The first 13 episodes of Gossip Girl aired in the United States on Wednesdays at 9:00 p.m. on The CW, a terrestrialtelevision network. With the exception of the 12th episode "School Lies", the first 13 episodes aired on the CTV Television Network in Canada one day prior to their U.S. air date. Following the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, the remainder of the season aired on Mondays at 8:00 p.m. The season was released on DVD as a five-disc box set under the title of Gossip Girl: The Complete First Season on August 19, 2008, by Warner Home Video. The pilot episode was made available as a free download to registered users of the iTunes Store prior to its premiere on television. Subsequent episodes became available to purchase following their original airing.
Plot
The return of "it girl" Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively) to the Upper East Side serves as the first season's focal point. Shrouded in mystery and scandal, Serena's disappearance and sudden return are announced by the omniscient blogger Gossip Girl. The news reaches Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) whose life is torn apart when the secret behind Serena's leaving is revealed: Serena slept with Nate Archibald (Chace Crawford), the Golden Boy of the Upper East Side and Blair's boyfriend, the night she left town. Nate announces his feelings for Serena a number of times and a series of battles ensue between the former Queen Bee Serena and her heir, Blair. However, the rift resolves in reconciliation between the two and temporary peace follows. Meanwhile, siblings Dan (Penn Badgley) and Jenny Humphrey (Taylor Momsen), Brooklyn residents, are attracted by the opulent wealth of their classmates. Young Jenny becomes a cunning protégée to Blair while Dan enters a relationship with Serena. It is revealed that their relationship resembles the one between Dan's father Rufus (Matthew Settle) and Serena's mother Lily (Kelly Rutherford) in their youth.
As a subplot, Blair and Nate suffer problems in their relationship when the dangerously seductive Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) conquers Blair's fragile heart. The manipulative Georgina Sparks (Michelle Trachtenberg) arrives, creating a lot of trouble and revealing the real reason behind Serena's disappearance: a death Serena thought she was responsible for. When Georgina arrives on the Upper East Side she poses as a naive girl named Sarah in order to destroy Serena's newfound happiness. She succeeds in exposing Serena's deep-hidden secrets, taking Dan away from her, and outing Serena's brother as gay. At the same time, Blair falls for Chuck, but as a price they both lose their friendships with Nate. Not able to withstand the vulnerability that a real relationship demands, Chuck deserts Blair.
In the midst of all these events, Dan welcomes Vanessa Abrams (Jessica Szohr) back into his life. Vanessa is a childhood friend of his and an outsider herself. She is a threat to his feelings for Serena, until he realizes the real love he has for Serena. At the end of the season, the Upper East Siders team up to expose Georgina and banish her from New York. Serena then leaves with Nate for the Hamptons, while Chuck abandons a heartbroken Blair. Dan reconciles with Vanessa and returns to his old life in Brooklyn. A disgraced Jenny leaves Blair's clique and earns an internship as a fashion designer in the company owned by Blair's mother.
In the fast-paced and opulent world of the Upper East Side, 16-year-old "it girl" Serena van der Woodsen returns after mysteriously vanishing to boarding school for a year, and her return is announced on the blog of the all-knowing albeit ultra-secretive Gossip Girl. However, her return is met with a cold reception as not everyone in her life believes she has changed, especially her best friend, Blair Waldorf, who Serena and Blair's childhood lover, Nate Archibald are keeping a devastating secret from. Meanwhile in Brooklyn, 16-year-old Dan Humphrey and his 14-year-old sister, Jenny, begin to explore the affluent world as Dan begins to go out with the reformed "it" girl.
In the wake of the Kiss on the Lips party, Blair reveals to Serena what she knows about the night she disappeared. As if it could not get any messier, Serena decides to take Dan to his arch-enemy Chuck's fundraiser brunch at The Palace. Jenny seeks advice from Blair, who realizes she may have something to gain by allowing Jenny into her inner circle.
As the Upper East Side teens from Constance Billard and St. Jude's prepare for a much-anticipated visit from the Ivy League representatives, Blair and Chuck uncover a scandalous secret about Serena that may not remain a secret much longer. Dan has his heart and future set on the coveted usher position for the Dartmouth rep, only to be beaten out by Nate, who has no interest in the school despite pressure from his controlling father, The Captain. Meanwhile, Jenny bonds with Serena's younger brother, Eric, and Rufus must swallow his pride and ask Lily for a favor to help his son, Dan, despite their complicated history.
Blair is thrilled when her mother, Eleanor, chooses her to be the new face of her clothing line. However, Blair's happiness soon turns to feelings of betrayal and jealousy when Serena moves into the spotlight and Blair finds herself back in Serena's shadow. Meanwhile, Serena and Dan are reminded once again that they come from two very different worlds. Nate and Chuck indulge in a boys' weekend to blow off steam after Ivy Week, but when an old classmate shows up, it tests Chuck and Nate's friendship.
Dan makes elaborate plans to impress Serena on their first official date. The same night, Jenny is invited to the infamous Blair Waldorf sleepover and finds herself in a high-stakes game of "truth or dare". Meanwhile, when Lily discovers that Eric is missing from his treatment center, she finds herself seeking help from an unexpected source.
Dan is torn between two girls as an old childhood friend, Vanessa, returns to town with a confession as Serena and Dan figure out what they mean to each other. At the infamous masked ball, Blair sends Nate on a scavenger hunt, but Nate makes a shocking confession to a disguised Jenny who uses it as ammunition against Blair. Finally, Lily asks Rufus to accompany her to an Eleanor Waldorf event in order to make Bart Bass jealous.
After surviving the on-again/off-again pattern of their new relationship, Serena and Dan admit their true feelings to each other, and consider taking their relationship to the next level. Chuck contemplates investing in a burlesque club in the hopes of making his hard-to-please father, Bart, proud of him. Nate and the Captain come to blows regarding the Captain's apparent drug problem. Jenny discovers a secret that her father Rufus and mother Alison have been keeping from her. After learning about what Nate said, Blair commits the ultimate act of betrayal.
Despite being devastated by the current state of her relationship with Nate and still dealing with the guilt from her recent indiscretion, Blair attempts to put on a happy face for her 17th birthday party and hide the truth from her friends. Hoping to ease the tension between Serena and Vanessa, Dan takes Vanessa to Blair's party so the girls can have some bonding time. Jenny brings her mother (Susan Misner) home for a surprise visit, but Rufus may not be ready to forgive and forget. Nate's parents (Sam Robards and Francie Swift) ask him to make a huge sacrifice in an effort to salvage his father's business as he faces charges of embezzlement and fraud.
After getting kicked out of the annual Waldorf Thanksgiving, Serena and her family decide to head over to Brooklyn to spend it with the Humphreys, unaware of the torrid history between Rufus, Alison, and Lily. Meanwhile, Blair's emotions spiral out of control when she learns that her father is not coming home for Thanksgiving, which starts up Blair's "issue" Nate spends the holiday with his mom and dad, but their awkward dinner quickly goes from bad to worse.
Serena's plan to avoid the annual Cotillion Ball is sidetracked when her grandmother CeCe persuades her to attend. Dan and Cece begin to clash due to her history with Lily and Rufus. Nate is confused by Blair’s new indifferent attitude and enlists Chuck to find out the reason. Chuck spreads a rumor that a certain alum that Nate has bad blood with is the reason for Blair’s newfound behavior. Meanwhile, Jenny attends the ball despite it being on the same night as Alison's art gallery opening.
When Blair's father, Harold, comes home for the holidays with an unexpected guest—his boyfriend, Roman (William Abadie)—Blair hatches a plan to get rid of Roman for good. Jenny and Vanessa help Serena plan the best Christmas surprise for Dan, who may have a surprise of his own in mind for Serena. Rufus refuses to remain the understanding husband any longer after Alison's former lover calls the house.
Absent: Ed Westwick as Chuck Bass and Chace Crawford as Nate Archibald
A casual break in for a night swim leads to the whole junior class facing expulsion after one student gets seriously injured, and Dan and Serena's relationship begins to break apart as he is not ready to take the fall and risk his future. Vanessa is working on a documentary project about private schools and accidentally captures Blair and Chuck discussing their affair. Lily contemplates telling Rufus how she really feels about him.
Gossip Girl takes pleasure in reporting that Serena was spotted buying pregnancy tests—but of course, the teens of the Upper East Side prove yet again there is always more to the story than meets the eye.
Having been recently dethroned as "Queen Bee", Blair hesitantly returns to school with the support of her only friend, Serena. Meanwhile, Serena struggles to adjust to her new living arrangements with her future step-brother, Chuck, while receiving disturbing packages from an unknown sender. Jenny needs something to wear to her birthday party and her drive to be popular hits a new all-time high when she does something illegal to fit in with her new Upper East Side friends.
Note: From this episode on, Szohr (Vanessa) is added to the main cast and is credited in the opening titles.
Serena's new image is turned upside down when her former friend and partner in all things bad, Georgina Sparks (Michelle Trachtenberg), returns to Manhattan to stir up trouble and bring back the old Serena, and it leads to lies and secrets between Dan and Serena. Nate finds romance with the last person he was expecting to connect with, Vanessa. Jenny meets a cute sophomore boy, Asher Hornsby, who just might be her ticket to permanent popularity. Finally, Blair hatches a secret plan to sabotage her biggest rival, Nelly Yuki (Yin Chang).
Georgina blackmails Serena with a secret that could ruin her future. Blair and Jenny escalate their "popularity war" by spreading scandalous rumors about each other through Gossip Girl. Dan witnesses Jenny's new boyfriend, Asher, cheating on her with a boy. Rufus goes to Lily for advice on how to handle Jenny's recent out-of-character behavior.
Absent: Ed Westwick as Chuck Bass and Chace Crawford as Nate Archibald
Following her confession, Serena begins to unravel and fall back into old habits. Angry with how Serena has been lately, Dan has been growing closer with "Sarah", but Vanessa is onto who “Sarah” really is. Rufus is thrilled when his band is invited to perform at a Rolling Stone-sponsored concert, but Lily is the last person he expects to see at the performance, especially since her wedding rehearsal dinner is on the same night.
With her best friend's life and reputation on the line, Blair decides to take matters into her own hands in dealing with the manipulative and evil Georgina Sparks. With Rufus never far from her thoughts, Lily prepares for her wedding day which is destined to be the Upper East Side's social event of the year. Serena finally confesses the truth to Dan, but Dan thinks it's too little too late. As Nate begins to think his family's troubles are finally behind them, he is in for a rude awakening. Chuck and Blair finally confess their long held feelings for each other.
Due to the show's pedigree as an adaptation of The New York Times bestselling novel series, the show was considered to be one of the more anticipated new shows of the 2007–2008 television season. An August 2007 survey by OTX, a global media research and consulting firm, placed the show on the list of top ten new shows that viewers were aware of.[21] The pilot episode gained 3.50 million viewers on its original airing,[22] having previously been available as a free download on the American iTunes store. As the season progressed, ratings dropped with 2.48 million viewers tuning into the second episode.[2] The eleventh episode marked a season low with only 1.81 million viewers tuning into watch the episode.[11] The show was moved from Wednesdays at 9:00 p.m. to Mondays at 8:00 p.m following the end on the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike where the final five episodes of the season were aired. Ratings increased for the season finale, with 3.00 million viewers tuning into the episode.[18]Gossip Girl's digital video recorder ratings were high, increasing the show's profitability and the show had also been in the top five of iTunes sales.[23]
Author Cecily von Ziegesar has expressed support for the show, noting that all of her major plot points were present in the pilot.[24] The second episode in which the characters are shown to be attending a brunch gained some approval from New York magazine, stating that "there's no such thing as 'lunch' on the weekends", "that kids actually do venture outside of their neighborhoods" (since The New York Palace Hotel is in Midtown Manhattan), and "saying you live in Williamsburg makes much more sense... for real-estate emotional conflict", as well as the fact Rihanna is played "in every situation."[25]Gossip Girl was designated the "Best. Show. Ever." in April 2008 by New York magazine.[26] Other positive reviews came from publications Variety and the Boston Globe.[27][28] John Maynard of The Washington Post felt that creator Josh Schwartz "turns it up a notch" from his former series The O.C., and cited Dan (Penn Badgley) as a standout character.[19] Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle praised the show for its use of "Gossip Girl"'s blog as a new media element noting "there's a chance to tell a story where the Greek chorus essentially has a blog."[29]
The show has come under criticism for containing scenes too risqué for its teen audience. The Parents Television Council (PTC) has shown particular criticism of the series, especially with its "OMFG" ad campaign used towards the end of the season in April 2008.[30] It also named the episode "Victor, Victrola" the worst television program of the week in which the episode originally was broadcast.[31] The Parents Council's negative comments include it being "the most-watched show among girls 12-17 and glamorizes casual sex and drug use among teens. [And that] storylines have featured a would-be teen rapist, threesome among teens, and teenage girls having sex with adults." Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret Morning News noted that the show is milder than a lot of what's shown on MTV, but still warned parents of several scenes in the pilot. He said it includes "among other things, a teenage girl climbing on top of a boy and removing his clothes; drunken teens having sex; teens smoking pot; teens drinking in bars, in a limo and at a party; a teen boy getting amorous with a girl who fights him off; and that same teen boy essentially attempting to rape a freshman girl who is supposed to be, what, 14?".[32]
The series has also been criticized for having less-than believable storylines,[33] and has been described as a guilty pleasure rather than an hour's worth of must-watch television.[34]
DVD release
The DVD release of season one was released by Warner Home Video in the United States on August 19, 2008, after it had completed broadcast on television. As well as every episode from the season, the DVD release features bonus material including a downloadable audiobook, deleted scenes, and behind-the-scenes featurettes.
^Schulenberg, Caroline (November 19, 2007). ""Gossip Girl" on CW". Worst TV Show of the Week. Parents Television Council. Archived from the original on March 5, 2008. Retrieved May 6, 2008.
