Serena develops a crush on the play’s pretentious director, Julian . She enlists Vanessa’s help to appear more "intellectual" to impress him, only for Julian to eventually reveal he is gay—a fact Serena finds more humorous than heartbreaking .
Nate becomes jealous of Vanessa's interaction with Julian, leading to a fight where Vanessa criticizes Nate's lack of varied interests . They eventually reconcile while watching The Age of Innocence together, though they begin to realize they may have very little in common . [S2E18] The Age of Dissonance
The episode’s title and play-within-a-play are direct homages to Edith Wharton’s novel, paralleling the rigid social codes of the Gilded Age with those of the modern Upper East Side . Serena develops a crush on the play’s pretentious
Blair receives devastating news that Nelly Yuki has been accepted into Yale instead of her . She discovers that her admission was rescinded after an anonymous tip informed the school of her previous hazing of Ms. Carr . Convinced Vanessa ratted her out, Blair launches a "witch-hunt," only to eventually realize that her own past conniving behavior led to her downfall . They eventually reconcile while watching The Age of