Tuesday, May 19, 2009

"Gossip Girl" finale recap: "The Goodbye Gossip Girl"


Last night's second season finale of the CW teen soap "Gossip Girl" really felt more like a series finale, didn't it? I mean, I know the show is coming back, but there were certain moments that felt final or, at least, like the passing of a torch. Jenny and Blair had a detente, and Blair forced Jenny in as the new queen bee. Chuck finally declared his love for Blair. The kids went off to college. Lily and Rufus finally decided to get engaged. All felt like something was ending.
Were it not for a couple of dangling plot threads (the arrival of Dan/Serena's half brother; the discovery of Serena's dad; Georgina's resurgence), I would wonder just what the heck was going on.
Anyway, here are some more thoughts on the season two finale of "Gossip Girl," titled "The Goodbye Gossip Girl."
* Gotta say, this episode's overlying plot was ridiculous. Really, Serena? You and your boobs are going to bring down Gossip Girl. No. It wouldn't happen. Not even with Blair and Chuck helping you. Look Serena, I know you mean well but you're on a show called "Gossip Girl." You can't get rid of the title character. No.
* Can I just say how much I loved that, instead of wearing a cap to graduation, Serena just attached her tassle to her long, blond extensions? Perfect. I just can't decide whether Serena did this because her fashion sense is so bad, or because she simply didn't realize that the tassle goes on the hat, not the head.
* Also loved that Jenny's "crown" as queen is a diamond studded headband. Because of course that's Blair's idea of a crown. Perfect that Jenny's first rule as queen is "No more headbands. Except for this one.
* Here are a few more things I loved about the episode: that when Lily announces that she found pot in Chuck's room, Rufus's only reaction is "Then I bet it's good"; that when Blair makes the outgoing mean girls scoot over to make room for her, she employs a Cyrus-ism, "Not enough;" that stupid Nate thinks that everyone who comes into the bar is Gossip Girl; that Dan's name was spelled wrong in the program, and that it was eventually corrected as "Don"; and yes, loved the Chuck/Blair love pronouncement, even if it can only end badly.
*Here are some things I didn't love about the episode. First, why was the whole Poppy/Georgina story pushed into the background? We got almost nothing on it. Plus, Michelle Trachtenberg is on a new show for NBC next year, so I don't know how much we'll even see of her in season three. We better get more on this story, though. I feel shortchanged. I also didn't love that we saw little to no Dorota. Please! Like she wouldn't be buzzing around Miss Blair like a bee throughout the whole graduation event. Also, I thought it was totally unrealistic that Blair had a heart-to-heart with Chuck after Gossip Girl's reveals about them. Blair is a teenage girl. When she hears that her true love slept with her mortal enemy, she doesn't step back and wonder what she's really angry about. She just kicks said mortal enemy's ass.
* Overall, an OK episode, though it really did shortchange that whole Poppy/Georgina plot. What did you think?

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