The End of The Affair? - Part 1 of 2 - Fantastic Outerwear and Wedding Dresses

Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it’s for Blair and Louis. In a stunning plot twist that killed off Blair’s baby, the wedding is still on because God will kill Chuck if Blair doesn’t become Catholic in a Vera Wang gown. Dan is the new Dorota, carrying Miss Blair's bags and trying to nudge her towards the path of righteousness while Chuck and Louis assume they’re having an affair and harness the power of the slideshow to prove it. Lily and Rufus find the real Charlotte (nicknamed Lola) Rhodes, but don't seem to notice that she looks more like a cousin of Serena's than Charlie/Ivy did. Nate smells a rat about the car crash (a rat with the voice of Kristen Bell, nonetheless) while Serena says several surprisingly sensible things, wears tights, and tries to grow some morals. Wonders will never cease.

Only Chuck Bass can pull off this many patterns and still look swoon-worthy.

Absolutely LOVE the coat, only wish that we could've had a shot of him and Blair standing next to each other - her Gryphon cape would complement this perfectly. The buttons, the elbow patches (not pictured), all is perfection.

Again, only Chuck Bass could pull off a dated brown suit.

And for New Year's, you'd expect him in a sequined blazer, no? Instead Chuck opts for what looks to be Humphrey's favourite grey flannel fashioned into a blazer. The outfit is saved by the paisley cravat, lavender shirt, and the simple fact that he is Chuck Bass, and he can pull off plaid.

We're going to give Blair a pass on this outfit because, well, after what's she's been through you'd expect her to be in sweats and uggs, not plaid blazers and lace tights. While Humphrey's style may have improved as a result of associating with Blair, it goes the opposite for B. She's borrowed what seems to be one of Dan's vests and fashioned one of his many plaid shirts into a blazer.

Then she goes and wears this gorgeous Vera Wang and reminds us that she's still Blair Waldorf. It's a shame she's wearing another dress, because this one is absolutely stunning with its clouds of fluffy tulle and exquisite beading. (Sidenote: it wasn't custom, but from last year's Spring collection).

Not the hugest fan of Blair's new hat obsession, especially because this one looks like a giant button atop her head. Still a fan of her outfit, especially the pairing of chartreuse and olive, and those drool-worthy Miu Mius. And look at Dan's coat! He almsot doesn't look like he's from Brooklyn (excepting the bits of plaid)!!

Though not very New Year's appropriate, Blair's red Naeem Khan looks is definitely preferable to those shapeless dresses of yore.

But the sparkly jacket she wears sure makes up for it!

Requisite collage of Dan's boring outfits. Bet you were expecting him to wear plaid and a grey waffle shirt, right?

But were you expecting...

This? Nope, didn't think so. Love the leather details on the sleeve, the cut, the high collar, everything...
I'm still in shock, though.

This alice + olivia dress is so Serena. The embellished top with that crazy tulle skirt that at first glance looks like a feathers? And it hedges on macaron-showing and short, so it's Serena's style exactly.

Love the oversized buttons on her taupe coat. It seems the GG wardrobe department has a penchant for gorgeous outerwear. 

And Louis' expression was just too hilarious not to include.

New Year's Eve is pretty much the quintessential Serena holiday. Why? Because she can wear a short, low-cut, sequinned dressed without being ridiculed because pretty much everyone is dressed like that.
The dress is definitely low-cut, and most definitely short (strategic macaron-covering hand placement in the picture on the right), and it's sparkly, too! Somehow, it doesn't scream New Year's Eve to me. I'd expect Serena to wear something a little more, well, sparkly, and not just in the sequin-and-embellishments sense.

Again, Serena's outerwear is gorgeous. Love the stripes on her Marc Jacobs coat.

The End of The Affair? - Part 2 of 2 - Pageboy Hats and Blanket Coats

 Prince Louis is king of the boring coat and scarf combo, but the pageboy hat was just adorable.

Moving on to our favorite Upper East Side Queen, Lily is in a Typical Lily Look. I do love the bias cut, though.

It looks like the Gossip Girl wardrobe department's love of outerwear didn't extend to Lily this week. This just looks like she wrapped herself in a wool blanket to search for her niece. Yikes.

Look! It's Rufus in plaid!

At least the Humphreys have surprisingly good taste in outerwear this episode. This coat is simple, classic, and, well, a lot better than Lily's wool blanket. Is it just me, or do those shoes look vaguely Chuck-esque? He must be picking up tips.

Another obligatory collage, this time of Nate's boring suits. I have to admit, he looks good in a suit. He should skip the skinny ties, though, and just go raid Chuck's wardrobe.

It's so much easier, sartorial-wise, to be Nate. All he has to do is unbutton the top two buttons of his shirt and forgo the tie. Bam. New Year's Eve outfit. Looking equally as rumpled is Louis, although I will admit that Louis loosk pretty good in lavender. But, of course, no one can pull off lavender like Chuck Bass.

The real Charlotte Rhodes looks a lot more like Serena's cousin than Charlie/Ivy did, no? I'm hoping we see more of her, because unlike Serena, she knows how to dress for the cold - shearling coat, patterned scarf, totally not weather-appropriate but nonetheless fabulous maroon boots.

Mini Recap: The End of the Affair?

Blair has found God, because this season wasn't ridiculous enough as-is. Serena has become the new Gossip Girl for Nate's imaginary newspaper. Nate puts on his "I think thouhts" face and investigates Blair and Chuck's accident after a tip from Gossip Girl, because that is totally not something that the cops would have done and hey, remember when this show was about backstabbing rich kids who dressed really well?

Party du Jour
The Spectator's New Year's Eve party.

Best Line
Dan: "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you about Serena and me, but we didn't want our families to know, and you're kind of like her brother."
Chuck: "So are you."

Best Outfit
Everyone looked pretty good this episode, but I'm going to have to give this one to Serena, solely because she was wearing leggings. For once, I'm not afraid her macaron is going to make a special guest appearance. Maybe Blair prayed for that, too?

Headshaker
Normally I would give it to an outfit, but Blair's newfound religious devotion is the real headshaker in this episode. I'm pretty sure that, at one time, Blair was smart and interesting and wasn't part of this insane storyline, but those memories are beginning to fade because she has a key to the church. Blair, God doesn't care about your infidelity. He's too busy playing running back for Tim Tebow.

Check back Thursday for the full recap from Steph!