Gossip Girl

Did any of you like The OC? I loved it, the story about a boy from the wrong side of tracks who is thrown a lifeline and taken in by a kind lawyer and his family and begins a new life in the opulent suburbs of the Orange County in California. Sounds absurd right but that was what I liked about The OC, the over top storylines and eccentric characters. The programme starred Benjamin McKenzie as the troubled teen Ryan and his sidekick, Seth, played by the quirky Adam Brody, Summer played by the gorgeous Rachel Bilson and Marissa played by style queen Mischa Barton. The oldies ie the parents were played by Peter Gallagher and Kelly Rowan. The programme ended last year and only ran for four years but was one of the most popular teen dramas of its era. A lot of comparisons were made with the now defunct Dawson's Creek particularly with the witty dialogue that was used. I would say that the banter between Ryan and Seth is the best thing in the show. The OC is created by screen writing whiz, Josh Schwartz who at 26, was the youngest person in network history to create a network series and run its day-to-day production. Similar to Kevin Williamson who created Dawson's Creek and based the lead character on his life, the character Seth is actually based on Schwartz. While Dawson's Creek was earthy and a bit like apple pie and ice cream, The OC was slightly edgier and had a much-needed cooler factor. This is down to Schwartz who brought his retro geek influence into the show; skateboards, trendy t-shirts, guitars, iPods, cartoons and indie rock bands. Pretty soon, The OC became known for its music in particular the theme tune, California that is performed by alternative group, Phanton Planet. So tuned in was Schwartz to popular culture that the last season of the show is now available on iTunes.

With the huge success of The OC you could not blame Schwartz for putting his feet but would you know it, he has been working on another teen drama. It is called Gossip Girl and like The OC it is about the lives of the rich and wealthy but it is set in the big apple. The programme is based on the popular novel by Cecily von Ziegesar which has the same name. It follows the lives and mayhem of glamorous socialite teens on the upper east side of Manhattan. In particular Serena van de Woodsen, the ultimate goddess, beautiful and sophisticated she is idolised by everyone. On the other side of Manhattan is the sensitive Dan Humphreys, the son of a rock star living in a run down apartment in the Upper West Side and an outsider. A chance meeting with Serena brings the two as well as Dan's sister, Jenny into each other’s lives and where the wealthy jet setters find themselves embroiled with their lower peers. However there is a twist here; the series is narrated by an anonymous character known as Gossip Girl who happens to run a website where she blogs about the scandals and rivalries of the circle of friends. Who is Gossip Girl? No one knows. Think about what would happened if you meshed teen flick Cruel Intentions with Desperate Housewives and this is what you would get. If Gossip Girl is anywhere as successful as The OC then it will send Blake Lively who plays Serena catapulting into the same dizzy heights of fame as a certain Mischa Barton. The series airs in the states in the autumn and like all good things, I am sure it won’t be long before it comes over here as well.

Picture from TVaddict.com