Gossip Girl Season 3 Episode 8: The Grandfather: Part II

Gossip Girl

In spite of the fact that it appears that everyone is sleeping with someone new or no one at all, Season 3 of Gossip Girl seems to be floundering without much direction.  While the changing natures of many of the main characters seems to be a main focal point, there is still no clear cut feel for the remainder of the season and what things may come.  Blair and Serena’s tattered friendship seems to be a key plot point, and it’s fairly obvious that the ooey-gooey Dan and Olivia duo are destined to have a short shelf-life in spite of their massive amounts of PDA.  Eric pulled a vanishing act and was nowhere to be seen after last week’s falling out with Queen J and Jenny herself was sidelined with a flu bug. 

On the bright side, Nate got something to do other than be pretty background scenery and Dan and Olivia were marginalized to a nearly pointless side-plot involving Jimmy Fallon and Dan being dubbed “Bathroom Boy” on national television.  The real kicker was that there was nothing nearly as interesting or perv-a-licious surrounding the “Bathroom Boy” moniker, as the story later played out.  Nate, however, took center stage this episode with his family drama and the return of his domineering Grandfather.  Playing an integral role in his cousin Tripp’s campaign to gain a New York Congressional seat, Nate teams up with Grandfather Van Der Bilt and his circle of Upper East Side friends to run the Van Der Bilt hype machine.