Oh, Granderbilt. You are my favorite non-main character on “Gossip Girl.” There, I said it. I hereby profess my undying love for him and his uncanny ability to make the Archibald plotlines interesting. I was so excited when I saw he was returning in this episode, and the Archibald invasion made for a really good, twisty-turny episode.
Great Things:
Tripp and Maureen Return- I love the guy they picked to play Tripp- he has a very young Jimmy Stewart vibe that is just wonderful to watch. Very few characters on this show are driven by integrity like he is, and I think Nate (who thinks he has more integrity than he actually does, always) will benefit from being around a guy like Tripp. Nate needs someone to look up to, and I think he and Tripp’s mentor/mentee relationship should defnitely continue. Nate taking the fall for the family was surprisingly affecting, and Maureen being revealed as the Big Bad was a brilliant twist. Maureen and Tripp are a great “Ghosts of Christmas Future” glimpse for Blair and Nate, and what they could have turned into if they hadn’t gotten out of that dead-end relationship that existed solely to please everyone but themselves, and it’s so nice to see Blair around the Archibalds without Stepford-ing out all over herself. Thank goodness for Chuck Bass, that’s all I can say. For so many reasons– and on that note-
-Chuck’s Speech to Serena- Very, very touching, especially when my therapist-minded sister pointed out that Chuck was clearly talking about Nate (“Your friendship’s not just going to take care of itself!”). I think Chuck really does miss that kind of best friend relationship, and it hurts him to see Blair and Serena being so cavalier about throwing it all away.
-Brandeis- Heee! What a funny guest star. And that bag WAS amazing. I did so want a moment of her recognizing Chuck or something though. Come on, show, Chuck’s past is not coming back to haunt him nearly enough!
Not-So-Great Things:
-Vanessa getting shamed for nothing- Nate showed me once again that when he shames cast members and not guest stars, it annoys me. Sure, Vanessa was being plucky and getting into everything, but that is what Vanessa DOES. She and Nate’s relationship seemed a little weird and undefined to me as well- I would think they would be better friends after spending the whole summer together, why were things so tense?
-Bathroom Boy- I wanted the Jimmy Fallon story to be a million times more shocking (his shirt was inside out? *gasp!*), and once again Olivia acted shady and cagey to poor Dan. Okay, Hilary Duff, you’re charming and everything and have made this character more likable than she had any right to be, but that contract’s about to run out, right? I still kind of want something to happen with Dan and Vanessa, and them not to just be saddled with dopey guest stars.
-Blair Climbing Into a Depression Cave- I thought this was totally in character, but so sad when she was laying in Chuck’s bed just looking so tiny and sad in that giant robe. I feel bad for Chuck because she is putting an enormous amount of pressure on him to be the only good thing in her life when so many other things are also putting pressure on him. I do think their relationship should be a happy escape for both of them, but the real world goes on, epic love or not, and Blair has to face it and the consequences of her sometimes loony actions. But something I did love was how Leighton Meester acted the hell out of Blair’s speech about “Things are different! I’M different!” and I think it gave us enormous insight into why Blair is so fiercely protective of and then also self-sabotagingly destructive to her relationship with Chuck. NYU is proving not to be the great crusade she hoped, Serena is proving to not be as sparkly and perfect as Blair always thought she was, but Chuck is holding steady as the scariest, most real thing she’s ever really held in her hands. Blair hates reality, because it uniformly disappoints her. But the reality of Chuck is actually living up to the fantasy, and I think that almost scares her more.
I thought this episode did a great job of showing all the main foursome (Serena, Nate, Blair, and Chuck) clawing their way into adulthood, which is proving to be the big arc of this season, and I really dig it. What does it mean to grow up? How do you know when you’ve achieved it? What do you have to give up to have an adult life, and what things should you hold onto? Only time will tell…XOXO
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