentionally sent into Poland.
“The question is whether the drones were targeted to go into Poland specifically,” he told reporters as he departed for a trip to Israel. “If that’s the case, that the evidence leads us there, then obviously that’ll be a highly escalatory move.”
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Aid workers say the number of people leaving has spiked in recent weeks, but many families remain stuck due to difficulties with transportation and housing.
Others have been displaced many times and do not want to move again, not trusting that anywhere in the Strip is safe.
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Earlier this month: IDF drops evacuation flyers on Gaza before tower bombed
In a message shared on social media on Saturday, Israel’s army told the remaining Palestinians in Gaza City to “leave immediately” and move south into what it is calling a humanitarian zone.
Sites in southern Gaza, where Israel is telling people to go, are overcrowded, the United Nations has said.
A spokesperson for the Israeli army said more than 250,000 people have left Gaza City – but the UN puts the number at around 100,000 between mid-August and mid-September.
The UN and aid groups have warned that displacing hundreds of thousands of people will exacerbate the dire humanitarian crisis in the enclave.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said on Saturday that seven people, including children, died from malnutrition-related causes over the past 24 hours.
Israel has said it now controls 75% of Gaza, much of which has been reduced to fields of rubble. It has vowed to take the rest.
The current conflict followed Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, when militants killed 1,200 people and took around 250 people hostage.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,803 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health authorities. It does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.
Earl Richardson was the president of Morgan State University between 1984 and 2010.
Morgan State University
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Morgan State University
Earl Richardson was a Black college president — “armed with history,” as a colleague described him — when he led a 15-year-long lawsuit that ended in a historic settlement for four Black schools in Maryland and put a spotlight on funding disparities for all of the nation’s historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
Richardson’s death, at 81, was announced on Saturday by Morgan State University, located in Baltimore, where he served as president when he helped organize the lawsuit that began in 2006. It was settled in 2021 when the state of Maryland agreed to give $577 million in supplemental funding over 10 years to four HBCUs.
Richardson led Morgan State from 1984 to 2010 and he had long chafed at stretching the little funding he got from the state. In the lawsuit, plaintiffs argued that Maryland had historically underfunded its Black colleges and had put them at a disadvantage by starting and boosting similar programs at nearby majority-white schools.
David Burton, one of the plaintiffs, told NPR that the case was compared to Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark lawsuit that brought up similar issues of disparities in educational opportunities for Black students, but the Maryland case raised the issues for students in higher education.
In 1990, when Richardson was a new school president, students took over the administration building for six days to protest the school’s dilapidated classrooms and dorms, with roofs that leaked and science labs stocked with outdated equipment.
Edwin Johnson was one of those student protesters. “We originally were protesting against Morgan’s administration,” including Richardson, he said. “But then after we dig and do a little research, we find out it’s not our administration, but it’s the governor down in Annapolis that isn’t equipping the administration with what they need to appropriately run the school.”
The protest ended when the students marched 34 miles to Annapolis to demand a meeting with the governor.
Richardson, who spoke of taking part in civil rights demonstrations when he was in school, had subtly guided the students to the correct target, said Johnson, who is now the university’s historian and special assistant to the provost.
That protest helped pave the way to the future, historic lawsuit.
Because Richardson was the university’s president, and an employee of the state, he couldn’t sue the state. So, a coalition of students and former students was created, the Coalition for Equity and Excellence in Maryland Higher Education Inc., to serve as the plaintiff.
Still, Richardson was the visionary behind the lawsuit, said Burton, a Morgan State alumnus and now a strategic planner for businesses. “He was armed with history,” Burton said.
“Dr. Richardson knew where the skeletons were,” Burton added. He was “a force that the state could not reckon with because of his institutional knowledge.”
At one point, during the trial, state attorneys objected to Richardson’s presence in the courtroom and asked the judge to make him leave, even though he had a right to be there as an expert witness, said Jon Greenbaum, then the chief counsel of the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, who helped argue the lawsuit.
Richardson stayed in the courtroom and “because this was really a desegregation case,” said Greenbaum, he provided historical detail that became critical to the arguments made by the lawyers representing the plaintiffs.
The funding that resulted, and Richardson’s leadership, jump-started what is now called on campus “Morgan’s Renaissance.” Or sometimes, said Johnson: “Richardson’s Renaissance” — because during Richardson’s presidency, enrollment doubled, the campus expanded with new buildings and new schools were added, including a school of architecture and a school of social work.
Richardson’s work put a spotlight, too, on the funding disparities faced by HBCUs across the country. They are more likely than other schools to rely upon federal, state and local funding — money that has faced budget cuts in recent years. Compared to other universities and colleges, HBCUs get a higher percentage of their revenue from tuition and less from private gifts and grants, according to one study.
In testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives in 2008, Richardson emphasized the mission of HBCUs when he told lawmakers that Black schools like his educated the most talented Black students but also sought to attract students who didn’t consider, or thought they couldn’t afford, to go to college. “We can make them the scientists and the engineers and the teachers and the professors — all of those things,” he said. But only if “we can have our institutions develop to a level of comparability and parity so that we are as competitive as other institutions.”
Microsoft’s Copilots for sales, service and finance will be included in Microsoft 365 Copilot subscriptions at no extra cost, Microsoft said this week.
The M365 Copilot launched in 2023, providing access to the AI assistant in apps such as Outlook, Teams and Word. The core subscription costs $30 per user per month.
Last year, Microsoft introduced M365 Copilots tailored to specific job roles, namely for sales, service and finance, opening access to a wider range of business and additional functionality. The Copilot for Sales, for instance, lets users access and update CRM records via the AI assistant, while the Copilot for Finance can tap into ERP systems and financial planning apps. It can also automate functions such as the creation of reconciliation reports.
Following her son’s suicide, Becca Dallas filed a potentially groundbreaking lawsuit against Roblox and Discord, accusing the platforms of wrongful death. As first reported by The New York Times, the lawsuit recounts the events leading up to Ethan Dallas’ death, detailing his interactions with a player named Nate. According to the report, Nate was likely a 37-year-old man named Timothy O’Connor, who was previously arrested on charges of “possessing child pornography and transmitting harmful material to minors.” The report added that Ethan opened up about these incidents to his mom before committing suicide four months after the confession.
The lawsuit could be the first of its kind against Roblox, according to NYTimes, considering it attributes some blame to the gaming platform that’s home to tens of millions of underaged players. In a statement responding to the report, a Roblox spokesperson said that child safety issues are seen across the industry and that the company was working on new safety features, while also complying with law enforcement.
This isn’t the first time Roblox has faced complaints of being a dangerous place for underage players. In August, Louisiana’s attorney general, Liz Murrill, filed a lawsuit that claimed Roblox doesn’t “implement basic safety controls” to protect its underage user base. That lawsuit follows a similar investigation launched by Florida’s attorney general James Uthmeier, who demanded answers to the reports of Roblox reportedly exposing kids to “harmful content and bad actors.” Roblox has taken steps to combat these allegations, including tightening restrictions on its Experiences, and more recently, expanding its age estimation tool to all users.
After he was named the primary suspect in the shooting of Charlie Kirk, Tyler Robinson became the most highly publicized name on the internet this month. His alleged involvement in the late 31-year-old Turning Point USA founder’s death sparked extensive interest in his personal life. Details about Robinson’s family and now alleged partner, who is reportedly transgender, have come to light.
Moments before Kirk was fatally shot at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025, an audience member asked how many recent mass shooters were transgender. Kirk responded by claiming, “Too many,” and was struck by a bullet shortly thereafter.
Public figures from both political sides called for justice and condemned the person behind Kirk’s murder.
During an interview with Fox News on September 12, 2025, Donald Trumpsaid Robinson’s father had turned him into the authorities.
“I think, with a high degree of certainty, we have him — in custody,” Trump said, adding that “everyone did a great job we worked with the local police, the governor, everybody did a great job. … And somebody that was very close to him said ‘hm, that’s him’ and essentially went to the father, went to a US Marshal.”
Who Is Tyler Robinson?
Robinson is a 22-year-old Utah resident.
Is Tyler Robinson a Republican?
No, Robinson is not a registered Republican. His voter registration from 2021 did not include a declared party, multiple outlets reported. However, his grandmother revealed to Daily Mail that their immediate family members voted for Trump.
Is Tyler Robinson a Democrat?
No, Robinson is not a registered Democrat. Since he did not declare a party in his voting records, he is neither a Democrat nor a Republican.
His voter registration is labeled “inactive,” per CNN.
EXCLUSIVE: Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson lived with his transgender partner, sources tell me.
The individual, who is a male transitioning to a female, is fully cooperating with the FBI.
Sources tell me the FBI had texts and other communications between Robinson and the…
Who Is Tyler Robinson’s Partner? Source Claims They’re Transgender
Brooke Singman of Fox News reported that Robinson was living with a transgender partner, who was in the process of transitioning from male to female, and cited a source from law enforcement.
She tweeted on September 13, 2025, “Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson lived with his transgender partner, sources tell me. The individual, who is a male transitioning to a female, is fully cooperating with the FBI. Sources tell me the FBI had texts and other communications between Robinson and the individual that helped FBI authorities solidify that Robinson was indeed the shooter.”
Who Are Tyler Robinson’s Parents? About His Mother & Father
Robinson’s mother’s name is Amber Jones Robinson, and his father is Matt Robinson, according to multiple outlets. Amber graduated from the University of Utah, and Matt is a veteran of the Washington County Sheriff’s Department. He is the one who turned Robinson into the authorities.
According to theNew York Post, Robinson’s inner circle claimed that he was “full of hate.” Robinson also confessed to his father that he was behind Kirk’s death, multiple outlets reported. Robinson has not publicly spoken out about the accusations. He is in police custody, Trump confirmed during his Fox News interview.
Tyler Robinson’s Grandmother Revealed Political Standing
While speaking with Daily Mail, Robinson’s grandmother, Debbie Robinson, claimed her whole family voted for Trump.
“My son, his dad, is a Republican for Trump,” she told the outlet. “Most of my family members are Republican. I don’t know any single one who’s a Democrat.”
Thirteen seaside cities have been named the best in the UK. Tiny Footsteps Travel and Solo Travel Man created a list of the most “breathtaking” seaside cities to visit this year, perfect for a weekend getaway.
Topping the list was Brighton, their “Favourite city in the whole of the UK”. The East Sussex city is less than an hour from London by train and is popular among capital-dwellers looking for a day at the seaside. It is known for its pebbly beach, pretty shopping streets known as The Lanes, classic pier, and Indian-inspired Royal Pavilion. The travel experts said it is a “trendy, hipster kind of city” with “its own microclimate”, providing sunny weather and warmer trips to the coast. Next up was the Scottish capital of Edinburgh, just two miles from Leith and the North Sea. The historic city is known for its 18th-century Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site home to the Royal Mile between the 12th-century castle and the royal residence of the Palace of Holyroodhouse. The experts said, despite crowds, it’s a “top destination” that’s close enough to the beach for a nice walk.
In third place was Truro in Cornwall, which the experts said is “one of the most beautiful places in the whole country”, with picturesque beaches, towering cliffs, harbour towns and fishing villages.
Just four miles from the coast, Truro is the only city in the county and is home to a 19th-century Gothic revival cathedral, lots of Georgian architecture, shops and a year-round indoor market.
Also included on the list are spots such as Inverness, Blackpool, Salcombe, Llandudno and Belfast, which were hailed for their beauty and history.
The UK’s top seaside cities, according to Tiny Footsteps Travel and Solo Travel Man
Star Trekhas proven to be one of the most enduring franchises in TV history, with new series and feature films fleshing out the saga at a seemingly endless pace. When Gene Roddenberry’s original series ended its three-season run in 1969, few could have predicted that the little-watched sci-fi show would eventually develop a cult following, later becoming a staple of popular culture for generations to come.
But with so many series jumping back and forth in time, it can be challenging to know how it all lines up, especially for newcomers. So for those who might want to dive into Trek in chronological order, this is the guide for you. For the purposes of this list, we’ll be focusing on in-story chronology rather than real-world release order. Without further ado, let’s take a trip to the future.
Show
Release Years
1
Star Trek: Enterprise
2001-2005
2
Star Trek: Discovery (Seasons 1 and 2)
2017-2019
3
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
2022-Present
4
Star Trek: The Original Series
1966-1969
5
Star Trek: The Animated Series
1973-1974
6
Star Trek: The Next Generation
1987-1994
7
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
1993-1999
8
Star Trek: Voyager
1995-2001
9
Star Trek: Lower Decks
2020-2024
10
Star Trek: Prodigy
2021-2024
11
Star Trek: Picard
2020-2023
12
Star Trek: Discovery (Seasons 3-5)
2020-2024
‘Star Trek: Enterprise’ (2001-2005)
Paramount+
Taking place a century before the exploits of Kirk, Spock, and the gang, Star Trek: Enterprisecovers the dawn of space exploration, before Starfleet became the powerful and polished entity we know it to be. The series follows the crew of the original Enterprise starship, the first ship capable of reaching warp five, under Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula). While not as well-received as some other series, it’s notable for covering the early days of Starfleet’s mission to explore strange new worlds, running for four seasons.
‘Star Trek: Discovery’ (Seasons 1 and 2, 2017-2019)
Sonequa Martin-Green, David Ajala, and Wilson Cruz holding small weapons on an ice planet in Star Trek: DiscoveryParamount+
While still a prequel to the original series, Discoverytakes us much closer to those events, beginning roughly ten years before, following the crew of the USS Discovery in the early days of the Federation’s war with the Klingons. The first Trek series of the streaming era, it distinguished itself with more serialized storytelling in its early seasons, before shifting to a more episodic model later on. It has proven somewhat divisive among fans for some of its bolder storytelling choices, but it still managed to run for five seasons, concluding in 2024.
‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ (2022-Present)
Paramount+
Running concurrently with the first two seasons of Discovery, Strange New Worldstakes us back to the Enterprise in the decade before Kirk became captain, under the command of Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount). Strange New Worlds was designed as a conscious throwback to the style of the original Trek, with a colorful, retro look and episodic structure that found the crew encountering various, well, strange new worlds. It recently concluded its third season, and a fourth is due next year.
‘Star Trek: The Original Series’ (1966-1969)
William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk in Star Trek The Original SeriesNBC
Now we come to the granddaddy of them all, Star Trek: The Original Series(better known as Star Trek during its run). The adventures of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Science Officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and the rest of the Enterprise crew likely need no introduction, as they’ve become part of the fabric of American culture. It was one of the first TV series to take the genre of science fiction seriously, introducing a more thoughtful approach (while still leaving plenty of room for alien seduction). While it only ran for three seasons, its impact has been felt for decades.
‘Star Trek: The Animated Series’ (1973-1974)
Paramount+
Running for two seasons in the mid-’70s, this attempt at an animated Star Trek revival featured many of the original actors returning to voice their characters, including Shatner, Nimoy, DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy, James Doohan as Scotty, and others. While it was fairly well-received at the time, Roddenberry himself deems it non-canon, while others consider it a quasi-fourth season of The Original Series. Regardless, it still deserves a place in Trek history and on this list.
When Next Generationpremiered in 1987, nobody knew if a new series based in the Trek universe could take off as much as the original. But after a slightly rocky first season, Next Generation became arguably even more beloved than TOS, staking its claim as possibly the best Trek series of them all, running for seven highly rated seasons. Taking place about a century after TOS with a new Enterprise crew helmed by the formidable Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), it expanded on the original’s focus on interstellar diplomacy, and introduced an extremely memorable crew in the process, including the android Lieutenant Commander Data (Brent Spiner), Klingon Security Officer Worf (Michael Dorn), and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden).
‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’ (1993-1999)
Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) in Star Trek: Deep Space NineParamount
Deep Space Ninebegan its seven-season run while Next Generation was still airing, and was tied directly into that series, particularly as Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) lost his wife during a battle with the Borg in Season 4 of that series. Set largely on the titular space station rather than a starship, Deep Space Nine is sometimes in the running for best Trek series, taking a very different approach that embraced more serialized storytelling in its ongoing Dominion War storyline beginning in its third season. A darker and more morally murky series overall, it never reached the heights of popularity of Next Gen, but fans who appreciate its complex storytelling often hold it up as the best.
‘Star Trek: Voyager’ (1995-2001)
Paramount+
Voyagertakes place roughly concurrently with Deep Space Nine, and continues for a few years after that series’ end. Following the titular USS Voyager as it attempts to return to Earth after being stranded about 70,000 light-years away, Voyager has mixed reception among fans, with some considering it disappointing while others consider it underrated. It’s often considered the most progressive Trek series in terms of casting, featuring the first female commanding officer in a lead role in a series, Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), and a more gender-balanced crew overall (a source of no small amount of ire from some regressive fans). Despite this, it also managed to run for seven seasons.
‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’ (2020-2024)
Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) in Star Trek: Lower DecksParamount+
Trek‘sfirst adult-oriented animated series, Lower Deckstakes place in the late 24th Century, around the same time as Next Gen, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager. The series takes a different approach, focusing not on the high-ranking officers making life-or-death decisions, but on the lower-ranking crew members who do all the menial, less glamorous jobs on one of Starfleet’s least important ships. Lower Decks is more comedic than most other Trek series, serving as both a loving send-up and tribute to its predecessors, and featuring voice appearances by characters from some previous series.
‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ (2021-2024)
Star Trek: ProdigyNetflix
Developed specifically for younger viewers, Prodigyoriginally aired on Nickelodeon from 2021-2023. Netflix picked up the streaming rights shortly after, but opted not to renew them this year. Taking place five years after the Voyager crew returned to Earth, the animated series follows a group of young aliens who discover an abandoned starship called the Protostar and use it to learn about Starfleet and traverse the galaxy, with the aid of a Captain Janeway hologram. While lighter in tone, the animated series still received praise for its accessible but complex storytelling and its focus on younger characters.
‘Star Trek: Picard’ (2020-2023)
Star Trek: PicardCBS
Set about 30 years after the conclusion of Next Gen, Picardpicks up with a now-retired Jean-Luc Picard as he’s pulled back into action. While the first season attempted to tell a new story while folding in some legacy elements (to mixed results), the series embraced full-on nostalgia by its third season, bringing back characters like Worf, Crusher, Riker, Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), and Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) for a Next Gen reunion. Not surprisingly, its third season is generally its most well-received, serving as a satisfying victory lap for the beloved ensemble.
‘Star Trek: Discovery’ (Seasons 3-5, 2020-2024)
The cast of Star Trek: Discovery in the 32nd CenturyParamount+
You might be wondering why Discoveryis split into two parts in this timeline. That’s because, at the end of Season 2, the series jumps forward in time to the 32nd Century, roughly 900 years into its future, where it would remain for the duration. There, they find a fragmented Federation, struggling after a cataclysmic event known as “The Burn.” Captain Burnham and the Discovery crew work to restore the Federation’s place in the galaxy while dealing with new threats.
More Trek series, like Starfleet Academy, are already on the way, so this list will likely continue to grow for years to come. Star Trek seems like an unkillable franchise at this point, as baked into the fabric of American television as long-running series like Dr. Who are in the UK. The universe is infinite, and there are endless corners to explore, which means Trek will likely keep on trekking.
Few shows have as loyal and enduring a fandom as Gilmore Girls, but being a fan of Amy Sherman-Palladino’s revolutionary show comes with a few pitfalls. The beloved dramedy series premiered on October 5, 2000, meaning its 25th anniversary is just around the corner, and there’s even a Gilmore Girls documentary in the works in celebration.
Meanwhile, Gilmore Girls stars Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel will reunite at the 77th Primetime Emmys to present an award, further proving that love and nostalgia for the show isn’t going anywhere. Add in Luke Danes actor Scott Patterson’s Gilmore Girls rewatch podcast, I Am All In, and it’s a great time to be a fan — even if that comes with more than a few harsh realities.
No Other Show Can Replace Gilmore Girls
Credit: MovieStillsDB
With its cozy-quirky setting of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, its unrivaled fast-paced banter, and the loving yet unique mother-daughter relationship at the heart of it all, there’s a reason Gilmore Girls is a show you can’t watch just once. But for die-hard Gilmore Girls fans, nothing replaces the thrill of watching it first time — and it’s a high we’ve been fruitlessly chasing ever since.
There are plenty of great series with similar themes, like Netflix’s Ginny and Georgia, which sees a single mom move to a small town with her two children. The Gilmore Girls cast has also starred in plenty of great projects since that are worth checking out, from Lauren Graham’s Parenthood to Alexis Bledel’s The Handmaid’s Tale.
Perhaps the best option is the heartfelt romantic drama Sullivan‘s Crossing, which stars Scott Patterson and is all about complicated family dynamics. But fans know that while we may enjoy all these shows, nothing will ever come close to matching the magic of Gilmore Girls.
Gilmore Girls Rewatches Always End In Disappointment
It’s always a thrill to rewatch Gilmore Girls, especially in the fall, because so many episodes thoroughly embrace the autumnal aesthetic and comforting feel. Gilmore Girls always hooks us right from the opening scene, as we curl up on the couch to watch Lorelai beg Luke for more coffee and see Rory in her iconic white cable-knit sweater.
Despite all the highs, from the Lorelais’ trip to Harvard to Rory’s tearjerking valedictorian speech, we know we’re in for an inevitable decline. For some, that happens when Lorelai and Rory are feuding in Gilmore Girls season 6, but almost every fan agrees that season 7, the show’s last, pales in comparison to the rest of the series.
Without Amy Sherman-Palladino as showrunner and writer, season 7 is a tough sit. Sadly, the 2016 revival, Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, wasn’t much better, despite ASP being back at the helm. For a show that makes us so happy and characters we love so much, it’s a shame the end is such a letdown.
We’ll Never Get Justice For Lane
Lane Kim (Keiko Agena) on Gilmore Girls.
Even with its subpar season 7 and the revival, Gilmore Girls still saw some great moments for its main characters. It was a thrill to watch Rory turn down Logan’s marriage proposal in favor of pursuing her journalism dreams, and to see Luke and Lorelai finally get married. I defy any fan not to shed a tear at Emily moving on after Richard’s death and creating a new life for herself.
But one character who never got a satisfying ending was Rory’s childhood best friend, Lane Kim, which was such a disappointment because of how awesome she is. Unlike Rory, Lane didn’t have the luxury of rich grandparents to bankroll her academic pursuits, nor did she have the entire town wrapped around her finger (despite being born and raised there).
Instead, Lane forged her own path with no help from anybody, finding love with the sweet Dave Rygalski and living her best rock musician life. Then, for some inexplicable reason, Gilmore Girls decided to completely blow up her storyline. Lane ended up married to the mediocre Kyle and pregnant with twins after her first time having sex.
A Year in the Life had the chance to add some much-needed sparkle back into Lane’s life, but it ultimately didn’t give her much to do. Even if we do get another revival, it doesn’t look like any creatives are interested in giving Lane the excitement and ambition she deserves, and it’s heartbreaking seeing her storylines get worse and worse in every rewatch.
Rory’s Unsatisfying Love Life
Rory and Logan standing together in formal clothing holding umbrellas in Gilmore Girls
One of the most fun things about being part of any fandom is getting into spirited, friendly debates, and perhaps the biggest hot-button issue among Gilmore Girls fans surrounds Rory’s romantic relationships. Specifically, are you Team Dean, Team Jess, or Team Logan?
No matter which, it’s hard to argue that each romance doesn’t have its sweet moments. Rory and Dean’s early dating days are wholesome and adorable as they learn what it means to be in love. Her chemistry with Jess as they bond over books and literature is beyond electric. Rory also goes on grand adventures with Logan, like the secret outdoor Life and Death Brigade party.
But for all her thrilling romances, Rory’s love life is pretty disastrous in the revival, as she is in a relationship with a bland boyfriend she constantly forgets about and is carrying on an affair with the engaged Logan. That’s incredibly frustrating because it completely strips away the empowerment of her turning down his proposal.
Not every character needs to end up with a romantic partner to live happily ever after, but whereas Rory was so in control of her future at the end of the series, she’s totally adrift in the revival, especially with regard to her love life. We don’t even know how she feels about being pregnant at the end. We’ve spent so many episodes rooting for her — we just want her to be happy.
The Christopher Of It All
Christopher and Lorelai both look off screen upset in Gilmore Girls.
Gilmore Girls fans may never agree on who Rory should have ended up with, but there is one character we all share a universal stance on: the loathsome Christopher Hayden. Rory’s deadbeat dad, Christopher flits in and out of the Gilmore girls’ lives at whim, often leaving a heartbroken Lorelai in his wake.
Christopher’s wishy-washy selfishness provides some good drama in the first couple of seasons, but it’s harder to stomach on a rewatch because we know what’s coming. Though we do get the blissfully Christopher-free season 4, that’s only the calm before the storm, as Lorelai eventually invites him back into her bed and her heart, and mindblowingly marries him in season 7.
Perhaps more than any other reason, this is why Gilmore Girls fans detest the season so much. Christopher is such a toxic vibe-killer that, while we can understand him being around for a few episodes as Lorelai numbs her broken heart, he doesn’t deserve nearly that much screentime, and it makes no sense that he got it.
The Gilmore Girls Can Be Mean
Alexis Bledel as Rory Gilmore in a scene from Gilmore Girls talking on the phone and holding a book
With their breakneck-paced banter and unbreakable bond, Lorelai and Rory Gilmore are two of TV’s most charming characters, and we wish we could jump into the TV to share a coffee and a laugh with them at Luke’s Diner. But beneath their witty one-liners is very often a streak of cruelty.
It’s no secret that Lorelai uses humor as a shield against her family trauma, but she’s not content to just hide behind it — she also feels the need to attack Emily, Richard, or almost anyone at all with a mean-spirited barb. The fact that she delivers it with a twinkly smile and the delivery of a screwball movie star may mask her viciousness, but it’s there.
It’s also a harsh truth about Lorelai that Rory inherits her mean streak. None of us can forget Rory brutally body-shaming a ballerina in a review for the Yale newspaper — and she essentially quotes Lorelai’s vicious comments verbatim. The revival is just as bad, as one particurly offputting scene sees Lorelai and Rory making fat-shaming comments about swimmers at their local pool.
That’s not to say that Lorelai and Rory are wholly unlikable, and they have plenty of witty dialogue devoid of meanness. But once you notice it, it’s impossible to fully enjoy their humor on quite the same level again.
We Want More Gilmore Girls, But We’re Also Scared Of It
When Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life was announced, we were overjoyed. Not only were we excited to return to Stars Hollow and our favorite characters, but the story would finally get an ending worthy of such a spectacular series. Or so we thought.
Instead, we got four episodes with unentertaining storylines, an awkward mix of comedy and drama, and the head-scratching cliffhanger of Rory’s pregnancy announcement. This left us wanting more, to say the least.
Amy Sherman-Palladino has been candid about her openness to do another Gilmore Girls revival, and plenty of the cast have said they’d return for more — after all, just about everyone came back for Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. And if the stars aligned and it all came together, Gilmore Girls could finally get the ending it deserves.
But a Gilmore Girls season 9 could also just be another dud. Now that Lorelai and Luke are happily married, there’s really nowhere to go with them. And we hate to say it, but we can’t trust the franchise not to make Lane’s life even worse. So, as fans we’re caught between wanting to leave well enough alone, and the fact that the revivalwasn’t well enough.
There’s No Place Like Stars Hollow
Rory (Alexis Bledel) and Lorelai (Lauren Graham) smiling outside on Gilmore Girls
Every time we see Lorelai and Rory enjoy a coffee at Luke’s, catch a movie at the Black & White & Read Bookstore, or head to the town square for another wacky festival, we can’t help but get major FOMO. This is unfortunate, because Stars Hollow isn’t a real place.
Granted, Stars Hollow was inspired by several towns in Connecticut, including Washington and West Hartford, which can be visited. Plenty of small American towns also have their own unique charms that can satisfy your Gilmore Girls ideals. But nothing will ever be the exact same as Stars Hollow.
There’s also the fact that besides the charm of the town itself, Stars Hollow seemingly worships the ground Lorelai and Rory walk on, throwing them huge parties in the gazebo for life events like Rory’s Yale graduation or Lorelai’s wedding. Sure, the protagonists give lots to the community too, but they’re definitely given preferential treatment over life-long residents like Lane or Kirk.
Alas, even if we do feel a strong sense of love and community wherever we’re from, the sun doesn’t shine on anyone quite like Lorelai and Rory Gilmore. The only way to come close is to live vicariously through them, and despite this and all these harsh realities of being a Gilmore Girls fan, it’s also the absolute best.
On Friday (Sept. 12), the 72-year-old wife and longtime manager of the Black Sabbath frontman — who passed away on July 22 at age 76 — spoke out on social media for the first time since his passing, opening up about her grief and the outpouring of support she has received.
“I’m still having trouble finding the words to express how grateful I am for the overwhelming love and support you’ve shown on social media,” the British TV personality wrote alongside an Instagram video featuring herself and daughter Kelly at a falconry in England.
“Your comments, posts, and tributes have brought me more comfort than you know,” she continued. “None of it has gone unnoticed, in fact, it’s carried me through many nights. Though I’m still finding my footing, I wanted to share some glorious creatures I had the chance to spend an afternoon with.”
Sharon went on to describe the emotional connection she felt during the experience.
“The connection you make with these powerful birds is built entirely on trust and confidence,” she wrote. “They’ll choose to perch on you only if they sense you are safe and unafraid of them. It’s a bond I know all too well, and the experience was nothing short of magical.”
Osbroune concluded her message with a heartfelt note of gratitude. “I love you all, and I thank you deeply for the otherworldly amount of love you continue to send my way,” she wrote.
The video montage showed Sharon and Kelly interacting with exotic birds at Cornwall Falconry in England. In one clip, a falcon swoops down onto Sharon’s gloved hand to feed, while Kelly looks on with a smile. Another shows a white owl landing on Sharon’s arm in slow motion. In another moment, Sharon is seen gently petting a bird, followed by a playful scene where another bird perches atop Kelly’s winter hat.
Days earlier, Kelly shared the same video on her own Instagram account, writing, “Today I introduced my mum to falconry and she loved it! Thank you @gerardsulter for putting a smile on my mum’s face too!”
Sharon’s post marks her first public statement since Ozzy’s death. Her previous Instagram post was a photo taken with Andrew Watt and Slash at Black Sabbath’s farewell concert in early July. Ozzy died just weeks after performing his final live show in Birmingham, England. His family confirmed the news in a joint statement at the time.
“It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning,” they wrote. “He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”
See Sharon Osbourne’s full post on Instagram below.
