At last the infamous Georgina Sparks (Michelle Trachtenberg) has hit the Upper East Side, and frankly I'm anxiously waiting for the Upper East Side to hit her back! I knew that I was going to love to hate Georgina, but I haven't quite mustered the love just yet. OK, maybe a little.

All photos by Giovanni Rufino/The CW

In this week's Gossip Girl episode, "Desperately Seeking Serena," Dan spends his time looking for Serena, who is not showing up where she's supposed to (like her college exams). Once again, Serena has desperately been trying to find herself, and when all the dust clears, the SAT review board is going to be desperately searching for Serena, too. Heh.

In contrast, Georgina — who I thought might be the one desperately seeking Serena — seemed to spend no time in looking for her, and what little searching she did appeared to be more calculated than desperate. She just sort of supernaturally appeared out of nowhere at Serena's school as if this episode were a spinoff of Buffy.

See, that's just it: Evil just shows up. And evil is never desperate. … continue reading

Weep no more: The artist formerly known as Willow is confirmed for the big Buffy the Vampire Slayer reunion at PaleyFest next month. Alyson Hannigan will attend the Buffy panel as part of the 25th annual event sponsored by The Paley Center, formerly known as The Museum of Television & Radio. (Thanks for the tip, AfterEllen.com reader lookherecheers!)

Now officially confirmed along with Alyson for the March 20 reunion are series creator Joss Whedon, Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy), Amber Benson (Tara), Nicholas Brendon (Xander), Emma Caulfield (Anya), Eliza Dushku (Faith), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia), Seth Green (Oz), James Marsters (Spike) and Michelle Trachtenberg (little Dawnie).

You know what this news means, right? Right? Yes, the Willow and Tara reunion we've been dreaming about for six years could still happen. I feel like lighting an extra flamey candle to celebrate. Anyone else? … continue reading

I'll be honest. Michelle Trachtenberg is not high on my list of favorite actresses. Perhaps it's because I was always annoyed by her as Dawn in Buffy: The Vampire Slayer.

Recent casting news has done nothing to elevate Trachtenberg on my list of actresses to watch. In fact, the news has done the exact opposite. She's just signed on to join Zac Efron in the teen comedy 17. (Efron is another one of those celebs whose allure escapes me, but whatever floats your boat, I guess.) The fact that she's signed on to star opposite Efron is not what has her falling down my list. It's the plot of the film that has me all weirded out. … continue reading

I'm not the fan who confuses an actor and her work. I know that Sharon Stone is not an ice pick–wielding seductress (fortunately), and that Mary McDonnell is not President of anything (which is kind of unfortunate). But I'm still getting used to the idea that Michelle Trachtenberg is no longer running around in sneakers and short pants.

Yeah, there's no denying she is all grown up. And she cast off her aura of innocence years ago with her turn as Celeste, the sex-starved diva on Six Feet Under, and in Eurotrip. But I'm like the aunt who just wants to pinch her cheeks and tell embarrassing stories:

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Trachtenberg will be revisiting the family-friendly genre with her latest project, an ABC Family original called Circuit. She'll play a young stock-car driver whose career is taking off, threatening to surpass her father (Billy Campbell), whose own driving career is flagging.

… continue reading