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* {{Fangirl}}: It's been mentioned several times that she's a huge ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' fangirl. She even once tried to explain the concept to Lily.
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* {{Fangirl}}: It's been mentioned several times that she's a huge ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' ''[[Literature/TheTwilightSaga Twilight]]'' fangirl. She even once tried to explain the concept to Lily.
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* GoodStepmother: She has a better relationship with Chuck than her own husband, stating that her love for him is unconditional.
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* TheReveal: [[spoiler: "She" turns out to be Dan Humphrey.]]
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* TheReveal: [[spoiler: "She" turns out to be Dan Humphrey.]] However both Georgina Sparks and Serena also ran the blog for a period so they can be considered to have been Gossip Girl too]]
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* CoolLoser: He looks good, and is smart, sensitive, and likable but he's seen as the Lonely Boy loser in the first season.
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* BettyAndVeronica: Played the Veronica to both Serena and Eva's Bettys.
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* BettyAndVeronica: The Betty to Blair's Veronica and Nate's Archie in Season 1.
** Also the Veronica to Vanessa's Betty and Dan's Archie.
** Also the Veronica to Vanessa's Betty and Dan's Archie.
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* TeensAreShort: The straightest (pun unintended) example in the show.
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* Ambiguously Bi: When Chuck pretends to be gay to blackmail an administrator at NYU into allowing Blair to give a toast, Blair jokes with him about it. His response is that he disliked making out with the administrator because he was not Blair, and sarcastically asks Blair if she thinks he's "never kissed a guy before?"
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* Ambiguously Bi: {{Ambiguously Bi}}: When Chuck pretends to be gay to blackmail an administrator at NYU into allowing Blair to give a toast, Blair jokes with him about it. His response is that he disliked making out with the administrator because he was not Blair, and sarcastically asks Blair if she thinks he's "never kissed a guy before?"
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* ClassPrincess: She's the most popular IT girl of Manhattan. While she can be irresponsible at worst, she's a genuinely friendly girl who never acts like an AlphaBitch.
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* {{Ambiguously Bi}}: When Chuck pretends to be Gay to blackmail an administrator at NYU into allowing Blair to give a toast, Blair jokes with him about it. His response is that he disliked making out with the administrator because he was not Blair, and sarcastically asks Blair if she thinks he’s “never kissed a guy before?”
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* {{Ambiguously Bi}}: Ambiguously Bi: When Chuck pretends to be Gay gay to blackmail an administrator at NYU into allowing Blair to give a toast, Blair jokes with him about it. His response is that he disliked making out with the administrator because he was not Blair, and sarcastically asks Blair if she thinks he’s “never he's "never kissed a guy before?”before?"
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* {{Ambiguously Bi}}: When Chuck pretends to be Gay to blackmail an administrator at NYU into allowing Blair to give a toast, Blair jokes with him about it. His response is that he disliked making out with the administrator because he was not Blair, and sarcastically asks Blair if she thinks he’s “never kissed a guy before?”
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* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Blair, from season one to the end of season five (after which TheyDo). They were also a couple for about 2/3 of season three.
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* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Blair, from season one to the end of season five (after which TheyDo). [[RelationshipUpgrade they get together]]). They were also a couple for about 2/3 of season three.
three.
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* BrilliantButLazy: Witty, devious, and a MagnificentBastard, but also vain and his only interests are sex and money. At least until CharacterDevelopment kicks in.
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* BrilliantButLazy: Witty, devious, and a MagnificentBastard, ManipulativeBastard, but also vain and his only interests are sex and money. At least until CharacterDevelopment kicks in.
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* PlayingGertrude: In the DistantFinale Jenny is 24, though Momsen was still 19 at the time.
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* ShesGotLegs: Hell to the yes. In keeping with her [[MsFanservice status on the show]], possesses such things and is fully aware of how to utilise them.
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* AbsoluteCleavage: A character trademark.
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[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder: Serena van der Woodsen]]
[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/SerenaVanDerWoodsen5_8154.jpg]]
-->"''Gossip Girl is going down!''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/BlakeLively
-->'''Voiced by:''' Erica Edwards (Latin-American Spanish), Creator/YukoKaida (Japanese)
The IT girl of the Upper West Side. Cheerful and carefree, fun and spirited. When the show starts she returns to Manhattan after spending time at a boarding school.
* AbsoluteCleavage: A character trademark.
* AllWorkVsAllPlay: The fun-loving free spirit to Blair's hard-working, scheming, queen.
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: Towards Blair. She is much more charismatic and better with people than Blair and often gets things handed to her as a result, while Blair has had to work very hard for everything she's achieved. This is a recurring source of conflict in their friendship, although Blair eventually gets over it.
* ApologisesALot: She tends to spend a lot of time apologising to other characters, even for things she really shouldn't be apologising for.
* CoolBigSis: To Eric and also Jenny in the first few seasons, until they liked the same guy.
* DamselInDistress: The fact that being in a car crash thanks to wolves roaming New York, being conned by her boyfriend, and her mother having her arrested for stealing a bracelet are ''not'' the best examples of why she fits this trope should tell you something.
* DisappearedDad: Serena and Eric's father left when they were little.
* DumbBlonde
** Downplayed in the early seasons. She is a nice, free-spirited girl, whose intelligence appears to be lower compared to most of her peers', but seems rather average. [[TookALevelInDumbass After several seasons, however, she grows into this trope]].
** Double subverted in regards to her academic career. Serena made good grades her last two years of high school, and won admission to ''three'' [[IvyLeagueForEveryone Ivy League universities.]] It's however explicitly said that she was wanted there not because of her academic prowess, but because of her fame in the UES society.
* EasilyForgiven: Slightly subverted. She took Blair's boyfriend's virginity, then moved to Connecticut without telling Blair she was leaving, then ignored Blair's calls, texts and e-mails for a year even though she knew Blair's parents were getting a divorce (due to Blair's father leaving her mother for another man) and Blair's father was moving away to France. Blair did give her hell and humiliated her in public, but then forgave her after a few episodes. Not for the last time, either.
* EveryoneLovesBlondes: Though not the only blonde, she's easily the most popular character in-universe, and immediately gets almost every male character on his knees for her.
* FallenPrincess: The final season teasers implies her to be this. Then again, NeverTrustATrailer.
* TheFashionista: Not as elitist as Blair about it, but she's also very fashion-oriented. She has been noted to be the muse of several designers (particularly in the books, though in the show Dorota also says that Marc Jacobs named a purse after her), and in a later season Dan shows that he retained some useful fashion knowledge from his time dating her.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Sanguine.
%%* GagBoobs
* GoodBadGirl: Even at her wildest (such as in her time before the pilot), she's still a genuinely nice girl, who just happens to ReallyGetsAround and never seems particularly ashamed of it. She does try to change some of her "badder" bad girl traits, such as drugs and wild party, but is still enthusiastic about sex as soon as she really fancies someone.
* HappilyMarried: Implied in the finale to be her future with [[spoiler:Dan]].
* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Especially before the beginning of the series, where this was pretty much all Serena's character was about. [[CharacterDevelopment She grows out of it during the series]], though it's still part of her personality and her wild party persona comes back at times.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Blair, to the point they dumped their respective dates at prom, and spent the rest of the night together remembering old days. And now in season 4 they live together.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Serena decides whether a person is good or bad by the following criteria: They like me - they're good. They don't like me - they're bad.
* InLoveWithLove: Season three and onward.
* InSeriesNickname: S.
* InformedAttractiveness: She is treated as THE ultimate beauty of the circle by most of the characters, despite the cast being full of other very attractive actresses.
* ItsAllAboutMe: At first it seems a bit like an InformedFlaw, as the world is mostly set by revolving around her and if she doesn't react quickly enough, her judgmental boyfriend or insecure best friend will accuse her of being conceited. But as the seasons roll over it becomes increasingly true.
* LateForSchool: Basically a trademark in the books. Carries over to the show every once in a while.
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: The Light to Blair's Dark. And more so in contrast to Georgina during season one.
* LookingForLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces: Let's see... Two teachers, her best friend's boyfriend, an ex-con, two con artists, a HaremSeeker, a married man... [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg And Dan.]] It's even lampshaded early in the series, how an uncharacteristically good guy he is for being one of Serena's choices, but in the end of the series it's no longer necessarily true.
* MistakenForPregnant: After she ends up on Gossip Girl while buying pregnancy tests for Blair in season one.
* MsFanservice: Once in a blue moon Creator/BlakeLively appears in something that actually covers her legs and/or her boobs. Many fans consider her breasts to be characters in their own right.
* NiceGirl: Especially compared to her best friend [[AntiHero Blair]], she's generally kind and laidback.
* PreppyName: Serena van der Woodsen.
* PrettyInMink: Wore a white fur stole for the would-be photo shoot in "Kids Stay In the Picture".
* PseudoRomanticFriendship: With Blair. More so in the books, where they take baths together, but still prevalent enough on the show.
* ReallyGetsAround: Before her changing her ways in the beginning of the series it was part of her HardDrinkingPartyGirl side; afterwards (as in, during the actual course of the show), it's a mix of her natural approach to her own sexuality and being InLoveWithLove. It's less that Serena sleeps around for fun and more that she falls in love often, and soon has sex with almost everyone she falls for. Interestingly, she doesn't get much of the usual DoubleStandard for it, probably because she's genuinely nice and people just accept it as part of her personality. If anything, it's only mentioned when Blair's DeadpanSnarker tendencies show up:
-->'''Blair''': Are you jealous because you didn't sleep with [Chuck] first? There had to be somebody left on the Upper East Side.
* SerialRomeo: From season two and onward. Her boyfriends include Dan, Aaron Rose, Gabriel, Carter, Tripp, Nate, Colin, Ben, and Steven.
* ShesGotLegs: Hell to the yes. In keeping with her [[MsFanservice status on the show]], possesses such things and is fully aware of how to utilise them.
* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Dan in season one.
* SpoiledSweet: She’s the IT girl from the upper east side, InLoveWithLove and is welcoming to the Humphrey children with open arms.
* StatuesqueStunner: Even the show itself points this out in "The Magnificent Archibalds":
-->'''Aaron''': Serena's life is complicated?
-->'''Dan''': Yeah. I don't know about you but the Serena I know has long, flowing blonde hair, towers over both of us?
* StrongFamilyResemblance: All the Rhodes women (except for somewhat color coded for being the BlackSheep Carol) are tall, slender blond beauties.
* TeacherStudentRomance: With Colin Forrester in season four.
* TookALevelInJerkass: In late season 5, when the world stop revolving around her. She backstabs Blair (unprovoked this time) and her young cousin Lola out of jealousy.
* UptownGirl: To Dan, who is financially strained compared to his wealthy classmates.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Blair Waldorf]]
[[quoteright:266:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Blair_Waldorf_67.jpg]]
-->"''I am not a stop along the way. I am a destination.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/LeightonMeester
Serena's BFF (and occasional rival). The preppy queen of Constance Billard, always with a crew of minions around her. Ruthless and elitist yet very much a loving friend and girlfriend. Although if you ask Dan Humphrey she's a 95-pound, doe-eyed, bonmot-tossing, label-whoring package of girly evil.
* AbusiveParents: Zig-zagged. Her mom is a piece of work and makes unkind comments about Blair's weight. But she also shows a lot of genuine concern for Blair.
* AcademicAlphaBitch: She's a rich, popular, and ruthless overachiever who wants to destroy her rivals in both popularity and academics.
* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: The love of her life turns out to be Chuck Bass and not Nate Archibald.
* AlphaBitch: As the resident queen bee for the first two seasons, before graduating; though even before, when she's no longer focused on reigning the school, Penelope is quick to fill the void.
* AlwaysSecondBest: To Serena, whom she feels constantly overshadows her. This dynamic fades when Blair grows more self-confident in later seasons, however.
* AntiHero: At best, she is this.
* BelligerentSexualTension: Chuck and Blair. Later on, [[spoiler:Dan and Blair]].
* TheBGrade: Gets a B in season two and goes after the teacher who gave her the grade because she needs straight As to get into Yale. In season one, she's unhappy because she only made 2200 on the practice exam for the UsefulNotes/SATs, even though Serena points out that that's in the 90th percentile.
* BetterAsFriends: Blair and Nate eventually land on this conclusion in season two.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: At times, she doesn't even pretend to be nice.
* BrainyBrunette: She's one of the best students in her class. Also, as mentioned above, she makes 2200 on the practice exam for UsefulNotes/SATs, as expected of someone who wants to get into Yale.
* BreakoutCharacter: It's easy to forget Serena is the protagonist.
* BrutalHonesty: Obviously not when lying or conspiring, but when she gives an actual opinion, she tends to be extremely blunt.
* TheCorrupter: To Jenny. Chuck did some too, but it was mostly her.
* DaddysGirl: Very much this. She didn't even hold any grudges about him moving to another continent with his new lover (she did, however, hold a grudge against the ''lover'', for a while at least). Should be noted that her father knows a lot less about her AlphaBitch tendencies than her mother does, and often treats her like a SpoiledSweet princess, an impression Blair is all too happy to play along with. When her father does find out his daughter cheats and manipulates to get her way in Season 2, he is [[BrokenPedestal shocked]].
** She also grows very close to her step-father Cyrus, asking him to walk her down the aisle together with her biological father at her wedding to Louis.
* DeadpanSnarker: A character trademark. If she's not being outright mean, she's being ''very'' snarky, and even her close friends get their share of it.
* DeathGlare: A master of this trope.
* DefrostingIceQueen: She softens up over the years.
* {{Determinator}}: She will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
* FallenPrincess: When rumors about her being pregnant by either Nate or Chuck hit Gossip Girl. Later becomes a literal example, when her marriage to Prince Louis falls apart.
* TheFashionista: Fitting as she's a fashion designer's daughter.
* FemaleMisogynist: Blair frequently [[SlutShaming slut shames]] and otherwise spews misogyny at other female characters. Best exemplified in her reactions to Nate cheating on her with Serena and Chuck [[spoiler: sleeping with Jenny]]: while she does hold anger towards the actual cheaters, she unleashes most of her rage against the women, trying to ruin their lives multiple times.
* FishOutOfWater: Expects to be able to rule NYU the same way she ruled Constance Billard, but learns the hard way that college is not like high school. Chuck eventually helps her transfer to Columbia, which is a better fit for her.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Melancholic.
* HappilyMarried: With Chuck, as of the finale. Their wedding is seen in the last episode.
%%* HeadTurningBeauty
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Serena, to the point they dumped their respective dates at prom, and spent the rest of the night together remembering old days. And now in season 4 they live together.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: Although she's stuck-up and seemingly confident, she's secretly insecure about Serena being AlwaysSomeoneBetter.
* InSeriesNickname: Queen B, or just B.
%%* ItsAllAboutMe: Big time, but it got worse in season five.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Blair is standoffish, vindictive and usually only helps others if she stands to gain something from it. However, she can be very sweet and affectionate toward her friends and loved ones, especially when [[CharacterDevelopment she learns to stop treating every minor disappointment as a personal betrayal]].
* JustFriends: With Dan in Season 4, after they've developed more of a rapport.
* KarmaHoudini: Sometimes suffers as a result of her treatment of others, but usually gets away with cruel and entitled behavior far more than other characters do.
* KickTheDog: Her treatment of Dan and Vanessa usually qualifies.
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: The Dark to Serena's Light.
* LivingEmotionalCrutch: To Chuck.
* LovableAlphaBitch: Blair can be sweet and does worry about the people she likes if she's on good terms with them, but only her close friends and family get to see this side of her.
* LoveMartyr: For Chuck Bass. Then in late season three she realizes it's not healthy to love someone so much that you'd prostitute yourself for them and breaks up with him. Then, in Season 5, she realizes she'll probably never get over him and decides she wants to be with him anyway. Ironically, by that time his CharacterDevelopment has turned the trope around and he's been a LoveMartyr for her for about two seasons.
* MaddenIntoMisanthropy: When Yale kicked her out.
* MamaBear: For the members of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club. Also, Eric fairly often and Jenny in the past. Oddly, she doesn't seem to be this for the baby she lost in season five.
* ManipulativeBitch: One of the most conniving, manipulative masterminds on the show.
* MistakenForPregnant: Brings about her social downfall in season one.
* MoralMyopia:
** Puts the onus on Dan for driving Serena away late in season 6... even though she was responsible for instigating it in the first place because she didn't like them as a couple.
** While she was right to be angry at Jenny for posting about Dan and Serena cheating on Vanessa and Nate, blaming Jenny for “messing with” the Serena/Nate relationship instead of Dan and Serena for '''actually cheating''' is more than a bit ridiculous.
* MsFanservice: Often appears wearing sexy lingerie.
* NeverMyFault: Probably a result of being raised around the same tendency in her mother.
* NoSocialSkills: Downplayed. Blair is very witty and has her own brand of charm, but she is also abrasive and sometimes awkward, especially compared to Serena's famously effortless social grace.
* OddFriendship: With Dan. While they are in many ways total opposites (and pass a good time of the series hating each other guts or ignoring one another unless Serena is involved), [[CommonalityConnection they bond over their taste in movies]].
* OneHourWorkWeek: Most people who go to college actually attend classes.
* ParentalAbandonment: Seeing as all four of her parents have left her and moved to France.
* PetTheDog: Once in a while, Blair will do something completely altruistic.
* PreppyName: Blair herself and her actress, Leighton Meester.
%%* PrincessInRags: Occasionally.
* PseudoRomanticFriendship: With Serena. To the point that when she forgives Serena for having slept with Nate and left to a boarding school without telling her, she seems to have felt way more upset about Serena leaving her than the whole "had sex with your boyfriend" thing.
%%* RavenHairIvorySkin
* ReadyForLovemaking: Once for Nate, at least three times for Chuck, and several times with [[spoiler:Dan.]]
* RichBitch: Filthy rich, snobby, and ruthless.
%%* SeeminglyWholesomeFiftiesGirl
* SmartPeoplePlayChess: Blair plays chess with Dorota.
* StepfordSnarker: Frequently uses cutting remarks to hide the fact that she's feeling vulnerable or attacked, and it's implied that a substantial amount of her habitual [[IceQueen bitchiness]] is a product of acting out due to insecurity or loneliness.
* TeamMom: Of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club. And a MamaBear one at that.
* TookALevelInJerkass: In season 5, kind of. She is not more of a jerk than before, she just loses many of the good qualities that've been making her likable before.
* {{Tsundere}}: Type A. She is mostly tsun, but she has a nice side.
* TheUnfavorite: Blair's mother prefers Serena.
* WeightWoe: Usually downplayed, but Blair has struggled with disordered eating and sometimes relapses when she's under a lot of stress.
* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Chuck. They started out as friends-with-benefits, then broke it off, then got together for all of one week in the season one finale. After that they spent the entirety of season two wanting to be together, but each needing the other to be the first to confirm that by saying "I love you" (ItMakesSenseInContext). They were then a couple for 3/4 of season three, waged war on one another at the start of season four, went back to being friends-with-benefits, then decided they should be together but only after accomplishing their other goals first... Season five saw Blair almost leave her fiancé for Chuck, but after he nearly died she made a pact with God to stay with Louis in exchange for Chuck's survival (this [[ItMakesSenseInContext also makes sense in context]] - sort of). Finally in season six they got together for good.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Chuck Bass]]
[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Westwick_3_4011.jpg]]
-->"''Dude. I’m Chuck Bass. Even ''Europeans'' must know what that means.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/EdWestwick
Serena's brother (through adoption) and Blair's main love interest. The richest character on the show and also the most ruthless. Spends most of his time brooding in fancy suits while sipping scotch and plotting somebody's downfall.
* AbusiveParents: His father Bart, especially in the last season when he tries to [[spoiler:kill his own son]].
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: In the books he was depraved but seemed quite happy with himself and his life. In the series he's the JerkassWoobie with a ton of emotional damage.
%%* AntiHero
* AttemptedRape: Twice in the pilot episode, no less. In Season Two, he tries to pull a BedTrick on Blair, but she catches on quickly and [[NotIfTheyEnjoyedItRationalization would have allowed it to continue]] if not for the interruption.
* BeautyIsBad: He's considered a devilishly handsome "bad boy".
* BelligerentSexualTension: [[JerkWithAHeartofGold Chuck]] and [[{{Tsundere}} Blair]] seem poised to play WillTheyOrWontThey for the remainder of the series.
* BigBrotherMentor: To Serena's brother Eric. He seems to genuinely like him and was accepting of him during his coming out.
* BiggerIsBetterInBed: The show likes to hint at this being the case with Chuck.
* BirdsOfAFeather: With Blair. They are both highly intelligent and competent, are skilled manipulators, and are almost always willing to use any means necessary to get their way. This actually stands in the way of their relationship initially, as they are so caught up in playing [[MindGameShip mind games]] with each other that they can't bring themselves to actually admit how they feel.
* BrainsAndBondage: He's one of the most intelligent characters of the show, and he has ''a lot'' of fun.
* BreakoutCharacter: The show originally gave him a similar role in the book as a date raping villain while also having him as Nate's sidekick. However his astounding popularity has led to him taking center stage to the point where Nate (who is the main male character of the books) seems to have mostly been shoved into the background while Chuck Bass is developed into a more likable character through his relationship with Blair and redemption plotline.
* BrilliantButLazy: Witty, devious, and a MagnificentBastard, but also vain and his only interests are sex and money. At least until CharacterDevelopment kicks in.
* ByronicHero: If he wasn't before, season 4 is turning him into one of these.
* CannotSpitItOut: To Blair in season 2. They both know he loves her, but his inability to be vulnerable enough to say it (and vice versa) repeatedly drives them apart.
* TheCasanova: A womanizer who uses girls as tools. Until Blair, at least.
* CatchPhrase: "''I'm Chuck Bass''."
* TheChessmaster: Excels at this.
* CrazyJealousGuy: He's even lampshaded it himself.
* DeadpanSnarker: King of the one-liner, and seems to have a dry comeback for almost anything.
* DeathGlare: He has a knack for it.
* {{Determinator}}: Like Blair, he will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
* DrowningMySorrows: And considering how often he's made to suffer, he must be at high risk of pancreatitis.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Mr. Ellis sure was happy to get to kiss him.
* FatalFlaw: Mention the magic words, "Bart would(n't) be proud" and Chuck will do ''anything'' to get back to where he thinks his father would want him to be.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Choleric.
* FreudianExcuse: Related to the DeathByChildbirth thing. Chuck's mother from died giving birth to him, the reason for his father's dislike of him. [[spoiler: Except she didn't. It's a long story and explained in a rather convoluted way to boot.]]
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: On and off. His friends (and Blair) will spend half a season remarking on what a bad person he is and wondering why they're friends with him, only for him to suddenly be included as a trusted core member of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club whom everyone secretly cared about the whole time.
* HappilyAdopted: By Lily. He gets along with her better than either he gets along with his biological father or she with her biological children.
* HappilyMarried: With Blair, as of the finale.
* HaremSeeker: When he's not with Blair, he has his own harem.
* TheHedonist: Has this tendency, although much of it seems to be a way of acting out against his father or dealing with stress. At times in his life when he's doing well, he is more focused on work and relationships and does not pursue mindless pleasure.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* InsecureLoveInterest: He runs on this trope regarding Blair for most of the show's duration. It doesn't help that Blair goes back and forth between reinforcing this belief and telling him he's the best man she's ever known and all that she's ever wanted.
* ItsAllAboutMe: He falls into this mindset quite often in the early seasons. Goes through massive character development in the fifth season.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's an egotistical jerk, and proud of it, but he loves Blair with all his heart and would do anything for her.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty:
** Does a lot of bad things but often gets his comeuppance, like for instance losing Blair multiple times due to his own schemes (which would be an aversion of this trope). It's arguable whether this applies to him re: attempting to rape Serena and Jenny; the first example got him kneed in the crotch and the second got him punched in the face, but he never faces any legal repercussions and the incidents are [[CharacterizationMarchesOn all but forgotten]] by the other characters.
** More generally, Chuck may do a ''lot'' of immoral things, but he also tends to suffer a lot more than the other characters, meaning karma might actually be working just fine in his case.
* LadykillerInLove: Falls hard for Blair in early season 1 and, other than a few brief flings, stays devoted to her for the entire series.
* LoveMartyr: Becomes this to Blair in the second half of season four and all of season five.
* MaddenIntoMisanthropy: When he lost Blair in late season three.
* ManipulativeBastard: Like Blair, he is vengeful, manipulative and able to scheme elaborate plans.
* MemeticBadass: In-universe. Most of the main characters are well known for being wealthy and conniving Upper East Siders, but Chuck's notoriety in particular is frequently played for one-off jokes and the occasional plot point.
* MillionairePlayboy: Actually a ''Billionaire'' Playboy.
* NouveauRiche: Chuck's dad is a self-made man, and the Basses are relatively new to the Upper East Side. Given how elitist their social circle is, this comes up from time to time.
%%* MrFanservice
* OddFriendship: With Nate. And Dan. [[spoiler: At least until he figures out Dan sent the video about Blair declaring her love for Chuck.]]
* ParentalAbandonment: With his father having trouble accepting him after his mother died during childbirth. According to season 3, Bart had trouble accepting him after his mother ditched them and forced Bart to tell Chuck that she died in childbirth. And then his mom comes back just to steal his hotel from him and ruin his life.
* ThePornomancer: He sleeps around a lot.
* QuickNip: Chuck Bass frequently does this, on occasion with flasks.
* ReallyGetsAround: Notorious for being a playboy and is frequently shown sleeping with hired women for recreation.
* RealMenWearPink: And sometimes purple.
* ScarfOfAsskicking: Although Nate claims that death by scarf is not that intimidating.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Manly Man to Nate's Sensitive Guy.
* SexyManInstantHarem: Never has any trouble attracting multiple women. Including twins - they find Chuck.
* SharpDressedMan: In season one his wardrobe was rather varied... to say the least. It got more subdued in season two, and by season three he only ever wears suits outside his penthouse.
* SmugSnake: He's an arrogant, hedonistic and narcissistic sleazebag who uses his charisma and seductive nature to get what he wants.
* SoftSpokenSadist: Shows shades of this trope, as he has a habit of saying cruel things in a very quiet and gentle tone of voice.
%%* StalkingIsLove: Re: Blair.
* TheStoic: Chuck is extremely soft-spoken and usually very composed, mirroring his calculating and cold-blooded personality. Subverted somewhat in that he can be very open about his feelings verbally, and just isn't as likely to emote them in an obvious way.
%%* TinMan
* TokenEvilTeammate: Of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club. Though he's mellowed over the course of the show, while Blair and Serena have gotten worse.
* TookALevelInKindness: While he's still no saint by any means, he lets go of some of his more unscrupulous tendencies as of season 5.
* TroubledButCute: Because he's Chuck Bass, after all. Sex-obsessed, manipulative bad boy with daddy issues, HiddenHeartOfGold, and a ton of emotional damage? Easily the most attractive guy on the show, just ask Blair and his female fans.
* TheUnfettered: Sometimes. For most seasons his only goal is to sleep with/destroy Blair. He even describes himself as not having anything to lose.
* WickedCultured: An elegant, quick-witted billionaire who also can be quite ruthless, abusive and callous.
* WellDoneSonGuy: All he really wants from his father is his approval, which he feels he can never have due to the crime of having killed his mother at birth.
* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Blair, from season one to the end of season five (after which TheyDo). They were also a couple for about 2/3 of season three.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Nate Archibald]]
[[quoteright:305:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Nate_Archibald001_4888.jpg]]
-->"''Affairs with married people, love triangles... Just so happens everyone's problems are within my area of expertise.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/ChaceCrawford
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/IrwinDaayan (Latin-American Spanish), Keiichi Nakagawa (Japanese)
The fourth member of the show's core four (aka the Non-Judging Breakfast Club). Chuck's best friend, Blair's former boyfriend and Serena's occasional love interest. Comes with a large dose of family drama, a fair dose of stupidity and dashing manbangs.
* BetterAsFriends: Blair and Nate eventually land on this conclusion in season two.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Toward Jenny, although somewhat complicated by the fact that there have been feelings between them at various points in the series (Jenny herself lampshades this, right before Nate [[ForcefulKiss plants one on her]]).
* BigManOnCampus: He is considered to be the "golden boy of the Upper East Side."
* BigScrewedUpFamily: His mother's family, the Vanderbilts.
* BrainlessBeauty: The resident pretty boy, but not very bright.
* ChickMagnet: Quite popular with girls and involved in many relationships throughout the series.
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: Loves coming to the rescue of damsels in distress.
* DaEditor: Specifically, editor-in-chief of a magazine in college.
* DatingCatwoman: With Bree Buckley, his girlfriend in early season three.
* DidNotGetTheGirl: [[spoiler:After carrying torches for both Serena and Blair at different times during the series, he ends up with neither of them.]]
* DisappearedDad: Nate's dad flees the country, then returns only to end up in federal prison.
* TheDitz: A very sweet guy, but not exactly the brightest crayon in the box.
* TheDragAlong: Nate usually has to be forced or talked into joining the NJBC adventures. He becomes a lot more willing during season 6.
* DumbassNoMore: Usually the dimmest of the group, Nate's intelligence rises to average or above in the final season as he actively works to help his friends in their schemes. That doesn't stop him from following in his father's footsteps as far as business goes, though.
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Fitzwilliam.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Phlegmatic.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Has many sexual relationships during the show's six-year run.
* InLoveWithLove: He has fallen head over heels for every single girl in the show, only to completely forget her two weeks later, not to mention all the {{Satellite Love Interest}}s the boy's had.
* KindheartedSimpleton: The dumbest of the main characters, and probably the sweetest too, especially compared to Chuck and Blair.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: They both have trouble being honest when it comes to their business finances.
* LikesOlderWomen: Has gotten involved with women who are much older than him (and, frequently, are also married).
* MrFanservice: Often struts around shirtless.
* NiceGuy: Next to Chuck and Blair, he's practically a saint.
* OddFriendship: With Chuck -- the naive SerialRomeo and the devious HaremSeeker.
* OneHourWorkWeek: Never seems to attend classes (which was [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by Blair in season three).
* OnlySaneMan: The insanity seems to just play out around him.
* PerpetualExpression: Extreme confusion.
* PreppyName: Nathaniel Archibald. Played by Chace Crawford.
* PrettyBoy: Vanessa once declared him to be prettier than her.
* PrinceCharming: He is described as charming with extreme regularity, and has the tendency to fall passionately in love (with various girls) and deliver romantic speeches (occasionally hilariously out of context) while rescuing them from some emotional or social dragon. He is in the books given the epithet "prince of the upper east side" and it is said that he can "snap his fingers and have any girl he wants."
* ReallyGetsAround: At one point, Gossip Girl herself labels him the Class Whore.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Sensitive guy to Chuck's manly man.
* SerialRomeo: He has dated many different women, including all the main girls (Blair, Serena, Jenny, and Vanessa). He also dates several side characters like Bree, Juliet, Lady Catherine, Diana, Sage, and Raina.
* SpoiledSweet: The KindHeartedSimpleton from a wealthy family who isn’t judgmental about the social class of the Humphrey children and looks out for the people he cares about.
* TheStoner: Explicit in the novel, alluded to in the series.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Among his family and group of friends. He did some questionable things during the series' run, but he is the only one in the pack who never went after anybody for a malice-driven vendetta and apparently the only one within Gossip Girl's circle of influence who's never sent a tip there.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Chuck, starting after Nate discovered that Chuck had been sleeping with Blair (though what made him angry was that he thought Chuck was just using her; once he realized there was love involved he was alright with it). Even though that was eventually resolved, it took a few seasons for their friendship to really get back on track, and in the meantime they weren't always nice to one another.
* UnwittingPawn: It's safe to assume that if someone is scheming within the nearby zone, he or she will be manipulating Nate.
* UpperClassTwit: Nate's family is very wealthy and is just as ditzy as Serena.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Dan Humphrey]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dan_humphrey_gossip_girl_finale.jpg]]
-->"''We don’t have any servants here so if you see anybody else in the loft besides me, call the police. It’s not the chef.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/PennBadgley
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/EduardoGarza (Latin-American Spanish), Creator/DaisukeNamikawa (Japanese)
Dan is the Brooklyn boy who falls in love with IT girl Serena van der Woodsen, only to find he doesn't exactly fit well in her world. By and by he becomes more adjusted, but he still thinks the world of the Upper East Side crowd is highly immoral. Dan is an aspiring writer who in the books writes delightfully awful poetry but in the TV series prefers short stories. He's played by Creator/PennBadgley.
* AuthorAvatar: The writers of Gossip Girl have admitted that Dan is their author avatar.
* BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame: [[spoiler: Has apparently been toying with the other characters since the beginning.]]
* BecomingTheMask: It seems as if [[spoiler:being Gossip Girl]] changes him throughout the series run, turning him from his initial NiceGuy persona into someone [[TookALevelInJerkass far less good-natured]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Starting the end of season 3, but more notably in season 4
-->"''They have peace treaties!''"
* BigBad: Revealed to be this for the entire series, when he is [[spoiler: revealed to be Gossip Girl in the series finale]].
* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler: Particularly in earlier seasons, where he plays the part of the nice guy while ruining lives via Gossip Girl.]]
* BrooklynRage: Averted. He may be from Brooklyn but he's one of the calmer, more sensible characters. Except when you [[BigBrotherInstinct mess with his sister]].
* ButtMonkey: Tends to be mocked more frequently than the other characters, usually by Chuck or Blair.
* TheChessmaster: As of the finale.
* TheConfidant: Plays this role once in a while to other characters who are in a crisis, opening up about his own experiences and usually giving relatively good advice. His willingness to do this is [[WoundedGazelleGambit preyed upon]] by Georgina in season 1, [[spoiler:leading to his first breakup with Serena]]. He himself vindictively turns this around on Blair in season 2 after learning that she humiliated Vanessa.
* CoolLoser: He looks good, and is smart, sensitive, and likable but he's seen as the Lonely Boy loser in the first season.
* DeadpanSnarker: Like Blair, he has a witty and dry sense of humor and is often sarcastic.
* DoggedNiceGuy: Although your mileage may vary on how nice he actually is.
* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler: He's immediately forgiven by everyone for being Gossip Girl.]]
* FishOutOfWater: In the first season when he's trying to fit in the Upper East Side.
* FriendlyEnemy: [[spoiler: Can be considered this to the main group since, as the mastermind behind the Gossip Girl blog, he was also lying to all his friends.]]
* FriendsWithBenefits: Attempts this with Vanessa in season three.
* HappilyMarried: The finale implies that this is what happens with him and Serena.
* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: The stories Dan writes about the Upper East Side.
* HolierThanThou: Called out multiple times for being judgmental of his peers, including people he considers friends or loved ones such as Serena.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Has a lot of sex partners during the show's run (along with the rest of the cast), some of which aren't so appropriate. Like for instance his high school teacher, having a threesome with his girlfriend and his best friend, or sleeping with his girlfriend's best friend (and afterward [[NeverMyFault chewing her out for having had sex with him]]).
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Constantly complains about shallowness, evilness and rules of privilege in the UES world. Condemns dishonesty and scheming. [[spoiler:Turns out he'd wanted into that evil, evil world so badly that he pulled the biggest scheme in the series to get it, hurting countless people in the process.]]
** In early Season 6 he started publishing nasty pieces about his (subsequently turning former) friends, using their real names, and justifying it to anybody that tried to call him out, that it's about the bare truth over personal connections. However, he released Chuck's chapter (full of CharacterShilling) when he thought he could get into Blair's (for whom he'd still carried a torch) good graces, and when he lost that hope, he published the chapter about her, a mean one.
** Eagerly throws Chuck under the bus for the Gossip Girl blast that more or less ruined Blair's wedding to Louis, even though he sent the blast video, not Chuck.
* ICantBelieveAGuyLikeYouWouldNoticeMe: Gender-Inverted. Dan dreamed of Serena from afar for years before she finally noticed him in the pilot episode.
* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Dan just wants to be part of the upper-class world but he is repeatedly reminded that it won't happen.
* InformedAbility: We're told he's a remarkably talented writer, and he managed to get published in the New Yorker. But when we actually get to see anything he's written it's usually trite and mediocre, and he apparently has difficulty coming up with story ideas that aren't directly cribbed from events in his own life.
* InSeriesNickname: Lonely Boy.
* InWithTheInCrowd: Originally a loner, but eventually becomes friends with Serena, Nate, and the others. Lampshaded during their high school graduation by Blair. While Dan clearly still thinks of himself as an outsider, she points out that he's actually done pretty well for himself.
-->'''Blair:''' You're friends with Nate Archibald, you played on the soccer team, you got into Yale, you got the lead role in the school play, you got published in the New Yorker, you had sex with a teacher!
-->'''Nelly:''' Plus you dated the most popular girl in school.
* JustFriends: With Vanessa. In Season Four he and Blair have started to develop a snarky, SheIsNotMyGirlfriend, BelligerentSexualTension styled version of this.
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:He doesn't suffer any social consequences after revealing he's been Gossip Girl all along.]]
* LastNameBasis: By Chuck and especially Blair.
* MasterActor: [[spoiler:With the revelation of the series finale, he must be a pretty good actor to maintain his secret for years.]]
* MissingMom: Dan and Jenny's mother, though she comes back for a few episodes. She doesn't even show up for her son's wedding.
* TheMole: [[spoiler: Given that he turns out to be Gossip Girl...]]
* MostWritersAreMale: Dan is an aspiring writer.
* MotorMouth: In a mostly dorky fashion. Gets worse when he is nervous.
* MrFanservice: Likes being shirtless.
* MyFriendsAndZoidberg
-->'''Chuck:''' So long, friends... Dan.
* NeverMyFault: One of his defining character traits, showing up constantly throughout the series run. The prime example must be when he sleeps with Serena in the season five finale despite being in a relationship with Blair, then the moment the sex is done he gets furious with Serena and claims she was out to ruin his relationship. Even if she was, nobody forced him to sleep with her, [[WhatTheHellHero as Serena points out to him]]. He is then furious with Blair and puts the blame for their break-up on her, and while she certainly didn't treat him very fairly (stringing him along when she knew her heart still lay with Chuck), at least she broke up with him before getting back together with Chuck. Dan, on the other hand, was unfaithful to her with her best friend.
* NiceGuy: Starts out as one, then as the series progresses the Upper East Side world begins to change him more and more. He still has his moments, however.
* OddFriendship: With Blair, in season 4 (they even have a RelationshipUpgrade at one point).
* OneHourWorkWeek: Hardly ever seen at NYU.
* OnlySaneMan: The sanest of the main characters, especially in early seasons.
* SocialClimber: His main motivation is to be InWithTheInCrowd, although he vehemently denies this.
* StalkerWithACrush: [[spoiler: To Serena, now that we know he spent years tracking and chronicling her activities through his position as Gossip Girl.]]
* StalkingIsLove: [[spoiler: Serena doesn't find it creepy or disturbing at all that Dan created a website that tracks and chronicles the movements of her and others just so he could get her.]]
* TeacherStudentRomance: With Rachel Carr during his senior year of high school.
* TookALevelInJerkass: After the sheer amount of crap the poor guy was put through, it's hard to blame him.
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: Romantic example. Has a strong tendency to begin a relationship with a woman, heavily idealize her, [[BrokenPedestal get upset when she fails to meet his standards]], and then tell her he's [[DisappointedInYou disappointed in her]] for not changing to meet his idea of her.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: In Season 6, [[spoiler: he aims to destroy the lives of everyone else in the cast after what he (and Jenny) went through]]
* WorthyOpponent: [[spoiler: Even the ManipulativeBastard members of the Bass family had to give him props.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Jenny Humphrey]]
[[quoteright:340:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/momsen.jpg]]
-->"''Don't you read Gossip Girl? Extortion is what I do, all day.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/TaylorMomsen
-->'''Voiced by:''' Christine Byrd (Latin-American Spanish), Michiko Komatsu (Japanese)
Dan's younger sister who starts off idolizing Serena and wanting Blair's respect. Her innocence vanishes more and more each season and by now she could probably out-bitch Blair if she wanted to. Jenny's got a talent for designing and loves to make her own clothes.
%
Disappeared from the main cast when Creator/TaylorMomsen decided to leave the show to pursue her music career, but came BackForTheFinale.
* AdaptationalAttractiveness: In the books, Jenny Humphrey is a sweet, artistic girl whose main appearance anxiety is that she is short, brunette, and busty, unlike her tall, slender blonde idol Serena Van Der Woodsen. Who do they cast to play her in the TV series? Tall, slender blonde Taylor Momsen.
* AdaptationDyeJob: She was a brunette in the books but on the show she's a blonde.
* AesopAmnesia: Has to learn the "not letting the cool kids change who I am" lesson every couple of episodes.
* AlphaBitch: [[spoiler:After being anointed by Blair the next queen bee of Constance, she eventually embraces it]].
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: On and off. She and Dan are close, but their relationship occasionally becomes strained when her behavior goes to extremes.
* BackstabbingTheAlphaBitch: Jenny does this to Blair in "A Thin Line Between Chuck and Nate" in order to become Queen herself, which leads to an EscalatingWar between the two.
* BackForTheFinale: She appears at Serena's and Dan's wedding.
* BatmanGambit: [[spoiler: She used Gossip Girl which was run by her brother to get out of New York]].
* BecomingTheMask: In season 3 when she becomes the Queen Bee with her own group of minions.
* BirdsOfAFeather: The initial reason she wanted to be friends with Blair was because she noticed that Blair, like herself, was a hard worker who did not get things handed to her. In kind, Blair grows to respect her and ultimately [[spoiler:appoints her the next "queen" of Constance]].
* BreakTheCutie: From the Pilot, where Jenny is sexually assaulted at her first party, Jenny experiences a lot of humiliation and trauma in her time on the show, some of it a consequence of her own bad decisions.
* TheBusCameBack: For a couple of episodes in season 4.
* CantGetAwayWithNuthin: Jenny undergoes a rather brutal HumiliationConga in season 1 as she tries to fit in with the popular crowd at Constance, getting busted for misbehavior constantly despite her actions being about on par with those of the other girls. Somewhat justified as she's also trying to project a façade of wealth and status that she doesn't have, while her peers are able to get away with more because they have money.
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler: She used Gossip Girl to manipulate her social status to where she wanted it and also plan her exit.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: To Nate in season 3, to the point of trying to sabotage his relationship with Serena.
* TheConfidant: To Nate in season one, after they meet by accident and become friends.
* CorruptTheCutie: She was fairly sweet and innocent in the beginning, if already ambitious. It didn't last.
* DaddysGirl: Arguably. While Jenny goes against almost everything Rufus says, she seems to be a DaddysGirl at heart and hates being on bad terms with him.
* TheDragon: [[spoiler: Since Dan]] was Gossip Girl, [[spoiler: she had the final say on anything that went on the site about her.]]
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Tallulah.
* EmoTeen: Shifts into something like this mode partway through her tenure on the show, with her fashion style becoming gothier and more edgy.
* {{Fangirl}}: It's been mentioned several times that she's a huge ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' fangirl. She even once tried to explain the concept to Lily.
* TheFashionista: And a young fashion designer.
* GuileHero: Until she TookALevelInJerkass, at which point she became a ManipulativeBastard. Jenny is incredibly adept at thinking on her feet.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Played up somewhat in comparison to the other characters, as Jenny has the most typical "teenager" storyline of all of them, mostly revolving around her rebellions against her father and her struggles with identity, life priorities, and wanting to be liked by others.
* HugeGirlTinyGuy: With Eric.
* HyperCompetentSidekick: To Eleanor Waldorf in season 2. She eventually begins to feel she is being taken advantage of and kept out of the limelight in order to uphold Eleanor's brand, causing her to quit.
* ImprobableAge: At fifteen years old, Jenny is a mini-couturier who is able to rival professional designers during New York's fashion week.
* InformedAbility: In-universe, a talented seamstress and designer who meets with a very positive reception from the fashion world and has the potential to become a superstar. However, many of her clothes are not notably fresh or innovative and how good she actually is comes down to the viewer's taste. Somewhat justified in that fashion is a dynamic industry heavily based on trends, meaning that the clothing being on trend for its time (which much of it is) does not necessarily mean it will read as well years down the line.
* InSeriesNickname: Little J.
* KickTheDog: While she TookALevelInJerkass in Season Three, there are four moments that are seen as especially heinous: allowing her minions to dump yogurt on Eric’s head, ordering her minions to egg Eric’s boyfriend, trying to break up Serena and Nate, and posting about Dan and Serena on Gossip Girl.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: With Eric, for better and for worse.
* ManipulativeBitch: She learned her way of scheming, lying and backstabbing terrifyingly quickly.
* MissingMom: Dan and Jenny's mother, though she comes back for a few episodes. She doesn't even show up for her son's wedding.
* PeerPressureMakesYouEvil: At least in the first couple of seasons it seems like she's a genuinely sweet girl at heart, but behaves like a mean girl in order to gain popularity and keep her friends. As time goes on, [[BecomingTheMask it begins to feel less and less like a façade]].
* PlayingGertrude: In the DistantFinale Jenny is 24, though Momsen was still 19 at the time.
* PutOnABus: Season 4 had her moving upstate with her mother, a character only seen for a few episodes in season 1 and mostly unreferenced throughout most of the series. She returns briefly but is likely [[LongBusTrip gone for good]].
* RealLifeWritesThePlot: The change of Jenny's personality & personal style were all because of Taylor Momsen's sudden change in personal style. She was also written off the show the first time to pursue her musical career, then permanently so when she continued to clash with production.
* TheRunaway: Twice.
* SecretKeeper: [[spoiler:Apparently she knew all along that Dan was Gossip Girl.]]
* ShipperOnDeck: She used to be a Derena shipper.
* SingleGirlSeeksMostPopularGuy: Towards Nate, the BigManOnCampus, especially in season 3. Somewhat justified, however, as they were friends before she had any visible romantic interest in him.
* TheStarscream: After getting fed up with Blair’s bullying and manipulation, Jenny goes behind Blair’s back and tells Nate about Blair’s affair with Chuck. Though Jenny didn’t intend for the incident to wind up on Gossip Girl and initially seemed to regret her disclosure, she quickly swoops in on the vacated Queen Bee throne and usurps Blair.
* TookALevelInJerkass: [[AcquiredSituationalNarcissism Both times she takes over as Queen Bee, she becomes a much nastier person.]] In Season Three it even lasts beyond that, with her lashing out at her friends and family. Thankfully, she gets better after Season Four.
* ToxicFriendInfluence: Seems to have very questionable taste in friends, such as AlphaBitch and AxCrazy types.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Eric when their friendship is most strained and with Blair when their relationship is most civil.
* WorthyOpponent: To Blair in season 1, as Blair admits to her face when Jenny [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere says she's done trying to fit in]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Lily van der Woodsen/Bass/Humphrey]]
-->"''If Serena's indiscretions were as PG as Jenny's, I wouldn't have needed the botox.''"
Biological mother to Serena and Eric, adoptive mother to Chuck, stepmother to Dan and Jenny. Lily was much like her daughter Serena when she was younger, trying to break free from her strict mother's demands. As an adult she has been spending most of her time getting married and getting divorced. She can be very caring and loving when she wants to, but most of the time she's an absent parent.
* AscendedExtra: Lily and Rufus were secondary characters in the books, but in the series they get a lot of attention.
%%* TheFashionista
* FormerTeenRebel: She ran away from home, dated rockstars, [[spoiler: had a child out of wedlock]], spent time in a mental institution, and used drugs.
* FullNameUltimatum: Subverted. She calls her adopted son Charles at all times, except for when she's referring do his deviant side.
* GenerationXerox: Her flashbacks show her appearance-conscious socialite mother [=CeCe=] trying to restrain the free-spirited young Lily. In present time the appearance-conscious socialite Lily is trying to restrain her free-spirited daughter Serena.
* HandsOffParenting: To say the very least.
* LongLostRelative: Scott, the son she had with Rufus and gave up for adoption.
* MamaBear: Lily won't hesitate to destroy people's lives for the sake of her family's convenience.
* ManipulativeBitch: Lily has beaten both Basses at their own game.
* ParentingTheHusband: Seems to have to do this with Rufus.
* ReallyGetsAround: Take out Nate and Blair's families, and almost any middle-aged man will turn out to be Lily's past or present suitor.
* SerialSpouse: With at least four different husbands.
* {{Socialite}}: Most of the characters on the show are considered socialites and attend parties and social events.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: All the Rhodes women (except for somewhat color coded for being the BlackSheep Carol) are tall, slender blond beauties. Coincidentally, her step-daughter Jenny also fits this characteristics, despite not being related to her.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Rufus Humphrey]]
-->"''I promise to eat caviar without spitting it out in my napkin when we go to dinner at Mayor Bloomberg’s. As long as he knows when he comes to our house he’s eating my chili.''"
Dan and Jenny's father, and stepfather to Eric, Serena and Chuck. A former rock star (or at least pseudo-star) who had a love affair with Lily in his youth. Years later his son falls in love with Lily's daughter and eventually he and Lily find their way back to one another. Rufus is probably the most attentive parent on the show, although lately it seems he doesn't do much during the day.
* AscendedExtra: Lily and Rufus were secondary characters in the books, but in the series they get a lot of attention.
* {{Flanderization}}: He used to be a cool rocker-type dad. Now he's just some boring guy who sits at home all day and/or follows Lily around. With her coat in season 4. Directly referenced by him in season 5.
* HouseHusband: While Lily is out working and socializing, Rufus mostly sits at home, strums his guitar, makes waffles and dishes out advice.
* LongLostRelative: Scott, the son Lily gave birth to and gave up for adoption (without telling Rufus about it).
* OneNoteCook: Actually he can make chili, bolognese ''and'' waffles. Especially waffles. But his cooking skills end there.
* TookALevelInDumbass: Season Six. Having sympathy for a misguided young girl is one thing, but thinking that [[spoiler:Ivy]] is trustworthy is another.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Waffles.
%%* TwitchyEye
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Vanessa Abrams]]
-->"''My parents are artists, my sister’s a musician. Just like going to an Ivy is your family’s way, not going to college is mine.''"
Dan's bohemian BFF and on-and-off crush. Vanessa is a documentary film maker and aspiring script writer who frowns on everything regarding the Upper East Side.
* BackForTheFinale: Though only in a cameo.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Can be petty, vindictive, and even cruel, while still taking care to appear as though she has the moral high ground; that said, she's more likely to backtrack and apologize afterwards than other characters who behave similarly.
* BrainyBrunette: Very booksmart and tests well, even managing to succeed on the SAT despite not having studied.
* CoolBigSis: To Jenny, although this dynamic doesn't last once UES politics and relationship drama start coming between them.
* DisappointedInYou: Tends to pull this card when one of the UES characters gets on her bad side.
* DistaffCounterpart: To Dan.
* EnterStageWindow: Has a tendency to sneak in to Dan's bedroom via his window. He does not always appreciate this.
* FriendsWithBenefits: Attempts this with Dan in season three.
* GranolaGirl: To an extent, and her mother has strong hippie tendencies.
* HolierThanThou: Infamously so. She considers basically all the Upper East Side characters some shade of morally bankrupt in comparison to herself, and has no qualms about telling them as much.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Like Dan, often judges the other characters for their backstabbing, manipulative, conniving ways, but she herself can be plenty backstabbing, manipulative, and conniving if she feels her actions are justified.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* InformedAbility: She's a good enough writer to get accepted at Tisch, but we've never gotten to see anything she's written. She's also supposed to have a great talent for documentary filmmaking, but this ability is not displayed at all beyond her simply walking around with a camera.
* JustFriends: With Dan, although they have had feelings for each other on-and-off throughout their friendship.
* MandatoryLine: Towards the end of her run on the series.
* MomentKiller: When Dan and Serena try to have sex in season 1.
* OneHourWorkWeek: Goes to NYU but never seems to have classes.
* ParentalAbandonment: Her parents hardly show up at all, and she lives alone in New York at age sixteen.
* PutOnABus: Put on a ''plane'', actually, in the season four finale.
* TookALevelInJerkass: She's initially a supportive friend to Jenny, but in later seasons her ItsAllAboutMe attitude emerges.
* UnlimitedWardrobe: Given that she claims to barely be able to afford food, she sure has a large wardrobe with a lot of expensive designer outfits in it.
* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: For Dan. Zig-zagged in that they do get together eventually, but never for long.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: At least in the early seasons of the show, her forays into UES-style bad behavior are usually in the name of accomplishing some nominally worthy end goal, such as blackmailing Blair in an attempt to force her to help save a notable historical landmark.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Eric van der Woodsen]]
-->"''Jenny, your sweet potatoes are bland.''"
Serena's little brother, who is often the sole voice of reason. Gone from the show in season five.
%%* AscendedExtra
* AllGaysArePromiscuous: Averted.
* BackForTheFinale: He returns briefly for the series finale.
* ButNotTooGay: While he does have boyfriends, he is never seen kissing them, or even holding hands with them.
* CallingTheOldManOut: Unlike Serena, he doesn't feel inclined to betray his decent stepfather, drop everything and run to biological daddy, who's abandoned them years ago.
* ComingOutStory: A season one episode reveals that he is gay.
* DisappearedDad: Serena and Eric's father left when they were little.
* DrivenToSuicide: The reason why Serena returns in the pilot is because Eric tried to kill himself.
%%* HugeGirlTinyGuy: With Jenny.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: With Jenny, even before they become actual step-siblings.
* LonelyRichKid: When Serena left for boarding school.
* MoralityPet: In earlier seasons. It's downplayed since he never actually stops them for doing any evil, but villains do seem to have a fondness for him. His TheReasonYouSuckSpeech, in which he confesses his suicide attempt, is what triggers [[AlphaBitch Blair]] to make peace with Serena right in the beginning of the series, [[{{Jerkass}} Chuck of all people]] considers him something akin to a little brother, and [[BrattyTeenageDaughter Jenny]] (who can be a real jerk when she wants to) is his best friend. Even ''Georgina'' seems rather apologetic when she outs him to his family; granted, Serena doesn't believe it and Georgina outright says she might have done it on purpose, but that's the closest Georgina ever gets to have apologized for anything.
* NiceGuy: In the first three seasons he is undoubtedly the nicest character on the show.
* OnlySaneMan: Most of the time. Recently, less so. Definitely in the context of his own family, however.
* PutOnABus: In season 5. There was a throw-away line about him starting college in one of the episode at the beginning of the season.
* StraightGay: Exhibits little to none of the typical gay stereotypes.
* TeensAreShort: The straightest (pun unintended) example in the show.
* TookALevelInJerkass: In seasons one, two and three he was the only through-and-through decent character. In season four he plots to take Chuck and Blair down and hates on Chuck in favor of Jenny, even though Chuck has always treated Eric well and Jenny has thrown Eric under the bus countless times.
%%* VitriolicBestBuds: With Jenny.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Gossip Girl]]
-->"''And who am I? That's one secret I'll never tell.''"
The creator of the blog the whole series is built around.
* AlliterativeName: '''G'''ossip '''G'''irl
%%* BigBrotherIsWatching
* CatchPhrase: "''You know you love me. XO XO - Gossip Girl.''"
* CharacterBlog: The show features in-universe vlog written by a mysterious Gossip Girl.
* FauxlosophicNarration: Every now and then.
* GossipyHens: It's in the name. The Gossip Girl blog is dedicated to gossip about the main characters.
* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: Gossip Girl narrates the show (the voice is provided by Creator/KristenBell), but is never seen. [[spoiler:The series finale subverts this, when it is revealed that Gossip Girl was really Dan Humphrey.]]
* InteractiveNarrator: The characters on the show frequently use Gossip Girl to spread rumors and/or spin a situation in their favor.
* LegacyCharacter: There are three Gossip Girls during the story and it's implied in the end that the next generation will take on.
* TheNicknamer: Lonely Boy (Dan), Little J (Jenny), Queen B or B (Blair), and S (Serena).
* TheOmniscient: An omniscient blogger who knows everything about everyone.
* TheReveal: [[spoiler: "She" turns out to be Dan Humphrey.]]
* SchoolNewspaperNewsHound: Of the modern technology variety.
* SecondaryCharacterTitle: [[spoiler: Subverted, as "she" turns out to be one of the main characters.]]
* TitleDrop: See CatchPhrase. (Exception: "The Revengers," which does not end with Gossip Girl's usual sign-off [[spoiler: due to Chuck and Blair running from the roof, having just watched the former's dad fall to his death]].)
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Dorota Kishlovski]]
-->"''KGB can't get me to talk. Chuck Bass has no chance.''"
Blair's nanny/maid/sidekick. Dorota is actually a Polish duchess but she moved to America to escape an unhappy marriage and began to work for the Waldorfs. In many ways the real mother figure in Blair's life and the person who does most of Blair's legwork for her.
* AscendedExtra: Started out as a background character but evolved into Blair's eternal sidekick. Dorota got a backstory in the webisodes "''Chasing Dorota''" and had an entire episode revolve around her wedding day.
* BetaCouple: She and Vanya (Chuck's doorman). Chuck actually helped Vanya win Dorota's heart, and he threw their wedding.
* FunnyForeigner: You will have some bizarre ideas about Poland if you view Dorota as a typical specimen or treat seriously her stories.
* HappinessInSlavery: Pretty much a modern example.
* LongLostRelative: Her estranged husband shows up in ''Chasing Dorota''.
* MamaBear: Towards Blair.
* OlderSidekick: Blair's a teenager and while we haven't been given Dorota's exact age her actress is in her thirties. And Cyrus has confirmed that she practically raised Blair, meaning she ought to be at least ten years Blair's senior.
* ParentalSubstitute: As noted above she practically raised Blair.
* ServileSnarker: Though mostly the facial expressions she makes when Blair says or does something she deems snark-worthy.
* ShipperOnDeck: She always wants what is best for Blair, and seems pretty convinced that Chuck is the person Blair is meant to be with (although during the Dair arc she rooted for Dan).
* SmartPeoplePlayChess
* StraightMan: If Blair, her mother, or any other high society member in the house starts losing their marbles, [[ReactionShot Dorota's facial expressions will illustrate it]].
* UndyingLoyalty: She is always on Blair's side, no matter what.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Georgina Sparks]]
-->"''You can tell "Jesus", the bitch is back''"
A former friend of Serena van der Woodsen and sworn enemy of Blair Waldorf, she is the series' most recurring antagonist.
As it turns out during season 5 (major spoiler), [[spoiler:she usurped Gossip Girl's identity]].
* AmbiguousSituation: Was her conversion to Christianity/newfound goodness in Season 2 genuine? Or was it an act to avoid boot camp and plot revenge?
* ArchEnemy: To both Serena and Blair.
%%* AscendedExtra
* TheBabyTrap: Arrives at Dan's loft pregnant, claiming (falsely) that he is the father. He is with her when she gives birth to baby Milo and helps raise him for a while, until the truth comes out.
* BatmanGambit: In season 3's The Lost Boy, where she sends Blair a fake invitation to an elite society and uses a contact who works for someone Chuck is trying to impress in order to send the pair after the same photograph, thus bringing out both Blair and Chuck's competitive, self-serving sides and attempting to drive a wedge between the pair.
* {{Blackmail}}: She blackmails Serena in season one; she uses her knowledge of Serena sort of, but not actually, killing a man to control her.
* BriefAccentImitation: Pretending to be a foreigner.
%%* DeadpanSnarker
* TheDreaded: Serena is terrified of her, and even the others have OhCrap moments with her on the loose.
%%* EleventhHourRanger
* EvilCounterpart: She started out as what Serena could have become. In later seasons she seems to have become more of an EvilCounterpart to Blair around about the same time Blair became her main enemy.
* EvilFormerFriend: To Serena.
* GoldDigger: She later marries some clueless chap for money and to have someone looking after her son. She treats her husband more like a minion.
* ImpliedLoveInterest: To Jack Bass.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Frequently pretends to be emotionally vulnerable or feel genuine affection for another person, but she always turns out to just be play-acting in order to manipulate people.
%%* LoveMakesYouCrazy
* ManipulativeBitch: Georgina is shown to be as malevolent a manipulator as Blair.
* OhCrap: “You can tell Jesus that the bitch is back”. Cue epic OhCrap look from Blair.
* PutOnABus: For almost a full season after she is sent to reform school in the season one finale. In fact, although she's a reccuring antagonist, she often appears only once in a while in each season for some episodes, and disappear as quickly as she arrived (after wreaking some havoc). Kind of a Zigzag Bus.
%%* RavenHairIvorySkin
* ReformedButRejected: In late season 2. Especially prevalant in the season 4 penultimate episode, where she is yearning to get in on the dirt but is being snubbed.
%%* RichBitch
* TheReveal: [[spoiler:Averted. It looks like she's Gossip Girl, but it's revealed that she's just usurping her identity.]]
%%* TokenEvilTeammate
%%* WeUsedToBeFriends: To Serena.
* WoundedGazelleGambit: She uses this tactic to gain Dan's sympathy in season 1.
* {{Yandere}}: For Dan. She attempts to ruin Serena and Dan's relationship, while also blackmailing Serena about their tragic secret.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Eleanor Waldorf]]
-->"''Blair, you will never be more beautiful or thin or happy than you are right now. I just want you to make the most of it.''"
The divorced mother of Blair Waldorf and a respected and well-established fashion designer. She loves her daughter, but she is sometimes too caught up in her own professional life to really connect with or understand her.
* ActorSwap: In the pilot, she was played by Florencia Lozano. Afterwards, she was replaced by Margaret Colin.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: In the first episode, during a party that Eleanor organized in her home, she stops Blair, who was wearing a dress designed by her mother, and tells her that she should have let her know she was planning to wear one of her designs so she could get it properly fitted, at least. Worse, she does it in front of company, humiliating Blair, whose gesture had been an attempt to win her mother's approval. Also see her character quote. Telling a girl who is secretly miserable and insecure that it doesn't get better than this is cruel. To cap it off, after her little speech, Eleanor tells Blair to put some product in her hair because her ends are dry. Is it any wonder that Blair ended up the way she did?
* TheFashionista: So much that she made fashion her profession.
* HandsOffParenting: She undoubtedly loves Blair, but doesn't spend almost any time with her and is generally disconnected from her daughter. She can also be a little too critical of appearances, pressuring the already thin and fashion-obsessed Blair to be perfect at all times, feeding her massive insecurities.
%%* HappilyMarried: To Cyrus Rose.
* ManipulativeBitch: Her bitter divorce brings this out in her. For Thanksgiving, she lies to Blair that her father Harold couldn't come visit them from Paris, when in fact she had uninvited him.
* TookALevelInKindness: She mellows down in later seasons and becomes a better parent.
[[/folder]]
----
%%
%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.
%%
%%
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder: Serena van der Woodsen]]
[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/SerenaVanDerWoodsen5_8154.jpg]]
-->"''Gossip Girl is going down!''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/BlakeLively
-->'''Voiced by:''' Erica Edwards (Latin-American Spanish), Creator/YukoKaida (Japanese)
The IT girl of the Upper West Side. Cheerful and carefree, fun and spirited. When the show starts she returns to Manhattan after spending time at a boarding school.
* AbsoluteCleavage: A character trademark.
* AllWorkVsAllPlay: The fun-loving free spirit to Blair's hard-working, scheming, queen.
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: Towards Blair. She is much more charismatic and better with people than Blair and often gets things handed to her as a result, while Blair has had to work very hard for everything she's achieved. This is a recurring source of conflict in their friendship, although Blair eventually gets over it.
* ApologisesALot: She tends to spend a lot of time apologising to other characters, even for things she really shouldn't be apologising for.
* CoolBigSis: To Eric and also Jenny in the first few seasons, until they liked the same guy.
* DamselInDistress: The fact that being in a car crash thanks to wolves roaming New York, being conned by her boyfriend, and her mother having her arrested for stealing a bracelet are ''not'' the best examples of why she fits this trope should tell you something.
* DisappearedDad: Serena and Eric's father left when they were little.
* DumbBlonde
** Downplayed in the early seasons. She is a nice, free-spirited girl, whose intelligence appears to be lower compared to most of her peers', but seems rather average. [[TookALevelInDumbass After several seasons, however, she grows into this trope]].
** Double subverted in regards to her academic career. Serena made good grades her last two years of high school, and won admission to ''three'' [[IvyLeagueForEveryone Ivy League universities.]] It's however explicitly said that she was wanted there not because of her academic prowess, but because of her fame in the UES society.
* EasilyForgiven: Slightly subverted. She took Blair's boyfriend's virginity, then moved to Connecticut without telling Blair she was leaving, then ignored Blair's calls, texts and e-mails for a year even though she knew Blair's parents were getting a divorce (due to Blair's father leaving her mother for another man) and Blair's father was moving away to France. Blair did give her hell and humiliated her in public, but then forgave her after a few episodes. Not for the last time, either.
* EveryoneLovesBlondes: Though not the only blonde, she's easily the most popular character in-universe, and immediately gets almost every male character on his knees for her.
* FallenPrincess: The final season teasers implies her to be this. Then again, NeverTrustATrailer.
* TheFashionista: Not as elitist as Blair about it, but she's also very fashion-oriented. She has been noted to be the muse of several designers (particularly in the books, though in the show Dorota also says that Marc Jacobs named a purse after her), and in a later season Dan shows that he retained some useful fashion knowledge from his time dating her.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Sanguine.
%%* GagBoobs
* GoodBadGirl: Even at her wildest (such as in her time before the pilot), she's still a genuinely nice girl, who just happens to ReallyGetsAround and never seems particularly ashamed of it. She does try to change some of her "badder" bad girl traits, such as drugs and wild party, but is still enthusiastic about sex as soon as she really fancies someone.
* HappilyMarried: Implied in the finale to be her future with [[spoiler:Dan]].
* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Especially before the beginning of the series, where this was pretty much all Serena's character was about. [[CharacterDevelopment She grows out of it during the series]], though it's still part of her personality and her wild party persona comes back at times.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Blair, to the point they dumped their respective dates at prom, and spent the rest of the night together remembering old days. And now in season 4 they live together.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Serena decides whether a person is good or bad by the following criteria: They like me - they're good. They don't like me - they're bad.
* InLoveWithLove: Season three and onward.
* InSeriesNickname: S.
* InformedAttractiveness: She is treated as THE ultimate beauty of the circle by most of the characters, despite the cast being full of other very attractive actresses.
* ItsAllAboutMe: At first it seems a bit like an InformedFlaw, as the world is mostly set by revolving around her and if she doesn't react quickly enough, her judgmental boyfriend or insecure best friend will accuse her of being conceited. But as the seasons roll over it becomes increasingly true.
* LateForSchool: Basically a trademark in the books. Carries over to the show every once in a while.
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: The Light to Blair's Dark. And more so in contrast to Georgina during season one.
* LookingForLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces: Let's see... Two teachers, her best friend's boyfriend, an ex-con, two con artists, a HaremSeeker, a married man... [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg And Dan.]] It's even lampshaded early in the series, how an uncharacteristically good guy he is for being one of Serena's choices, but in the end of the series it's no longer necessarily true.
* MistakenForPregnant: After she ends up on Gossip Girl while buying pregnancy tests for Blair in season one.
* MsFanservice: Once in a blue moon Creator/BlakeLively appears in something that actually covers her legs and/or her boobs. Many fans consider her breasts to be characters in their own right.
* NiceGirl: Especially compared to her best friend [[AntiHero Blair]], she's generally kind and laidback.
* PreppyName: Serena van der Woodsen.
* PrettyInMink: Wore a white fur stole for the would-be photo shoot in "Kids Stay In the Picture".
* PseudoRomanticFriendship: With Blair. More so in the books, where they take baths together, but still prevalent enough on the show.
* ReallyGetsAround: Before her changing her ways in the beginning of the series it was part of her HardDrinkingPartyGirl side; afterwards (as in, during the actual course of the show), it's a mix of her natural approach to her own sexuality and being InLoveWithLove. It's less that Serena sleeps around for fun and more that she falls in love often, and soon has sex with almost everyone she falls for. Interestingly, she doesn't get much of the usual DoubleStandard for it, probably because she's genuinely nice and people just accept it as part of her personality. If anything, it's only mentioned when Blair's DeadpanSnarker tendencies show up:
-->'''Blair''': Are you jealous because you didn't sleep with [Chuck] first? There had to be somebody left on the Upper East Side.
* SerialRomeo: From season two and onward. Her boyfriends include Dan, Aaron Rose, Gabriel, Carter, Tripp, Nate, Colin, Ben, and Steven.
* ShesGotLegs: Hell to the yes. In keeping with her [[MsFanservice status on the show]], possesses such things and is fully aware of how to utilise them.
* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Dan in season one.
* SpoiledSweet: She’s the IT girl from the upper east side, InLoveWithLove and is welcoming to the Humphrey children with open arms.
* StatuesqueStunner: Even the show itself points this out in "The Magnificent Archibalds":
-->'''Aaron''': Serena's life is complicated?
-->'''Dan''': Yeah. I don't know about you but the Serena I know has long, flowing blonde hair, towers over both of us?
* StrongFamilyResemblance: All the Rhodes women (except for somewhat color coded for being the BlackSheep Carol) are tall, slender blond beauties.
* TeacherStudentRomance: With Colin Forrester in season four.
* TookALevelInJerkass: In late season 5, when the world stop revolving around her. She backstabs Blair (unprovoked this time) and her young cousin Lola out of jealousy.
* UptownGirl: To Dan, who is financially strained compared to his wealthy classmates.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Blair Waldorf]]
[[quoteright:266:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Blair_Waldorf_67.jpg]]
-->"''I am not a stop along the way. I am a destination.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/LeightonMeester
Serena's BFF (and occasional rival). The preppy queen of Constance Billard, always with a crew of minions around her. Ruthless and elitist yet very much a loving friend and girlfriend. Although if you ask Dan Humphrey she's a 95-pound, doe-eyed, bonmot-tossing, label-whoring package of girly evil.
* AbusiveParents: Zig-zagged. Her mom is a piece of work and makes unkind comments about Blair's weight. But she also shows a lot of genuine concern for Blair.
* AcademicAlphaBitch: She's a rich, popular, and ruthless overachiever who wants to destroy her rivals in both popularity and academics.
* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: The love of her life turns out to be Chuck Bass and not Nate Archibald.
* AlphaBitch: As the resident queen bee for the first two seasons, before graduating; though even before, when she's no longer focused on reigning the school, Penelope is quick to fill the void.
* AlwaysSecondBest: To Serena, whom she feels constantly overshadows her. This dynamic fades when Blair grows more self-confident in later seasons, however.
* AntiHero: At best, she is this.
* BelligerentSexualTension: Chuck and Blair. Later on, [[spoiler:Dan and Blair]].
* TheBGrade: Gets a B in season two and goes after the teacher who gave her the grade because she needs straight As to get into Yale. In season one, she's unhappy because she only made 2200 on the practice exam for the UsefulNotes/SATs, even though Serena points out that that's in the 90th percentile.
* BetterAsFriends: Blair and Nate eventually land on this conclusion in season two.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: At times, she doesn't even pretend to be nice.
* BrainyBrunette: She's one of the best students in her class. Also, as mentioned above, she makes 2200 on the practice exam for UsefulNotes/SATs, as expected of someone who wants to get into Yale.
* BreakoutCharacter: It's easy to forget Serena is the protagonist.
* BrutalHonesty: Obviously not when lying or conspiring, but when she gives an actual opinion, she tends to be extremely blunt.
* TheCorrupter: To Jenny. Chuck did some too, but it was mostly her.
* DaddysGirl: Very much this. She didn't even hold any grudges about him moving to another continent with his new lover (she did, however, hold a grudge against the ''lover'', for a while at least). Should be noted that her father knows a lot less about her AlphaBitch tendencies than her mother does, and often treats her like a SpoiledSweet princess, an impression Blair is all too happy to play along with. When her father does find out his daughter cheats and manipulates to get her way in Season 2, he is [[BrokenPedestal shocked]].
** She also grows very close to her step-father Cyrus, asking him to walk her down the aisle together with her biological father at her wedding to Louis.
* DeadpanSnarker: A character trademark. If she's not being outright mean, she's being ''very'' snarky, and even her close friends get their share of it.
* DeathGlare: A master of this trope.
* DefrostingIceQueen: She softens up over the years.
* {{Determinator}}: She will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
* FallenPrincess: When rumors about her being pregnant by either Nate or Chuck hit Gossip Girl. Later becomes a literal example, when her marriage to Prince Louis falls apart.
* TheFashionista: Fitting as she's a fashion designer's daughter.
* FemaleMisogynist: Blair frequently [[SlutShaming slut shames]] and otherwise spews misogyny at other female characters. Best exemplified in her reactions to Nate cheating on her with Serena and Chuck [[spoiler: sleeping with Jenny]]: while she does hold anger towards the actual cheaters, she unleashes most of her rage against the women, trying to ruin their lives multiple times.
* FishOutOfWater: Expects to be able to rule NYU the same way she ruled Constance Billard, but learns the hard way that college is not like high school. Chuck eventually helps her transfer to Columbia, which is a better fit for her.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Melancholic.
* HappilyMarried: With Chuck, as of the finale. Their wedding is seen in the last episode.
%%* HeadTurningBeauty
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Serena, to the point they dumped their respective dates at prom, and spent the rest of the night together remembering old days. And now in season 4 they live together.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: Although she's stuck-up and seemingly confident, she's secretly insecure about Serena being AlwaysSomeoneBetter.
* InSeriesNickname: Queen B, or just B.
%%* ItsAllAboutMe: Big time, but it got worse in season five.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Blair is standoffish, vindictive and usually only helps others if she stands to gain something from it. However, she can be very sweet and affectionate toward her friends and loved ones, especially when [[CharacterDevelopment she learns to stop treating every minor disappointment as a personal betrayal]].
* JustFriends: With Dan in Season 4, after they've developed more of a rapport.
* KarmaHoudini: Sometimes suffers as a result of her treatment of others, but usually gets away with cruel and entitled behavior far more than other characters do.
* KickTheDog: Her treatment of Dan and Vanessa usually qualifies.
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: The Dark to Serena's Light.
* LivingEmotionalCrutch: To Chuck.
* LovableAlphaBitch: Blair can be sweet and does worry about the people she likes if she's on good terms with them, but only her close friends and family get to see this side of her.
* LoveMartyr: For Chuck Bass. Then in late season three she realizes it's not healthy to love someone so much that you'd prostitute yourself for them and breaks up with him. Then, in Season 5, she realizes she'll probably never get over him and decides she wants to be with him anyway. Ironically, by that time his CharacterDevelopment has turned the trope around and he's been a LoveMartyr for her for about two seasons.
* MaddenIntoMisanthropy: When Yale kicked her out.
* MamaBear: For the members of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club. Also, Eric fairly often and Jenny in the past. Oddly, she doesn't seem to be this for the baby she lost in season five.
* ManipulativeBitch: One of the most conniving, manipulative masterminds on the show.
* MistakenForPregnant: Brings about her social downfall in season one.
* MoralMyopia:
** Puts the onus on Dan for driving Serena away late in season 6... even though she was responsible for instigating it in the first place because she didn't like them as a couple.
** While she was right to be angry at Jenny for posting about Dan and Serena cheating on Vanessa and Nate, blaming Jenny for “messing with” the Serena/Nate relationship instead of Dan and Serena for '''actually cheating''' is more than a bit ridiculous.
* MsFanservice: Often appears wearing sexy lingerie.
* NeverMyFault: Probably a result of being raised around the same tendency in her mother.
* NoSocialSkills: Downplayed. Blair is very witty and has her own brand of charm, but she is also abrasive and sometimes awkward, especially compared to Serena's famously effortless social grace.
* OddFriendship: With Dan. While they are in many ways total opposites (and pass a good time of the series hating each other guts or ignoring one another unless Serena is involved), [[CommonalityConnection they bond over their taste in movies]].
* OneHourWorkWeek: Most people who go to college actually attend classes.
* ParentalAbandonment: Seeing as all four of her parents have left her and moved to France.
* PetTheDog: Once in a while, Blair will do something completely altruistic.
* PreppyName: Blair herself and her actress, Leighton Meester.
%%* PrincessInRags: Occasionally.
* PseudoRomanticFriendship: With Serena. To the point that when she forgives Serena for having slept with Nate and left to a boarding school without telling her, she seems to have felt way more upset about Serena leaving her than the whole "had sex with your boyfriend" thing.
%%* RavenHairIvorySkin
* ReadyForLovemaking: Once for Nate, at least three times for Chuck, and several times with [[spoiler:Dan.]]
* RichBitch: Filthy rich, snobby, and ruthless.
%%* SeeminglyWholesomeFiftiesGirl
* SmartPeoplePlayChess: Blair plays chess with Dorota.
* StepfordSnarker: Frequently uses cutting remarks to hide the fact that she's feeling vulnerable or attacked, and it's implied that a substantial amount of her habitual [[IceQueen bitchiness]] is a product of acting out due to insecurity or loneliness.
* TeamMom: Of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club. And a MamaBear one at that.
* TookALevelInJerkass: In season 5, kind of. She is not more of a jerk than before, she just loses many of the good qualities that've been making her likable before.
* {{Tsundere}}: Type A. She is mostly tsun, but she has a nice side.
* TheUnfavorite: Blair's mother prefers Serena.
* WeightWoe: Usually downplayed, but Blair has struggled with disordered eating and sometimes relapses when she's under a lot of stress.
* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Chuck. They started out as friends-with-benefits, then broke it off, then got together for all of one week in the season one finale. After that they spent the entirety of season two wanting to be together, but each needing the other to be the first to confirm that by saying "I love you" (ItMakesSenseInContext). They were then a couple for 3/4 of season three, waged war on one another at the start of season four, went back to being friends-with-benefits, then decided they should be together but only after accomplishing their other goals first... Season five saw Blair almost leave her fiancé for Chuck, but after he nearly died she made a pact with God to stay with Louis in exchange for Chuck's survival (this [[ItMakesSenseInContext also makes sense in context]] - sort of). Finally in season six they got together for good.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Chuck Bass]]
[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Westwick_3_4011.jpg]]
-->"''Dude. I’m Chuck Bass. Even ''Europeans'' must know what that means.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/EdWestwick
Serena's brother (through adoption) and Blair's main love interest. The richest character on the show and also the most ruthless. Spends most of his time brooding in fancy suits while sipping scotch and plotting somebody's downfall.
* AbusiveParents: His father Bart, especially in the last season when he tries to [[spoiler:kill his own son]].
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: In the books he was depraved but seemed quite happy with himself and his life. In the series he's the JerkassWoobie with a ton of emotional damage.
%%* AntiHero
* AttemptedRape: Twice in the pilot episode, no less. In Season Two, he tries to pull a BedTrick on Blair, but she catches on quickly and [[NotIfTheyEnjoyedItRationalization would have allowed it to continue]] if not for the interruption.
* BeautyIsBad: He's considered a devilishly handsome "bad boy".
* BelligerentSexualTension: [[JerkWithAHeartofGold Chuck]] and [[{{Tsundere}} Blair]] seem poised to play WillTheyOrWontThey for the remainder of the series.
* BigBrotherMentor: To Serena's brother Eric. He seems to genuinely like him and was accepting of him during his coming out.
* BiggerIsBetterInBed: The show likes to hint at this being the case with Chuck.
* BirdsOfAFeather: With Blair. They are both highly intelligent and competent, are skilled manipulators, and are almost always willing to use any means necessary to get their way. This actually stands in the way of their relationship initially, as they are so caught up in playing [[MindGameShip mind games]] with each other that they can't bring themselves to actually admit how they feel.
* BrainsAndBondage: He's one of the most intelligent characters of the show, and he has ''a lot'' of fun.
* BreakoutCharacter: The show originally gave him a similar role in the book as a date raping villain while also having him as Nate's sidekick. However his astounding popularity has led to him taking center stage to the point where Nate (who is the main male character of the books) seems to have mostly been shoved into the background while Chuck Bass is developed into a more likable character through his relationship with Blair and redemption plotline.
* BrilliantButLazy: Witty, devious, and a MagnificentBastard, but also vain and his only interests are sex and money. At least until CharacterDevelopment kicks in.
* ByronicHero: If he wasn't before, season 4 is turning him into one of these.
* CannotSpitItOut: To Blair in season 2. They both know he loves her, but his inability to be vulnerable enough to say it (and vice versa) repeatedly drives them apart.
* TheCasanova: A womanizer who uses girls as tools. Until Blair, at least.
* CatchPhrase: "''I'm Chuck Bass''."
* TheChessmaster: Excels at this.
* CrazyJealousGuy: He's even lampshaded it himself.
* DeadpanSnarker: King of the one-liner, and seems to have a dry comeback for almost anything.
* DeathGlare: He has a knack for it.
* {{Determinator}}: Like Blair, he will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
* DrowningMySorrows: And considering how often he's made to suffer, he must be at high risk of pancreatitis.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Mr. Ellis sure was happy to get to kiss him.
* FatalFlaw: Mention the magic words, "Bart would(n't) be proud" and Chuck will do ''anything'' to get back to where he thinks his father would want him to be.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Choleric.
* FreudianExcuse: Related to the DeathByChildbirth thing. Chuck's mother from died giving birth to him, the reason for his father's dislike of him. [[spoiler: Except she didn't. It's a long story and explained in a rather convoluted way to boot.]]
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: On and off. His friends (and Blair) will spend half a season remarking on what a bad person he is and wondering why they're friends with him, only for him to suddenly be included as a trusted core member of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club whom everyone secretly cared about the whole time.
* HappilyAdopted: By Lily. He gets along with her better than either he gets along with his biological father or she with her biological children.
* HappilyMarried: With Blair, as of the finale.
* HaremSeeker: When he's not with Blair, he has his own harem.
* TheHedonist: Has this tendency, although much of it seems to be a way of acting out against his father or dealing with stress. At times in his life when he's doing well, he is more focused on work and relationships and does not pursue mindless pleasure.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* InsecureLoveInterest: He runs on this trope regarding Blair for most of the show's duration. It doesn't help that Blair goes back and forth between reinforcing this belief and telling him he's the best man she's ever known and all that she's ever wanted.
* ItsAllAboutMe: He falls into this mindset quite often in the early seasons. Goes through massive character development in the fifth season.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's an egotistical jerk, and proud of it, but he loves Blair with all his heart and would do anything for her.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty:
** Does a lot of bad things but often gets his comeuppance, like for instance losing Blair multiple times due to his own schemes (which would be an aversion of this trope). It's arguable whether this applies to him re: attempting to rape Serena and Jenny; the first example got him kneed in the crotch and the second got him punched in the face, but he never faces any legal repercussions and the incidents are [[CharacterizationMarchesOn all but forgotten]] by the other characters.
** More generally, Chuck may do a ''lot'' of immoral things, but he also tends to suffer a lot more than the other characters, meaning karma might actually be working just fine in his case.
* LadykillerInLove: Falls hard for Blair in early season 1 and, other than a few brief flings, stays devoted to her for the entire series.
* LoveMartyr: Becomes this to Blair in the second half of season four and all of season five.
* MaddenIntoMisanthropy: When he lost Blair in late season three.
* ManipulativeBastard: Like Blair, he is vengeful, manipulative and able to scheme elaborate plans.
* MemeticBadass: In-universe. Most of the main characters are well known for being wealthy and conniving Upper East Siders, but Chuck's notoriety in particular is frequently played for one-off jokes and the occasional plot point.
* MillionairePlayboy: Actually a ''Billionaire'' Playboy.
* NouveauRiche: Chuck's dad is a self-made man, and the Basses are relatively new to the Upper East Side. Given how elitist their social circle is, this comes up from time to time.
%%* MrFanservice
* OddFriendship: With Nate. And Dan. [[spoiler: At least until he figures out Dan sent the video about Blair declaring her love for Chuck.]]
* ParentalAbandonment: With his father having trouble accepting him after his mother died during childbirth. According to season 3, Bart had trouble accepting him after his mother ditched them and forced Bart to tell Chuck that she died in childbirth. And then his mom comes back just to steal his hotel from him and ruin his life.
* ThePornomancer: He sleeps around a lot.
* QuickNip: Chuck Bass frequently does this, on occasion with flasks.
* ReallyGetsAround: Notorious for being a playboy and is frequently shown sleeping with hired women for recreation.
* RealMenWearPink: And sometimes purple.
* ScarfOfAsskicking: Although Nate claims that death by scarf is not that intimidating.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Manly Man to Nate's Sensitive Guy.
* SexyManInstantHarem: Never has any trouble attracting multiple women. Including twins - they find Chuck.
* SharpDressedMan: In season one his wardrobe was rather varied... to say the least. It got more subdued in season two, and by season three he only ever wears suits outside his penthouse.
* SmugSnake: He's an arrogant, hedonistic and narcissistic sleazebag who uses his charisma and seductive nature to get what he wants.
* SoftSpokenSadist: Shows shades of this trope, as he has a habit of saying cruel things in a very quiet and gentle tone of voice.
%%* StalkingIsLove: Re: Blair.
* TheStoic: Chuck is extremely soft-spoken and usually very composed, mirroring his calculating and cold-blooded personality. Subverted somewhat in that he can be very open about his feelings verbally, and just isn't as likely to emote them in an obvious way.
%%* TinMan
* TokenEvilTeammate: Of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club. Though he's mellowed over the course of the show, while Blair and Serena have gotten worse.
* TookALevelInKindness: While he's still no saint by any means, he lets go of some of his more unscrupulous tendencies as of season 5.
* TroubledButCute: Because he's Chuck Bass, after all. Sex-obsessed, manipulative bad boy with daddy issues, HiddenHeartOfGold, and a ton of emotional damage? Easily the most attractive guy on the show, just ask Blair and his female fans.
* TheUnfettered: Sometimes. For most seasons his only goal is to sleep with/destroy Blair. He even describes himself as not having anything to lose.
* WickedCultured: An elegant, quick-witted billionaire who also can be quite ruthless, abusive and callous.
* WellDoneSonGuy: All he really wants from his father is his approval, which he feels he can never have due to the crime of having killed his mother at birth.
* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Blair, from season one to the end of season five (after which TheyDo). They were also a couple for about 2/3 of season three.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Nate Archibald]]
[[quoteright:305:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Nate_Archibald001_4888.jpg]]
-->"''Affairs with married people, love triangles... Just so happens everyone's problems are within my area of expertise.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/ChaceCrawford
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/IrwinDaayan (Latin-American Spanish), Keiichi Nakagawa (Japanese)
The fourth member of the show's core four (aka the Non-Judging Breakfast Club). Chuck's best friend, Blair's former boyfriend and Serena's occasional love interest. Comes with a large dose of family drama, a fair dose of stupidity and dashing manbangs.
* BetterAsFriends: Blair and Nate eventually land on this conclusion in season two.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Toward Jenny, although somewhat complicated by the fact that there have been feelings between them at various points in the series (Jenny herself lampshades this, right before Nate [[ForcefulKiss plants one on her]]).
* BigManOnCampus: He is considered to be the "golden boy of the Upper East Side."
* BigScrewedUpFamily: His mother's family, the Vanderbilts.
* BrainlessBeauty: The resident pretty boy, but not very bright.
* ChickMagnet: Quite popular with girls and involved in many relationships throughout the series.
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: Loves coming to the rescue of damsels in distress.
* DaEditor: Specifically, editor-in-chief of a magazine in college.
* DatingCatwoman: With Bree Buckley, his girlfriend in early season three.
* DidNotGetTheGirl: [[spoiler:After carrying torches for both Serena and Blair at different times during the series, he ends up with neither of them.]]
* DisappearedDad: Nate's dad flees the country, then returns only to end up in federal prison.
* TheDitz: A very sweet guy, but not exactly the brightest crayon in the box.
* TheDragAlong: Nate usually has to be forced or talked into joining the NJBC adventures. He becomes a lot more willing during season 6.
* DumbassNoMore: Usually the dimmest of the group, Nate's intelligence rises to average or above in the final season as he actively works to help his friends in their schemes. That doesn't stop him from following in his father's footsteps as far as business goes, though.
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Fitzwilliam.
%%* FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Phlegmatic.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Has many sexual relationships during the show's six-year run.
* InLoveWithLove: He has fallen head over heels for every single girl in the show, only to completely forget her two weeks later, not to mention all the {{Satellite Love Interest}}s the boy's had.
* KindheartedSimpleton: The dumbest of the main characters, and probably the sweetest too, especially compared to Chuck and Blair.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: They both have trouble being honest when it comes to their business finances.
* LikesOlderWomen: Has gotten involved with women who are much older than him (and, frequently, are also married).
* MrFanservice: Often struts around shirtless.
* NiceGuy: Next to Chuck and Blair, he's practically a saint.
* OddFriendship: With Chuck -- the naive SerialRomeo and the devious HaremSeeker.
* OneHourWorkWeek: Never seems to attend classes (which was [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by Blair in season three).
* OnlySaneMan: The insanity seems to just play out around him.
* PerpetualExpression: Extreme confusion.
* PreppyName: Nathaniel Archibald. Played by Chace Crawford.
* PrettyBoy: Vanessa once declared him to be prettier than her.
* PrinceCharming: He is described as charming with extreme regularity, and has the tendency to fall passionately in love (with various girls) and deliver romantic speeches (occasionally hilariously out of context) while rescuing them from some emotional or social dragon. He is in the books given the epithet "prince of the upper east side" and it is said that he can "snap his fingers and have any girl he wants."
* ReallyGetsAround: At one point, Gossip Girl herself labels him the Class Whore.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Sensitive guy to Chuck's manly man.
* SerialRomeo: He has dated many different women, including all the main girls (Blair, Serena, Jenny, and Vanessa). He also dates several side characters like Bree, Juliet, Lady Catherine, Diana, Sage, and Raina.
* SpoiledSweet: The KindHeartedSimpleton from a wealthy family who isn’t judgmental about the social class of the Humphrey children and looks out for the people he cares about.
* TheStoner: Explicit in the novel, alluded to in the series.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Among his family and group of friends. He did some questionable things during the series' run, but he is the only one in the pack who never went after anybody for a malice-driven vendetta and apparently the only one within Gossip Girl's circle of influence who's never sent a tip there.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Chuck, starting after Nate discovered that Chuck had been sleeping with Blair (though what made him angry was that he thought Chuck was just using her; once he realized there was love involved he was alright with it). Even though that was eventually resolved, it took a few seasons for their friendship to really get back on track, and in the meantime they weren't always nice to one another.
* UnwittingPawn: It's safe to assume that if someone is scheming within the nearby zone, he or she will be manipulating Nate.
* UpperClassTwit: Nate's family is very wealthy and is just as ditzy as Serena.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Dan Humphrey]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dan_humphrey_gossip_girl_finale.jpg]]
-->"''We don’t have any servants here so if you see anybody else in the loft besides me, call the police. It’s not the chef.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/PennBadgley
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/EduardoGarza (Latin-American Spanish), Creator/DaisukeNamikawa (Japanese)
Dan is the Brooklyn boy who falls in love with IT girl Serena van der Woodsen, only to find he doesn't exactly fit well in her world. By and by he becomes more adjusted, but he still thinks the world of the Upper East Side crowd is highly immoral. Dan is an aspiring writer who in the books writes delightfully awful poetry but in the TV series prefers short stories. He's played by Creator/PennBadgley.
* AuthorAvatar: The writers of Gossip Girl have admitted that Dan is their author avatar.
* BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame: [[spoiler: Has apparently been toying with the other characters since the beginning.]]
* BecomingTheMask: It seems as if [[spoiler:being Gossip Girl]] changes him throughout the series run, turning him from his initial NiceGuy persona into someone [[TookALevelInJerkass far less good-natured]].
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Starting the end of season 3, but more notably in season 4
-->"''They have peace treaties!''"
* BigBad: Revealed to be this for the entire series, when he is [[spoiler: revealed to be Gossip Girl in the series finale]].
* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler: Particularly in earlier seasons, where he plays the part of the nice guy while ruining lives via Gossip Girl.]]
* BrooklynRage: Averted. He may be from Brooklyn but he's one of the calmer, more sensible characters. Except when you [[BigBrotherInstinct mess with his sister]].
* ButtMonkey: Tends to be mocked more frequently than the other characters, usually by Chuck or Blair.
* TheChessmaster: As of the finale.
* TheConfidant: Plays this role once in a while to other characters who are in a crisis, opening up about his own experiences and usually giving relatively good advice. His willingness to do this is [[WoundedGazelleGambit preyed upon]] by Georgina in season 1, [[spoiler:leading to his first breakup with Serena]]. He himself vindictively turns this around on Blair in season 2 after learning that she humiliated Vanessa.
* CoolLoser: He looks good, and is smart, sensitive, and likable but he's seen as the Lonely Boy loser in the first season.
* DeadpanSnarker: Like Blair, he has a witty and dry sense of humor and is often sarcastic.
* DoggedNiceGuy: Although your mileage may vary on how nice he actually is.
* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler: He's immediately forgiven by everyone for being Gossip Girl.]]
* FishOutOfWater: In the first season when he's trying to fit in the Upper East Side.
* FriendlyEnemy: [[spoiler: Can be considered this to the main group since, as the mastermind behind the Gossip Girl blog, he was also lying to all his friends.]]
* FriendsWithBenefits: Attempts this with Vanessa in season three.
* HappilyMarried: The finale implies that this is what happens with him and Serena.
* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: The stories Dan writes about the Upper East Side.
* HolierThanThou: Called out multiple times for being judgmental of his peers, including people he considers friends or loved ones such as Serena.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Has a lot of sex partners during the show's run (along with the rest of the cast), some of which aren't so appropriate. Like for instance his high school teacher, having a threesome with his girlfriend and his best friend, or sleeping with his girlfriend's best friend (and afterward [[NeverMyFault chewing her out for having had sex with him]]).
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Constantly complains about shallowness, evilness and rules of privilege in the UES world. Condemns dishonesty and scheming. [[spoiler:Turns out he'd wanted into that evil, evil world so badly that he pulled the biggest scheme in the series to get it, hurting countless people in the process.]]
** In early Season 6 he started publishing nasty pieces about his (subsequently turning former) friends, using their real names, and justifying it to anybody that tried to call him out, that it's about the bare truth over personal connections. However, he released Chuck's chapter (full of CharacterShilling) when he thought he could get into Blair's (for whom he'd still carried a torch) good graces, and when he lost that hope, he published the chapter about her, a mean one.
** Eagerly throws Chuck under the bus for the Gossip Girl blast that more or less ruined Blair's wedding to Louis, even though he sent the blast video, not Chuck.
* ICantBelieveAGuyLikeYouWouldNoticeMe: Gender-Inverted. Dan dreamed of Serena from afar for years before she finally noticed him in the pilot episode.
* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Dan just wants to be part of the upper-class world but he is repeatedly reminded that it won't happen.
* InformedAbility: We're told he's a remarkably talented writer, and he managed to get published in the New Yorker. But when we actually get to see anything he's written it's usually trite and mediocre, and he apparently has difficulty coming up with story ideas that aren't directly cribbed from events in his own life.
* InSeriesNickname: Lonely Boy.
* InWithTheInCrowd: Originally a loner, but eventually becomes friends with Serena, Nate, and the others. Lampshaded during their high school graduation by Blair. While Dan clearly still thinks of himself as an outsider, she points out that he's actually done pretty well for himself.
-->'''Blair:''' You're friends with Nate Archibald, you played on the soccer team, you got into Yale, you got the lead role in the school play, you got published in the New Yorker, you had sex with a teacher!
-->'''Nelly:''' Plus you dated the most popular girl in school.
* JustFriends: With Vanessa. In Season Four he and Blair have started to develop a snarky, SheIsNotMyGirlfriend, BelligerentSexualTension styled version of this.
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:He doesn't suffer any social consequences after revealing he's been Gossip Girl all along.]]
* LastNameBasis: By Chuck and especially Blair.
* MasterActor: [[spoiler:With the revelation of the series finale, he must be a pretty good actor to maintain his secret for years.]]
* MissingMom: Dan and Jenny's mother, though she comes back for a few episodes. She doesn't even show up for her son's wedding.
* TheMole: [[spoiler: Given that he turns out to be Gossip Girl...]]
* MostWritersAreMale: Dan is an aspiring writer.
* MotorMouth: In a mostly dorky fashion. Gets worse when he is nervous.
* MrFanservice: Likes being shirtless.
* MyFriendsAndZoidberg
-->'''Chuck:''' So long, friends... Dan.
* NeverMyFault: One of his defining character traits, showing up constantly throughout the series run. The prime example must be when he sleeps with Serena in the season five finale despite being in a relationship with Blair, then the moment the sex is done he gets furious with Serena and claims she was out to ruin his relationship. Even if she was, nobody forced him to sleep with her, [[WhatTheHellHero as Serena points out to him]]. He is then furious with Blair and puts the blame for their break-up on her, and while she certainly didn't treat him very fairly (stringing him along when she knew her heart still lay with Chuck), at least she broke up with him before getting back together with Chuck. Dan, on the other hand, was unfaithful to her with her best friend.
* NiceGuy: Starts out as one, then as the series progresses the Upper East Side world begins to change him more and more. He still has his moments, however.
* OddFriendship: With Blair, in season 4 (they even have a RelationshipUpgrade at one point).
* OneHourWorkWeek: Hardly ever seen at NYU.
* OnlySaneMan: The sanest of the main characters, especially in early seasons.
* SocialClimber: His main motivation is to be InWithTheInCrowd, although he vehemently denies this.
* StalkerWithACrush: [[spoiler: To Serena, now that we know he spent years tracking and chronicling her activities through his position as Gossip Girl.]]
* StalkingIsLove: [[spoiler: Serena doesn't find it creepy or disturbing at all that Dan created a website that tracks and chronicles the movements of her and others just so he could get her.]]
* TeacherStudentRomance: With Rachel Carr during his senior year of high school.
* TookALevelInJerkass: After the sheer amount of crap the poor guy was put through, it's hard to blame him.
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: Romantic example. Has a strong tendency to begin a relationship with a woman, heavily idealize her, [[BrokenPedestal get upset when she fails to meet his standards]], and then tell her he's [[DisappointedInYou disappointed in her]] for not changing to meet his idea of her.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: In Season 6, [[spoiler: he aims to destroy the lives of everyone else in the cast after what he (and Jenny) went through]]
* WorthyOpponent: [[spoiler: Even the ManipulativeBastard members of the Bass family had to give him props.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Jenny Humphrey]]
[[quoteright:340:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/momsen.jpg]]
-->"''Don't you read Gossip Girl? Extortion is what I do, all day.''"
-->'''Portrayed by:''' Creator/TaylorMomsen
-->'''Voiced by:''' Christine Byrd (Latin-American Spanish), Michiko Komatsu (Japanese)
Dan's younger sister who starts off idolizing Serena and wanting Blair's respect. Her innocence vanishes more and more each season and by now she could probably out-bitch Blair if she wanted to. Jenny's got a talent for designing and loves to make her own clothes.
%
Disappeared from the main cast when Creator/TaylorMomsen decided to leave the show to pursue her music career, but came BackForTheFinale.
* AdaptationalAttractiveness: In the books, Jenny Humphrey is a sweet, artistic girl whose main appearance anxiety is that she is short, brunette, and busty, unlike her tall, slender blonde idol Serena Van Der Woodsen. Who do they cast to play her in the TV series? Tall, slender blonde Taylor Momsen.
* AdaptationDyeJob: She was a brunette in the books but on the show she's a blonde.
* AesopAmnesia: Has to learn the "not letting the cool kids change who I am" lesson every couple of episodes.
* AlphaBitch: [[spoiler:After being anointed by Blair the next queen bee of Constance, she eventually embraces it]].
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: On and off. She and Dan are close, but their relationship occasionally becomes strained when her behavior goes to extremes.
* BackstabbingTheAlphaBitch: Jenny does this to Blair in "A Thin Line Between Chuck and Nate" in order to become Queen herself, which leads to an EscalatingWar between the two.
* BackForTheFinale: She appears at Serena's and Dan's wedding.
* BatmanGambit: [[spoiler: She used Gossip Girl which was run by her brother to get out of New York]].
* BecomingTheMask: In season 3 when she becomes the Queen Bee with her own group of minions.
* BirdsOfAFeather: The initial reason she wanted to be friends with Blair was because she noticed that Blair, like herself, was a hard worker who did not get things handed to her. In kind, Blair grows to respect her and ultimately [[spoiler:appoints her the next "queen" of Constance]].
* BreakTheCutie: From the Pilot, where Jenny is sexually assaulted at her first party, Jenny experiences a lot of humiliation and trauma in her time on the show, some of it a consequence of her own bad decisions.
* TheBusCameBack: For a couple of episodes in season 4.
* CantGetAwayWithNuthin: Jenny undergoes a rather brutal HumiliationConga in season 1 as she tries to fit in with the popular crowd at Constance, getting busted for misbehavior constantly despite her actions being about on par with those of the other girls. Somewhat justified as she's also trying to project a façade of wealth and status that she doesn't have, while her peers are able to get away with more because they have money.
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler: She used Gossip Girl to manipulate her social status to where she wanted it and also plan her exit.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: To Nate in season 3, to the point of trying to sabotage his relationship with Serena.
* TheConfidant: To Nate in season one, after they meet by accident and become friends.
* CorruptTheCutie: She was fairly sweet and innocent in the beginning, if already ambitious. It didn't last.
* DaddysGirl: Arguably. While Jenny goes against almost everything Rufus says, she seems to be a DaddysGirl at heart and hates being on bad terms with him.
* TheDragon: [[spoiler: Since Dan]] was Gossip Girl, [[spoiler: she had the final say on anything that went on the site about her.]]
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Tallulah.
* EmoTeen: Shifts into something like this mode partway through her tenure on the show, with her fashion style becoming gothier and more edgy.
* {{Fangirl}}: It's been mentioned several times that she's a huge ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' fangirl. She even once tried to explain the concept to Lily.
* TheFashionista: And a young fashion designer.
* GuileHero: Until she TookALevelInJerkass, at which point she became a ManipulativeBastard. Jenny is incredibly adept at thinking on her feet.
* HormoneAddledTeenager: Played up somewhat in comparison to the other characters, as Jenny has the most typical "teenager" storyline of all of them, mostly revolving around her rebellions against her father and her struggles with identity, life priorities, and wanting to be liked by others.
* HugeGirlTinyGuy: With Eric.
* HyperCompetentSidekick: To Eleanor Waldorf in season 2. She eventually begins to feel she is being taken advantage of and kept out of the limelight in order to uphold Eleanor's brand, causing her to quit.
* ImprobableAge: At fifteen years old, Jenny is a mini-couturier who is able to rival professional designers during New York's fashion week.
* InformedAbility: In-universe, a talented seamstress and designer who meets with a very positive reception from the fashion world and has the potential to become a superstar. However, many of her clothes are not notably fresh or innovative and how good she actually is comes down to the viewer's taste. Somewhat justified in that fashion is a dynamic industry heavily based on trends, meaning that the clothing being on trend for its time (which much of it is) does not necessarily mean it will read as well years down the line.
* InSeriesNickname: Little J.
* KickTheDog: While she TookALevelInJerkass in Season Three, there are four moments that are seen as especially heinous: allowing her minions to dump yogurt on Eric’s head, ordering her minions to egg Eric’s boyfriend, trying to break up Serena and Nate, and posting about Dan and Serena on Gossip Girl.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: With Eric, for better and for worse.
* ManipulativeBitch: She learned her way of scheming, lying and backstabbing terrifyingly quickly.
* MissingMom: Dan and Jenny's mother, though she comes back for a few episodes. She doesn't even show up for her son's wedding.
* PeerPressureMakesYouEvil: At least in the first couple of seasons it seems like she's a genuinely sweet girl at heart, but behaves like a mean girl in order to gain popularity and keep her friends. As time goes on, [[BecomingTheMask it begins to feel less and less like a façade]].
* PlayingGertrude: In the DistantFinale Jenny is 24, though Momsen was still 19 at the time.
* PutOnABus: Season 4 had her moving upstate with her mother, a character only seen for a few episodes in season 1 and mostly unreferenced throughout most of the series. She returns briefly but is likely [[LongBusTrip gone for good]].
* RealLifeWritesThePlot: The change of Jenny's personality & personal style were all because of Taylor Momsen's sudden change in personal style. She was also written off the show the first time to pursue her musical career, then permanently so when she continued to clash with production.
* TheRunaway: Twice.
* SecretKeeper: [[spoiler:Apparently she knew all along that Dan was Gossip Girl.]]
* ShipperOnDeck: She used to be a Derena shipper.
* SingleGirlSeeksMostPopularGuy: Towards Nate, the BigManOnCampus, especially in season 3. Somewhat justified, however, as they were friends before she had any visible romantic interest in him.
* TheStarscream: After getting fed up with Blair’s bullying and manipulation, Jenny goes behind Blair’s back and tells Nate about Blair’s affair with Chuck. Though Jenny didn’t intend for the incident to wind up on Gossip Girl and initially seemed to regret her disclosure, she quickly swoops in on the vacated Queen Bee throne and usurps Blair.
* TookALevelInJerkass: [[AcquiredSituationalNarcissism Both times she takes over as Queen Bee, she becomes a much nastier person.]] In Season Three it even lasts beyond that, with her lashing out at her friends and family. Thankfully, she gets better after Season Four.
* ToxicFriendInfluence: Seems to have very questionable taste in friends, such as AlphaBitch and AxCrazy types.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Eric when their friendship is most strained and with Blair when their relationship is most civil.
* WorthyOpponent: To Blair in season 1, as Blair admits to her face when Jenny [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere says she's done trying to fit in]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Lily van der Woodsen/Bass/Humphrey]]
-->"''If Serena's indiscretions were as PG as Jenny's, I wouldn't have needed the botox.''"
Biological mother to Serena and Eric, adoptive mother to Chuck, stepmother to Dan and Jenny. Lily was much like her daughter Serena when she was younger, trying to break free from her strict mother's demands. As an adult she has been spending most of her time getting married and getting divorced. She can be very caring and loving when she wants to, but most of the time she's an absent parent.
* AscendedExtra: Lily and Rufus were secondary characters in the books, but in the series they get a lot of attention.
%%* TheFashionista
* FormerTeenRebel: She ran away from home, dated rockstars, [[spoiler: had a child out of wedlock]], spent time in a mental institution, and used drugs.
* FullNameUltimatum: Subverted. She calls her adopted son Charles at all times, except for when she's referring do his deviant side.
* GenerationXerox: Her flashbacks show her appearance-conscious socialite mother [=CeCe=] trying to restrain the free-spirited young Lily. In present time the appearance-conscious socialite Lily is trying to restrain her free-spirited daughter Serena.
* HandsOffParenting: To say the very least.
* LongLostRelative: Scott, the son she had with Rufus and gave up for adoption.
* MamaBear: Lily won't hesitate to destroy people's lives for the sake of her family's convenience.
* ManipulativeBitch: Lily has beaten both Basses at their own game.
* ParentingTheHusband: Seems to have to do this with Rufus.
* ReallyGetsAround: Take out Nate and Blair's families, and almost any middle-aged man will turn out to be Lily's past or present suitor.
* SerialSpouse: With at least four different husbands.
* {{Socialite}}: Most of the characters on the show are considered socialites and attend parties and social events.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: All the Rhodes women (except for somewhat color coded for being the BlackSheep Carol) are tall, slender blond beauties. Coincidentally, her step-daughter Jenny also fits this characteristics, despite not being related to her.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Rufus Humphrey]]
-->"''I promise to eat caviar without spitting it out in my napkin when we go to dinner at Mayor Bloomberg’s. As long as he knows when he comes to our house he’s eating my chili.''"
Dan and Jenny's father, and stepfather to Eric, Serena and Chuck. A former rock star (or at least pseudo-star) who had a love affair with Lily in his youth. Years later his son falls in love with Lily's daughter and eventually he and Lily find their way back to one another. Rufus is probably the most attentive parent on the show, although lately it seems he doesn't do much during the day.
* AscendedExtra: Lily and Rufus were secondary characters in the books, but in the series they get a lot of attention.
* {{Flanderization}}: He used to be a cool rocker-type dad. Now he's just some boring guy who sits at home all day and/or follows Lily around. With her coat in season 4. Directly referenced by him in season 5.
* HouseHusband: While Lily is out working and socializing, Rufus mostly sits at home, strums his guitar, makes waffles and dishes out advice.
* LongLostRelative: Scott, the son Lily gave birth to and gave up for adoption (without telling Rufus about it).
* OneNoteCook: Actually he can make chili, bolognese ''and'' waffles. Especially waffles. But his cooking skills end there.
* TookALevelInDumbass: Season Six. Having sympathy for a misguided young girl is one thing, but thinking that [[spoiler:Ivy]] is trustworthy is another.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Waffles.
%%* TwitchyEye
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Vanessa Abrams]]
-->"''My parents are artists, my sister’s a musician. Just like going to an Ivy is your family’s way, not going to college is mine.''"
Dan's bohemian BFF and on-and-off crush. Vanessa is a documentary film maker and aspiring script writer who frowns on everything regarding the Upper East Side.
* BackForTheFinale: Though only in a cameo.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Can be petty, vindictive, and even cruel, while still taking care to appear as though she has the moral high ground; that said, she's more likely to backtrack and apologize afterwards than other characters who behave similarly.
* BrainyBrunette: Very booksmart and tests well, even managing to succeed on the SAT despite not having studied.
* CoolBigSis: To Jenny, although this dynamic doesn't last once UES politics and relationship drama start coming between them.
* DisappointedInYou: Tends to pull this card when one of the UES characters gets on her bad side.
* DistaffCounterpart: To Dan.
* EnterStageWindow: Has a tendency to sneak in to Dan's bedroom via his window. He does not always appreciate this.
* FriendsWithBenefits: Attempts this with Dan in season three.
* GranolaGirl: To an extent, and her mother has strong hippie tendencies.
* HolierThanThou: Infamously so. She considers basically all the Upper East Side characters some shade of morally bankrupt in comparison to herself, and has no qualms about telling them as much.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Like Dan, often judges the other characters for their backstabbing, manipulative, conniving ways, but she herself can be plenty backstabbing, manipulative, and conniving if she feels her actions are justified.
%%* HormoneAddledTeenager
* InformedAbility: She's a good enough writer to get accepted at Tisch, but we've never gotten to see anything she's written. She's also supposed to have a great talent for documentary filmmaking, but this ability is not displayed at all beyond her simply walking around with a camera.
* JustFriends: With Dan, although they have had feelings for each other on-and-off throughout their friendship.
* MandatoryLine: Towards the end of her run on the series.
* MomentKiller: When Dan and Serena try to have sex in season 1.
* OneHourWorkWeek: Goes to NYU but never seems to have classes.
* ParentalAbandonment: Her parents hardly show up at all, and she lives alone in New York at age sixteen.
* PutOnABus: Put on a ''plane'', actually, in the season four finale.
* TookALevelInJerkass: She's initially a supportive friend to Jenny, but in later seasons her ItsAllAboutMe attitude emerges.
* UnlimitedWardrobe: Given that she claims to barely be able to afford food, she sure has a large wardrobe with a lot of expensive designer outfits in it.
* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: For Dan. Zig-zagged in that they do get together eventually, but never for long.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: At least in the early seasons of the show, her forays into UES-style bad behavior are usually in the name of accomplishing some nominally worthy end goal, such as blackmailing Blair in an attempt to force her to help save a notable historical landmark.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Eric van der Woodsen]]
-->"''Jenny, your sweet potatoes are bland.''"
Serena's little brother, who is often the sole voice of reason. Gone from the show in season five.
%%* AscendedExtra
* AllGaysArePromiscuous: Averted.
* BackForTheFinale: He returns briefly for the series finale.
* ButNotTooGay: While he does have boyfriends, he is never seen kissing them, or even holding hands with them.
* CallingTheOldManOut: Unlike Serena, he doesn't feel inclined to betray his decent stepfather, drop everything and run to biological daddy, who's abandoned them years ago.
* ComingOutStory: A season one episode reveals that he is gay.
* DisappearedDad: Serena and Eric's father left when they were little.
* DrivenToSuicide: The reason why Serena returns in the pilot is because Eric tried to kill himself.
%%* HugeGirlTinyGuy: With Jenny.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: With Jenny, even before they become actual step-siblings.
* LonelyRichKid: When Serena left for boarding school.
* MoralityPet: In earlier seasons. It's downplayed since he never actually stops them for doing any evil, but villains do seem to have a fondness for him. His TheReasonYouSuckSpeech, in which he confesses his suicide attempt, is what triggers [[AlphaBitch Blair]] to make peace with Serena right in the beginning of the series, [[{{Jerkass}} Chuck of all people]] considers him something akin to a little brother, and [[BrattyTeenageDaughter Jenny]] (who can be a real jerk when she wants to) is his best friend. Even ''Georgina'' seems rather apologetic when she outs him to his family; granted, Serena doesn't believe it and Georgina outright says she might have done it on purpose, but that's the closest Georgina ever gets to have apologized for anything.
* NiceGuy: In the first three seasons he is undoubtedly the nicest character on the show.
* OnlySaneMan: Most of the time. Recently, less so. Definitely in the context of his own family, however.
* PutOnABus: In season 5. There was a throw-away line about him starting college in one of the episode at the beginning of the season.
* StraightGay: Exhibits little to none of the typical gay stereotypes.
* TeensAreShort: The straightest (pun unintended) example in the show.
* TookALevelInJerkass: In seasons one, two and three he was the only through-and-through decent character. In season four he plots to take Chuck and Blair down and hates on Chuck in favor of Jenny, even though Chuck has always treated Eric well and Jenny has thrown Eric under the bus countless times.
%%* VitriolicBestBuds: With Jenny.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Gossip Girl]]
-->"''And who am I? That's one secret I'll never tell.''"
The creator of the blog the whole series is built around.
* AlliterativeName: '''G'''ossip '''G'''irl
%%* BigBrotherIsWatching
* CatchPhrase: "''You know you love me. XO XO - Gossip Girl.''"
* CharacterBlog: The show features in-universe vlog written by a mysterious Gossip Girl.
* FauxlosophicNarration: Every now and then.
* GossipyHens: It's in the name. The Gossip Girl blog is dedicated to gossip about the main characters.
* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: Gossip Girl narrates the show (the voice is provided by Creator/KristenBell), but is never seen. [[spoiler:The series finale subverts this, when it is revealed that Gossip Girl was really Dan Humphrey.]]
* InteractiveNarrator: The characters on the show frequently use Gossip Girl to spread rumors and/or spin a situation in their favor.
* LegacyCharacter: There are three Gossip Girls during the story and it's implied in the end that the next generation will take on.
* TheNicknamer: Lonely Boy (Dan), Little J (Jenny), Queen B or B (Blair), and S (Serena).
* TheOmniscient: An omniscient blogger who knows everything about everyone.
* TheReveal: [[spoiler: "She" turns out to be Dan Humphrey.]]
* SchoolNewspaperNewsHound: Of the modern technology variety.
* SecondaryCharacterTitle: [[spoiler: Subverted, as "she" turns out to be one of the main characters.]]
* TitleDrop: See CatchPhrase. (Exception: "The Revengers," which does not end with Gossip Girl's usual sign-off [[spoiler: due to Chuck and Blair running from the roof, having just watched the former's dad fall to his death]].)
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Dorota Kishlovski]]
-->"''KGB can't get me to talk. Chuck Bass has no chance.''"
Blair's nanny/maid/sidekick. Dorota is actually a Polish duchess but she moved to America to escape an unhappy marriage and began to work for the Waldorfs. In many ways the real mother figure in Blair's life and the person who does most of Blair's legwork for her.
* AscendedExtra: Started out as a background character but evolved into Blair's eternal sidekick. Dorota got a backstory in the webisodes "''Chasing Dorota''" and had an entire episode revolve around her wedding day.
* BetaCouple: She and Vanya (Chuck's doorman). Chuck actually helped Vanya win Dorota's heart, and he threw their wedding.
* FunnyForeigner: You will have some bizarre ideas about Poland if you view Dorota as a typical specimen or treat seriously her stories.
* HappinessInSlavery: Pretty much a modern example.
* LongLostRelative: Her estranged husband shows up in ''Chasing Dorota''.
* MamaBear: Towards Blair.
* OlderSidekick: Blair's a teenager and while we haven't been given Dorota's exact age her actress is in her thirties. And Cyrus has confirmed that she practically raised Blair, meaning she ought to be at least ten years Blair's senior.
* ParentalSubstitute: As noted above she practically raised Blair.
* ServileSnarker: Though mostly the facial expressions she makes when Blair says or does something she deems snark-worthy.
* ShipperOnDeck: She always wants what is best for Blair, and seems pretty convinced that Chuck is the person Blair is meant to be with (although during the Dair arc she rooted for Dan).
* SmartPeoplePlayChess
* StraightMan: If Blair, her mother, or any other high society member in the house starts losing their marbles, [[ReactionShot Dorota's facial expressions will illustrate it]].
* UndyingLoyalty: She is always on Blair's side, no matter what.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Georgina Sparks]]
-->"''You can tell "Jesus", the bitch is back''"
A former friend of Serena van der Woodsen and sworn enemy of Blair Waldorf, she is the series' most recurring antagonist.
As it turns out during season 5 (major spoiler), [[spoiler:she usurped Gossip Girl's identity]].
* AmbiguousSituation: Was her conversion to Christianity/newfound goodness in Season 2 genuine? Or was it an act to avoid boot camp and plot revenge?
* ArchEnemy: To both Serena and Blair.
%%* AscendedExtra
* TheBabyTrap: Arrives at Dan's loft pregnant, claiming (falsely) that he is the father. He is with her when she gives birth to baby Milo and helps raise him for a while, until the truth comes out.
* BatmanGambit: In season 3's The Lost Boy, where she sends Blair a fake invitation to an elite society and uses a contact who works for someone Chuck is trying to impress in order to send the pair after the same photograph, thus bringing out both Blair and Chuck's competitive, self-serving sides and attempting to drive a wedge between the pair.
* {{Blackmail}}: She blackmails Serena in season one; she uses her knowledge of Serena sort of, but not actually, killing a man to control her.
* BriefAccentImitation: Pretending to be a foreigner.
%%* DeadpanSnarker
* TheDreaded: Serena is terrified of her, and even the others have OhCrap moments with her on the loose.
%%* EleventhHourRanger
* EvilCounterpart: She started out as what Serena could have become. In later seasons she seems to have become more of an EvilCounterpart to Blair around about the same time Blair became her main enemy.
* EvilFormerFriend: To Serena.
* GoldDigger: She later marries some clueless chap for money and to have someone looking after her son. She treats her husband more like a minion.
* ImpliedLoveInterest: To Jack Bass.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Frequently pretends to be emotionally vulnerable or feel genuine affection for another person, but she always turns out to just be play-acting in order to manipulate people.
%%* LoveMakesYouCrazy
* ManipulativeBitch: Georgina is shown to be as malevolent a manipulator as Blair.
* OhCrap: “You can tell Jesus that the bitch is back”. Cue epic OhCrap look from Blair.
* PutOnABus: For almost a full season after she is sent to reform school in the season one finale. In fact, although she's a reccuring antagonist, she often appears only once in a while in each season for some episodes, and disappear as quickly as she arrived (after wreaking some havoc). Kind of a Zigzag Bus.
%%* RavenHairIvorySkin
* ReformedButRejected: In late season 2. Especially prevalant in the season 4 penultimate episode, where she is yearning to get in on the dirt but is being snubbed.
%%* RichBitch
* TheReveal: [[spoiler:Averted. It looks like she's Gossip Girl, but it's revealed that she's just usurping her identity.]]
%%* TokenEvilTeammate
%%* WeUsedToBeFriends: To Serena.
* WoundedGazelleGambit: She uses this tactic to gain Dan's sympathy in season 1.
* {{Yandere}}: For Dan. She attempts to ruin Serena and Dan's relationship, while also blackmailing Serena about their tragic secret.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Eleanor Waldorf]]
-->"''Blair, you will never be more beautiful or thin or happy than you are right now. I just want you to make the most of it.''"
The divorced mother of Blair Waldorf and a respected and well-established fashion designer. She loves her daughter, but she is sometimes too caught up in her own professional life to really connect with or understand her.
* ActorSwap: In the pilot, she was played by Florencia Lozano. Afterwards, she was replaced by Margaret Colin.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: In the first episode, during a party that Eleanor organized in her home, she stops Blair, who was wearing a dress designed by her mother, and tells her that she should have let her know she was planning to wear one of her designs so she could get it properly fitted, at least. Worse, she does it in front of company, humiliating Blair, whose gesture had been an attempt to win her mother's approval. Also see her character quote. Telling a girl who is secretly miserable and insecure that it doesn't get better than this is cruel. To cap it off, after her little speech, Eleanor tells Blair to put some product in her hair because her ends are dry. Is it any wonder that Blair ended up the way she did?
* TheFashionista: So much that she made fashion her profession.
* HandsOffParenting: She undoubtedly loves Blair, but doesn't spend almost any time with her and is generally disconnected from her daughter. She can also be a little too critical of appearances, pressuring the already thin and fashion-obsessed Blair to be perfect at all times, feeding her massive insecurities.
%%* HappilyMarried: To Cyrus Rose.
* ManipulativeBitch: Her bitter divorce brings this out in her. For Thanksgiving, she lies to Blair that her father Harold couldn't come visit them from Paris, when in fact she had uninvited him.
* TookALevelInKindness: She mellows down in later seasons and becomes a better parent.
[[/folder]]
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