Lane Kim

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Lane Van Gerbig
Keiko Agena as Lane Kim
First appearance	"Pilot"
Information
Year of birth	1984
Family	Mrs. Kim (mother) unnamed father (mentioned in first and second seasons, only)
Relationships	Zach Van Gerbig (Husband), Dave Rygalski (Ex-boyfriend) Henry Cho (Ex-boyfriend)
Children	2 boys with Zach
Relatives	June (Aunt) Christine (cousin) unnamed maternal grandmother
Episode count	109
Portrayed by	Keiko Agena

Lane Van Gerbig (nee Kim) is a fictional character on the television series Gilmore Girls, played by Keiko Agena.

[edit] Character history

Lane was born and raised in Stars Hollow, Connecticut. The rock-and-roll child of strict Seventh-day Adventist, vegan, Korean parents (Mr. Kim is never seen, but Lane has referred to "parents", plural, on many occasions, and said "My mother and father" in Season 2), Lane was forced at an early age to start hiding who she was from her family. She used loose floorboards and her closet to hide her enormous collection of non-Christian music and books. She and her best friend Rory Gilmore used hollowed out books and a variety of pretexts to try and help Lane live a more acceptable life, all the while resenting her mother's over protective strictness, which she viewed as controlling rather than tough love.

Lane: I started it when I was six, the day you told me the Cookie Monster was one of the seven deadly sins.

Mrs. Kim: Gluttony.

—Season 4, Ep. 11: "In the Clamor and the Clangor"

She attended Stars Hollow High with Rory until Rory enrolled in Chilton Academy. She was first in the marching band and eventually joined the cheerleading squad after a girl at school remarked that Lane was "cheerleader material".

Rory: And hey, you got them to cheer to Madness, so there must be some hope left in the world.

Lane: I want you rest assured that I remain me. I mean, Nico-obsessed, Exene wannabe with forty Korean bibles under her bed. I just bounce a little more.

—Season 2, Ep. 11 "Secrets and Loans"

She also worked part-time at her mother's store, Kim's Antiques.

Lane is an obsessive audiophile, but was limited to collecting illicit CDs until a new music shop opened in town. She managed to talk the owner, Sophie (played by Carole King, the writer of the theme song), into letting her practice on a drum set. Eventually, she joined a band. Original name possibilities included for the band included The Harry Potters, Follow Them to The Edge of the Desert, Devil's Advocate and The We, but the band members eventually settled on Hep Alien (Hep Alien is an anagram of Helen Pai, who is show producer Amy Sherman-Palladino's best friend, and the person on whom Lane's character is based.) The band members consisted of Dave Rygalski (Adam Brody), Brian (John Cabrera), and Zach (Todd Lowe). Lane and Dave began a romantic relationship that largely involved intricate strategies for hiding their relationship from her mother and their bandmates. In Season 3, however, they are forced to make their relationship public when Dave needs Mrs. Kim's permission to take Lane to the senior prom.

Dave: A few weeks ago you told me that Lane had a crush on me. Well, I have a crush on her, too. Now, I know you have very strict rules about dating and boys, but I just want you to know that I'm a good person. I don't smoke, I don't drink, I've never gotten a ticket, I'm healthy, I take care of myself, I floss. I never watch more than 30 minutes of television a night partly because I think it's a waste of time and partly because there's nothing on. I respect my parents, I do well in school, I never play video games in case they do someday prove that playing them can turn you into a serial killer. I don't drink coffee. I hate soda because the carbonation freaks me out. I'm happy to give up meat if you feel strongly about it. I don't mind wearing a tie. I enjoy playing those hymns on my guitar, and I really, really want to take your daughter to the prom.

—Season 3, Ep. 20: "Say Goodnight, Gracie"

In response to this speech, Mrs. Kim replied "Let never day nor night unhallow'd pass, but still remember what the Lord hath done." Dave assumed it was a quote from the Bible which would lead him to her answer regarding his request, and he stayed up all night and read the Bible cover-to-cover. He showed up at the Kims' the next day, wearily admitting that he didn't know what it meant. Mrs. Kim then revealed it was from Henry VI, Part 2 (because even she likes to "goof off sometimes"), and was so impressed at his actions that she relented. The next year, Dave moved to California for college. Sebastian Bach's character, Gil, replaced Dave on guitar, and Zach replaced Dave as Lane's romantic interest.

The strictness with which Mama Kim treated her daughter was actually a sign of how much she loves her and cares about her future, but Lane was forced to move out of her parents' home after her mother discovered her stash of American teenager goods. She hid out in Rory's dorm room at Yale for several episodes, but eventually moved into an apartment with Zach and Brian. Mrs. Kim was shocked and slightly hysterical after discovering this fact, until Lorelai instructed her to treat the guys as girls. This seemed to work, since Mrs. Kim later helped the band to organize a tour hosted by Seventh-day Adventist churches (Season 5, Ep. 22: "A House is Not a Home").

When the band gets a gig that could lead to a major break, Zach has a meltdown on stage because Bryan wrote a song that had Lane's name as the title, which effectively ruined what should have been the band's breakthrough night, then breaks up with Lane which leads to the break up of the band. Lane moves back home with her mother on the condition that she be treated as an adult and that her hobbies and privacy be respected. Recently, Zach approached Gil and Brian about reuniting the band. They agreed on the condition that Lane come back as well. Zach then went to Lane and asked her to rejoin the band and asked her to marry him. She accepted both proposals. They were married quickly in the sixth season and the band has officially reunited. Also, in the 7th season episode "That's What You Get, Folks, For Makin' Whoopee", Lane discovered she is pregnant after a lousy honeymoon in Mexico. In a later episode, "French Twist", Lane and Zach learnt that they are expecting twins and informed Mrs. Kim of the pregnancy, only to be shocked at her acceptance and response that it is a blessing. Mrs. Kim originally planned for the couple to move in with her, and Zach agreed in his shocked state. They later informed Mrs. Kim that they are adults, soon to be parents, and will raise their children in their own home. Mrs. Kim agreed, and later surprised them again by moving in with them. Lane is pregnant with two boys. At the end of "Gilmore Girls Only" (Season 7, Episode 17), Lane gives birth.

Gilmore Girls
Main characters
Lorelai Gilmore | Rory Gilmore | Luke Danes | Christopher Hayden | Sookie St. James | Lane Kim | Paris Geller | Jess Mariano | Logan Huntzberger | Kirk Gleason | Emily Gilmore | Richard Gilmore
Recurring characters
Jackson Belleville | Taylor Doose | Dean Forester | Michel Gerard | Jason Stiles | Max Medina | Trix Gilmore | Mrs. Kim
More
List of episodes | List of characters | Stars Hollow