“Never Been Marcused” grabbed me, slapped me around a bit, and made me apologize profusely for all my criticism of last week’s Gossip Girl. If I have to put up with episodes like “Summer Kind of Wonderful” to get one like “Never Been Marcused,” I am totally game.

Let me first admit that I am about to eat my words like they're made of chocolate. Against my better judgment, Dan and Serena have made me like them once again. Maybe it was all the amazing sexual tension in the air, or maybe it was that Dan didn't do a whole lot of talking this time. Either way, they recaptured what made me love the couple to begin with: their chemistry. By the end, I was cheering when they admitted defeat to the greater forces at work. Damn you, Gossip Girl! You're going to make me regret this, aren't you? Making me love Dan and Serena again only to have them break my heart before we've even gotten out of September yet, I know it!

Well, I'll just have to console myself with the love triangle of Blair, Chuck, and Lord Dues Ex Machina, even if I normally hate love triangles. This one is perfect because all the players are liars, and I don't think it'll be too long before Marcus shows us he's got what it takes to keep up with Blair and Chuck's conniving, manipulative ways. After all, the Duchess certainly can. Chuck and Blair are so perfectly matched, though, I don't think even British nobility can get in the way for long.

Not that I think either of them, including Blair, are keen on letting this little battle royale continue for much longer. They both love a challenge, but they also love to win even more. They'll do something to tip the scales one way or the other before long, I'm sure. The scene in the kitchen towards the end was basically the throwing down of the gauntlet.

If only Chuck would show a little bit more of that knight in shining armor complex with Blair, he'd have this wrapped up faster than you can say deportation. As it is, I guess I'll be satisfied with him trying to come to the rescue of his BFF, Nate. Nate, of course, being the boy that he is, has to do it his own way. Which apparently includes indebting himself to his book club buddy, the Duchess herself.

Catherine perplexes me. On the one hand, I think she's a fun villain - cunning, complicated, and capable. Watching her go up against Blair Waldorf was a thing of beauty.  On the other, there's only a handful of ways her whole storyline can be wrapped up, even with the added complication of her step-son's romance with Blair. So, while I enjoy her covert canoodling with Nate and the burgeoning battle of wits between her and Blair, I can't help but be less than ecstatic to see it play out. As the saying goes, this can only end in tears (but hopefully not of boredom).

You want to talk about something I didn't see coming? Entertainment Weekly’s Ausiello said something about the possibility of a Rufus/Vanessa hookup when he previewed the first two episodes, and I didn’t think I’d agree with him. But the sparks between Rufus and Vanessa were undeniable.

Now that could get interesting and fast. Vanessa has so much potential in this series and I wish she'd stop being utilized as a foil in other people's plot developments. It'd be kind of sweet to see her embroiled in her own scandal... not that the parent/teenage friend story hasn't been done a million times in every other teen drama on television, but Rufus/Vanessa has some serious chemistry happening. My only concern would be that Vanessa would then get written out, à la whatshisface on The O.C. (see, I can't even remember his name anymore). Still, it’s got to be better than seeing her pine after Nate.

All that matters is that once again, I’m all aflutter with anticipation for what’s to come this season, and the possibilities keep on mounting. Ahem… No pun intended, of course.