Ah, to be young privileged and American living in New York! The money, the power, the glamour. However, two shows that began airing in Britain over Easter show that this lifestyle isn't all it's cracked up to be.
Firstly Gossip Girl (ITV2), which could be described as The O.C. in New York, albeit without poor people running around starting fights. This isn't entirely surprising as it comes from the creator of The O.C. Josh Schwarz. This time, the stories aren't his own work but rather are based on a series of novels by the impressively named Cecily von Ziegesar.
The events largely revolve around former private school chums turned rivals Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively) and Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester). In the pilot alone there is bitching, backstabbing, partying, sexual harassment and extremely suspect parenting, which is mostly what you'd expect given the Schwarz’s earlier work.
The second import is Dirty Sexy Money (C4). This features Donald Sutherland (legend!) as patriarch of New York's wealthiest fictional family the Darlings. Into the family comes Nick, played by Six Feet Under's Peter Krause, who takes over from his estranged father as the family's lawyer, dealing with the various dysfunctional children. Incidentally, Nick’s father has been murdered but this seemingly essential plot point soon gets lost in the human drama. The pilot features affairs, human trafficking, more affairs, illegitimate children and affairs with transsexuals.
The problem with both of these series, at least initially, is that it's very difficult to like any of the characters, so much so that eventually you give up trying. This is partly because they are all rich and beautiful, which inspires a certain amount of envy and bitterness. But it isn't only this. It's not that there isn't any character development, it's just that the development that does take place makes the unsympathetic characters seem more so and the sympathetic ones (generally anyone with slightly less money) seem a bit dull.
The shows also have their own individual annoyances. Dirty Sexy Money, for instance, at times becomes unbearably preachy, while Gossip Girl has characters (particularly the narrator) who come across as incredibly smug.
The main problem with both of these shows, however, is that they're actually very good. It's very difficult to hate them, even though you know you probably should. Sure, they're both overly glossy in the way only American shows can be, and could be accused of aiming for style over substance, but both do what they do very well. You get caught up in the stories and if you ignore the faults it isn't hard to get addicted. Perhaps the moral then is that while the lives of New York's upper classes may not be big or clever, they are damn entertaining.
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