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Gossip Girl, The CW, Airs Monday 8/7c

Episode: “Bonfire of the Vanity” (Season 2, Episode 10)

Synopsis: Serena’s relationship with Aaron continues forward, despite multiple hiccups, while Jenny’s relationships and her business plan fall apart around her. Dan’s meddling in all affairs Bass leads to a possible reconciliation between Basses Junior and Senior, but may cost him academically. Eleanor’s new beau is not quite all Blair hoped for, but his clever maneuvers lead to her almost welcoming him into her life.

Review: For yet another week, we’re force-fed the bland pairing in the hopes that we’ll change our minds, as Serena continues her dalliance with the ever slippery Aaron. Though he acts sweet, cute and charming, it just doesn’t sit well and unfortunately the bulk of this episode focuses on the dance S and her new beloved are in the midst of. Shake it off, S, it’s time to move on. An open relationship is not the key to freedom, it’s the key to losing viewers. It seems that the point of this relationship is to let us see exactly how good we had it when S and Dan were angst-ridden, and those were troubling times.

Luckily for us, the rest of the show carried its weight. We were treated to parent-child relationships 101 this week, as the Humphreys, the Basses and even the Waldorfs were forced to examine relationships they thought were constant. First, the Humphreys. Jenny’s life imploding around her is compelling viewing, no matter what decision she makes (and moving away from the train wreck that seemed to be Agnes was certainly a step in the right direction) it ends up backfiring. While she could have handled some things better, she’s 15 and this is one messy situation. Here’s hoping it just gets messier, as it’s damned entertaining. Daddy dearest had better listen to his son or he’ll have one less child in his care.

Speaking of Dan, his meddling in the Bass affairs was intriguing and raises some new plot lines for a later date. Mentioning a death on the Bass conscience? I call sweeps week for that chestnut. However, the story we did see may have worrying repercussions. Could Dan’s actions have triggered a chain of events leading to a nicer, friendlier Chuck? Remove the Daddy issues and will he still have his edge? It’s unlikely that the real Chuck would be lost to a hockey game with his new best friend, but still, we’ll keep an eye for further troubling signs. Hopefully Daddy’s approval won’t deprive us of one of the smartest sadistic teen characters on our screens.

Finally there’s the Waldorf clan. Blair’s story didn’t really pop, but it may not fizzle out. What started for her as simply a shadowy presence may become a constant thorn in her side. Eleanor’s new honey may be heading out the door before he’s even set down his bags, if Blair has anything to do with it. It seems that Cyrus may well just be up to the task of matching off against B though, so let the games begin.

Promising story lines, with the exception of the sappiness of Serena’s, it’s tough to know which to be more interested in. Jenny’s has the most lively back story under its belt, but with the holidays coming up, it’s hard to know if emancipation’s really on the cards or if someone’ll come crawling back. At least we all want to come back next week, so the CW’s doing something right.

Up next week: “The Magnificent Archibalds” – It’s Thanksgiving on Gossip Girl and holidays mean a time for people to reconnect. Nate returns to the fore, while Blair’s familial traditions get lost in the amalgamation of households. Serena’s past is a shadow over yet another relationship, whilst the thread connecting Jenny with her father grows ever more strained.

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Did you watch Gossip Girl this week? If so, feel free to discuss below.