I know how you feel Shu. I have always loved Dan too, yes he made mistakes, but he is still my favorite and yes I don't like how they wrote Serena in later seasons as was mentioned before on this thread. She still was my favorite female, it just seemed season 5 was a season of random guest stars who weren't necessary.

Aw I loved the LA scenes!! Her and Nate were definitely in their element, California definitely agrees with them lol!! :love: and chuck looks good anywhere haha! Yeah deff agree :nod: I enjoyed when Serena shined as well, and as much as I hated them fighting pointlessly, the Serena/Blair Yale fight was actually really well written and it stemmed from the B!tchy Serena we got at the end of episde 4 which was GOLD! :lol: i loved queen S haha, As short as her reign was :lmao: she definitely didn't even want to be queen lol, the whole time she was 'in power' she was super pissed at Dan, and While I can see where she was coming from with Blair to an extent, as she always was conscious of Blair's feelings, she was a bit belligerent and callous about it, and it didn't help That poppy was blowing her trumpet! Its so funny that as soon as Serena refocuses and is happy, and they're friends again - She shows zero interest in being queen haha. i don't think she ever truly cared for it, I always see her as pretty carefree and breezing in and out of that clique when she wants, and sits there coz of Blair - consistent Ruling is much more Blair's thing haha. Yeah I love them both, I don't like comparing them as they're so different, but there's something about Blair that's really special :love: So Blair's my favourite too, but I always defend Serena as well as I feel like she gets a lot of misguided hate :/


I agree with this, I really enjoyed Dan when he was they way you described him here! He did make Serena want to be someone who people can rely on, and he did bring that side out of her for sure :) yeah, I didn't like the change as well as we've been mentioning, it's just a real shame.

Also Ds44 I'm sorry you feel that way, or if you've been bothered by comments about dan - I think everyone has characters they like or dislike on this show and for the most part I think people have been reasonably respectful recently, as in there's no flat out hate or anything, mainly discussion, and I think most of the comments stem from annoyance at the writers for the way they decided to go with these characters, and not the characters themselves. That's how I feel anyway! I don't hate any character (except Vanessa lol), and while I was pissed at season 5, and couldn't really stomach the second half, I am definitely happy that DS and CB got their happy ending! I just wish they had gone about the last 2 seasons in a different way and with more effort into their characterisations. It bothered me that they blew everyone to hell in the season 5 finale and didn't care enough to invest effort into properly writing resolutions.

But there's definitely more positives to this show than negatives and maybe we're getting too heavy with the discussion and losing sight of it haha.

I saw an article today that ranked the CW shows, and gossip girl was number 15, and I was so annoyed lol :lol: especially because shows like the Carrie diaries were ahead of it!! I mean wtf! so while it has its issues, this show as a whole is still one of the best teen tv dramas I think, and seasons 1&2 are just pure win :love:

I understand all that. I guess I am just tired. I spent the entirety of the show's run defending him and it just has gotten old.

Yeah I get that! I felt the same about chuck haha, so I know what you mean. It's crazy though and this is probably the only show where this is possible, but I really feel like I can watch the first 2 seasons and it's like I mentally separate them from the rest of the show. Because everyone was so much better then, and if you didn't like someone you at least understood their motivations! I love living in that bubble haha

While Season 3 bored me, I felt I mostly enjoyed the first 3 and half seasons or atleast understood the story. S1 and 2 are so special to me though. I love rewatching them and it puts a big smile on my face. I guess at the end of the day that's why we are all here. We have an attachment to these characters and relationships.

Yeah same I enjoyed Bits of 3 and 4 as well, but season 1&2 is the show at its prime, and I'm not sure if it's just coz they were still in school but the whole show was just at a different level. I loved how they had such great character moments, it was a big focus. And the outfits and fashion are incredibly timeless in those seasons!! so maybe it is because they were still in high school, or maybe it's because both the cast and writers were still 100% passionate about it so they brought more life to it.. It's probably a combination of things but you're absolutely right, i have such a big attachment to these characters. I love the bonds and relationships, especially SB,CB and DS, but what makes the show special is that they put so much into the characters as individuals right from the start, we got a deep sense of who they were and most of them were extremely dimensional. It's not that common on shows like this to have more than one or two of the core cast have such empathetic and well developed personalities, and yet Blair, Serena, chuck, Dan, Nate and even Jenny had such rich characterisations, that we saw straight away and then got built on over the first season, so it really was special :love:

To me that was josh Schwartz. Leaving the show really hurt it. He gave it something special it never regained.

I will alway love Dan so no hate from me here. The Humphreys have my heart.

For me, Season 1 was magic, it was phenomenal, everything about it I loved. After the strike things changed but I still enjoyed the series. 10/10 for me.

Season 2 lost a bit of its spark and i didnt love all the storylines but i still really loved the show. I still saw some of the magic there and enjoyed a lot of it. it was probably about a 8.5/9 for me.

Season 3 I really enjoyed in parts, it started out great. I didnt love most of the storylines in the later half though. I still really enjoyed the show and loved it but it just didnt have that spark for me anymore so it was probably like a 7.5/8 for me.

Season 4 things just got a bit weird for me. I hated that Jenny was gone. But I didnt think it was horrible. There were some really enjoyable storylines for me to watch and it still felt like gg to me at times. Some storylines were starting to get a bit boring though. I'd probably give it a 7 because I loved the DB stuff that season.

Season 5 things just got bad. DB aside i didnt like much about the show anymore. it just felt dragging. it felt like the writers had no idea where they were going and just threw stuff in. It just got so boring! It was all about the business side of things and i hated he new characters and just... idk, it was really not good anymore. Id rate it like a 6 or even a 5 if DB didnt have the storyline they had. They were the only thing keeping me watching TBH. and the small ds stuff.

Season 6 yikes, absolutely hated it. Hated everything about it. I never ever want to rewatch it. It was just bad and boring as heck. Id honestly give it like a 2 or 3 rating. Only the DS stuff I could enjoy tbh. I thought the finale was decent but nothing special and the dan reveal was just... i just cant even talk about it. :lol:

So yeah the show just got worse as it went on which sucks.

I loathe Season 5, especially second half, especially because of DB. Unblairable. Other than that I am ok with the later seasons. I love S1 & S2 the most but I also enjoyed S3 & S4 a lot too. They always had stronger first halves, snoozy-annoying second halves and great wrapping up with last episodes ;) That never changed.


Gossip Girl Star Leighton Meester’s Chic Red Carpet Return - Vogue

Gossip Girl: Where are the stars now?


:love:

Oh totally agree with that! He jumped ship and took the quality with him unfortunately :( Steph savage was still there in season 3, and she wrote 3x12 entirely herself which was my favourite episode of that season by a long long shot, so it still had some good things going for it, but as soon as she handed over the reins to safran and let him wreck havoc, that's when it all went so downhill. It's funny because he wasn't actually a bad writer - he wrote some of my fave CB scenes ever, but as a producer he SUCKED. He Had ZERO vision, basically wrote his own fan fiction, argh.

How I feel too, I loved absolutely everything about it, it was a solid 10 for me too. There was a shift after The writers strike, but I actually really loved it, the last 5 episodes had amazing tension and drama, and I really enjoyed Serena's arc in those episodes, because it was something we hadn't seen yet. Blake really pulled it off too, the 'I killed someone' scene was super eerie and they both did great, I still get shivers!

Eugh yeah agree completely :rolleyes: I couldn't stomach DB so second half was a write off when I watched the first time, but watching it back every single storyline is trash. Diana, Lola (god what were they doing with her) and Nate just hanging around. Chuck having a different mother every 5 seconds. But aside from my massive issues with Blair in those episodes, Serena's story was also awful, they threw her Under a bus and I hated it. :mad:

Yeah that's very true actually, the second halves were always SO much worse. I think they probably didn't ever properly plan out their seasons so when it came to the second half, any half assed idea cooked up in the writers room was embraced :rolleyes:

It's funny coz I remember when saffy finally got fired (/left but details) we were all hoping it would go back to season 1 awesome haha, but I agree with people who didn't like season 6 too.. it was probably my least favourite after 5, and 4B.

Oh wow that article!! :irked: is that written based on their characters or something because did anyone realise blakes bit literally spoke nothing about her career, and only about her husband and the fsct she's had 2 kids? Jeez, she's literally been in at least 2-3 big movies which they choose to ignore lol.. guess she really is Serena!! Ffs I don't know why but that annoyed me haha

I agree. He wrote some of my favorite DS episodes. I couldn't really enjoy 312 because it spent too much of that episode keeping Dan (ridiculously) away from Serena just so they could prop DV and NS. I really enjoyed the first 3 episodes of the season and 321 and 322 were fun. SS was messy as hell, but she was good at the beginning and end of seasons. It's like she didn't care about the 18 episodes in the middle :lol:

Safran was too busy trying to make his mark that he messed up the trajectory of the show. But, I always felt like when they took DS away from each other, the show lost a lot of its heart. Love em or loathe them the show was at its best when they and the humphreys were at the core. They tried to do something with the njbc that felt more like tell than show.


The media is ridiculously mean about Blake.It's like they all have inferiority complexes about her.

Season 6 was awful. I enjoyed some moments and it was mostly a lot of mishandled potential.My fav parts were all of s1, most of s2 except for parts of the second half, bits and pieces of 3 (like maybe 5 episodes) first half of season 4 and 606/607

Yeah I get that, I Didnt like DV at all, and I realise I definitely like dan the most when he was with Serena. I myself love the NJBC, and Can't help but enjoy NS, I find them sweet, but I agree with you that the trajectory of the show shifted when DS were deliberately kept apart. For me it wasn't so much season 3, as I do enjoy the NJBC but I really really noticed it in season 4. Because not only were DS separated but CB were too and it was too contrived.

But having said that, I enjoy the NJBC in any capacity so I would've been happy if they kept NS friends and had DS, like season 1. And now I think of it I got big DS feels in 3x21 when S was in the cab and it was Dan with her, it reminded me how much I liked them. But yeah season 3 was messy because of a lot of things and NS ended up being rushed anyway so it was kind of pointless having them if they were only going to screw them up.

It really seems like they do!! It's so unfair

Haha that's almost exactly how I feel as far as seasons go!! StIll enjoyed season 3 and the first half of 4 just nowhere near as much as 1&2. I HATE the unfulfilled portend of season 6 too!! it actually makes me so mad

Yeah they were more concerned about leading up to the gg reveal and I'm like NO1curr, this is GG not Pretty Little Liars. They could have used those ten to build DS and SB back together. I love friendshipy NS but I am not here for that pairing mostly cause they are boring and Nate can't handle Serena not even close. As for DV, my hatred for that pairing and that girl is just not even worth ranting about. I think I would have been okay with them still having say DS living under the same roof while that whole rushed mess was going on. Mostly I was bored and waiting for NJ to happen and it never did. Those two literally sparked up the screen. I think they tried to hard to make the DS guest stars too legit. I was like they are guest stars just let them be stupid and/or OTT crazy.

to be nate/dan was the best friendship on the show until they ruined it.

ARGH I know right!!! honestly I never gave a rats about who gossip girl was, and to me, whoever the specific person was behind the phone was irrelevant - it was NEVER the point! What mattered was what it represented - the idea of people blogging about their lives, and these people being under a microscope they never asked for, simply for being one of 'the elite'. And they ALL contribute, they all send tips, it's not down to one individual! And back then there wasn't the platform of Facebook etc, or anything on that level so it was a really fresh and compelling thing for them to deal with. So the fact that the writers made that the focus was SO disappointing and such a let down. It should have remained this ambiguous idea, there was no need to give it a face.. I think they forgot the entire point of their show in the first place

So yeah putting DS and SB back together should have been the core focus of that season. CB were fine and there was no doubt at that point they would make it, and they had minimal scenes anyway, so asides from them getting their wedding etc, the primary story should have been those two core relationships, mainly because they were SO damaged. And Whether people liked them or not after being ruined so bad in season 5, SB have always been the foundation of the show and there's no way this show should have ended without them being strong. I could rant endlessly about that so I'll just say that haha

Yeah I understand that point of view, Serena never seemed to return the intensity of nates feelings, and I don't think the show did a good job st all of showing how much they know or should understand each other. So for that reason and they way they were written, I think DS were the stronger couple for sure. LOL we are on the same page about Vanessa then :lol: I was never crazy about NJ, I tried to Like them, but I'm not sure, I just never really bought them, from Nates side. But I can see why people did! lol whoever had the Idea to clog this show with that many pointless guest stars should have been dropped from the writers team that day lol

my favorite ships:

1. nate/jenny
2. dan/blair
3. carter/serena
4. dan/serena
5. nate/blair

after that id go with: (but i dont care much for any of these TBH)

6. season 1-2 chuck/blair
7. nate/juliet
8. chuck/serena
9. chuck/vanessa
10. dan/vanessa

Dan/Blair are my otp.
My old otps were team endgame DS CB and NJ.
I don't like rufus/ivy, lily is better for him.
nate/sage/diana/charlie I don't like either.
and serena/ben, steven, etc.
I don't like louis/blair.
I also don't like Dan changing and all he cares about is his book.

I liked Nate/blair and nate/vanessa as well.

But season 5 and 6 not so much dan/serena and chuck/blair.

My ships in order

1. DS
2. NJ

and yep that'sit

Couples I liked at one point or another

NB
CB (s1 pre 113) mostly
and that's it

My tastes were pretty simple.

I don't like louis/blair.

I hated Blair's relationships with everyome that wasn't Chuck, and vice Versa. Mostly because they were the only ones that saw and accepted all sides of each other.

Actually except Blair/Nate, which I found cute in season 2 because it was kind of security for them and what they both needed at the time, especially Blair. Blair/Louis was just a badly rehashed version of season 2 NB, an absolute snooze fest, and he way WAY overstayed his welcome. And Dan/Blair is my biggest NOTP of all time and something I like to forget happened, but I know they have fans here so just my opinion!

I seesaw all the time between Dan/Serena and Serena/Nate depending on circumstances. I loved DS in season 1, they were a big part of a range of things that made that season 1 perfect. I loved how happy they boTh were. But I loved serenate too, firstly for their friendship and I enjoyed their relationship, but they didn't show Serena returning his feelings like she should've, and probably would've, but that's probably due to DS being the long term plan. Dan turned me off DS from season 5, but st the same time Serena has always loved Dan most, and vice Versa (but I didn't fully buy it from Dan in the last seasons) and Im a Serena fan so I just wanted her to be happy! I had no complaints about DS endgame, only the way they wrote it.

Didn't really like any other ships.. although I liked the Rufus/lily story in season 1.
And I did enjoy Serena/Carter on the sly got to admit :lol: there was something about Sebastian Stan in that role haha

Serena/Carter were sweet. :nod: I didn't like Aaron, Tripp, Ben, Colin, Steven etc. I love season 4 Dan. He is always there for both Blair and Serena. All the things he said about Blair in Season 5 compared to what he said to Serena.

I love Sebastian but I was kinda eh about him although I did crackship him and Vanessa but that was prob based on my mutual dislike of them.

What did he say about Serena other than the fact that he was completely bitter about the Ben (deservedly so) debacle?

Yeah I liked the spark they had but I think I liked them mostly because I knew carter was only going to be around temporarily, and when he came back at the end of season 3 he was really shady and jealous so that was that!

Yeah I liked dan mostly in season 4, probably up until about 4.15. I really liked him in the DS 4x10-4x12 storyline because he was really supportive and believed in her which was lovely. But in regards to Blair I don't like what he said because he only acknowledged parts of her and pretended other parts didn't exist, he said scheming wasn't who she is. Which just isn't really true lol. So even though I was actually entertained by their growing friendship, as soon as he starting talking like that It didn't work for me anymore, felt far too contrived. And then season 5 was when my opinion of him really soured. Yeah and with Serena he was unnecessarily harsh in that book in season 5, and while she lashed out at Blair in the finale (which I don't really blame her for) Dan refused to take any responsibility for them sleeping together and that Didn't sit right with me st all, when it was both of them. I just hate that whole storyline though, eugh they really screwed everyone up in that episode :rolleyes:

But in season 4 he had every right to be bitter I agree, at least until she apologised in the finale. I hated Serena's relationships with those stupid guest stars

but she never apologized in s4. i guess while i hwted how he behaved i understood and when you look at what others have done its peanuts. i just feel like his faults are exaggerated. but what urritates me is that people like to free pass others. i felt like dan was trying to make blair serena.and she ate up all that attention because i think she loved having someone's attention that was always serena's. its like she saw it as karmic payback or sonething. mostly i never believed in his feeling cause they seemed tooted in making serena suffer. as for season 6, i will never understand why he threw a git since he clearly enjoyed being with her. i just felt a lot of stuff was very plotty rather than character driven. i was so annoyed that dan and serena ridnt reunite after 412. they should have.

carter was akways hot, but he reaked of slime. i dudnt hate thd relationship tbh. he was serena's georgina.

Yeah well she apologised to dan and Nate for messing them around and not choosing between them (which she actually did, she chose dan) but she didn't specifically for Ben. Yeah that's true, there has been people that have done worse definitely but I think what irritates me about him though, especially the last 2 seasons is that he didn't take ownership of his mistakes or suffer any real consequences for them like other characters did. For example Chuck made the most mistakes out of anyone that is undeniable, and he got a lot of hate for it which He deserved at the time, I was one of them lol. but he also suffered for them, and eventually took responsibility for the position he ended up in, and had some real growth. That's the only reason I was able to forgive his actions from season 3/4, because he didn't act like consequences were unfounded. The difference for me, is that If dan had acknowledged his actions in seasons 5&6 I would've forgiven them or at least understood them like everyone else. That's just how I see it and why Hes personally not one of my favourites, everyone's different though. I'm still happy with the endgame though!

You make an interesting point about Blair, in that she found it a sort of karmic payback. I think subconsciously she did love when she shone, especially when it was in favour of Serena. It's a real insecurity that stems right from the pilot and something I really wish they had explored better, I think it was an issue that was always underlying SB and it would've been a good character story to go into in the last season. But thing is Serena can't help that she naturally attracts attention or that people just gravitate towards her, she never asked for it! A lot of it was Blair's insecurity and I really wish they put more effort into that because I've always empathised with both of them but it was poorly done at the end.


But I totally agree with you that They shouldve just reunited in 4x12, I wanted that! It was pretty contrived to keep them apart, because Serena had just decided for good that she wanted dan and not Nate, and dan wanted to be with her, so it was really irritating that they made Serena act The way she did and sort of take him for granted. It was absolutely plot driven and that's when the show started to go downhill imo!