90210 - S01E04: The Bubble

Either this episode is the worst so far, or I am getting a little bored of 90210 already. The only characters that are semi-interesting are Nat, Kelly, and Brenda from the old cast. As well as Dixon and Silver from the new cast.

Annie has been getting way too much screen-time, and her plots are very dull. Her chemistry with Ethan is boring, as is the whole love triangle set-up. Also, the other guy she likes is a shit actor which only makes matters worse. The story with Naomi's dad cheating on her mum is a tad less boring, but still uninteresting due to AnnaLynne McCord being the worst actress in the cast. Jessica Walter is given some decent screen time this week, unfortunately it is with Annie. She directs the play Annie is in until Brenda takes over. But the story isn't given time to develop, it is simply there one minute and gone the next.

I think a big problem with the show is the lack of drama. All of the conflicts tend to be resolved simply, for example; Dixon's money problem, Kelly and Brenda's 'fight', and Annie trying to win back the rich guy. There are on-going plot strands, for instance; Dixon not feeling like he fits into the family, the drug-addict kid, and Silver being homeless. All of these plots are mentioned very briefly when they are not being immediately dealt with, but there is no drama or tension surrounding them. This is the problem with the fast-pace of the show. We cannot care about Ethan and Naomi getting back together if we don't see them apart for very long, the most emotion and time spent on the plot is a simple close-up at the end of the scene where the character may have a sad face. They break up, and then it is mentioned again in a random scene that they aren't together anymore, then they will have the getting back together scene. We do not care. Give it some time - but not just time - give it some weight too, meaning more scenes.. This is a problem with nearly all of the stories on 90210.

90210 - S01E01: We're Not In Kansas Anymore & S01E02: The Jet Set

When did the slow-to-moderately-paced teen drama suddenly become uncool and unmarketable - oh yeah, when Gossip Girl premiered. That shit was pure luck - still very mainstream shows like Dawson's Creek and The O.C. were much better because they took their time on things. The pilot for The O.C. for example. It could not have been better - it was focused, had emotion, and took it's time. Apparently none of the execs took note at how Cane fell on its face right from the word go. There were so many characters, and so many stories... and the scenes were so short. The 2-hour 90210 premiere suffered from these exact same problems, but, with addition; way too much music - source and score (that awful, awful score). I swear the longest scene was a minute long - and anytime a scene went for more than 10 seconds; source music was added to the background - they must think that all kids today have ADD and learning disabilities - they do.

I'm not going to go through much exposition, because, to be honest, we would be here for the length of the pilot. Anyway, the basic premise is that the Wilson's: adopted son, Dixson (Triston Wilds from The Wire), daughter, Annie (Shenae Grimes from Degrassi), father, Harry (Rob Estes from Melrose Place), and mother, Debbie (Lori Loughlin from Full House), move to Beverly Hills from Kansas to live with their actress mother/grandmother Tabitha (Jessica Walter from Arrested Development). Harry is going to be the new principal at West Beverly High, and the kids will be attending. There is the bitch character, Naomi Clark (AnnaLynne McCord from Nip/Tuck), the jock, Ethan Ward (Dustin Milligan from Final Destination 3), 'quirky' journalism guy, Navid Shirazi (Michael Steger from The Winner), and Avril Lavigne pseudo-goth blogger, Erin Silver (Jessica Stroup from Reaper).

Yes, Erin Silver, for all of those who were avid watchers of the original series. I like it this kind of continuity, it adds a nice, comforting, layer and value to the show which wouldn't be there without it. The special guest appearances from Shannen Doherty (Brenda Walsh - how was drama school?) and Jennie Garth (Kelly Taylor), Nat (Joe E. Tata) and an upcoming appearance in episode 3 from Kelly's mother Jackie (Ann Gillespie) - I would love for them all to stick around - actually, I would love for them to kick all the new kids and just have all the old characters - but I will have to settle with what we have been generously given. Nat's appearance was very short, as he had trouble with a coffee machine - the peach pit is some kind of coffee shop now? Nat sold out - but he had a nice reunion with Kelly and Brenda, with a quick mention from Brenda that whenever Brandon thinks of Nat, he feels like a mega-burger - gee, thanks - after everything? I think the seeds have also been planted for an all too familiar Kelly, Brenda, Dylan replacement love triangle - or perhaps that was a wink at the old audience - I really hope so...

The plot with Annie and the rich guy wanting to take her out is very similar to a plot in season 1 of the original series, it was dealt with better on the old one - if only for the creepy factor - for those who remember it. The bitchy Naomi girls birthday party was fairly entertaining with a highlight being the dance with her boyfriend in front of everyone, right after she found out he was cheating on her - wouldn't that be horrible.

Some other problems I had with the premiere was that we weren't given reason enough to care about any of the characters. We were just thrown in there. Also I found the lacrosse team story to be very tired and run-of-the-mill - again, it probably didn't help that we couldn't care about the characters yet.

I will blog the next couple of episodes to see how things develop - but it is not looking good. Shenae Grimes' acting left something to be desired, but most of the blame can be placed on The CW for developing the series in such a way.