Reason #4 I'm Excited That Gossip Girl Is Almost Back

The Gossip.

Duh, right? Actually, this was the last item on the list to occur to me, maybe because it's too obvious. The drama on Gossip Girl is terrifically scandalous, and I couldn't fully express my appreciation for it without detailing the plotline of each and every episode. Even with a season abbreviated by the writers' strike, that would take a while.

I will say that the writers did a nice job with the story of why Serena left and then came back over the course of the season. The initial intrigue made Serena an especially mysterious character, and it set up some of those great early fights between her and Blair. That general air of mystery really pulled me in, and then bam! Before I knew it, I cared about the characters enough to keep watching each week. And then, the super-awesome Georgina packed an unexpected punch by bringing back the story with even more scandal and intrigue.

[Aside: I freaking loved Georgina and the twist she brought to the show, but the way they tied up her storyline in about 8 minutes in the season finale so that she basically just disappeared in a puff of smoke? Bleh. That was some lazy shit.]

Here's hoping for more awesome drama in a strike-free Season Two--it's shows like this that remind me that scripted TV is a hell of a lot more interesting than watching Lauren Conrad sighing dramatically for 22 minutes at a time. [Note to The Hills producers: more LC & Lo being funny and cute together! That's what made them awesome on Laguna.]