As if the drama and chaos of our family Thanksgivings wasn’t enough, HBO returned with new episodes of chaos of the Upper East Side. Thanksgiving gatherings are chaos, but that’s part of the joy of being alive. After all, doesn’t everyone need one big fight a year?
Gossip Girl has a long history of having amazing holiday episodes and the return of the show, and after a four month hiatus, Gossip Girl did not disappoint. Was is the chaos and drama and outright backstabbing of the first iteration of the show? No. It wasn’t. But as a Gossip Girl fan, I have separated myself from the first and look at this one as it’s own. The writers were able to work with what they have and deliver us an episode that fit within the constraints of a different world.
Because this is a different world than the original and we need to respect and love it for what it is.
But what this episode was – it felt like trying to find a way to take the first half of the season and propel it into a new era. One that is a little less world building and more all the drama that we expect from Gossip Girl.
The world building of this iteration has been different – long and stretched out – but that’s been okay. Some characters we get and some we still don’t understand their motivation. But in this half of the season, Gossip Girl is aiming to make us understand the characters more. But this episode is missing the two that we don’t get – Luna and Monet.
The answer that we wanted the most – what happened between JC and Obie? Well, these two have grown to be the characters that you hate. After the demonstration of the last episode – they straight up slept together. And we’re not talking a cuddle. We’re talking fucked.
Do we understand their history? Yes. But do we also understand that they are fucking with the emotions of Zoya – who will be the one ending up getting hurt. Obie was supposed to be the guy that we all loved, the man with the moral compass to be rich, but still look out for the world and not want to fall victim to the trappings of the Upper East Side.
However, the two of them did the deed and both can’t stop thinking about it. JC doesn’t want Zoya to know – she doesn’t want to loose her sister. But the thing is, the truth always has a way of rising to the top.
Zoya is doing everything that she can to figure out her emotions. At 14, none of us know what they are or how they will change our life. But for Zoya, they are just overwhelming. She’s going through that stage in life where everything in life feels bigger than it is.
But if we’re being honest, what we hope for from the beginning, is that somehow we wrap up this love triangle and the truth comes out. We know that we don’t want Zoya hurt, but what we do want is for Obie and JC to. We want them to have to pay for their actions, but what we also want is for the world to see that Obie isn’t as innocent and the good guy he claims to be.
Yes, we know that we loved Obie. We did. But love can change as you get to know a character, see their flaws and figure out if they are redeemable or not. Do we get that people make mistakes? Yes, yes we do. But the thing is that Obie fucked with peoples emotions and that is unforgivable.
Julian, Obie, and Zoya are all their own level of fucked up and to blame for the chaos that they are in. We don’t agree with all of the people that think that Zoya is the one to blame – she’s 14. We are all nightmares at 14. What we do blame is Obie and JC for their lies. Their level of lies are just mind boggling.
It’s Thanksgiving and the Lott’s have always had an open door policy for the holiday. Anyone who needs a place to go, they are more than welcome there. Zoya is inviting everyone, but they all “have plans.” But here’s the beauty of Thanksgiving or any holiday – hell any day for that matter – plans can change.
This is going to work out for the teachers – Keller and Jordan are going to need to be around the group. Why? Rafa is holding Gossip Girl hostage, while they need to get him something on Max, incase Max comes for him. Max’s Mom is in town trying to get his Dads back together, and that is its own level of chaos.
As screwed up as Max is – and he is – he longs for one thing – stability. And his Dads together is what makes him feel at ease. Because lets face it, Max is out to sabotage every other aspect of his life.
We get that humans are sexual beings. That’s a fact. But what we also get is that Max seems to trip and fall, planting his dick in anything that he can get it into.
The thing is – Max’s Mom is just well… forgettable. We thought she’d be someone that we took more of an interest in, but we don’t. She’s just there.
Aki is dealing with his Dad outing him on TV and the aftermath. Obie is acting weird and he doesn’t understand why it is that his best friend seems to have an issue with him. Not to mention the fact that things between Audrey and Aki are weird, because the two of them can’t seem to have a sexual connection unless it’s a threesome with Max.
All of them end up at the Lott’s for what turns out to be a lets divulge everything dinner. Davis even brings his girlfriend and she announces that they are engaged. Aki tells the entire table that Max, Audrey, and him are having sex, and Max admits to sleeping with his teacher, giving Keller and Jordan the information that they need to get Gossip Girl back from Rafa.
And Zoya finds out about Obie and JC. The speech that she delivers to JC, telling them that they are nothing. I was shooketh. You can only hope that she means it when she says that everything is done – that she’s done with JC betraying her – that she’s really done.
But is anything ever done on Gossip Girl?
OTHER THOUGHTS
- Max is the only person who doesn’t get awkward about sex, and I can appreciate that.
- Audrey’s Mom – I am worried about her and how she is acting. There is something there that we don’t know. I can feel it.
- Davis getting engaged and then her saying it’s because he doesn’t want her to testify. WTF is up there.
- The fact that Davis kept Lott out of the delivery room when his daughter was born. He’s gross and I hate him.
- Aki’s Mom is the most understanding Mom ever.
- Obie, you were my favorite. Why’d you have to be an asshole?
Gossip Girl is streaming now on HBO Max.