Are You a Gossip Girl or Gilmore Girls Fall?

As the leaves begin to turn and we trade our shorts and t-shirts for sweaters and jeans;, fall is undoubtedly in the air. Fall means a lot of things, but for most teenage girls, it means opening Netflix and turning on their favorite 2000s comfort show. But here is where our debate begins: which show are you watching? While most inevitably reach for the warm glow and crisp orange leaves of Gilmore Girls, others—like me—prefer the fast-paced, drama-packed story of Gossip Girl, where there’s a new scandal every episode. The real question is: which one do you reach for every fall?

What are the shows about?

Gossip Girl follows the lives and scandals of the New York elite. The show follows their stories as they become entangled in wealth, loss, and, of course, secrets— all while their lives are exposed by Gossip Girl, an anonymous blogger who chronicles their every mistake. This fast-paced drama show is in stark contrast to the dramedy of Gilmore Girls, which follows a witty mother-daughter duo as they learn to navigate relationships, family bonds, and heartbreak in their small, storybook town of Stars Hollow.

Gilmore Girls fall

A Gilmore Girls fall is curling up on your sofa with a warm cup of tea as the leaves fall slowly outside. Avid Gilmore Girls watcher and Sentinel Sun writer Rahaa says she rewatches it every year: “It’s such a comfort show. I put it on when it’s raining outside and I knit or bake cookies while watching it.” She’s certainly not alone in this sentiment—many fans love the show for its undeniable fall vibes.

Gossip Girl fall

Meanwhile, a Gossip Girl fall can be described as walking home from school with a pumpkin spice latte in your hand, or catching up with a friend on a park bench surrounded by orange leaves. Gossip Girl is synonymous with fashion and is famed for its Thanksgiving episodes—the most iconic example being Season 3, Episode 11, “The Treasure of Serena Madre.”

Small-town vs big-city

This debate is parallel to that of choosing between small-town or big-city life, in which Gilmore Girls represents the leisurely lifestyle and community of a small town, where characters are relatively predictable and new ones are rarely added. The show is known more for its vibes than its plot. In fact, when asking around the school for people's opinions, the most common argument against Gilmore Girls was that it is boring. One Sentinel student, who asked to stay anonymous, said: “Gilmore Girls is very autumnesque, but it’s quite boring, and I couldn’t finish the first season.” Many agree that most people watch Gilmore Girls for the fall aesthetic carried throughout the show rather than for the storyline.

In sharp contrast, Gossip Girl shows a big-city world where there is someone new waiting around every corner, and the unknown is expected. New characters are introduced regularly to add more drama to the plot. Gossip Girl also exemplifies the fast-paced lifestyle of the city with new drama unfolding every episode. As Gossip Girl herself once wrote, "In a city that never sleeps, it's important to always be alert. Because if you blink, you might miss something. Or someone." This quote is a great example of how ever-changing and fast-paced life in a big city is—similar to the show, where the drama never took an episode off.

So which are you choosing: will you be drinking coffee in Stars Hollow or watching the drama unfold on the upper east side? Because no matter what you pick, fall isn't complete without a comfort show.