The new and now-dead Gossip Girl reboot is a great show to delve into. This isn’t a show that will make you think too hard or have an incredibly deep conversation with your friends (though it can, and I have). Although it will certainly make you gasp, laugh, cry and probably scream at the television.
It’s fun and entertaining — it’s not the television show of the decade, but it’s definitely worth watching. Especially if you’re looking to escape your reality for a bit. So let me walk you through it.
To start, let me say this right off the bat: in writing this, I rewatched the first season and finished the second one. And I need to say: the first season is good. It is decent entertainment and keeps you wanting more (most of the time). But season two? It really found its footing. It’s so much better with it being a lot closer to the original version in a good way.
The 2021 reboot was co-created and co-executive produced by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, co-creators of the 2007 Gossip Girl. They worked with Joshua Safran, who also worked on the original show as a producer and is the showrunner for the reboot.
This show and these characters are set in the same world in which Blair, Dan, Serena and the old Gossip Girl lived. But now, they face a new set of challenges and drama, and a whole new world.
The Gossip Girl reboot premiered on HBO Max on July 8, 2021, with 12 episodes. The season was split into two six-episode parts, with the second half debuting on Nov. 25 of the same year. In Sept. 2021, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on Dec. 1, 2022. And unfortunately, right before the end of season two, on Jan. 26, 2023, the series got cancelled amid Warner Bros. and HBO Max’s wave of cancellations.
Now, yes, it is somewhat of a continuation of its predecessor, but I’d argue that it stands pretty well on its own. One thing people seemed to criticize a lot at the beginning, which has certainly slipped off my mind since then, is that these characters are carbon copies of the original cast. However, even though some of them may look like Blair (see: Audrey), Serena (see: Julien), Dan (see: Obie) or Chuck (see: Max), they are not alike at all. Safran told Variety how he wanted to bring fans and curious eyes to the show by demonstrating some similarities, but as soon as they went in, this closeness is all blurred. In fact, I’d argue they are incredibly distant from the OGs.
The main difference is diversity and inclusivity. In an interview with Variety, Safran talked about his vision for the show. “I wanted to be more inclusive; I wanted to showcase a more diverse universe; I wanted to tell more queer stories,” he said.
As a queer person myself, this is the best part of the show for me. It is, at its core, a queer show. It brings forward so many queer storylines of simple joy and acceptance, turning some parts of this fictional world into something we actually want to see in our reality. In this new and created universe, the characters aren’t constantly having to define themselves or prove they’re queer or anything else they might want to be. We just see them living their truths and being themselves. With an extra dose of drama, of course.
Yet, this isn’t the only kind of representation done well in the new Gossip Girl. We also see many people of colour in these positions of power that we don’t usually see on screen. In fact, the show is led by Black women and their stories. Which, unlike many others we see out there, don’t focus on their Blackness or trauma. We just get to see them exist in this world.
Of course, there are always (quite valid) issues with representation on any tv show (especially one centred on this many rich people), but I feel like this show was a step in the right direction. Especially for teen shows where we often don’t see anything but an all-white cast.
We know this isn’t the most realistic show ever, but it’s an entertaining show. And it’s a good one. As I read in a comment on TikTok by user @romanr0y, “Is it groundbreakingly written television? Absolutely not. Is it camp as hell with gorgeous racially diverse/LGBT characters? Yes. That’s all I need.”
In fact, I believe this new version actually improves all the bad parts of the original show, adds diversity, shows healthy relationships, brings up discussions of money and privilege, and still keeps what we know and love from the iconic show. All the amazing fashion, the fancy parties, the gorgeous cast and all the drama: it’s still all there!
Now let’s dive a little deeper into the show and its characters. I want to give you just the right amount of information to get you interested in this incredibly camp piece of entertainment.
Much like the OG Gossip Girl, the main cast is a group of friends who go to the same school on the Upper East Side in New York. Julien Calloway (Jordan Alexander) is an influencer, the school’s Queen Bee and seemingly the leader of the friend group. Julien has been dating Obie Bergmann (Eli Brown) for a while now, and the two of them are the it-couple of the show. Obie is a guilty rich kid who is an activist and frequently protests his parents’ real estate business.
Julien’s best friend is Aubrey Hope (Emily Alyn Lind), a type-A literature-loving student. She’s also been in a relationship for some time, in fact, the longest out of the group, with Aki Menzies (Evan Mock), who’s also Obie’s best friend. Aki is a low-profile skater kid whose dad is the richest of them all and owns pretty much all the means of communication in Manhattan, except, well, Gossip Girl. Aubrey and Aki are always together and the two are close friends, later developing a relationship with Max Wolfe (Thomas Doherty), the closest thing this show has to Chuck Bass. Except, better (IMO).
Aubrey, Aki and Max’s polyamorous slow-burn relationship is one of this show’s most interesting storylines. To wrap up this gorgeous friend group, Julien’s loyal followers: Monet de Haan (Savannah Lee Smith) and Luna La (Zíon Moreno) actually get some storylines of their own (different from the old show). And finally, the show sets off when Zoya Lott (Whitney Peak), Julien’s half-sister who does not come from money, moves to New York and starts attending Constance Billard.
However, as a good teen drama, none of these characters remain exactly who they are by the end of season one. They fight and betray each other. Apologize and make up. Relationships start and then crumble. It’s all fun and games until Gossip Girl shows up.
But interestingly enough, I believe we see all the characters improve and become better people in some way or another. That’s one of the main differences between the reboot and the OG; in this show, the characters seem to learn from their mistakes and they’re always improving, even if it’s bit-by-bit and with some road bumps on the way. It is actually Gossip Girl’s goal: make these kids learn how to be better than their parents.
And as for the plot, Gossip Girl thrives when it accepts its ridiculousness and is simply messy. Season one focuses a lot on introducing these characters and storylines and establishing the dynamics between this friend group that has been together for years. As for season two, it’s simply full of big events and parties, all doomed to chaos with the help of Gossip Girl. In fact, season one’s strongest episode is its Thanksgiving-themed one, where we find all the characters (including Ms. Gossip Girl herself) under one roof, dissecting a bunch of different problems while trying to behave in front of their parents and lovers.
And the most significant difference from the original version? We know who Gossip Girl is right off the bat in the reboot. From the very first episode, we see who is behind this new Instagram account and finally learn the why. In fact, we get to see the behind-the-scenes of Gossip Girl and her reasons for this. I feel like the original show had some plot issues because Dan couldn’t really have done all of it, and he’s made up to seem like an actual sociopath when it’s probably just a continuity issue. And this time, we actually get to see what it takes to be Gossip Girl (which is quite interesting) and why she does what she does. She’s a character, which gives her strength and power, and we even empathize with her — and she’s still just as awful.
In the end, what I think makes this show so entertaining is the fact that we’re literally watching a bunch of wildly rich kids running around New York screwing up and wearing the most gorgeous outfits while an ‘evil’ social media bully keeps them on their toes. This puts you on the edge of your seat, wondering what could go wrong next. It’s all so far away from our reality that it’s fun. if you look real close, they’re all just people figuring stuff out and dealing with other people.
But it’s also quite relatable if you look really closely. I actually think this show does a great job of setting up realistic Gen Z relationships. Of course, everything is incredibly heightened by their wealth and status. But in the end, it depicts real people having genuine relationships with their friends, families and significant others. It shows them making mistakes, hurting each other’s feelings and learning from that. Because, even with all of the backstabbing and plotting, they all love each other. And there’s more: this wild world they live in, plus the trauma brought forward by Gossip Girl’s bullying, binds them together. And that’s also what the OG Gossip Girl was about.
Well, now I’ll mourn the end of, to be honest, one of my new favourite shows. And I’ll leave you with a little rundown of everything (my last hope of getting you hooked on this too): Throughout the two seasons, we see so many interesting storylines that not only made me relate more and more to some characters but also made me really need to watch the show!
We see characters coming to terms with their sexuality and owning it; we see them stand up for what they believe in, even against their parents. We see stories of bullying and homophobia and how these teens can be really wise. We see them being foolish and screwing things up. We see people fall in love and then fall apart. We see friends fighting and getting back together. Women supporting each other and also becoming rivals. An influencer deciding to give up on social media. A family disowning their son. Incest. Backstabbing. A triad coming together and apart. Parents’ secrets coming out. Debutante balls. And teachers getting involved in their students’ lives. We see lots and lots of drama. Because, after all, this is Gossip Girl!
And that was it for my (enormous) review of the Gossip Girl reboot. See you next time.
You know you love me.
xoxo
Gossip Girl.