Fandom Gossip Girl: The Panic Roommate reaction
Because I'm somewhat lazy, I'm just reposting my initial thoughts that I put up in Fail Forum. Then I'd probably add some new thoughts since I posted last night.
First thoughts:
my take away from the whole thing was Blair, once again, tells Serena that she's choosing between her future and her past. Blair calling out Serena that she's merely obsessed with the idea of Ben, as opposed to real Ben, went unheeded. I feel that this is the episode that they are actually pushing the idea of "they were all good men before something happens to them and some of them stay good". it was interesting i guess that Blair pointed out that Serena's type are men who are "outsiders, hates her mother, etc." - essentially season 1 Dan. Punctuate that with Serena saying she met Ben before Dan, makes you think that maybe the reason S was willing to give D that chance in that pilot long ago was that she was projecting Ben onto Dan. yup, might be a bit of a stretch there, but hear it out.
Now that Dan is no longer an outsider, but is in fact the ultimate Insider, he doesn't fulfill whatever need it is that she has. despite all of Serena's protests/efforts/whatever to change, she links her "change/improvement" with men - Dan, her father, Ben. I'm kind of sick of hearing/reading comments that keep saying that the writers are treating like CB and DS never happened, when obviously it did and it keeps getting shoved in our faces nearly every episode. D obviously hasn't forgotten S and frankly neither has S. I'm actually kind of glad that she stood up to her ex. That is how you say to your ex that some things are not their business anymore. Yes it comes off harsh, but the point is that they mutually agreed to stop dating so it is within her rights to explore something she's always wanted to explore. Yes it is bad that she's essentially keeping Dan in the backburner when the whole Ben thing fails - it is unfair, but it is also in character for her. Dan isn't special in that regard because she's done that with practically all the boys she's ever dated.
As for Chuck and Blair, I frankly didn't get the love pining thing that other people are pointing out. For me, it felt like their friendship in early season 1 before the burlesque. These 2 were friends once, and that was what they showed on screen - that they can be friends again. Blair calling Raina, well, that was just weird. Maybe she thinks they are still playing a game, maybe not. Maybe she will be completely broken-hearted next week.
And the best spoiler I heard about this week's ep that came true? "Dan is going to do a Blair on Ben". And he so did - you know, scheming that fails and all that (classic Blair), a specialty of the writer of this episode.
This show is just so confused about the ages of the characters. Everyone is acting as if they're 23-25 and out of college when they're supposed to be students. And I still can't get over Raina liking Chuck - you're a Wharton grad woman! There are better men out there! These people are like your little siblings! Fine fine, uncanny valley. Must pretend that the show crossed the uncanny valley. You know the Uncanny Valley - that point where you can suspend disbelief? (it's a term very much used by special effects people - the point where the effect is either too real or too fantastical that takes people out of the movie/show).
Additional thoughts 1:
Like D was the facilitator between C and B during season 2, B is sorta kinda playing that same role with D and S this season. There is a marked difference though, in that D thought that C and B getting together was natural because they were essentially both monsters, while this time with B she is actually lauding D's good qualities to S as she discovers them. There is a parallel there, but it's a bit different. The slight difference could be enough... for something different to FINALLY happen on this show.
I think since S3, both Chuck and Serena were given these crappy parental issues and we're still feeling the effects of that. These 2 never really dealt with their parental issues, while actually both Dan and Blair have sort of resolved theirs. I've always been more interested in character arcs than shipping arcs, so yeah, maybe this is just me looking for a silver lining for this obviously filler episode. S finally gets to go out with her dream guy (the guy who said No), and in the last 4 episodes B will do the same with her Prince. I don't know what reality will look like for them after all this. I know what I want it to look like, but I don't trust the writers to give it to me.
Additional thoughts 2:
Dan and Blair are each other's truth tellers, with B being D's voice for S and D being the voice of Chair for B (at least in previous seasons, obviously not this one). They tell each other's stories. So we have that storyteller motif there. I'm so interested in the point where the storytellers intersect, where they realize they are a part of each other's stories and eventually when they realize they are The Story. There are a lot of reporters in screwball comedies, and this at least is a motif that I can get behind.
it's really clumsily done, all of the callbacks to season 1. How Ben is essentially season 1 Dan, and Chuck is season 1 Nate. Yes, Nate messing up is the prop for ChAir in my opinion. They did say that they planned that to happen right? It was obviously early in the series but I think they always wanted to bring the Queen down that early on. We're just more jaded now because we've seen it before, and the whole limo thing was just "magical" back then because it hasn't happened before. The thing is, we know that DAir isn't hooking up in the same way.
First thoughts:
my take away from the whole thing was Blair, once again, tells Serena that she's choosing between her future and her past. Blair calling out Serena that she's merely obsessed with the idea of Ben, as opposed to real Ben, went unheeded. I feel that this is the episode that they are actually pushing the idea of "they were all good men before something happens to them and some of them stay good". it was interesting i guess that Blair pointed out that Serena's type are men who are "outsiders, hates her mother, etc." - essentially season 1 Dan. Punctuate that with Serena saying she met Ben before Dan, makes you think that maybe the reason S was willing to give D that chance in that pilot long ago was that she was projecting Ben onto Dan. yup, might be a bit of a stretch there, but hear it out.
Now that Dan is no longer an outsider, but is in fact the ultimate Insider, he doesn't fulfill whatever need it is that she has. despite all of Serena's protests/efforts/whatever to change, she links her "change/improvement" with men - Dan, her father, Ben. I'm kind of sick of hearing/reading comments that keep saying that the writers are treating like CB and DS never happened, when obviously it did and it keeps getting shoved in our faces nearly every episode. D obviously hasn't forgotten S and frankly neither has S. I'm actually kind of glad that she stood up to her ex. That is how you say to your ex that some things are not their business anymore. Yes it comes off harsh, but the point is that they mutually agreed to stop dating so it is within her rights to explore something she's always wanted to explore. Yes it is bad that she's essentially keeping Dan in the backburner when the whole Ben thing fails - it is unfair, but it is also in character for her. Dan isn't special in that regard because she's done that with practically all the boys she's ever dated.
As for Chuck and Blair, I frankly didn't get the love pining thing that other people are pointing out. For me, it felt like their friendship in early season 1 before the burlesque. These 2 were friends once, and that was what they showed on screen - that they can be friends again. Blair calling Raina, well, that was just weird. Maybe she thinks they are still playing a game, maybe not. Maybe she will be completely broken-hearted next week.
And the best spoiler I heard about this week's ep that came true? "Dan is going to do a Blair on Ben". And he so did - you know, scheming that fails and all that (classic Blair), a specialty of the writer of this episode.
This show is just so confused about the ages of the characters. Everyone is acting as if they're 23-25 and out of college when they're supposed to be students. And I still can't get over Raina liking Chuck - you're a Wharton grad woman! There are better men out there! These people are like your little siblings! Fine fine, uncanny valley. Must pretend that the show crossed the uncanny valley. You know the Uncanny Valley - that point where you can suspend disbelief? (it's a term very much used by special effects people - the point where the effect is either too real or too fantastical that takes people out of the movie/show).
Additional thoughts 1:
Like D was the facilitator between C and B during season 2, B is sorta kinda playing that same role with D and S this season. There is a marked difference though, in that D thought that C and B getting together was natural because they were essentially both monsters, while this time with B she is actually lauding D's good qualities to S as she discovers them. There is a parallel there, but it's a bit different. The slight difference could be enough... for something different to FINALLY happen on this show.
I think since S3, both Chuck and Serena were given these crappy parental issues and we're still feeling the effects of that. These 2 never really dealt with their parental issues, while actually both Dan and Blair have sort of resolved theirs. I've always been more interested in character arcs than shipping arcs, so yeah, maybe this is just me looking for a silver lining for this obviously filler episode. S finally gets to go out with her dream guy (the guy who said No), and in the last 4 episodes B will do the same with her Prince. I don't know what reality will look like for them after all this. I know what I want it to look like, but I don't trust the writers to give it to me.
Additional thoughts 2:
Dan and Blair are each other's truth tellers, with B being D's voice for S and D being the voice of Chair for B (at least in previous seasons, obviously not this one). They tell each other's stories. So we have that storyteller motif there. I'm so interested in the point where the storytellers intersect, where they realize they are a part of each other's stories and eventually when they realize they are The Story. There are a lot of reporters in screwball comedies, and this at least is a motif that I can get behind.
it's really clumsily done, all of the callbacks to season 1. How Ben is essentially season 1 Dan, and Chuck is season 1 Nate. Yes, Nate messing up is the prop for ChAir in my opinion. They did say that they planned that to happen right? It was obviously early in the series but I think they always wanted to bring the Queen down that early on. We're just more jaded now because we've seen it before, and the whole limo thing was just "magical" back then because it hasn't happened before. The thing is, we know that DAir isn't hooking up in the same way.