‘Gossip Girl’: Poppy goes the weasel

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She’s baaack! Georgina Sparks returns to ‘Gossip Girl’ in the best possible way: as a born-again Christian! Her reunion with Chuck was pretty hilarious (Georgina to Chuck: ‘Have you been saved too?’ Ha!), but I’m not yet 100% convinced she’s a newly reformed soul. She does, however, look poised to steal a few scenes in the next few episodes.

But let’s focus on last night’s revelations, shall we?

Gabriel and Poppy’s plot to extort half of Manhattan is disclosed. They first enter the scene as a happy couple who unhappily break up in front of their intended victim, which in this case is poor, gullible Serena. Then Gabriel charms the pants off S with his Southern-tobacco-heir-does-good story and his dream of starting a company that gives free wireless to African schoolchildren. The catch is that, although he’s ‘in love with’ Serena, he’s still financially tied to Poppy, who threatens to pull his investors if he leaves her for someone else. Cue the dramatic scene in which Gabriel chooses Serena over Poppy, an act that predictably wins S over to help him find new wealthy investors to fool. Genius plan? Not really, but boy, did Gabriel have S going for a minute!

Thank goodness for Blair. If college doesn’t work out for B, she can always begin a career as a private eye. Gabriel’s flaky ways raise a few red flags, so naturally she does a little digging. His story about meeting Serena while she was out with Georgina at Butter doesn’t add up, so she enlists her partner in crime, Chuck, to help uncover Gabriel’s true intentions. This does not go over well with Nate, whose jealousy over Blair and Chuck’s friendship prompts the idea that he and B should move in together. He does have reason for concern. Blair obviously can’t deny the excitement she feels with Chuck; he’s the only one who’d jump on board with her schemes. She and Nate don’t seem right anymore, and their relationship is becoming as awkward as the thought of he and Chuck playing basketball.

Meanwhile, across the bridge, Rufus Humphrey faces some important financial decisions. When he learns the gallery won’t sell as soon as he’d like, he agrees to sell Lincoln Hawk’s song catalog to help pay for Dan’s Yale tuition. However, he falls for Gabriel’s business pitch and pretty much hands his fortune over to a con man.

That was by far the most heartbreaking scene. I think I heard a resounding ‘NOOOOO!’ echo through the streets after Rufus showed up at Gabriel’s door with the money. I’m sure they will find a way to get his money back, but Rufus’ earnest, desperate eyes were just too much to bear. That along with Dan’s disappointment at not being able to attend his dream school and Jenny’s enduring faith in her father reminded us that the Humphreys have much more to lose than the others.

Aside from Rufus’ devastating investment, the Gabriel-Poppy story line didn’t pack as much punch as the hype behind it would lead us to believe. It looks likely that it will be solved next week, which means that, with two more episodes until the season finale, there is lots of room for more drama.

What did you think of last night’s episode? Are you happy to see Georgina?

xoxo

— Enid Portuguez