Disclaimer – My internet isn’t working properly this week so I’m not going to be able to fact check this week’s Re-cap so there may be errors. If so feel free to point them out and I’ll correct when I get to decent Wi-Fi.
It’s time for another thrilling episode of Gossip Girl. The buzz on campus is that there’s a hot new celebrity (Hilary Duff) who is coming to NYU for a normal college life. Of course Dan tells Nate he has no clue who she is and yes, they meet cute. Turns out she’s Vanessa’s new roommate. Serena and Rufus have a funny moment when they rehearse Serena telling Lilly she dropped out of school. Jenny tries to change Constance and Blair is not happy so she goes back to rule Constance once again. Serena looks for a job and is turned down by all of her Fashion industry friends. After a tough day job hunting she ends up meeting Hilary and her publicist who promptly offers Serena a job planning Hilary’s movie premiere. She befriends the movie’s co-star Ursula (Tyra Banks). Dan discovers his new crush is yes, the actress and he is not at all happy.
Blair is so pathetic she’s actually having a slumber party for Constance girls. I find I’m starting to miss the old Blair a bit. Chuck comes to Jenny’s rescue. Dan’s not happy when he finds out who his new crush really is, poor Dan. Lilly is still upset that Serena isn’t going to Brown and not impressed with her job saying the only reason she got is because of who she is. The publicist turns out to be a snake in the grass. I deal with them every day, so I can relate. She fires Serena when she refuses to lie to Ursula.
Lilly gloats when Serena gets fired, she moves out of the house and of course Lilly blames Rufus. Chuck restores Blair’s confidence. Uh, oh the old Blair is back and has found some new minions. The episode ends with Vanessa calling psycho boy who blows her off to talk to Georgina. Jenny takes her crown and Hilary and Dan get together.
Episode Review
The chemistry really worked this week and I love the continued growth of all the characters. Tyra Banks, someone who I loathe, was really good and I think Hilary Duff’s character is a great addition to the cast. There was some real depth to her role and I think she adds a certain amount of professionalism that I still think most of the cast lacks. I hope she sticks around for awhile.
Another reason this episode really clicks is there was no Bree, no Georgina and no Psycho Boy (at least until the last minute). This season’s weak point is Blair. She is the only one in the cast who isn’t growing up; her quest to become "queen" of NYU is just dumb, juvenile and childish. It was great that most of the episode beats this over her head and Chuck even says it. I was hoping all of this would force her to change and become a real person, but at the end of the day she doesn’t change and they give her minions to work with. If I was home and had my Tivo I would fast forward over all of her scenes. It’s just dumb. I also think they need to dump Jenny and Eric and not revisit Constance. Too bad 90210 can’t be as good as GG’s been this season.
Episode Grade B+
TV Recap by
Michelle Alexandria
Originally aired 10.05.09