As for Gossip Girl...
This episode was the first downright boring episode IMO however the way they solved many of the issues could set it up so the whole murder and Georgina plots could be long gone when next season starts. That being said, it still followed the somewhat ironclad Gossip Girl formula which I've decided to, in between Scrabulous turns, to take a look at. Right now, the basic formula breakdown is:
Act 1: Introduce Big Event, set-up possible tension that could unfold at said event.
Act 2: Prepare for Big Event. Tensions rise and the act ends with secret being revealed (ep. 2: Blair knows about Serena and Nate; ep. 3: Chuck sees Serena going into Ostroff center)
Act 3: Antgonists plot trouble while, elsewhere, the Protagonists try to reach their goal, the efforts meet at the Big Event!
Act 4: The Big Event! Chaos ensues and the act ends as things fall apart as the event comes to a close. (ep.3: Blair calls out Serena as a Ostroff patient; ep. 4: Blair blows up at Serena for being the model/Dan is judgemental about what Serena did)
Act 5: The fallout from the Big Event (usually, everyone's upset) but then the original secret (be it: Serena and Nate, Eric's suicide, Blair confronting her mom about the photo shoot) comes out and sends someone reeling. (In the early eps, it's usually Blair)
Act 6: There's usually a heart-to-heart or two as well as a little morsel for the future (in the first eps, it was hinting about Jenny's turn to a socialite), and it ends with a couple being put together, either in a tumultuous relationship (Nate & Blair in Ep. 1/Jenny & Blair in Ep. 5/Chuck & Blair Ep. 7) or a renewed friendship (Blair and Serena in Ep. 3 or Dan and Vanessa in Ep. 6). I've only looked at the first few episodes in depth but the later episodes often have the couple's secret reveled (Serena catching Blair and Chuck in bed in Ep. 8)
I'm not sure when or if I'll get to a more complete breakdown but I'm hoping to have something for the finale next Monday so all other Gossip Girl fans can spend the offseason constructing their own episodes of Gossip Girl. Granted, I'm not sure any fans actually read this but, at the very least, it's a good study for me in terms of breaking down story and seeing how network shows are constructed.
