this show does not deserve the amount of words i am writing right now
For all my posturing that I do not care about anything nonDair related, I do still have feelings and a bit of caring for nonDair aspects of this shit show (this was what I was hoping to avoid with avoiding the show as a whole until it was done and then going back to watch all of the glorious Dair but now that I am convinced that Dair are endgame I cannot stay away even if it was for my own good).
I didn't want to start up Gossip Girl for this exact reason; everything nonDair is terrible and I don't want to get sucked into caring about any of it not the littlest bit. But. Sometimes we cannot choose what we care about and don't care about. Even the things we don't care for have us feeling things, bad things or otherwise.
And I feel the need to spew out all my general GG feelings because I am still too overcome with OTP feelings to properly convey all my Dair emotions and thoughts. When the day comes I finally tackle them in all their glory it's just going to be a huge mess of capslock and gifs of them looking at each other.
So this post is going to be Dair-lite. But no promises that it won't creep in here and there.
I am gonna break down all the relationships on Gossip Girl and discuss my feelings on them because fucking darn it all, I do have feelings despite my wanting to NOT CARE at all, but even though 93% of me in fact does not care, there's still that bit that does to some extent. And care or not I am still totally full of opinions and judgments and stuff regardless.
Blair x Serena
By all rights this should be the main "ship" in Gossip Girl--the relationship with the most importance and focus given on the show. I loved their friendship in the early years no matter how fucked up and badly they'd treat each other they still were the two most important people in each others' lives and I appreciated that. But. It gets to a point where the sabotaging and tearing down and distrust and running circles round the other gets tiring and no amount of hugs and calling each other sisters makes up for that and even though I want them to still be fab bffs when all's said and done, they will never be as great as I want them to be and what s1 was initially shaping them up to be. Which is a shame because they had such potential.
I was pretty much done with them and their bff stuff after Serena defended Chuck after his AWFUL AWFUL behavior at that royal party thing where Blair's trying to impress Princess Sophie. REALLY SERENA. Chuck must be in a lot of pain if he's acting out that way? And I always thought he'd be your prince? REALLLLLLY. When before she was always the first one to talk Blair into staying away from Chuck. Not fucking impressed. But as with a lot of this shit show I don't know how much blame I should put on the character or on the awful writers who do this crap.
All that said this is the only ship I am still 100% unshaken of my belief that they will end up strongly by the series end. Right now they are setting up B/S to have a super huge falling out by the finale (the EP was explicit in saying that the finale is centered on them and that it'll be a huge game changer that'll affect everyone) and I am positive this means that they'll implode in a way that will not get fixed in a few episodes time and so s6 will see them trying to rebuild their friendship and get back to trusting each other so they can ride off in the sunset together once this show ends for good.
Or maybe that's just what I am hoping for s6, when the reality will be that they will just have them apologize and hug and then carry on with the cycle while the writers play with whatever asinine storyline they come up with next year.
I still have that damn hope though that they're put to rights.
Blair x Nate
I was not a fan of them because duh Nate was in love with Serena and was a very negligent bf to Blair and since Blair was my fav I was having none of that. It took me a while to warm up to Nate. I actually did like B/N 2.0 when they got back together in s2. Chuck was being awful to her and just a mess and my inner Blair stan was like good GOOD when Nate came along again because at that point Chuck was not 'redeemed' enough to get back together with Blair (oh poor me who thought they'd ever fully redeem him to my liking). I was glad that Nate was there for her and they got another shot, and my Chair shipper side was not threatened at all because I was convinced Chair were endgame so I just enjoyed the attractiveness of Nair while it was going on.
Now, I actually really appreciate their relationship a whole lot more than I ever did before. I'd never want them to get back together for many reasons, but I DO wish their friendship was played up and that they had more scenes and just....acknowledge that they had a serious relationship all throughout their adolescence. They were each others' first loves afterall. And were pretty together. And their presex scene was super hot in the cotillion episode okay even when I was a huge Chair shipper I could see that.
Blair x Chuck
No joke that I used to be a huge Chair shipper. Particularly s1-s2. but as with everything in the show, that love declined steadily throughout s3, the season of them actually being in a relationship and how does that work and it turns out: not too well. Ugh god. Season 3 was so terrible that I skipped mostly all of it on my Dair rewatch this year even.
Rewatching s1, It brought up a lot of things I remember feeling even the first time I watched. The latter half of s1 suffers for the writers strike and how they had to condense nine episodes into what five? So a lot of sideplots had to be shortened or thrown away all together (if the writers are to be believed this includes Dan being there for Blair's acceptance speech that her mom doesn't go to and dammitall fuck the writers strike for depriving me of this) and one would hope that if things went according to plan C/B development would've been better. As it is, it's a lot more Chuck/Serena heavy as he helps her out with her Georgina issues. Didn't mean that I didn't squee with delight whenever they had any sort of interaction. And they did get together in the finale. And then they flashforward a week later and it all goes to hell. I was sad that we didn't get to see them actually IN a relationship. Both times they got together. It was effectively shot to hell before the s1 finale was done and then all we get on that front is that Blair comes back in love with Chuck and needing him to say he loved her back before they could end up together which is puzzling because even if she had strong feelings for him, in the s1 finale it didn't seem like she was that far gone for him. Plus I wanted to see that falling process onscreen not just have it all happen offscreen. And then their reconciliation in s2 was all yay! happy smiles and rainbows and puppies. But again, their first days/weeks/months together as a couple are offscreen and we don't get to see any of it. By the time s3 starts up they're already having to make up elaborate games to keep up interest in their sex lives.
This is why I so love Dan and Blair. We get to see the very start of their relationship and how they deal with things as a couple and it is so beautiful and perfect I would change nothing about them. We got to see Dan fall for Blair and vice versa and now they are amazing together and I can't even put into words how much they give me life right now. all of the inevitable angst and drama that is coming up is already giving me a bit of anxiety and no matter how much assurance I get that they are strong at the end of an episode, any little bumps they go through beforehand are sooo upsetting to me and i can't take it even though it's all been such small potatos recently and it's going to worse and lead to breaking up and even though this is a good thing in the long run if they end this season apart this gives them more chance of full on endgame i don't want to deal with dair angst right now. i just want them to be happy and content and in love and a team always. they already suffered enough asdokahfkjadhfkajhf
That natural, organic development was always lacking in Chair. Chemistry can only get you so far when the writing and dialogue is awful and then that leads you to drastic events like selling your girlfriend to your cokehead rapist uncle to save your hotel to keep interest alive.
AND MY GOD. The way he went about it. It is one kind of terrible to come up and say "please sleep with my uncle to help me keep my hotel and livelihood please" but at least that is forthwright and honest and giving her some semblance of control and choice and treating her as an equal (sort of? leagues better than what he ended up doing though that's for sure). That's one level of fucked up but at least that way he wouldn't have manipulated events, manipulated Blair into thinking it is all her idea. I was super pissed with that ep when I first watched it and I didn't watch it again because EWW and watching the following episode with Dorota's wedding is soulcrushing enough but the fact that he put on this act of not wanting her to debase herself that way, that he'll find another way when all along he was playing her and counting on her weakness and love for him and not wanting to see him lose everything so she ends up doing it behind his back to save him, or at least she thought. UGH. That's worse. On a level of terrible that I cannot even fathom right now.
I'd like to say that after Chuck trading her for a hotel I was 100% done with them for good, but there was still a part of me that shipped it. I was brainwashed by the epic love! sizzling chemistry! big gestures and PAIN and angst and kissing and yaaay! And as I was still convinced that they'd end this show with them together, and while once this was a fact to rejoice, now it was more like...eh. okay. how are you writers gonna get yourselves outta this mess? Because they had to redeem him somehow, right? They had to give him his comeuppance and make him become this great man he was supposed to be and then put the Chuck/Blair relationship to rights as well, right? hahahahhaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. no. He gets shot. Because he can't let go of the damn ring he bought for Blair. I am assuming this was supposed to be so romantic that this token of his love for Blair was so strong and intense that he was willing to die for it but nope. It's just fucking dumb. (and that was after he had sex with Jenny because Blair didn't make it to his deadline ultimatum BULLSHIT. and he wasn't even going to tell Blair about that before he proposed to her and was probably NEVER going to tell her. god i hate you)
I HATE things like that. It's so cheap and lazy. I've read other stories from different books and movies that did the same thing-- bad guy needs redemption, but that takes hard work and it'll take SO LONG so lets just shoot him! That'll bring about the same character development as it would to actually get them to realize they did horrible things and have to repay for them and do good things and make up for their bad things. NOPE. Nuh uh. That's not how it works. And he didn't even get any sort of thing out of it. He just pretended to be someone else because he couldn't handle being Chuck Bass and all the terrible stuff he's done and whatever I don't feel sorry for you. If you want me to like you, you gotta own up to your shit and try to make amends for it. But everyone would've been better off if he stayed in France or whatever. Everyone. Including Chuck.
I stopped watching GG for good (shhhh yes I did. it was the first time for good.) before the end of s3. And never actually watched any of those eps until my rewatch this year (which was a damn shame because beyond all of the stupid fake cancer coverup nonsense there were some true gems of Dair scenes).
Anyway, I started watching again in s4 and while Chair were no longer my otp, I still wanted to see what they'd do with them and how they'd get them back together not only out of an interest to see how the writers would make up for the hotel thing, but also because of lingering OTP feelings. They still had chemistry. But the writing. The scenes. The development they went for. It was just terrible. On so many different levels. Chuck is allowed to fall totally for another woman when they never gave Blair that same out. Chuck vows to destroy Blair for her part in Eva leaving. Their hate!sex thing was not good. Not hot. Not interesting. Not what I wanted for a ship I used to love. The writers wanted to revive the game and oneupsmanship aspect of Chair of earlier times but I felt like it wasn't balanced at all, and the thing is in my OTPs I NEED some semblance of balance between the people I am otp-ing goddamnit. I needed my baby Blair to get one up on him more than she did and it became so obvious how she never could in a relationship with him. She sabotaged herself to be with him and said things like how he made her feel like a weak little girl and I was so. done. with them by that point. Chemistry cannot save you from bad writing and repetitive recycled dialogue that is just so phony. ESPECIALLY cannot save you when my favorite character is 98% of the time miserable in this epic love. I was and am first and foremost a Blair fan. Not a Chair fan and not a Chuck fan. Blair's my no. 1.
I stopped watching after the winter finale despite the delightful Dairness of that episode where they go investigating and roadtripping and bantering and drinking coffee and wearing matching clothes. I seriously LOVED their scenes, but that hiatus killed any momentum for me and my willingness to go back to it once the show came back. I think I was plannning to continue watching when it came back just to see the Dair play out but never got around to it. I never thought anything of great substance would come from a Dair storyline, despite the massive potential they always had. I just figured they'd have a fling or something--a relationship that lasts like five eps tops before they bring about Chair again and I wasn't willing to sit through the whole show for that. I was more amenable to just wait and see, and once the Dair arc ended, watching it all together and then being done with this show for good. FOR GOOD.
But.
That did not happen.
And it's been both the best and worst things to happen to me in a long time.
Back to Chair. I was done with them by this point, but I was really super you are never ever coming back from that done with them after he assaulted her in 4x20 and punched the glass right next to head causing her face to get cut up and then she's running away from him terrified for her life. UGH FUCK THESE WRITERS. Not for making Chuck abusive because that was always coming. everything that they have written for him has lead him to that. It's not out of character or anything like that. It's not that I am angry that they make poor wittle Chuck out to be a monster, the fact is that he IS a monster and I just fucking hate how THEY EXCUSED HIS BEHAVIOR AND DIDN'T HOLD HIM ACCOUNTABLE TO HIS ACTIONS AND WERE SAYING TERRIBLE THINGS LIKE BLAIR WASN'T SCARED FOR HER LIFE BUT ONLY SCARED FOR HIM AND THAT HE WOULDN'T HAVE REALLY HIT HER. AND HE WASN'T MAD AT BLAIR. HE JUST HAD A LOT OF FEELINGS OKAY. And their form of acknowledging how he attempted to rape two of the main girls in the pilot is by calling him a 'kissing bandit' and GOD. This show is the worst. Things like this make me feel okay about it ending for good. And that Safran is leaving for Smash and is not going to be in charge of everything next season. I can only hope that a writer with sense and who won't destroy Dair will take up the helm.
Blair x Jenny
I've been having a lot of Blair/Jenny feelings lately and I am just SO SAD that this relationship was so fucking messed up by the show. There was this one gifset that I saw on tumblr a long time ago that is floundering in my drafts somewhere of Jenny saying that the reason she gravitated to Blair and wanted her approval is because they both work so hard for their success while Serena just gets hers swanning about with her perfect hair and legs and boobs and smile and it just is so sad that nothing more came out of their dynamic. That it had to end the way it did.
And the likelihood of Taylor coming back to the show is so very slim now I will never see Jenny react to Dair and the world weeps with me and my infinite sadness.
Serena x Dan
They were cute. I rooted for them in s1. The actors looked good together and had great chemistry (actually, one thing that I think GG did very well was cast its main players. Except Vanessa. They all had chemistry with one another to some capacity. Except Vanessa + anyone who was not Nate). They were easy to root for. But then. Season 2 came. And there were endless break ups and getting back together. Break up again, then an episode later back together. I cannot count the amount of times they started and stopped so by the time s2 ended my Derena shipping was exhausted to its own end.
Rewatching this year, it was obvious how they wouldn't really last. Dan has this vision of Serena being perfect and good that she is so terrified of disappointing so she's never fully honest with him and she WANTS to be that good person when everyone else sees her as who she once was and she wants to move away from that so badly. and I don't really blame her for being not so trusting in behing honest with Dan because Dan is super judgmental and not the most understanding guy in the world. but the fact that she's dishonest and tries to hide the less favorable parts of her life and self only makes him more insecure and I get that and blaaaah. They were good in the sense of a first-time teenage love but they'd never work out longterm in an adult relationship. Unless they worked on their communication skills. Even then though...it is super hard for me to picture them working out now that the show has given us an actual functional, mature relationship in Dair. YOU CAN'T COMPETE.
Still doesn't explain away the fact that they are pseudosiblings. I really did think with the whole "we have a half-sibling in common" thing would've been the final nail in the coffin for them. Not even just the fact that their parents were married and so they were step-siblings the fact but they actually had a real brother that shared both each other's DNA. This stupid show conveniently forgets a LOT of things once they're bored of a storyline but still. That's a pretty big one to never mention again ever.
Too bad this show did not let them go for another year and half, and one can argue that it's still slugging into this year but I really do think it's totally dead. At least on Dan's side and it has been that way since midway s4. Even before Dan's feelings for Blair grew; really starting when Serena chose her revenge against her mom for the whole Ben thing over him and he walked away disappointed yet again and then the Dair arc really started kicking, he got over his Serena feelings once and for all and that was a beautiful thing to me. (and if they have Dan have misery sex with Serena because of events that will transpire in the eps to come I will fucking lose it and lose faith in everything and never be happy ever againNOOO positivity. that's not going to happen. NOPE. Not denial. Really. I am 99.99% sure they aren't going there.)
Well, technically D/S isn't fully dead because Serena's had her reawakened feelings for him and considers him the love of her life but I think this is more having to do with Serena herself and her issues than any potential D/S reunion. This season has been about Serena losing everything. She got fired from several jobs. She's no longer the "it girl". Dan, the boy who always always dropped everything to save her in the past is in love with her best friend, and this same best friend has had a lot more attention because of her marrying a prince, coming out of Serena's shadow so she's lost the love of her life (and really unlike all other seasons, she hasn't had a constant stream of love interests popping up. there was that one blackmailing guy from earlier who I nearly forgot all about because he was one of the things I ffwd through because who cares) and to her best friend no less when usually she's the one who 'takes' everything from Blair. Her daddy issues are brought back (but when before I rolled my eyes at this now I get it, and I felt for her in the last episode because it made sense and Blake actually put effort in with her acting and she has reason to feel so wronged in this instance that I can't dislike her for it). All she has right now is being Gossip Girl and soon that's going to explode in her face and what then. It's not about her and Dan ending up together but more of the deconstruction of Serena van der Woodsen. And she's the most interesting she has been in YEARS because of it.
Serena x Nate
I had this weird feeling going back in s1 that they were supposed to be the ~endgame in the making ship. IDK just their scenes and the way they were filmed and the flashback sex scene was so artfully done it felt like they were more the starcrossed lovers that they later pushed Dan and Serena to be on the outset.
I didn't like them together at first, though.
And when they finally got them together for real. It was s3. And what has been my refrain: S3 is the WORST. They were boring and it was preceded by a terrible triangle involving Nate's murderous cousin and I hated it soooo much. So when they finally got together which was so obviously going to happen in that sl afterall, I did not care.
BUT their shared scenes this season have been really cute and nice and I really want them to end up together now. They can be beautiful blonde and dumb 2gether.
Serena x Chuck
This is just a hunch I have. But I think they're going to go there with these two soon. While it's not worst case scenario and a part of me would appreciate the fact that no ties are left loose in the gg hookup web of interpersonal relations, I still would rather they didn't. Because like Jenny/Chuck it is fucking gross to have her have sex with a guy who tried to rape her back in the pilot. But S/C is waaaaaay less gross than J/C even though their step-sibling connection is way closer than the one shared btwn him and Jenny.
What makes it way better is that it's obvious that they care about each other. In S1 he's the one she turns to because he knows Georgina and he does help her out. And there were obvious signs of Chuck having interest in her in that way back then. They moved past that though and this season it seems like they are more friends like. Commiserating about their loves of their lives getting together. IDK. Still do not want. But I'd prefer it to Chair getting back together.
Serena x Eric (NOT LIKE THAT)
I normally don't have a lot of VDW sibling feelings. As with nearly everything on this show, all I have to base my feelings and why I have these feelings in the first place and the basis for it all is s1 when she comes back to the city for him and the show wasn't all just terrible everything.
They aren't as flawless as the Humphrey siblings though.
Because when I rewatched s4 and the ep where Juliet drugs and frames Serena and Serena's all sadface because everyone is turning on her because of Juliet's ministrations everyone BUT Eric is done with Serena and she says to him "No one cares" and he's all "I care." And then she says back to him "Sorry but you're not enough" and runs off and it upsets me AGAIN just writing that and remembering it. Never over it Serena. You terrible sister.
Jenny x Dan (NOT LIKE THAT)
I just miss them. I really do. I like to think that they still communicate a lot through skype and phone calls and emails and that Jenny knows all about him being in love with Blair (because Eric spilled) and whatever. I just can't think that they do not talk at all with her offscreen all of the time now. And I want to see Jenny and Blair be perfect inlaws. That get over their drama. And are just awesome. As it should be.
Jenny x Nate
Can't recall my exact thoughts as I had a love/hate thing going on with Jenny in s2, but I didn't hate her with Nate? And from what I caught of them in my rewatch I liked them. I was feeling Jenny in general a whoooole lot more this time through than when I first watched. I don't know if this speaks to my growing maturity that I can really see her POV and feel for her and her struggles when before I sided more with Rufus OR if this means that I have in fact regressed and become more immature and thus I am more sympathetic to her as a fellow immature young person. IDK though. Could be a bit of both, but having her not on the show now makes me really appreciate her character in a way that I had not before. I was SO excited to see what they'd do with her taking down the queen b infrastructure at Constance in s3 but then I hated what they did with her and her treatment of Eric and it was awful and it did not help that she was the only one still in HS and everyone else was off in college or doing whatever so there was this balance problem the show had, where when it switched to her storylines, it's like who cares?
Jenate in S3. The worst. I was against it happening. And I did not want her breaking up Nate/Serena though at that time I prefered her and Nate over Nate and Serena. But not that way.
Jenny x Chuck
I knew it was going to happen. I knewwww it and I knew it was going to be terrible but it was even more terrible than I was expecting (and it happened sooner than I was expecting also). UGH. Setting aside the fact that he tried to rape her in the pilot (Ughhhhhhhhhhh), but no, you cannot set that aside. You just can't. And the fact that he is her step-brother. And that he is Chuck... asdalfhsdkjfghskdjghkajdshgjajdsfladkfj. Never okay.
It makes more sense the way they had them hook up than any other alternative they could've come up with, like god forbid an actual relationship--having sex for solace and commiseration is better than that but I STILL FUCKING HATED IT OKAY. I hated that Jenny lost her virginity to her attempted rapist and that she was the one who was run out of town when what she did wasn't anywhere near as awful as what Chuck had done and ugggh. This is when you have to have a more Doylist approach to shows because the choices of the actors/writers come into play and if I have to look it all in an in-universe way only then I'd just...implode from trying to work out the damn motivations and questions of WHY WOULD THEY DO THIS. so yeah. instead of thinking that Jenny is run out of the city because a furious Blair can't cope with the fact that her (ex at the time) bf had sex with her when they were technically not totally broken up or at least were on the road to reconcilation and ok yeah this isn't out of character for Blair but still you cannot convince me that they'd have done that if Taylor didn't want out to focus more on her music career and I choose to think of it this way. Just like I have to rationalize to myself why Giles left in s6 and how come Dick's involvement in Veronica's rape was totally ignored and why oh why did Veronica accept a drink from him when she is usually not one to forgive people who wrong her so easily (they really messed up with that storyline totally).
I skipped a ton of eps when I rewatched, and only downloaded the ones that I knew Dair had scenes in, and I'd watch on and off waiting for those scenes to pop up, and the episode with Chuck's dating fatwa against Blair and she's driven to find a guy to kiss to show all over Gossip Girl to show she's so over him, but then he's manipulating things so no one would touch her, and not even that but he was helping Jenny try to break up Nate and Serena in that same episode because he wanted Nate as miserable and alone as he was and not even just helping Jenny but actually instigating and pushing her to break Nate/Serena up and UGH FUCK YOU CHUCK.
You are a terrible friend.
And boyfriend.
And human being.
Vanessa x Nate
So you know what? I liked them together. Their shared scenes was the only time V was tolerable to me and they had fun and out of all the guys, I liked him with her together most. okay that's enough.
Vanessa x Chuck
They had sex right? Yeah. I don't care about them. At all. It's quite nice actually. The amount I don't give a fuck. :)
Vanessa x Dan
HATED IT. HATE IT FOREVER. least favorite ship (well. except Jenny/Chuck. but I refuse to even dignify that as a ship). The DV-heaviness of s3 made it a thousand times more terrible and made me dislike Dan a whole lot too to a point where he was in my 'don't care' camp of characters that weren't worth sitting through this show for. They used two Flo songs too for DV scenes, and if memory serves, they were two of my fav Flo songs so that just added further insult to injury.
I honestly think Vanessa is a terrible person (not even going to touch on the acting being god awful and her voice is not pleasant and her delivery is even worse--when she runs away from Eric's party or whatever I could barely understand what she was saying. Oh Jessica I know that your character gets no love and this is gossip girl so why try but couldn't you enunciate for fucks sake). She's so judgy all the time and she brings Dan down with her. So glad she left. I do not miss her.
Vanessa x Rufus
There was a time in early s2 when they'd have a lot of scenes together and there was chemistry between them that could not be denied. If this show had actual cajones they should've gone there ok.
Lily x Rufus
I shipped them from the beginning. Even moreso than Derena (who would be in some way in conflict with R/L for how can they date when their parents are married to each other) because they had history and it was THEIR time dammit and I wanted them to have their happily ever after after years and years apart.
And after they got married I just wanted them to be happy and settled and in the background, not being part of the main drama because go-to drama on gossip girl is relationship drama and they have gone thru enough and deserve boring togetherness.
The writers don't feel the same way I do it seems.
But whatevs I still like Lily/Rufus despite the horribleness they have Lily spout out in the last episode and they're prob getting divorced but they are still endgame ok. WHY CAN'T THEY LEAVE RUFLY ALONE.
Seriously though. Why are they ruining Lily? I am not talking about her rebuffing Ivy (team Ivy btw) or lying to William about helping out Lola (team Lola too; Lily may surprise because they cannot make her a totally evil person but still for now I am not holding my breath that she's going to be very amenable to her sister and husband's shared love child) these are things that are well within her character and while they aren't very sympathetic I still get the Why for it all. But what she said to Rufus. Was awful. And it hurts my R/L loving heart from the old days.
I just wanted them to be happy and functional and in the background being boring together. Was that too much to ask for?
I guess it was.
oh, and not to forget the boys:
Dan x Nate
I love their friendship. They are cute. And they need more scenes together.
Dan x Chuck
If the universe were kind and just they would not be friends. I cannot see Dan willingly befriend him after everything that happened. Because of Jenny. And Blair, too. I just. ugh. It's one of those things where I have to sit around and rationalize a great deal until I can be at least a lil bit accepting of it happening and not just annoyed. But whatever I am annoyed anyway even if I did rationalize it out for myself. I don't feel like typing out those stupid rationalizations and it's not like they're friends anymore anyway so YAY!
Let's hope it stays that way.
Nate x Chuck
I have nothing to say about it. Nate doesn't deserve him for a friend. But if Nate were no longer Chuck's friend he'd have even less of a relevant storyline than he does already so I guess their friendship is a necessary evil to ensure quality (lol) plot for poor Nate.
I didn't want to start up Gossip Girl for this exact reason; everything nonDair is terrible and I don't want to get sucked into caring about any of it not the littlest bit. But. Sometimes we cannot choose what we care about and don't care about. Even the things we don't care for have us feeling things, bad things or otherwise.
And I feel the need to spew out all my general GG feelings because I am still too overcome with OTP feelings to properly convey all my Dair emotions and thoughts. When the day comes I finally tackle them in all their glory it's just going to be a huge mess of capslock and gifs of them looking at each other.
So this post is going to be Dair-lite. But no promises that it won't creep in here and there.
I am gonna break down all the relationships on Gossip Girl and discuss my feelings on them because fucking darn it all, I do have feelings despite my wanting to NOT CARE at all, but even though 93% of me in fact does not care, there's still that bit that does to some extent. And care or not I am still totally full of opinions and judgments and stuff regardless.
Blair x Serena
By all rights this should be the main "ship" in Gossip Girl--the relationship with the most importance and focus given on the show. I loved their friendship in the early years no matter how fucked up and badly they'd treat each other they still were the two most important people in each others' lives and I appreciated that. But. It gets to a point where the sabotaging and tearing down and distrust and running circles round the other gets tiring and no amount of hugs and calling each other sisters makes up for that and even though I want them to still be fab bffs when all's said and done, they will never be as great as I want them to be and what s1 was initially shaping them up to be. Which is a shame because they had such potential.
I was pretty much done with them and their bff stuff after Serena defended Chuck after his AWFUL AWFUL behavior at that royal party thing where Blair's trying to impress Princess Sophie. REALLY SERENA. Chuck must be in a lot of pain if he's acting out that way? And I always thought he'd be your prince? REALLLLLLY. When before she was always the first one to talk Blair into staying away from Chuck. Not fucking impressed. But as with a lot of this shit show I don't know how much blame I should put on the character or on the awful writers who do this crap.
All that said this is the only ship I am still 100% unshaken of my belief that they will end up strongly by the series end. Right now they are setting up B/S to have a super huge falling out by the finale (the EP was explicit in saying that the finale is centered on them and that it'll be a huge game changer that'll affect everyone) and I am positive this means that they'll implode in a way that will not get fixed in a few episodes time and so s6 will see them trying to rebuild their friendship and get back to trusting each other so they can ride off in the sunset together once this show ends for good.
Or maybe that's just what I am hoping for s6, when the reality will be that they will just have them apologize and hug and then carry on with the cycle while the writers play with whatever asinine storyline they come up with next year.
I still have that damn hope though that they're put to rights.
Blair x Nate
I was not a fan of them because duh Nate was in love with Serena and was a very negligent bf to Blair and since Blair was my fav I was having none of that. It took me a while to warm up to Nate. I actually did like B/N 2.0 when they got back together in s2. Chuck was being awful to her and just a mess and my inner Blair stan was like good GOOD when Nate came along again because at that point Chuck was not 'redeemed' enough to get back together with Blair (oh poor me who thought they'd ever fully redeem him to my liking). I was glad that Nate was there for her and they got another shot, and my Chair shipper side was not threatened at all because I was convinced Chair were endgame so I just enjoyed the attractiveness of Nair while it was going on.
Now, I actually really appreciate their relationship a whole lot more than I ever did before. I'd never want them to get back together for many reasons, but I DO wish their friendship was played up and that they had more scenes and just....acknowledge that they had a serious relationship all throughout their adolescence. They were each others' first loves afterall. And were pretty together. And their presex scene was super hot in the cotillion episode okay even when I was a huge Chair shipper I could see that.
Blair x Chuck
No joke that I used to be a huge Chair shipper. Particularly s1-s2. but as with everything in the show, that love declined steadily throughout s3, the season of them actually being in a relationship and how does that work and it turns out: not too well. Ugh god. Season 3 was so terrible that I skipped mostly all of it on my Dair rewatch this year even.
Rewatching s1, It brought up a lot of things I remember feeling even the first time I watched. The latter half of s1 suffers for the writers strike and how they had to condense nine episodes into what five? So a lot of sideplots had to be shortened or thrown away all together (if the writers are to be believed this includes Dan being there for Blair's acceptance speech that her mom doesn't go to and dammitall fuck the writers strike for depriving me of this) and one would hope that if things went according to plan C/B development would've been better. As it is, it's a lot more Chuck/Serena heavy as he helps her out with her Georgina issues. Didn't mean that I didn't squee with delight whenever they had any sort of interaction. And they did get together in the finale. And then they flashforward a week later and it all goes to hell. I was sad that we didn't get to see them actually IN a relationship. Both times they got together. It was effectively shot to hell before the s1 finale was done and then all we get on that front is that Blair comes back in love with Chuck and needing him to say he loved her back before they could end up together which is puzzling because even if she had strong feelings for him, in the s1 finale it didn't seem like she was that far gone for him. Plus I wanted to see that falling process onscreen not just have it all happen offscreen. And then their reconciliation in s2 was all yay! happy smiles and rainbows and puppies. But again, their first days/weeks/months together as a couple are offscreen and we don't get to see any of it. By the time s3 starts up they're already having to make up elaborate games to keep up interest in their sex lives.
This is why I so love Dan and Blair. We get to see the very start of their relationship and how they deal with things as a couple and it is so beautiful and perfect I would change nothing about them. We got to see Dan fall for Blair and vice versa and now they are amazing together and I can't even put into words how much they give me life right now. all of the inevitable angst and drama that is coming up is already giving me a bit of anxiety and no matter how much assurance I get that they are strong at the end of an episode, any little bumps they go through beforehand are sooo upsetting to me and i can't take it even though it's all been such small potatos recently and it's going to worse and lead to breaking up and even though this is a good thing in the long run if they end this season apart this gives them more chance of full on endgame i don't want to deal with dair angst right now. i just want them to be happy and content and in love and a team always. they already suffered enough asdokahfkjadhfkajhf
That natural, organic development was always lacking in Chair. Chemistry can only get you so far when the writing and dialogue is awful and then that leads you to drastic events like selling your girlfriend to your cokehead rapist uncle to save your hotel to keep interest alive.
AND MY GOD. The way he went about it. It is one kind of terrible to come up and say "please sleep with my uncle to help me keep my hotel and livelihood please" but at least that is forthwright and honest and giving her some semblance of control and choice and treating her as an equal (sort of? leagues better than what he ended up doing though that's for sure). That's one level of fucked up but at least that way he wouldn't have manipulated events, manipulated Blair into thinking it is all her idea. I was super pissed with that ep when I first watched it and I didn't watch it again because EWW and watching the following episode with Dorota's wedding is soulcrushing enough but the fact that he put on this act of not wanting her to debase herself that way, that he'll find another way when all along he was playing her and counting on her weakness and love for him and not wanting to see him lose everything so she ends up doing it behind his back to save him, or at least she thought. UGH. That's worse. On a level of terrible that I cannot even fathom right now.
I'd like to say that after Chuck trading her for a hotel I was 100% done with them for good, but there was still a part of me that shipped it. I was brainwashed by the epic love! sizzling chemistry! big gestures and PAIN and angst and kissing and yaaay! And as I was still convinced that they'd end this show with them together, and while once this was a fact to rejoice, now it was more like...eh. okay. how are you writers gonna get yourselves outta this mess? Because they had to redeem him somehow, right? They had to give him his comeuppance and make him become this great man he was supposed to be and then put the Chuck/Blair relationship to rights as well, right? hahahahhaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. no. He gets shot. Because he can't let go of the damn ring he bought for Blair. I am assuming this was supposed to be so romantic that this token of his love for Blair was so strong and intense that he was willing to die for it but nope. It's just fucking dumb. (and that was after he had sex with Jenny because Blair didn't make it to his deadline ultimatum BULLSHIT. and he wasn't even going to tell Blair about that before he proposed to her and was probably NEVER going to tell her. god i hate you)
I HATE things like that. It's so cheap and lazy. I've read other stories from different books and movies that did the same thing-- bad guy needs redemption, but that takes hard work and it'll take SO LONG so lets just shoot him! That'll bring about the same character development as it would to actually get them to realize they did horrible things and have to repay for them and do good things and make up for their bad things. NOPE. Nuh uh. That's not how it works. And he didn't even get any sort of thing out of it. He just pretended to be someone else because he couldn't handle being Chuck Bass and all the terrible stuff he's done and whatever I don't feel sorry for you. If you want me to like you, you gotta own up to your shit and try to make amends for it. But everyone would've been better off if he stayed in France or whatever. Everyone. Including Chuck.
I stopped watching GG for good (shhhh yes I did. it was the first time for good.) before the end of s3. And never actually watched any of those eps until my rewatch this year (which was a damn shame because beyond all of the stupid fake cancer coverup nonsense there were some true gems of Dair scenes).
Anyway, I started watching again in s4 and while Chair were no longer my otp, I still wanted to see what they'd do with them and how they'd get them back together not only out of an interest to see how the writers would make up for the hotel thing, but also because of lingering OTP feelings. They still had chemistry. But the writing. The scenes. The development they went for. It was just terrible. On so many different levels. Chuck is allowed to fall totally for another woman when they never gave Blair that same out. Chuck vows to destroy Blair for her part in Eva leaving. Their hate!sex thing was not good. Not hot. Not interesting. Not what I wanted for a ship I used to love. The writers wanted to revive the game and oneupsmanship aspect of Chair of earlier times but I felt like it wasn't balanced at all, and the thing is in my OTPs I NEED some semblance of balance between the people I am otp-ing goddamnit. I needed my baby Blair to get one up on him more than she did and it became so obvious how she never could in a relationship with him. She sabotaged herself to be with him and said things like how he made her feel like a weak little girl and I was so. done. with them by that point. Chemistry cannot save you from bad writing and repetitive recycled dialogue that is just so phony. ESPECIALLY cannot save you when my favorite character is 98% of the time miserable in this epic love. I was and am first and foremost a Blair fan. Not a Chair fan and not a Chuck fan. Blair's my no. 1.
I stopped watching after the winter finale despite the delightful Dairness of that episode where they go investigating and roadtripping and bantering and drinking coffee and wearing matching clothes. I seriously LOVED their scenes, but that hiatus killed any momentum for me and my willingness to go back to it once the show came back. I think I was plannning to continue watching when it came back just to see the Dair play out but never got around to it. I never thought anything of great substance would come from a Dair storyline, despite the massive potential they always had. I just figured they'd have a fling or something--a relationship that lasts like five eps tops before they bring about Chair again and I wasn't willing to sit through the whole show for that. I was more amenable to just wait and see, and once the Dair arc ended, watching it all together and then being done with this show for good. FOR GOOD.
But.
That did not happen.
And it's been both the best and worst things to happen to me in a long time.
Back to Chair. I was done with them by this point, but I was really super you are never ever coming back from that done with them after he assaulted her in 4x20 and punched the glass right next to head causing her face to get cut up and then she's running away from him terrified for her life. UGH FUCK THESE WRITERS. Not for making Chuck abusive because that was always coming. everything that they have written for him has lead him to that. It's not out of character or anything like that. It's not that I am angry that they make poor wittle Chuck out to be a monster, the fact is that he IS a monster and I just fucking hate how THEY EXCUSED HIS BEHAVIOR AND DIDN'T HOLD HIM ACCOUNTABLE TO HIS ACTIONS AND WERE SAYING TERRIBLE THINGS LIKE BLAIR WASN'T SCARED FOR HER LIFE BUT ONLY SCARED FOR HIM AND THAT HE WOULDN'T HAVE REALLY HIT HER. AND HE WASN'T MAD AT BLAIR. HE JUST HAD A LOT OF FEELINGS OKAY. And their form of acknowledging how he attempted to rape two of the main girls in the pilot is by calling him a 'kissing bandit' and GOD. This show is the worst. Things like this make me feel okay about it ending for good. And that Safran is leaving for Smash and is not going to be in charge of everything next season. I can only hope that a writer with sense and who won't destroy Dair will take up the helm.
Blair x Jenny
I've been having a lot of Blair/Jenny feelings lately and I am just SO SAD that this relationship was so fucking messed up by the show. There was this one gifset that I saw on tumblr a long time ago that is floundering in my drafts somewhere of Jenny saying that the reason she gravitated to Blair and wanted her approval is because they both work so hard for their success while Serena just gets hers swanning about with her perfect hair and legs and boobs and smile and it just is so sad that nothing more came out of their dynamic. That it had to end the way it did.
And the likelihood of Taylor coming back to the show is so very slim now I will never see Jenny react to Dair and the world weeps with me and my infinite sadness.
Serena x Dan
They were cute. I rooted for them in s1. The actors looked good together and had great chemistry (actually, one thing that I think GG did very well was cast its main players. Except Vanessa. They all had chemistry with one another to some capacity. Except Vanessa + anyone who was not Nate). They were easy to root for. But then. Season 2 came. And there were endless break ups and getting back together. Break up again, then an episode later back together. I cannot count the amount of times they started and stopped so by the time s2 ended my Derena shipping was exhausted to its own end.
Rewatching this year, it was obvious how they wouldn't really last. Dan has this vision of Serena being perfect and good that she is so terrified of disappointing so she's never fully honest with him and she WANTS to be that good person when everyone else sees her as who she once was and she wants to move away from that so badly. and I don't really blame her for being not so trusting in behing honest with Dan because Dan is super judgmental and not the most understanding guy in the world. but the fact that she's dishonest and tries to hide the less favorable parts of her life and self only makes him more insecure and I get that and blaaaah. They were good in the sense of a first-time teenage love but they'd never work out longterm in an adult relationship. Unless they worked on their communication skills. Even then though...it is super hard for me to picture them working out now that the show has given us an actual functional, mature relationship in Dair. YOU CAN'T COMPETE.
Still doesn't explain away the fact that they are pseudosiblings. I really did think with the whole "we have a half-sibling in common" thing would've been the final nail in the coffin for them. Not even just the fact that their parents were married and so they were step-siblings the fact but they actually had a real brother that shared both each other's DNA. This stupid show conveniently forgets a LOT of things once they're bored of a storyline but still. That's a pretty big one to never mention again ever.
Too bad this show did not let them go for another year and half, and one can argue that it's still slugging into this year but I really do think it's totally dead. At least on Dan's side and it has been that way since midway s4. Even before Dan's feelings for Blair grew; really starting when Serena chose her revenge against her mom for the whole Ben thing over him and he walked away disappointed yet again and then the Dair arc really started kicking, he got over his Serena feelings once and for all and that was a beautiful thing to me. (and if they have Dan have misery sex with Serena because of events that will transpire in the eps to come I will fucking lose it and lose faith in everything and never be happy ever againNOOO positivity. that's not going to happen. NOPE. Not denial. Really. I am 99.99% sure they aren't going there.)
Well, technically D/S isn't fully dead because Serena's had her reawakened feelings for him and considers him the love of her life but I think this is more having to do with Serena herself and her issues than any potential D/S reunion. This season has been about Serena losing everything. She got fired from several jobs. She's no longer the "it girl". Dan, the boy who always always dropped everything to save her in the past is in love with her best friend, and this same best friend has had a lot more attention because of her marrying a prince, coming out of Serena's shadow so she's lost the love of her life (and really unlike all other seasons, she hasn't had a constant stream of love interests popping up. there was that one blackmailing guy from earlier who I nearly forgot all about because he was one of the things I ffwd through because who cares) and to her best friend no less when usually she's the one who 'takes' everything from Blair. Her daddy issues are brought back (but when before I rolled my eyes at this now I get it, and I felt for her in the last episode because it made sense and Blake actually put effort in with her acting and she has reason to feel so wronged in this instance that I can't dislike her for it). All she has right now is being Gossip Girl and soon that's going to explode in her face and what then. It's not about her and Dan ending up together but more of the deconstruction of Serena van der Woodsen. And she's the most interesting she has been in YEARS because of it.
Serena x Nate
I had this weird feeling going back in s1 that they were supposed to be the ~endgame in the making ship. IDK just their scenes and the way they were filmed and the flashback sex scene was so artfully done it felt like they were more the starcrossed lovers that they later pushed Dan and Serena to be on the outset.
I didn't like them together at first, though.
And when they finally got them together for real. It was s3. And what has been my refrain: S3 is the WORST. They were boring and it was preceded by a terrible triangle involving Nate's murderous cousin and I hated it soooo much. So when they finally got together which was so obviously going to happen in that sl afterall, I did not care.
BUT their shared scenes this season have been really cute and nice and I really want them to end up together now. They can be beautiful blonde and dumb 2gether.
Serena x Chuck
This is just a hunch I have. But I think they're going to go there with these two soon. While it's not worst case scenario and a part of me would appreciate the fact that no ties are left loose in the gg hookup web of interpersonal relations, I still would rather they didn't. Because like Jenny/Chuck it is fucking gross to have her have sex with a guy who tried to rape her back in the pilot. But S/C is waaaaaay less gross than J/C even though their step-sibling connection is way closer than the one shared btwn him and Jenny.
What makes it way better is that it's obvious that they care about each other. In S1 he's the one she turns to because he knows Georgina and he does help her out. And there were obvious signs of Chuck having interest in her in that way back then. They moved past that though and this season it seems like they are more friends like. Commiserating about their loves of their lives getting together. IDK. Still do not want. But I'd prefer it to Chair getting back together.
Serena x Eric (NOT LIKE THAT)
I normally don't have a lot of VDW sibling feelings. As with nearly everything on this show, all I have to base my feelings and why I have these feelings in the first place and the basis for it all is s1 when she comes back to the city for him and the show wasn't all just terrible everything.
They aren't as flawless as the Humphrey siblings though.
Because when I rewatched s4 and the ep where Juliet drugs and frames Serena and Serena's all sadface because everyone is turning on her because of Juliet's ministrations everyone BUT Eric is done with Serena and she says to him "No one cares" and he's all "I care." And then she says back to him "Sorry but you're not enough" and runs off and it upsets me AGAIN just writing that and remembering it. Never over it Serena. You terrible sister.
Jenny x Dan (NOT LIKE THAT)
I just miss them. I really do. I like to think that they still communicate a lot through skype and phone calls and emails and that Jenny knows all about him being in love with Blair (because Eric spilled) and whatever. I just can't think that they do not talk at all with her offscreen all of the time now. And I want to see Jenny and Blair be perfect inlaws. That get over their drama. And are just awesome. As it should be.
Jenny x Nate
Can't recall my exact thoughts as I had a love/hate thing going on with Jenny in s2, but I didn't hate her with Nate? And from what I caught of them in my rewatch I liked them. I was feeling Jenny in general a whoooole lot more this time through than when I first watched. I don't know if this speaks to my growing maturity that I can really see her POV and feel for her and her struggles when before I sided more with Rufus OR if this means that I have in fact regressed and become more immature and thus I am more sympathetic to her as a fellow immature young person. IDK though. Could be a bit of both, but having her not on the show now makes me really appreciate her character in a way that I had not before. I was SO excited to see what they'd do with her taking down the queen b infrastructure at Constance in s3 but then I hated what they did with her and her treatment of Eric and it was awful and it did not help that she was the only one still in HS and everyone else was off in college or doing whatever so there was this balance problem the show had, where when it switched to her storylines, it's like who cares?
Jenate in S3. The worst. I was against it happening. And I did not want her breaking up Nate/Serena though at that time I prefered her and Nate over Nate and Serena. But not that way.
Jenny x Chuck
I knew it was going to happen. I knewwww it and I knew it was going to be terrible but it was even more terrible than I was expecting (and it happened sooner than I was expecting also). UGH. Setting aside the fact that he tried to rape her in the pilot (Ughhhhhhhhhhh), but no, you cannot set that aside. You just can't. And the fact that he is her step-brother. And that he is Chuck... asdalfhsdkjfghskdjghkajdshgjajdsfladkfj. Never okay.
It makes more sense the way they had them hook up than any other alternative they could've come up with, like god forbid an actual relationship--having sex for solace and commiseration is better than that but I STILL FUCKING HATED IT OKAY. I hated that Jenny lost her virginity to her attempted rapist and that she was the one who was run out of town when what she did wasn't anywhere near as awful as what Chuck had done and ugggh. This is when you have to have a more Doylist approach to shows because the choices of the actors/writers come into play and if I have to look it all in an in-universe way only then I'd just...implode from trying to work out the damn motivations and questions of WHY WOULD THEY DO THIS. so yeah. instead of thinking that Jenny is run out of the city because a furious Blair can't cope with the fact that her (ex at the time) bf had sex with her when they were technically not totally broken up or at least were on the road to reconcilation and ok yeah this isn't out of character for Blair but still you cannot convince me that they'd have done that if Taylor didn't want out to focus more on her music career and I choose to think of it this way. Just like I have to rationalize to myself why Giles left in s6 and how come Dick's involvement in Veronica's rape was totally ignored and why oh why did Veronica accept a drink from him when she is usually not one to forgive people who wrong her so easily (they really messed up with that storyline totally).
I skipped a ton of eps when I rewatched, and only downloaded the ones that I knew Dair had scenes in, and I'd watch on and off waiting for those scenes to pop up, and the episode with Chuck's dating fatwa against Blair and she's driven to find a guy to kiss to show all over Gossip Girl to show she's so over him, but then he's manipulating things so no one would touch her, and not even that but he was helping Jenny try to break up Nate and Serena in that same episode because he wanted Nate as miserable and alone as he was and not even just helping Jenny but actually instigating and pushing her to break Nate/Serena up and UGH FUCK YOU CHUCK.
You are a terrible friend.
And boyfriend.
And human being.
Vanessa x Nate
So you know what? I liked them together. Their shared scenes was the only time V was tolerable to me and they had fun and out of all the guys, I liked him with her together most. okay that's enough.
Vanessa x Chuck
They had sex right? Yeah. I don't care about them. At all. It's quite nice actually. The amount I don't give a fuck. :)
Vanessa x Dan
HATED IT. HATE IT FOREVER. least favorite ship (well. except Jenny/Chuck. but I refuse to even dignify that as a ship). The DV-heaviness of s3 made it a thousand times more terrible and made me dislike Dan a whole lot too to a point where he was in my 'don't care' camp of characters that weren't worth sitting through this show for. They used two Flo songs too for DV scenes, and if memory serves, they were two of my fav Flo songs so that just added further insult to injury.
I honestly think Vanessa is a terrible person (not even going to touch on the acting being god awful and her voice is not pleasant and her delivery is even worse--when she runs away from Eric's party or whatever I could barely understand what she was saying. Oh Jessica I know that your character gets no love and this is gossip girl so why try but couldn't you enunciate for fucks sake). She's so judgy all the time and she brings Dan down with her. So glad she left. I do not miss her.
Vanessa x Rufus
There was a time in early s2 when they'd have a lot of scenes together and there was chemistry between them that could not be denied. If this show had actual cajones they should've gone there ok.
Lily x Rufus
I shipped them from the beginning. Even moreso than Derena (who would be in some way in conflict with R/L for how can they date when their parents are married to each other) because they had history and it was THEIR time dammit and I wanted them to have their happily ever after after years and years apart.
And after they got married I just wanted them to be happy and settled and in the background, not being part of the main drama because go-to drama on gossip girl is relationship drama and they have gone thru enough and deserve boring togetherness.
The writers don't feel the same way I do it seems.
But whatevs I still like Lily/Rufus despite the horribleness they have Lily spout out in the last episode and they're prob getting divorced but they are still endgame ok. WHY CAN'T THEY LEAVE RUFLY ALONE.
Seriously though. Why are they ruining Lily? I am not talking about her rebuffing Ivy (team Ivy btw) or lying to William about helping out Lola (team Lola too; Lily may surprise because they cannot make her a totally evil person but still for now I am not holding my breath that she's going to be very amenable to her sister and husband's shared love child) these are things that are well within her character and while they aren't very sympathetic I still get the Why for it all. But what she said to Rufus. Was awful. And it hurts my R/L loving heart from the old days.
I just wanted them to be happy and functional and in the background being boring together. Was that too much to ask for?
I guess it was.
oh, and not to forget the boys:
Dan x Nate
I love their friendship. They are cute. And they need more scenes together.
Dan x Chuck
If the universe were kind and just they would not be friends. I cannot see Dan willingly befriend him after everything that happened. Because of Jenny. And Blair, too. I just. ugh. It's one of those things where I have to sit around and rationalize a great deal until I can be at least a lil bit accepting of it happening and not just annoyed. But whatever I am annoyed anyway even if I did rationalize it out for myself. I don't feel like typing out those stupid rationalizations and it's not like they're friends anymore anyway so YAY!
Let's hope it stays that way.
Nate x Chuck
I have nothing to say about it. Nate doesn't deserve him for a friend. But if Nate were no longer Chuck's friend he'd have even less of a relevant storyline than he does already so I guess their friendship is a necessary evil to ensure quality (lol) plot for poor Nate.