Gail Helen Bremner

I Heard a Rumor . . .

Posted on August 27th, 2007 by gail helen.
Categories: Education, Personal, Literary, Omnia Vanitas, Sponsored Posts, Random, Television.

While I won’t have cable this semester, it looks like I will have access to my favorite channel, the CW (it used to be the WB). They’re responsible for my two favorite shows of all-time, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Veronica Mars, although both of those series have sadly ended, leaving a void of grief in my weekly TV schedule that no other show has been able to fill . . .

Apparently, though, the CW may be premiering a contender this fall. I’ve heard a lot about the Gossip Girl series of young adult books by Cecily Von Ziegesar, and now they’ve been transformed into a new teen drama of the same name. As a wannateach, I’m fascinated by books that portray the “real” issues that teens face — sex, drugs, peer pressure, and the host of other demons that keep parents awake at night — while avoiding the preachy-ness of the kinds of texts that are traditionally used to show kids the consequences of certain actions.

Anthropological interest aside, I’m hoping the show will have the sort of pull I felt towards Buffy and Veronica Mars. The characters are socialite-teens from New York’s fancy Upper East Side who attend private schools full of vicious rivalries that an anonymous (and seemingly omniscient) narrator called “GossipGirl” blogs about on her website. I’m thinking of my guilty pleasure, Cruel Intentions, and hoping the show crosses that setting/atmosphere with a smart, sassy heroine that doesn’t rely on sex appeal for power. Judging from the pictures on the Gossip Girl web site, they’re really banking on the attractiveness of their actors to get the initial viewers, a tactic which should be effective — they’re definitely look the part of “the beautiful people” they’re supposed to be playing. I’ve include one below, simply because I love the expression — it’s so 3:10. Of course, I was hooked when I heard that Kristen Bell, who played the eponymous star of Veronica Mars, will be voicing the part of Gossip Girl — I could listen to her witting her way through the instructions for setting a VCR, she’s that good. But I also have hope for the “outsider” characters that lack the social and financial assets of their peers — I’m thinking Brenda and Brandon without the annoying “we’re so Midwestern, ain’t it cute?” thing. Now I just have to wait until the premier on Wednesday, September 19th to see if this show can be crowned my new favorite . . . And apparently, I’m not alone, as shown by this lovely tribute to Gossip Girl on MySpace.

Share:

0 comments.