Monika | I actually didn’t see that coming, though in hindsight it makes perfect sense. My favorite moment of the episode was easily Chuck’s outburst at Diana. Scratch that, it was actually my favorite moment of this entire godforsaken season. Is it just me or did even Ed Westwick seem thrilled to deliver a line that wasn’t begging Blair to stay with him or a throaty command to his PI? I also think Diana is basically the best character to have chosen to be Chuck’s mom. She’s interesting and funny (though that might be mostly due to your awesome recapping abilities, Michael) enough that I don’t mind the writers giving her a storyline. She’s one of the few guest stars that actually has a personality.
Elodie | Well duh! Why else would she be sleeping with Nate? Why else would she be British? Why else would she hang around Chuck’s apartment in her lingerie? Why else would there be that unexplained picture of her and Bart Bass?
Yeah, pretty much saw this coming from the moment she stole the picture and was convinced when we found out that someone gave Chuck the transfusion. I think this may be my favorite Gossip Girl storyline to ever unfold, just because CHUCK’S MOM HAS BEEN SLEEPING WITH HER SON’S BROMANCE BUDDY. That is fucking weird, but also hilarious.
Samantha | Everyone and their mother saw this coming, so it wasn’t really shocking, but Ed’s acting in reaction to the news was stellar, and really made the whole ridiculous plot line worth it.
Michael | Obvious storyline is obvious. And if they say in the next episode that she isn’t, I will only forgive this if it’s because she’s Bart Bass. Otherwise, let it go, GG.
Monika | Serena is confusing me. She’s obvs being a completely hypocritical bitch to Lola, both in this episode and the last one. However, I feel like her motivations are kind of murky to me. That half-assed explanation she gave Lola at the end of the the episode felt too vague and squeezed in half-heartedly. This Serena as GG storyline would actually be a great way to rekindle the Blair/Serena friendship. Blair could find out and then we could have a proper scene with Serena explaining her thought process behind these stupid decisions, which would finally bring some more depth back to her character and to her friendship with her BFF.
Elodie | Serena is about as witty as the real Gossip Girl. Who reads this site? Also isn’t it great that the real Gossip Girl kept her identity hidden for, what 7 years? Serena failed after two(?) weeks. On that count she is pretty shitty.
Samantha | I LOVE bitchy Serena. I love her so hard. She is still kind of an awful, transparent Gossip Girl, but I love how she is just stabbing at everyone. Love it.
Michael | I thought that in the last episode, she was actually quite good. But this episode was laughable. You didn’t think that maybe Lola would suspect you after that? You leave your phone unattended? You have an app for that!? Goodness. At least we actually got some insight into why Serena is doing this rather than just ’cause. I’m glad the writers decided to do that.
Monika | Lola fails at nailing Serena as GG as much as Serena fails at actually being GG. I’m glad she’s quitting. I liked Ivy Dickens as Charlie Rhodes wayyyy better than Lola as Charlie Rhodes. Unfortunately, we still haven’t seen the William/Carol/Lola storyline be resolved so we know Lola’s going to end up being dragged back to the UES.
Elodie | Lola? Oh the “it girl” – um… Yeah I guess that was interesting? You know what’s funny? Her dad is also Serena’s dad, whose mom is Chuck’s adopted mom, which means Nate not only unknowingly slept with Chuck’s mom, but also with his half-adopted sister.
Samantha | Eh, Lola, get off my screen. You bore me to tears.
Michael | For the most part, this is probably the most interesting Lola has ever been. But she was right, and I didn’t mind her wanting to unveil the person who badmouthed her. Other than that, she probably should have stopped short of Diana revealing she’s Chuck’s mum.
Monika | I was really surprised that Lily was willing to sell the apartment. That Prada sign is iconic for the show. I was actually touched by her commitment to making the relationship work. With the whole Ivy situation, I respect Rufus for doing what he felt was right but I also think he was a dumbass to tell that waiter to keep the change (what was that, a twenty?!) after his credit card got declined. This is how people end up broke, Rufus.
Elodie | Are they still on this show?
Samantha | I think Lily is finally becoming the WASP Cece always wanted her to be, and Rufus regained a bit of his manhood while in Brooklyn and he doesn’t want to give it up. It was cute how he thought he could still spend her money though. Sigh, all these housewives are the same…
Michael | I’m so glad that they actually have a storyline. And to be honest, it’s much better than “Oh she doesn’t like Brooklyn!” This is about something we’ve been joking around with for a while now — that Rufus is, like, a kept man. Ha! But, no, seriously, it’s good…for now. Even if I’m mostly annoyed that Ivy is offscreen.
Monika | OH MY GOD. Dan and Blair have just earned the “Most Annoying Couple” award in the history of this show just for this episode. I can proudly say that I understood about zero of the references they made. All I could think of was the recap from last week (“We can be pretentious ERRYWHERE”). I spent about half the time rolling my eyes and the other half gagging in disgust. The only couple more annoying than them was the Brangelina of the five Burroughs they ran into at the cafe whose names I can’t remember. So much bad acting and so much pretentiousness.
Elodie | They grew as a couple? I think we were in pretty much the same place at the end of the episode as we were at the beginning and quite frankly it was quite a boring place. I like Dan and Blair when they are being argue-flirty, together as a couple? Not so much.
Samantha | Dan and Blair are basically a 80 year old married couple at this point. What 21 year olds, who have been dating for all of 3 weeks, spend their first full night together discussing artists? Also, they could not be more pretentious if they tried. I wouldn’t mind if they too got off of my tv screen. A show about Bitch!Lily, Bitch!Serena, Chuck, and Nate would be enough for me (and, of course, Ivy, Georgina, Jack, and all the other minor characters who make this show wonderful).
Michael | I’m with you guys; I had no idea what they were saying half the time. I think I need to become more worldly. Also, for the most part, I think this kind of storyline was needed for the people that are still questioning how they can be a couple with the “class issues.” So it is what it is. And lastly, the writers just needed a party for the [expletive] to go down.
Monika | There is a huge part of me that wishes this show could be not GG-ish for just a moment and let Nate rattle off “your mom” jokes at Chuck in the next episode. That would just be hilarious.
Elodie | Far too many people are related to each other on this show.
Samantha | When is Nate going to get that thing on his lip treated? When is Jack going to come back? What is Diana’s real secret? It’s that she is Bart, right. At this point, anything else would just be disappointing.
Michael | Oh, my goodness. Elodie. I had not realized just how related everyone in this group is. Ew. Also, somehow these last couple of episodes have been feeling a bit more Gossip Girl-like than the rest of this season, but mostly with Rufus and Lily’s story.
Monika | I would give this episode a C- due to Dair being completely unbearable. Actually, I’m gonna bump that up to a C for Chuck’s angry rant.
Elodie | For the moment that Chuck launches a tirade against Diana, an A! For the rest of the episode a B-.
Samantha | Eh, B+, but only because of Ed’s acting and Bitch!Serena.
Michael | I’d give this a B-, myself. It wasn’t quite as good as last week’s when I re-watched. Last week’s episode was much better, to be honest.
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Ed deserves millions of awards for making this show more bearable!!! His acting is suprerior than the shit they give him!! Amazing is amazing. Period. So why they cut his scenes and not DB's stupid ones? Where was Chuck and Lily scene that seemed in BTS photos??? WTF??? I don't wanna see DB's faces! They can live their pretentious "coupling" thing which looks more like a disturbing "sibling" interaction OFF-SCREEN! Like they retconned the whole show. I rather Chuck's SL even if its includes changes in his parentage over anytime!! I like Bitch!Serena too but the show sucks generally!
Lol...Yeah, Ed was pretty good this episode, I’ll give you that. But do you honestly think that he is that good? Nobody on GG deserves awards...Let’s be real. I mean, it’s not their fault, it’s the terrible stories that writers give them. They don’t have much to work with.
Only bearable thing was Ed's scene. Thanks to the people that acknowledged it.
OMG, Chace doesn’t have herpes!!!
What else would you call a sore on his lip that has not disappeared for 4 weeks aka at least an entire month filming??
he fell down the stair or something. On new years eve.
*stairs
Um, this recap is really biased re: ships. Just saying.
Actually Monika is a Dair shipper, but just didn't like this episode for them. The rest of the Dair shippers are weirdly MIA as of late with the roundtable. Weird.
Most roundtables are....
Yeah, as Michael mentioned, I AM a Dair shipper. I just found them annoying as hell in this episode. We didn't do a round table for last week's episode, but I LOVEDDD the Dair scene at the end of that one :)
Too generous- I would give it an F. This episode forgot about all the things that made us want to watch the show to begin with. Serena's motivations do NOT make sense. She just needs a storyline. Dan and Blair are pretentious and boring. Chuck and Elizabeth Hurley's scene at the end was supposed to be touching but, her motivations for walking around in her underwear in Chuck's apartment doesn't make any sense. It was supposed to be a touching moment but it failed. Lola is a bore but Serena's hatred of her comes completely out of nowhere. Rufus was behaving as if he had just met Lily, while Dan and Blair were behaving like they have been married for 25 years. Everything was contrived- Serena happens to "overhear" Elizabeth Hurley talking about giving blood to Chuck, Serena decides to ask some random nurse if she knows Elizabeth Hurley, nurse proceeds to recall that Elizabeth Hurley was present the night Chuck Bass almost died and also donated blood- how convenient for her to remember every last detail. Lola suspects Serena is 'Gossip Girl,' so Serena leaves her unlocked iPhone on the table right next to Lola, where Lola finds a fucking ap which reveals she is in fact who Lola is accusing her to be. Lola then sneaks around the corner and records the Serena/Elizabeth Hurley conversation barley hidden from view. HUH?
And Dan and Blair go get ICE for the own party? Both of them? Together? Has every service person in New York died? Blair won't even clean her own bathroom. This was just a mess.
I couldn't agree more. Chuck also came in to ask who gave him blood and was told that the information was confidential... but Serena (who is nobody in this scenario) asks a random nurse who just gives her the info?! Come off it.
Also, Lola filming Serena and Diana - which doesn't prove Serena is GG anyway? What was the point of that?
Nate is the worst boyfriend ever - whatever Lola tells him, he goes off and gossips to Serena. For someone who's never sent a blast to Gossip Girl he's unbelievably incapable of keeping anything to himself. Unless he IS GG. I may be onto something here...
I'm really getting sick of this whole Chuck is a god crap.
Chuck isn't saving the show- his storylines are way too repetitive and boring.I love Ed Westwick, he's a cool guy and can pull off some pretty good acting (Season 1 being the main evidence for that) but, on GG at least, he's not THAT mind blowing for most of the time and his rant at Diana was well acted but not as outstanding as some people want to think it was.Infact, all the actors on this show can be hit and miss. I'm sure they'll all do much better once they've moved on.
On to Dan and Blair.
As much as I agree that it's ridiculous that one episode they're having sex in alleyways and in the next they seem more 'old coupley', I do find myself seriously questioning all those people saying that they didn't understand any of the references that were made and that that means they are pretentious.
NO.
If you didn't understand any of the references then go read some books. NOW.
Frankly, the writers did not make it that challenging. Damien Hirst, for example, is a very well known international artist, not an obscure and particular personality for serious intellectuals.
Some tend to throw the word pretentious around when they don't know or understand what is being talked about and rather than googling it and learning something new they choose to belittle it so they can feel better about themselves and go back to watching 'American Idol'.
I live in an area saturated with pretentious hipsters who wear silly hats and grow twirly moustaches and sit around in rustic cafes all day pretending to know and be interested in foreign cinema and modern art. That is boring and tedious. Dan and Blair, on the other hand, are portrayed as culture lovers who are genuinely passionate about art and literature and enjoy discussing it with each other. Personally I think that's lovely :)
But what do I know? Maybe I'm just pretentious.
You do realize that Gossip Girl's target audience is 12-18 year old girls right? Having the writers throw around all those high culture artists and what not is just silly.
And its not necessarily Dan and Blair discussing high culture with each other that is pretentious (at least, not to me), its the fact that they THREW A PARTY to discuss it with other 'intellectuals' and invited NONE of their actual friends. That was just over that top pretentious douchery right there.
It's not like their friends would or did understand a thing they were saying. Dan and Blair are easily the smartest characters on the show. They wanted to create a niche for themselves, without the difficulty that their friends would bring. It's not like any of them are on the edge of their seats waiting to support their relationship anyways.
LMFAO I think it should be noted that just because people might not understand some things Dan and Blair reference, that shouldn't lessen their enjoyment of a storyline. It, honestly, makes no difference to me if I don't know an artist they're talking about or whomever the hell that couple in this episode was. I've forgotten their names already. (Now, that couple's acting DOES lessen my enjoyment.) I don't need to know half the things they talk about, nor do I care to learn about it, because I understand the gist of it — they are very culturally knowledgable. That's all that you need to know. Being knowledgable on the subject doesn't add anything to the story…or the banter. It works on its own.
Hey guys! thanks for replying :)
So a show who's target audience are 12-18 year olds is ok with showing drug use, boozing at noon, hanging out with prostitutes etc' but throwing around some cultural references is too much for all those younglings?
And why is Courtney Stodden a more suitable reference for an 18 year old than say, T.S.Eliot?
When the former is mentioned the viewers either laugh or remain indifferent but when Dan asks Blair if she'd like to go see the Cindy Sherman exhibition then the word pretentious starts to get thrown around left to right.
Yes, it is possible to enjoy the show without getting some references because you get the gist of what the writers are trying to show. But there have been times when I have missed a reference only to pick up on it later and realise that it sometimes makes a difference within the context of the scene or it is a way for the writers to make fun of the show itself.
See, what I enjoy most about GG is that even though it has ridiculous storylines with unbelievable amounts of plot holes and some very bad acting ( as you said- that VERY pretentious couple from Brooklyn. they were the pretentious ones in this ep indeed!) it manages to pull off being quite ironic and post modern by making fun of itself occasionally and using pop culture references. Without that I probably would have stopped watching long ago. In my eyes it's an essential part of what GG is all about.
So it's nice to have Dan and Blair as a kind of gateway into more of that fun stuff. I feel that it helps elevate the show slightly.
that's not to say I thought the episode was amazing or wouldn't wish some things were done differently but I do appreciate a tiny bit of intellectualism thrown in. I am a Woody Allen fan after all...
I love how everybody is now saying pretentious like it's a new word! Good job Michael, you should teach one new vocab word each week. That way, people can broaden their terminology! It'll be like the word of the day. I'm not even being sarcastic, this can only have a positive outcome.Think of all the minds That'll be expanding. You'll be educating with humor.
THANK YOU
It's not that people don't understand what they're talking about that is the problem (although I am sure there are a lot who don't - so what? I often don't get Blair's various references to pop stars and socialites simply because I am not interested in who some Hollywood bimbo is dating this week or whatever), the problem is that what they are talking about is not interesting and is not at all RELEVANT to the viewers. Their discussions don't add anything to the story, to the understanding of the characters, to anything. This week's episode was pretty much useless on the Dair relationship front, because they are in the exact same place as they were before. They don't need to show me how the two of them read newspapers and stare at their food every episode (anyone else noticed that they only ever have scenes in the Waldorf dining room?), because that will bore the viewers to tears. I didn't see any evolution, or any change. I didn't see them solve their issues; Humphrey carrying luggage to Blair's house and akwardly discussing in bed didn't make their problems go away. Plus, it reminded me of camp, or a 3rd grade sleep over. I don't know, I'm just not feeling the connection. Not to mention the inconsistency of having them sex it up all over town in one episode, and then act like they're 80 in the next. That is not good and consistent writing. Or maybe the purpose of this was to show that they are not at all attracted to each other when they're not drunk? I have really been trying to get to like Dair, but they're just making it so damn hard for them to be likeable.
I think the writers are trying to show that Dan and Blair can be a passionate couple as well as an intellectual one. They don't need to have sex all the time, they can also carry a conversation that they both find stimulating. Plus, a couple doesn't have to be either on the rocks or passionately in love one episode to the next (like Chuck and Blair), they can be stable and happy with each other. Maybe that's "boring" to some viewers, but personally I find it refreshing.
Agree with a lot of the thoughts here - DB are pretentious beyond belief, Chuck/Ed saved the episode, Mother Lover bromance FTW, Lola makes no sense but is at least able to outsmart Serena, etc.
That being said, I want to say that Serena's motivations as explained this episode are sort of ... a metaphor for the season as a whole, in my opinion? We spent the last 5 episodes not really knowing WTF was going on with Serena. She's in love with Dan, but okay with DB because of whatever reason, but all sad and alone, and then suddenly she's all into being GG and destroying everyone? I guess that her motivation was that she had lost everything and GG was the only thing left that she could control, but we didn't really get to SEE that onscreen and so her explanation fell flat. GG is so obsessed with "protecting" its OMGs this season that it actually makes it impossible to connect with or understand most of the characters and paradoxically makes the reveal of said OMGs less exciting or interesting.
Thank God for Ed in this episode. Even though he only had like 2 scenes, he made every second count. I swear if they change their mind next ep and have Diana go "Oops, sorry. Not your mom!", I will throw something. As ridiculous as Chuck's whole family history is, I just want to them to stop changing it and just stick to one version. Liz Hurley actually did a pretty good job of telling her story and being sympathetic to a degree. I liked that Chuck was a lot more calm and understanding with Diana, compared to his confrontation with Elizabeth. Sure he was definitely angry but not snarky and snippy like last time. ITA with Monika that it'd be hilarious if they just let Nate go on with a bunch of "your mom" jokes next ep! :D
As for Dan & Blair, I admit I'm a CB shipper and don't like DB but I felt this ep was just so over the top annoying and awkward compared to all the other DB stuff this season. The writers have ruined the banter that they used to have. I know that DB are supposed to be super-intellectual and book smart but it was too much this ep. When have either Dan or Blair have been this "nerdy" in the past? Dan wasn't even like this with Vanessa and they used to talk about foreign movies, books, etc. all the time. IA I had no clue what they were talking pretty much the entire ep. It was like a game how much name-dropping can we do in one ep? I don't expect to understand every pop culture reference the characters make on this show (and I don't always) but it's never got in the way of me enjoying a storyline before. The DB story this ep felt like it depended on viewers understanding all those references. DB used to be able to banter about literature, movies, etc without being annoying. Their dialogue last season was much better.
I have mixed feelings about Serena as GG stuff too. I just want her to make up her mind about what she wants. Does she want to be relevant and the "IT" girl or not? Or just get over it and move on. She was so determined to be family to Lola, but then now they're just trying to out-bitch each other. Guess things will get super-awkward when they find out they're half-sisters. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed Lily and Rufus' story this ep. I'm surprised this fight didn't come earlier in their marriage. It was nice for Rufus to acknowledge how much he had changed to be part of Lily's world. At least he realizes he has been reduced to a house-husband!
Um.. kinda harsh on Dan and Blair. I realize that you're entitled to your own opinions and that you clearly prefer the endless drama that was Chuck and Blair but you have to realize that fans of both couples read these posts. The pretentious party planning and conversations that you find "annoying", "disgusting", and "boring", other fans find endearing. Yes, this is Gossip Girl and it's not exactly catered to the intellectual but you can't blame the writers for trying to contrast some of the idiotic characters of the show with the smart ones. I also disagree that Dan and Blair were at the same place at the end of the episode as they were at the beginning. The point of their storyline this week was to show how they deal with their different backgrounds and how they succeed where Lily and Rufus fail.
I think the real problem, personally, as someone who isn't an idiot (self-proclaimed, that is), is that Dan and Blair have already been entering each other's worlds. That's part of made their pairing up last season (and the past year) enjoyable — that they've begun to accept aspects of the other half, gradually. So, this episode, for me, was almost redundant…and kind of disappointing that the choice is UES or whatever, seeing as we've been going through a story of them accepting each other.
But whatever. As I mentioned, I'm more than sure this episode was for the people that still claimed the class thing was still a MAJOR issue, claiming they shouldn't even be friends because of it…which is just ridiculous. Certainly, it would have been a hurdle. But…just because one party wasn't a success doesn't mean they're incompatible because of some class system.
You're right, that makes sense. I just found the discussion to be quite harsh regarding their relationship, although I'm sure that Chuck/Blair fans will find something wrong, regardless of what Dan/Blair do together. Thanks for replying!
Methinks you're being far too harsh on the Chuck and Blair fans. Most of this rountable are Dair fans btw, but are able to be critical of the episode regardless of shipping. Just because they didn't like something that you did doesn't make them harsh. It just means they've got a different opinion :)
I didn't hate the Dair conversations because I'm a fan of Chair and I most definitely did NOT enjoy the endless drama that was Chair. I hated the Dair conversations in this episode simply because they came across as boring and annoying to me. I don't have to support everything Dair does just because I support Dair as a couple. We know that fans of both pairings read these posts but that doesn't mean we should have to change our opinions. After all, this is a round table where we are supposed to share our opinions :) That said, thanks for reading and I hope I'm not coming across as rude.
That's true, everyone's entitled to their own opinion, I just had to state my own because the Dan/Blair discussion left me disappointed. Thanks for replying!
Good recap. Honestly, I'm just reading recaps at the moment. I did see the Chuck scenes on youtube, so due to those scenes I give it an A. I would give it an A+ if they hadn't cut the Lily Chuck scene, so youtube Chuck scene FTW. :) Dan and Blair,eh, if you have to throw a party to come out as a couple it just kind of tells me you're a bit pretentious and are trying to prove something you shouldn't have to.