'Double Identity': Gossip Girl Season 4, Episode 2 Recap

While this season of Gossip Girl may very well redeem the show from its last (and worst) season, last night’s episode was, unfortunately, not as charming or well-conceived as the premiere.

Let’s start with Blair. During the last episode, she completely destroys any chance at a relationship with Louis, a handsome royal. Or so it seems – Blair is characteristically pompous and Louis walks out on her (rightfully so) during a fancy Parisian dinner. But during the first few minutes of episode two, we learn that Blair is excited about an upcoming date she has with Louis, and we are given absolutely no explanation as to how she finagled her way back into the man’s life. Blair Waldorf may be good at getting what she wants, but after what she pulled during the first episode, we need some explanation, at the very least, for Louis’s forgiveness. The whole plotline is just too unbelievable without more details to fill in the holes.

And, speaking of unbelievable, Blair’s reaction to seeing Chuck for the first time since their dramatic split, since Chuck slept with Jenny, is so farfetched that it is laughable. This is a girl who has been deceived by the love of her life and who has unsuccessfully attempted to get over him all summer, and the only thing she says when her taxi stops a few feet away from him is directed towards her driver: “Suddenly we’re stopping for pedestrians?” The Chuck-Blair reunion has been long awaited, but it was both unrealistic and anticlimactic.

On to Chuck. Giving up his identity is an interesting twist, but it was barely touched upon last week and was already over by the end of episode two. Still, even if Chuck is Chuck again, and not Henry (like he was for about thirty seconds), he is still one of the most intriguing characters on the show. It will be interesting to see if Chuck’s new girlfriend and his past with Blair have really changed him for the better. We can only hope not, because what is Chuck Bass if not an asshole, really?

The biggest question mark of the show, Juliet, is more bizarre than mysterious. It is also incredibly frustrating to see Nate, as dimwitted as he can be, let Juliet, a complete stranger, run his life – and make big mistakes that he has to apologize for. Juliet claims to be helping Nate leave himself open to possibilities with Serena, but it is pretty obvious at this point that she herself wants to be with him, though it is unclear why. She certainly has ulterior motives, but what are they? And doesn’t Nate wonder why she is so invested in his life and the lives of his friends, not to mention why she knows so many details about their personal relations? The only thing we can be sure of is that she is particularly irked by Serena; during one of the last scenes, as she speaks to a mystery person on the phone, Juliet takes down all of the photos of Nate, Dan, and others off the wall but leaves Serena’s mug shot up. Strange. And it doesn’t seem as likely as it did during the premiere that Juliet is Gossip Girl.

So as of now, Serena is single and seemingly disappointed about it, Vanessa and Dan are together (that happened fast – and what will Georgina have to say about this?), Nate and Juliet are oddly paired in an almost romantic way, and Blair played Cinderella by giving Louis one of her beautiful sky high heels and telling him to come find her in New York. While much of the plot seems obvious in terms of its future, there are definitely some inscrutable storylines that will hopefully surprise us and play out nicely this season. As of now, season four is definitely worth
a watch.