Gossip Girl here, your one and only source into the scandalous lives of… Instagram’s elite?
Nail appointment at 6 a.m., class at 8 a.m., Chanel pop-up at 4 p.m. and party at 11 p.m. This was the typical schedule of any wealthy and privileged character in “Gossip Girl” (2007), more specifically Blair Waldorf, the character that everyone wanted to be. This over-the-top TV series was all that anyone talked about as social media and fashion trends became much more popular. There was something about the idea of upper-class, label-obsessed young people in NYC who like to drink, take drugs, have sex and treat each other in the worst ways possible while dressing in the best couture from head to toe. Six seasons of backstabbing and partying later, the show ended. But it left its mark in pop culture, fashion trends and famous actors we know today, like Blake Lively.
Since 2007, the Instagram influencer has become far more important and fashion influencers have taken over the world. Fashion and influencer trends have blown up on social media and now Instagram and Tiktok tell us what’s hot and what’s not. There has always been this constant change in our generation’s social world due to social media, so it makes sense why a reboot was brought into question. Guessing from how the last episode of “Gossip Girl” ended — five years after they all graduated — it’s a good time to do a reboot, especially to introduce an updated storyline without it being too unfamiliar, and to show how much social media has changed our lives.
From the moment the trailer was released in June, people had mixed emotions about if it was a show worth watching. Within an hour of the first episode’s premiere, the show was trending No.1 nationwide on Twitter, continuing as a Top Five trend through mid-day. But the reviews weren’t all positive. Some couldn’t handle the idea of knowing who Gossip Girl is from the very first minute of the show, and others had high expectations for the main characters which were not met. One new addition to this reboot is a more diverse cast with issues that are more timely to the era. Off the bat, Zoya and Julien are two half-sisters who come from completely different backgrounds and attempt to make the effort to finally meet and attend the same school together. Apart from the main story, you have Aki and Audrey’s rocky relationship with their sexualities with Max stepping in to make more drama; Luna and Monet, Julien’s sidekicks whose jealousy often takes over; and lastly, the angry teachers of this prestigious school who all side as ‘Team Gossip Girl.’
As a fan of the original series, I thought this reboot wasn’t all that bad. It took me a second to appreciate because reboots often don’t go well, but mostly because I did have high expectations for this show considering how much I loved the first one. I enjoyed the similarities of characters like Blair and Serena’s sister-from-another-mister relationship and Zoya and Julien actually being related, as well as the love-hate relationships that go with the rest of the characters. I think they did a good job representing issues that are realistic in our current world today like attending protests, the struggles of being a social media influencer rather than a celebrity, family issues like divorces or finding a new partner and of course, being a new girl at a very prestigious school. One thing about this show that I do love, and that stays true to the original show, is the obnoxiousness of the characters. The whole point of this show is really to depict the lives of very spoiled kids who make the worst decisions, and I think it’s fun that these characters are specifically the main characters. It also just goes to show how if they are particularly the most privileged kids at this school, imagine the other kids who also go there.
One character that I absolutely love is none other than my king, Aki. He is the most unproblematic one and minds his business every time something goes down. I’m really excited to see where his relationship with Audrey goes, and also how he explores his sexuality, whether that be with Max or not. One thing I hate about this show is Obie, who I think is trying to be too much like Nate from the OG series. If you’re all caught up with the show, you know that Obie has a thing for the sisters and it’s very odd. I hope that when the show resumes again, we get a new love interest for either Julien or Zoya because they deserve better.
Honestly, I understand why people hate this show after the impact the OG series left, and it makes sense as to why many think we don’t need another one. However, I do understand why we have received one. It adds a new perspective and also drives a newer audience to this show. Overall, I can’t wait until the show resumes in November and hopefully we get some cameos or mentions of the OG cast to shake up the plot.
B: Brianna Tovar is a fourth year integrated marketing and communications major who has a pinterest board for each Gossip Girl queen. They can be reached at [email protected].