S01.E03: Lies Wide Shut

[paulvdb]

Quote

While the school takes drastic measures to smoke out Gossip Girl’s identity, a blind item threatens to put an end to a Constance couple. Julien and Max uncover shocking family secrets. Zoya turns to an unlikely ally for help.

Original air date: July 22, 2021

[Primal Slayer]

Must be Thursday!

Whoever thought that it'd be a good look for the teachers who are 3/4 white, using the one POC as bait and ultimately get her fired...was a good look? Are we even supposed to be rooting for the teachers? Or are they really just supposed to be the true villains? I'm confused at what the writers want us to feel for them. 

Thus far out of this group of "Friends" (they all seem more like associate's than people who are interested in hanging out outside of school) everyone comes from a broken family except for our resident "bad boy" Max so what do the writers do? Break up his dads because gossip girl forbid there is a stable couple or gays are able to show that you dont need to cheat, get on scruff, or or act like an adult if you are over your partner. And now his teacher opens him into his apartment with open arms? 

I just find a hard time caring about any of these pairings because the writers spent all of 2 seconds presenting them to us. Blonde girl and her bf start off the show attracted to Max and have a hard time connecting sexually. J and her bf had all of 2 mins together before he left her for her sister. 

Do Luna/the other one have lives outside of being Julien's teen publicists? Why is it important that J is worshiped? Do they not have any lives of their own or interested in having power/fame for themselves? Or are they just that insecure that they latch onto J and are like leeches, refusing to let go. 

[meatball77]

I think at least one of the girls mentioned in an earlier episode that she was expecting to use her work with Jullian for her resume.

[surfer]

Full frontal male nudity on Gossip Girl. My how times have changed.

That was some very Chair-esque scheming by Julien/Max. Consequences be damned. 

Oh and hey Beck! Guess you made it out of Joe’s creepy bookstore basement after all. Speaking of, it’s crazy how much Eli Brown sounds like Penn Badgley. Although I find most of what Obie says to be pretty cringeworthy. I get it. You’re woke. Zoya too. She comes off as quite pretentious a lot of the time.

Still enjoying Julien. And Audrey. Love that they have a genuine friendship. The minions are awful but decent comic relief.

And since it bears repeating: The teachers are still the worst. 

[Primal Slayer]

I'd like to see what makes Julien...so popular with other people. In the OG we saw Serena had that IT girl charisma, she turned on when she was in front of a camera. I feel like we're just told that "the world loves you Julien...even though apparently your followers only care about your relationship with your boyfriend though we forgot about that storyline because everyone just loves you and would cyber bully ANYONE for you"

[peachmangosteen]

Does anyone know who played the actor from the play? He looked so familiar but I can't place him and he's not listed on IMDb.

This episode was pure comedy and I loved it.

[MV007]

So I’m not particularly blown away by any of the actors but they’re mainly passable. The one question I have is how the hell they cast the guy for Aki. He’s legitimately one of the worst actors I’ve ever seen on a project this high profile. 

[Bill1978]

4 hours ago, MV007 said:

So I’m not particularly blown away by any of the actors but they’re mainly passable. The one question I have is how the hell they cast the guy for Aki. He’s legitimately one of the worst actors I’ve ever seen on a project this high profile.

According to his Wikipedia page:

"Executive producer Joshua Safran wrote the part for Mock to portray." With a reference to this article.

https://www.mrporter.com/en-us/journal/fashion/evan-mock-interview-actor-skater-gossip-girl-2008790

[txhorns79]

20 hours ago, Primal Slayer said:

 

Do Luna/the other one have lives outside of being Julien's teen publicists?

We saw one of them making out with that girl at the bar, but they do seem way too invested in Julien to the exclusion of basically everything else. 

At least Max learned a valuable lesson about why kids should not insert themselves into the middle of their parents' marriages.  I also appreciated that for as sophisticated as they try to make him seem, we actually saw him just being a dumb teenager and getting badly burned for his naivety concerning his parents.   

[Ms Blue Jay]

So I was thinking of some random iconic lines from the first season or even the FIRST EPISODE of OG Gossip Girl.  Nothing on this show so far has come close.  

I thought this show said nobody under 30 reads Twitter and yet Zoya is on it?

Oh, ew.  This show is graphic.  These are kids.  I think this might be my last episode.

Also dumbing down the Pygmalion reference was really awkward too.

Edited July 23, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 7/22/2021 at 5:17 PM, peachmangosteen said:

Does anyone know who played the actor from the play? He looked so familiar but I can't place him and he's not listed on IMDb.

This episode was pure comedy and I loved it.

So that's not a real play right?  LOL

Shouldn't there be something to make Obie appealing?  I can easily see the appeal of Dan, Nate, and Chuck.  But Obie is just NOTHING.

Edited July 23, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[zenithwit]

On 7/22/2021 at 8:40 AM, Primal Slayer said:

Do Luna/the other one have lives outside of being Julien's teen publicists? Why is it important that J is worshiped? Do they not have any lives of their own or interested in having power/fame for themselves? Or are they just that insecure that they latch onto J and are like leeches, refusing to let go. 

I too found myself wondering why they are trying so hard to be Julien's publicists rather than being the mega influencer themselves.  Maybe they want the perks without having to completely give up their personal lives?

Also, what is up with this "Prince of New York" stuff? I get that Obie's family is wealthier than everyone else's which could elevate his status.  But why are people practically worshipping him?  Are they trying to go for some sort of Joshua Kushner type figure?  I guess I find it confusing why Julien would lose followers after their break up.

[TeeVee329]

I really, really hope we're not supposed to find the teachers sympathetic or rootable given how remorselessly and without hesitation they threw one of their own under the bus (the only POC in the group, btw, after they considered making a gay teacher the scapegoat, not your best look, Show).  And I still don't buy that Gossip Girl makes the kids better behaved in school, I just don't.  The point the older teacher made about it resulting in the kids being on their phones even more was much more plausible.

In other bad teacher behavior, hey Rafa, don't allow your student who has vividly, repeatedly expressed an interest in getting boned by you sleep in your apartment.  Send him home, or to a hotel, he is rich.

Speaking of Max, his and Julian's parental schemes were very half-baked and yet they were surprised when things blew up in their faces.  I do like Elizabeth Lail, though, so I'm fine with her hanging around, and I did like that Julian didn't blame the situation on Lola herself.  But why am I supposed to care that Max's dads broke up, we just met them.

Why don't Luna and/or Monet just take the crown for themselves if they're so dismayed by Julian and disgusted by Zoya?  Clearly they both have social capital.  Luna's little bit about being grossed out her phone was ringing was kinda funny, though.

This episode was the worst of the bunch, just weird and not fun.

Edited July 25, 2021 by TeeVee329

[TeeVee329]

On 7/22/2021 at 5:17 PM, peachmangosteen said:

Does anyone know who played the actor from the play? He looked so familiar but I can't place him and he's not listed on IMDb.

It was Paul James, who I recognized from "Greek".

[tennisgurl]

I have to think that the two main teachers aren't supposed to be sympathetic, this episode seems to clinch it. Not only did they throw the most likable of them under the bus to cover their own asses, but them basically admitting they don't like teaching makes this feel a lot less like the teachers trying to scare the students straight and hold them accountable so that they become better behaved, it feels way more like a power trip mixed with being extremely unsatisfied and bitter about their jobs. I am also still not at all a fan of the teacher that Max has a kind of thing with, inviting him over to stay when he's upset, especially when he is already planning on sleeping with him the second he graduates, is really unprofessional and sketchy. When Max is crying about his terrible plan to try and fix his dads marriage, which pretty much screams "I drink martinis like a character from Mad Men but am also a teenager who makes dumb teenager choices because my brain isn't fully developed" you would think that would get a grown ass man to realize that this whole relationship is really creepy, even if he is resisting the urge to actually bang his student for right now. Seriously, what is with this school, isn't it supposed to be really good? Why are all the teachers so awful? 

Also the one ladies husband was being just a teeny bit dramatic about announcing how they're on "the bottom" of society, with their cozy New York apartment. You guys aren't exactly living out of your broken down truck panhandling for bread money, at least not yet now that the wife has been fired too. 

Its really hard to get a beat on many of the characters, they all just seem to exist to flirt, bang, and gives speeches. Audrey is probably the most real feeling character, and I thought this episode did do a decent amount to make Max feel like more than a less sleazy Chuck, but I feel like everyone is still so surface. 

Oh hi Beck! This guy at least seems a bit more normal than your usual type, but I would avoid trendy bookstores or basements if I was you...

[Ms Blue Jay]

3 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

Oh hi Beck! This guy at least seems a bit more normal than your usual type, but I would avoid trendy bookstores or basements if I was you...

I only just NOW put together that Beck has a strong connection to Gossip Girl 1 ..... 😁. Penn Badgley .....

[MV007]

On 7/25/2021 at 5:33 PM, TeeVee329 said:

It was Paul James, who I recognized from "Greek".

My thought watching that scene was sadness. That the actor who played a gay frat bro on Greek in such a great way on a show that really pushed things forward without trying to is now relegated to this shit show that tries way too hard. 

[BaskingsharkGTX]

The actor who plays Max looks older than the actor playing his dad. (The dad with the eye for couture, not the Scruff-cheater dad). 

Davis needs to stop wearing hats.

That is all.

Edited July 28, 2021 by BaskingsharkGTX

[Artsda]

Wow those teachers are horrible. Purposely baiting the one whose husband was fired to lose her job too.