In the following conversation from the Gilmore Girls episode "The Breakup, Part 2," what is the meaning of nailed:
Summer: Tristan, stop.
Tristan: You are making me chase around the party.
Summer: Just trying to have fun.
Tristan: You won't talk or dance with me. Why the hell did you come
with me to the party?Summer: Stop yelling.
Tristan: Summer, please, can we just go?
Summer: No, I am sick of fighting with you.
…
Summer: I think we should break up.
Tristan: I want to go outside and talk about this..
Summer: Then go. Bye.
…
Tristan (to Rory): You just loved it, don't you?
Rory: loved what?
Tristan: Seeing me nailed like that.
I did the research. Here is what I found:
pin someone down (on something) and nail someone down (on something)
Fig. to demand and receive a firm answer from someone to some question. (Alludes to shifting from answer to answer; commit to one answer or another.)
- I tried to pin him down on a time and place, but he was very evasive.
- Don't try to pin down the mayor on anything!
- I want to nail her down on a meeting time.
Punching them in the face.
- "Man I really nailed that guy in the face."
Or having sex with them
- "I'm telling you dude, I totally nailed that chick last night"
Or if you catch someone in a crime or want to
- "I'm gonna nail that bastard who shot my partner"
Or accidentally hitting someone with a nail gun
- "Oh man I'm sorry dude I didn't mean to nail your face to the dog"
So it would be like "punished" when doing something wrong. Right? The last one seems to be closer in meaning. But I am not sure.
Best Answer
To my understanding, nailed here means outwitted/beaten, but also carries a sense of being struck down as well.
In other words, her conversational wit is kicking him while he's down:
He says he wants to go outside and talk about this (with her).
She says then go ahead . . . (Meaning, go outside and talk about it, but she won't be joining him, so he'll be talking to the air.)
He then accuses his friend of schadenfreude at seeing his misfortune (both at being beaten conversationally, and having his heart broken).
See here: Defeat or outwit an opponent.