The Best CW Series Completely Changed the Game for Teen Drama Shows (original) (raw)
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Published Dec 29, 2023, 11:30 PM EST
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Summary
- Gossip Girl was a teen drama that pushed boundaries with its excessive and unrealistic portrayal of privileged teens on Manhattan's Upper East Side.
- The show's outrageous storylines and scandalous plot twists captivated audiences, making it a must-watch for fans of drama and escapism.
- Gossip Girl's influence extended beyond television, impacting fashion trends of the 2010s and inspiring other teen dramas with its over-the-top approach to storytelling.
Gossip Girl was not your typical teen drama, and not just because it pushed boundaries. It did push boundaries, but not in the way, say, Degrassi or Beverly Hills, 90210 did. Those shows were about the real challenges facing teens. Though 90210 depicted teens living in one of the wealthiest zip codes in America, their lives were pretty typical, and the glitz and dazzle of Beverly Hills was just a backdrop. The real focus was on the teens and their relationships and struggles with things like teen sex, alcohol use, drug use, and even gun violence. Gossip Girl, on the other hand, was ALL about excess, and that's what made it so fabulous.
The teens of Constance Billard - St. Jude's School on Manhattan's Upper East Side were privileged beyond imagining. Based on the book series by Cecily von Ziegesar of the same name, Gossip Girl tells the sordid stories of a group of frenemies who live extravagant lives, flitting around Manhattan without a care in the world. Everything about the show was utterly unrealistic, but that's what made it so fun to watch. It's basically Mean Girls meets Bling Empire. Nothing was off limits for this group of overly dramatic, material girls and boys, and fans loved every tantalizing moment.
Release Date
2007 - 2012-00-00
Network
The CW
Showrunner
Joshua Safran
Directors
Mark Piznarski, Norman Buckley, Patrick R. Norris, Joe Lazarov, J. Miller Tobin, Tony Wharmby, Andrew McCarthy, Janice Cooke, Andy Wolk, Michael Fields, David Warren, John Stephens, Jean de Segonzac, Lee Shallat Chemel, Tate Donovan, Ron Fortunato, Bart Wenrich, Allison Liddi-Brown, Amy Heckerling, Jeremiah S. Chechik, Larry Shaw, Vincent Misiano, Cherie Nowlan, Darnell Martin
Writers
Joshua Safran
Privileged teens living on the Upper East Side of New York can hide no secret from the ruthless blogger who is always watching.
Main Genre
Seasons
6
What Made 'Gossip Girl' So OMFG?
Where do we begin? So many aspects of Gossip Girl were absurdly over-the-top that narrowing the list down is hard. Gossip Girl always started with the mysterious blogger, Gossip Girl (narrated stunningly by the talented Kristen Bell), sharing some new scandal about the teens of Constance, usually related to Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) (yes, as in the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel) and Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively). Gossip Girl was an unknown voyeur, always watching and waiting to share the dirty details of the lives of Manhattan's elite. Gossip Girl's blog was basically the Page Six of Constance. Teens would send in juicy school rumors, and Gossip Girl would print the salacious details weekly. This already feels a little far-fetched. Or maybe not...
In the early 2000s, many people created blogs dedicated to the celebrity-like socialites of Manhattan. Sites like Gawker and Socialite Rank took aim at Manhattan's ultra-wealthy. The overall premise for Gossip Girl was influenced by real life, but that's about where the realism stops.
The first season of Gossip Girl was crazy! Serena returns from boarding school, where she tried to have an affair with one of her teachers, and said teacher is convicted of statutory rape after he is accused by Serena's mother, Lily van der Woodsen (Kelly Rutherford). Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) purchases a burlesque club in high school. Georgina Sparks (Michelle Trachtenberg) uses blackmail tactics to take down Serena. Nate Archibald (Chace Crawford) is dealing with his father's drug use and arrest for embezzlement. And "Queen Bee" Blair has her hands in everything.
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The most outrageous storylines from Gossip Girl Season 1 involve Serena and the details of her departure to boarding school in the first place. Blair and Serena were BFFs until Serena took off to boarding school without so much as a "Goodbye" for her bestie. It turns out that prior to her departure, while attending a wedding, Serena and Nate have sex. Nate was dating Blair at the time, so this is a huge betrayal. It makes sense that, in her regret, she would want to leave, but that's not the only thing she was running from. After sleeping with Nate, she makes a sex tape with someone else. Definitely not something most people want leaked, but that's not the end of the story either. The guy she slept with ended up overdosing on cocaine that she had handed him. She called for an ambulance but then fled the scene. So, in Season 1, we find out that Serena slept with her best friend's boyfriend, made a sex tape, and thought she was a murderer. I don't think it gets more outrageous than that! Oh, and all of this is happening in high school.
’Gossip Girl’s Influence Is Undeniable
Gossip Girl was unlike anything on television. It wasn't even trying to portray the realities of teenage life. It was excess and glamour to the extreme, and audiences loved it! Teens and young adults couldn't get enough of the drama. Most people will never know anything like the luxury Gossip Girl revealed, but everyone could live vicariously through the characters.
Gossip Girl had a significant influence on fashion in the 2010s. Leighton Meester and Blake Lively became mega fashion icons, and designers were clamoring to feature their fashions in the soapy teen drama. Lively's character, Serena, had a breezy Kate Moss vibe. Her effortlessly chic wardrobe fit the laid-back character perfectly. Leighton Meester's character, Blair Waldorf, was much more high-maintenance and needed a wardrobe that reflected her meticulous nature. Her fashion influences were part Audrey Hepburn and part Anna Wintour. Designers featured on the hit show reaped the rewards of Gossip Girl's notoriety. Even if fans couldn't afford the real designer duds, they still took inspiration from the trend-setting series.
Gossip Gir_l amassed a considerable fan base, leading to a slew of new shows looking to capitalize on its more fantastical approach to teen drama. Pretty Little Liars premiered three years after Gossip Girl. While it didn't depict the elite world of the ultra-wealthy like Gossip Girl, the show offered a look at a group of impossibly beautiful young women and dramatic storylines that were every bit as incredible as Gossip Girl's. The 1980s soap opera Dynasty made a comeback with a reboot in 2017. Dynasty was about the lives of two wealthy families and their deep-rooted financial feud, and the outfits were perfection! One of the more recent shows to premier with a very similar feel to Gossip Girl is Bridgerton on Netflix._ While the series takes place in an entirely different period, the early 1800s, one of the two shows' most similar features is narration. Like Gossip Girl, Bridgerton's mysterious Lady Whistledown (narrated by Julie Andrews and played by Nicola Coughlan) writes a gossip column about London's elite. Scandal abounds as the character attempts to master life and love under the scrutiny of London society.
Gossip Girl changed the teen drama genre with its over-the-top luxury, soap opera-like plots, and glamorous cast. The teens of Gossip Girl were living their best lives in epic style, and fans loved being along for the first-class ride. Shows that came after drew inspiration from Gossip Girl's melodramatic storylines and unrealistic, but fabulous dramatic conflict. This new generation of shows wasn't a reflection of reality but an escape from it. Sure, Gossip Girl had some flaws, but it delivered gripping, larger-than-life drama that kept fans coming back for more, and for that, we are thankful..."XOXO."
Gossip Girl is available to stream for free on Roku in the U.S.