Fans of Gossip Girl were fortunate enough to watch the characters from their high school years, all the way to university and beyond. From the start of the show to the end, a lot has changed. Blair almost became an actual princess, Chuck Bass had a massive redemption arc and Nate managed to achieve his dreams all by himself.
Every character has gone through so much drama and ended up as entirely different people. However, not every character's journey had been a good one. After all, the sweet Dan Humphrey ended up becoming one of the most hated characters by the end of the show. But, if fans had to rank whose character arc ended up being the best, what order would they put them in?
Rufus Humphrey
Even though Rufus was one of the most lovable parents on Gossip Girl, fans never got to see his character develop. He started on the show as a supportive father and he pretty much ends the series in the same way.
Other than a few simple occurrences, such as his difficulties raising his teenagers and romantic problems with Lily, his journey is nearly nonexistent on the show. Also, his fling with Ivy felt completely out of character.
Eric van der Woodsen
As fans know, much of Eric's character arc was developed in the first season. When he was first introduced to the show, the viewers learned that Eric had been in a private medical facility after he attempted to commit suicide. While he was in the midst of recovery, he develops a friendship with Jenny Humphrey and remains a loving brother to Serena.
However, as the seasons went on, the writers don't really take the time to develop his character. Although he does become more comfortable with himself and causes a little bit of drama with his best friend Jenny, everything that happens to Eric is still very minuscule in comparison to others. He's a lovable character that lacks depth.
Lily van der Woodsen
From the start of the show, it's clear that Lily values her public image more than anything. She refuses to let anyone know about Eric's mental health problems and covers up her children's mistakes so that her family looks flawless.
As the show goes on, she does become more of a risk-taker. She does become open to a relationship with Rufus despite him not being of equal wealth to her and does become a motherly figure for Chuck. But overall, there wasn't much else to her arc. She was still seen to be obsessed with her social status and didn't evolve as much as other characters.
Dan Humphrey
Out of everyone on Gossip Girl, Dan Humphrey changed the most by the end of the series, but sadly, it wasn't for the better. He was one of the most caring characters, but as time went on, he became part of the socialite world in the worst way.
Dan started as a relatable guy from Brooklyn that secretly wanted to be part of the Upper East Side. Eventually, he ended up betraying his friends by writing a book revealing their secrets, and let his newfound popularity get to his head.
Jenny Humphrey
Similar to Dan, Jenny also wanted to become part of the elite more than anything. Once she got more acquainted with the world, she realized it wasn't so picture-perfect as she expected.
Instead of living the preppy life that she used to want, she ended up becoming a problematic punk rocker that started tons of drama. Her lowest point arrived in season 3 when she began plotting to split Serena and Nate up so she could date him herself. Fans were glad when she finally left town.
Vanessa Abrams
When the viewers are first introduced to Vanessa, she was known as Dan's ex-girlfriend. However, because she was so sweet, Serena even couldn't bring herself to despise her.
As Vanessa got more involved with Dan's new lifestyle with the Upper East Siders, she was quick to develop a thick skin to deal with the cattiness. She may not have always fit in, but she formed alliances with her fellow Brooklyn girls and stood her ground against the elite.
Serena van der Woodsen
Serena starts off the show as a wild teenage girl that makes terrible decisions and steals her best friend's boyfriend. In later seasons, the viewers do get to see her calm down and also become a much better friend to Blair than she was before.
However, in terms of her love life, she constantly made horrible decisions and struggled to figure out who she wanted to be with. In the end, she did settle down with Dan and finally learned how to follow her heart.
Nate Archibald
In the beginning, Nate was rich with a famous and influential family. He was also seen to be in the center of the drama, placed in a love triangle with Serena and Blair.
As the seasons went on, Nate found himself losing everything. From being one of the richest characters on the show, he ended up going broke and needing help from the formerly less privileged Dan. From there on, Nate really grew as a character and managed to make a name for himself without his family.
Blair Waldorf
During her years at Constance, Blair Waldorf was the Queen Bee. Every girl looked up to her, wanted to be her, and she had everything handed to her on a silver platter.
After she moved on to University, things weren't as easy anymore. First, she struggled to get into her chosen school, then she didn't find it easy to stand out at her internship, and she slowly started to become way more humble than she was when fans first met her, and always remained a fan-favorite character.
Chuck Bass
From being one of the least likable characters in the very first episode, Chuck ended up growing the most out of everyone. In the start, he was a heartless ladies' man that wanted to be with any and every girl. He had no respect for anyone other than himself.
However, this changed later on as the show progressed. As fans remember, Chuck gradually began to express his emotions, care about others, and actually fall in love. He went from never wanting to tell Blair "I love you" in the early seasons, to getting married to her in the final episode.