Netflix’s newest show, Ginny & Georgia, has been compared to the 2000s WB drama Gilmore Girls ever since the trailer dropped in January. Both shows revolve around the lives of a mother who had her daughter as a teenager and the precocious daughter who oftentimes acts more like a parent than the one she has.
Though the shows have a similar premise and lead characters, there are also a number of differences that distinguish the two from one another. Much like how sitcoms borrow formats from one another (think Parks and Rec and The Office), Ginny & Georgia samples Gilmore Girls a little, but adds its own twists in hopes to stand on its own.
Similar: Setting
Gilmore Girls takes place in the fictional town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut. The East Coast town is in close proximity to the not-fictional New Haven and Yale University.
Ginny & Georgia begins in Texas, but following the death of Georgia’s husband, the Miller family heads to Wellsbury, Massachusetts, another fictional East Coast town. Both towns have the ‘everybody-knows-everybody’ vibe, the mayor is an active member of the community, and there are festivals for every holiday, big or small.
Different: Family Dynamic
Lorelai had Rory when she was 16, much like how Georgia gave birth to Ginny at 15. However, that’s where their similarities stop in the makeup of their families.
Lorelai still has an (albeit estranged) relationship with her parents, while Georgia tells people that hers are dead. Georgia also has a 9-year-old son named Austin, whose father is different than Ginny’s. Additionally, Georgia has a half-sister, Maddie, who at the time of the show she hasn’t seen in over a decade.
Similar: Absent Fathers (& Their Motorbikes)
Rory’s father Christopher shows up to Stars Hollow on a motorcycle in episode 14 of Gilmore Girls’ first season. Rory and Christopher have a decent father-daughter relationship, only challenged whenever Lorelai and Chris attempt to rekindle their relationship.
In episode 7 of Ginny & Georgia, Ginny’s dad Zion arrives in Wellsbury on — you guessed it — a motorcycle. Ginny adores her father and misses him while he’s away. Their relationship only becomes strained when she catches him in bed with Georgia, after warning him to not mess up her mother’s recently thriving love life.
Different: Mother-Daughter Bond
Gilmore Girls is known for the inseparable bond in its leads, Lorelai and Rory. The mother-daughter duo do everything together and are consistently open and honest with each other.
Ginny and her mother Georgia have a much different relationship. Ginny is typically annoyed by her mother, often lashing out at her and blaming her for any problems she might have. Georgia attempts to have that Lorelai-closeness with her daughter, but comes up short by constantly lying to her and proving to be incredibly untrustworthy.
Similar: Georgia & Lorelai’s Love Life
In Season 1 of Gilmore Girls, despite strong chemistry with diner-owning Luke Danes, Lorelai pursues Rory’s teacher, Max Medina and also has a will-they-won’t-they relationship with her ex (and Rory’s dad), Christopher.
Similarly, Georgia tends to reunite with Ginny’s dad, has a serious relationship with the town’s mayor, and has undeniable chemistry with everyone’s favorite restaurant owner, Joe.
Different: Georgia & Lorelai’s Paths
While Lorelai and Georgia both get their starts working in an inn and hotel respectively, they went in very different directions after that.
They’d both do anything to provide their children with the lives they want, but would use very different means to do so. For Lorelai, that means borrowing money from her parents and taking business classes to open her own inn and send Rory to Chilton. For Georgia, she runs as far away from home as possible, and marries well-off men.
Similar: Rory & Ginny’s Love Life
The similarities don’t stop there. While Rory first dates her ‘perfect’ boyfriend Dean in Season 1, she is clearly smitten with the ‘bad boy’ Jess Mariano, Luke’s nephew, when he comes to town. Ginny immediately starts dating Hunter Chen, who everyone loves and pushes her toward, even though she has a huge crush on her rebellious neighbor, Marcus.
Different: Friendships
Rory’s best friend in Stars Hollow is the music-loving-drum-playing Lane Kim, and her frenemy at Chilton and Yale is the hard-working Paris Geller. Rory makes a few new friends in Lucy and Olivia in the later seasons, but she mostly sticks to her mom, Lane, and Paris as her closest confidants.
Ginny isn’t used to having friends when she arrives in Wellsbury, but Maxine Baker quickly takes her in and assigns her as the ‘G’ in MANG (Max, Abby, Norah, and Ginny). The four develop a close kinship that is riddled with typical high-school drama and fights that don’t last more than a day.
Similar: Timing
Gilmore Girls begins with Rory’s sophomore year of high school, she celebrates her 16th birthday in Season 1 and navigates a new school when she is accepted into the prestigious prep school, Chilton.
Ginny starts her sophomore year Wellsbury High School, turns 16 in episode 7, and is the new girl since she has just moved from Texas to Massachusetts. Both shows take place in that second year of high school, 16 year old struggling to adjust stage of life.
Different: Themes
Gilmore Girls fans witness Rory having her first-ever kiss in episode 7. She goes on to date Dean for nearly three seasons, and loses her virginity to him in the Season 4 finale.
Ginny & Georgia begins with Ginny never having had a first date (let alone a kiss), but all that changes during the first episode. She kisses Marcus spontaneously and has sex with him before the episode is over. Georgia’s flashbacks are filled with memories of sexual abuse, homelessness, and her murdering former partners.
While both shows show the journey of a young girl and her mother in a small town, Ginny & Georgia has far more mature themes such as sexual assault, racism, and self-harm. It’s just another example that characters on both shows might live similar lives on the surface, but have been through very different circumstances that led them to where they are.
