Bravo's "NYC Prep": I hate myself for finding PC interesting.

Okay, after spending a few weeks avoiding it, I've suddenly found myself addicted to Bravo's attempt to create a Gossip Girl-inspired reality drama in NYC Prep and a large part of it is due to the sexually ambiguous PC and his tense friendship with Jesse.

It's a familiar path, I went through a similar journey with Jeff Lewis, initially finding him to be another reality TV jerk with a big personality, but eventually finding him more complicated, though still infuriating. This week's installment cemented that.

With PC in the Chuck Bass role of the decadent troublemaker, NYC Prep has spent its first season heavily implying that PC is gay or bisexual. When he visited a male friend in Mexico, we saw PC talk about how beautiful his friend was. And when that friend tried to steal away the attention of a couple of women by telling them that PC has a boyfriend back home, PC was uncharacteristically passive about the claim.

Later, when working as a photographer's intern, he dismisses encouragement to try to get the female model's phone number, but ends up exchanging numbers with the male photographer.

Cole talks behind PC's back, with PC still in earshot

And this week, PC's sexuality branched into NYC Prep's other storylines, as he had a role in Taylor and Cole breaking up. The first signal that the audience should stop liking Cole came when he and his friends teased PC for wearing eyeliner and called him gay:

The incident also drew out the vindictive PC. Instead of responding to Cole's homophobic comments, PC exacts revenge by turning Taylor into his "project," bringing out Cole's possessive side and hastening their breakup.

As much as I want to dislike PC for his meanness and pettiness, I end up finding him compelling for how hard he tries to be a sophisticated grown up, doing a strained imitation of a Bret Easton-Ellis protagonist. It only highlights his immaturity, which I find touching.

Beyond that, however, NYC Prep has managed an interesting balancing act in the way they've portrayed PC as a questioning teen. So far, NYC Prep has avoided doing a tired "He's so gay but he doesn't know it" joke. And, so far, PC's public life has been getting similar coverage.

When "Page Six" (usually not a stranger to gay baiting) dropped an item about PC getting "super touchy-feely" with Barron Hilton, the scandal seemed to be more about his company and how he was continuing his reality TV storyline in real life.

I'm oddly compelled by it all, and my irritation with the superficial, immature nature of NYC Prep's world is made easier by seeing PC openly show annoyance with everyone else, something that inspires a probably misguided sense of empathy in me.

And, much like how his relationships with Jenni, Ryan and Zoila make Jeff interesting on Flipping Out, PC's friendship with Jesse makes him more than just another a reality TV drama-maker. While trying to keep up with shows like Miami Social gets to be wearying, I find myself oddly entertained by NYC Prep, the same way I found myself caught up in Flipping Out.