New series offers a trip back to 90210

September 10, 2008
By Nicole Calcagno
A&E Report

www.cwtv.com

Many of us grew up watching Donna, Brenda, Brandon, Kelly, Dylan, David, and Steve go through life at West Beverly High and all of the challenges that came with it. Beverly Hills, 90210 was one of the most popular TV shows during the ‘90s and many of us grew up watching it religiously. Are we ready for a spin off of this show that shaped many of our adolescent and teenage years? Well I can say that I am.

The CW has brought us a very well written spin off, a modern day 90210. There are many tieins from the original series which will come out throughout the show. One of the first things you see is a newscast by Hanna Zuckerman- Vasquez who was Andrea Zuckerman’s child in the original series. There is even a reprise of Kelly Taylor, who is the guidance counselor at West Beverly Hills High School. Later in the show’s premiere, Brenda Walsh makes her return as well. There are even mentions of Brandon Walsh, who could potentially be the father of Kelly’s four and a half year old, Sammy. The allusions are there, though it is not said outright.

The show follows Annie and Dixon Wilson, two teenagers from Kansas that are transplants at West Beverly High, much like Brenda and Brandon, though they hailed from Minnesota. Not only are they the new kids, but their dad is the new principal at their high school. They encounter many new faces on their first day, such as Ethan, a popular guy who Annie had met a few summers before. Annie is befriended by Naomi, who is Ethan’s girlfriend and your typical spoiled rich girl. Another girl who befriends Annie, only to trash her later in the show is Silver, who happens to be Kelly’s sister. Dixon becomes friends with Navid, who edits “The Blaze,” the school newspaper. He also becomes part of the Lacrosse team as well.

The first episode was two hours long and had many different twists and events. Without giving away everything, this episode deals with sweet sixteen parties, cheating, team pranks on other schools, private jets to San Francisco, sexual encounters, drugs, and a video blog that can damage people’s reputations. This first episode hooked me automatically. I personally cannot wait for the next episode, and I will keep watching this show. It will be interesting to see how everything unfolds as the old cast members mingle with the new ones. This 90210 presents a totally different world than the one to which we are familiar.

I give this show a 4 and half starts out of 5.