Gossip Girl: The Complete First Season

OMG! GG’s on DVD!! LOL!!

BFFs and bitches converge on Manhattan’s upper crust in the first season of the trashy yet addictive Gossip Girl. In just 18 episodes it quickly joins the roll call of over-the-top teenaged soap operas. Going alongside the likes of 90210, Dawson’s Creek, The O.C. and others, Gossip Girl is definitely not the kind of show you’d want your kids to watch. Yet, it’s also the type of show that could transform you into a closet watcher, counting down to the next episode to see who’s going to stab who in the back.

All of her life, the world revolved around Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively), at least one little piece of the world of New York’s social elite. But then Serena disappeared and the celestial bodies that remained were left to battle it out to become the new center of the universe. During this time, new bonds were forged and bitter enemies were made. So when Serena returns without warning, chaos ensues and the heavens open up.

The show’s first season follows Serena’s circle as they navigate and stumble through high school, first loves and other social rights of passage as told through the eyes of the rich kids. I didn’t find anything that I could relate to, yet the show kept me interested simply by offering the trashiest of circumstances possible. From vile late-night trysts to epic demonstrations of betrayal, little is off limits in Gossip Girl. At least once an episode I found myself thinking, “They didn’t just do that, did they?” or some variation thereof.

Each show begins with the question “Who is Gossip Girl?” It’s a question she says she’ll never answer but I will. She’s you; she’s me; she’s everyone. Gossip Girl is a quintessential demonstration of our increased dependence on constant contact and always being plugged in. The circle of friends in Gossip Girl is quite small and certainly privileged. Yet through Gossip Girl’s website, everyone can keep tabs all the time. And with the phone in your pocket, news can happen at any time. From there it spreads, the fire building with every forwarded message and blog comment. But who gives Gossip Girl her power? Her audience, of course. They provide the news, the pictures, the dirt. She just provides us with the platform to get a little encounter to the masses. Our power is her power. It’s a clear reflection of today’s celebrity-obsessed culture.

The first season’s first half, in which all the key players are introduced and developed, offer some of the best moments. The pacing from show to show is excellent as the momentum of dirt builds. But somewhere in the final five episodes, things were coming together a little too cleanly for the groundwork that had been laid. It’s here where some of Gossip Girl loses its edge. Hopefully some of that edge returns as the show moves forward and Gossip Girl can return to its bad but addictive ways.

Gossip Girl: The Complete First Season DVD Review

The first DVD release for Gossip Girl is a good one. All 18 episodes are presented in an excellent enhanced widescreen format that’s blemish-free and vibrant. English audio is in Dolby 5.1 Surround with a dubbed Portuguese track in Dolby Surround Stereo. Optional subtitles are in English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese and Thai.

“The Beginning, XOXO” is the first of three featurettes about the program. It traces the show’s roots as a teen novel and how it transformed into a television series. It includes loads of interviews and show clips. “Gossip Girl Couture” looks at the role of costume in the show while “A Gossip Girl Wedding” explores one of the pivotal moments in the season. Additional features include a gag reel, deleted scenes on 11 episodes and a music video. Christina Ricci also stops by to offer an MP3 download of an audio version of the first book in which the series is based on.