US TV Series: Gossip Girl

Luis (C1):

Last summer, I had to look after an old relative (my aunt Mercedes, an 89-year-old woman), so I spent many hours in the Clinico Hospital. A friend recommended me the series ‘Gossip Girl’. What amused me was juggling my old aunt with the youth of the main characters in the series. What would my aunt have thought if she had realised how the young girls in the series have fun?

Gossip Girl is an American teen drama, set in New York City. Narrated by an omniscient blogger, known as ‘Gossip Girl’, the series is about the lives of privileged young people from NY’s Upper East Side. It’s said that it doesn’t live up to the hype, but there’s no doubt that Gossi Girl has influenced some of the tastes in fashion, music and culture of adolescents in the US.

Each episode begins with a page on the Gossip Girl’s blog. Then, a recap of events relevant to the upcoming narrative is shown and the plot of the current episode is developed.

This is a YouTube trailer from the serious:

Gossip Girl is now in its fourth season. I must reckon that I just saw the first one and part of the second, but I am hooked on it. So I hope to post another entry by May, with some additional comments about forthcoming seasons. Probably by then I won’t get on well with any of the characters and I’ll be more objective. The main ones are:

- Serena Van der Woodsen, a finely-modelled blonde whose return to NYC unleashes a storm of events and wakes some feelings that were previously slept; her scandalous past is always implicit in the plot.

- Blair Waldorf, a long-haired brunette with a cruel, inquisitive look, and Serena’s longtime friend turned rival.

- Chuck Bass, a textbook bad boy; a womanizer and a charming, privileged party animal who has reasons to be so bad: a tormentous past as well as a set of giant complexes he has to face with.

- Nate Archibald, the cute, perfect ‘Golden boy’ brought up in a wealthy family, which has driven his footsteps to a life he doesn’t like. Chuck’s best friend and Blair’s significant ex-boyfriend.

- Dan Humphrey, a sort of outsider in this context; a boy with ideals, a great heart and manners, in love with Serena.

Apart from these characters, there are some parents, brothers and sisters, which significantly influences the events occurring in the drama: a domineering, absent father, a brother coming "out of the closet", a rebellious sister, etc.

Like in other TV series set in NY (e.g. Sex and the City), the city itself has a prominent role. Its crowded streets, its superb boutiques, its charming cafes and the glamourous night parties show us the intimate side of such an apparently well-known city. The city that, as Sinatra used to sing, doesn’t sleep.

Well, I’m afraid I have no choice to say goodbye but with this quote from the series:

“You know you love me"
X0 X0
Gossip Girl

Raquel (C1): Variety is the spice of life

I am really fond of TV series, specially American ones, and I´m sure most of you have heard of or watched productions such as The Sopranos, The Wire, The Big Band Theory, MadMen, How I Met Your Mother, Lost, Six Feet Under, The Walking Dead… I must confess that I have seen some of them in the dubbed version instead of the original one. Nevertheless, I try to keep watching at least one English speaking series on a regular basis. As you may have noticed about the titles above, I do not concentrate on a particular theme, as I usually take advantage of viewing a chapter to escape from the daily routine, forget about the issues I´ve been working on all day long and relax while travelling to a completely different world.

Having said this, as far as watching TV series is concerned, it is variety (hence the title of this entry) that helps you find the adequate series for each moment. Now, the real reason why I’m writing for the blog is that I’ve recently come across two amazing British series that I feel I should recommend you. I’ve watched the first season of both of them in original version and they are entirely different from each other. They have nothing in common but the fact that they are both set in England; they are called Downton Abbey and Misfits.

Downton Abbey is set in the years prior to First World War and is about a well-off family and their servants. It perfectly reflects what life at the beginning of the 20th century was like. The plot can be divided into two parts which are necessarily interconnected: The vicissitudes of an upper class family who needs to find an heir to their fortune (at that time girls could not inherit) and the daily routine of their servants, who fight to increase their power at the house and improve their future. The wardrobe, the setting, the atmosphere, as well as the language are all magnificent. It follows the style of Jane Austin’s novels or the film Gosford Park.

Misfits takes place nowadays and the main characters are five outsiders who are struck by lighting during a thunder storm while they were doing their community service. After being thunderstruck they suddenly gain special powers such as reading people’s thoughts, becoming invisible, turning back time or looking younger. Mind you, this is not the typical superheroes’ series, but it deals with the troubles of five young delinquents who are not such “bad boys” though of course none of them is a saint either. Apart from the plot, I find it really interesting because of the language itself. The characters’ accents are not “the Queen’s English”, and they use a wealth of slang words. However, it is not that difficult to understand them and a great opportunity to get used to a wide variety of accents. Click on this link (unfortunately the clip cannot be embedded) to see the series promo on E4, a digital pay-TV channel in the UK.

So if, all in all, you enjoy watching TV series, I hope you give them a go because I believe they deserve it.