Creator:
Darren Star
Cast:
Jennie Garth”¦.. Kelly Taylor
Ian Ziering”¦.. Steve Sanders
Tori Spelling”¦.. Donna Martin
Shannen Doherty”¦.. Brenda Walsh
Jason Priestley”¦.. Brandon Walsh
Luke Perry”¦.. Dylan McKay
Brian Austin Green”¦.. David Silver
Gabrielle Carteris”¦.. Andrea Zuckerman
Carol Potter”¦.. Cindy Walsh
James Eckhouse”¦.. Jim Walsh
The Show:
Beverly Hills 90210 defined television in the 1990s. While the show revolved around a bunch of high school kids living anything but the typical student life, it really focused itself on the Beverly Hills experience. This was portrayed through the eyes of Brandon (Jason Priestley) and Brenda (Shannen Doherty) Walsh. The twins and their parents make the move to California from Minnesota and to say that it is a complete lifestyle change would be as gross an understatement as Brandon’s beater is to Dylan’s Porsche.
Continuity is not one of the main themes of the first season. The storylines change per episode and are primarily issue-driven. The teens deal with the concepts of date rape, racism, teen alcoholism and the pressure to have sex in high school. As the series progresses, the show focuses more on the relationships that develop among the core group and while this is interesting to watch, it is the first season that really made the show as memorable as it was.
In addition to the Walsh twins, there are also other great casting choices that typify all the stereotypes of what the 90’s lifestyle in Beverly Hills was like.
Steve Sanders (Ian Ziering) is the son of a washed-up Hollywood actress. With money to burn, the coolest sports car on the block and having Kelly Taylor (Jennie Garth) on his list of part relationship conquests, it seems as if he has the perfect life when he really doesn’t.
Kelly Taylor (Jennie Garth) is Brenda Walsh’s (Shannen Doherty) best friend. Like Steve, her bank account is seemingly unlimited and she lives in one of the biggest houses in Beverly Hills. Unfortunately, her dad is never around and her mom is an alcoholic and this is the focus of one of the major episodes of the first season.
Dylan McKay (Luke Perry) does not appear in the pilot episode, but makes her debut soon after. He is the brooding outsider who befriends Brandon and later dates his sister. While he seemingly has a life of luxury, he also has problems with his father.
David Silver (Brian Austin Green), Andrea Zuckerman (Gabrielle Carteris) and Tori Spelling (Donna Martin) are all bit players in the first season. While they become major characters in later seasons, they are primarily used to distract the viewer from the trigger storylines in the first episode. David is the freshman who is trying to hang with the older crowd. Andrea is the nerd and newspaper editor whose feelings for Brandon are completely lost on him and unrequited. Donna just seems to follow Kelly around. All three are used primarily for the comedy that they bring to the show, at least initially.
One of the major themes of the first season is the relationships that the kids have – or in most cases, don’t have – with their parents. Jim and Cindy Walsh (James Eckhouse and Carol Potter) are presented as the perfect family and despite Cindy almost engaging in an affair, they are clearly the only portrait of stability. All of the other major characters have parental issues. Steve finds out that he was adopted. Kelly’s mother is an alcoholic who checks herself into rehab. Dylan’s father is completely absent and when he does briefly appear, it is only to offer his disapproval of his son’s lifestyle. As 90210 progresses, the show really revolves itself around the relationships among the teens, but the parents play a defining role in the first season.
Really, this was a show about beautiful people who lead lives that seemed almost impossible when the show was airing. Since that time, we have seen new teen dramas like The O.C. and Laguna Beach which outline how the 90210 lifestyles weren’t really all that extravagant in the grand scheme of things. The ultimate mandate of the show was the way that it was relatable to just about any teen. The amount of money in your bank account has nothing to do with being accepted in highschool, having sex for the first time or not getting along with your parents. The show was a forum for the issues of the day and for issues that are prevalent even now.
The DVD:
Video:
The DVD is presented in an anamorphic aspect ratio of 1.33:1. It’s presented in fullscreen. Considering how old the episodes are, I think the transfer is fine and I saw no major problems. In that sense, it is unlike its Melrose Place counterpart which suffered from a poor dub. While others have complained about the picture quality, I certainly did not see this as a major defect. While there are some grainy moments, this should not affect the purchase of the set as the problems are minor at best.
Audio:
No complaints. Presented in 2.0 Dolby digital. No major issues here, except for the lack of subtitles. The closed captioning helps for the absence of this. Don’t expect an O.C.-level soundtrack though as the music is pretty bland and cheesy.
Special Features:
While diehard 90210 fans have been waiting for the release of this set for quite some time, they will have to wait even longer for any major bonus materials as the extras on this set are severely lacking. Aside from a couple of commentaries from Darren Star on the Pilot (Part 1) and the “Spring Dance” episode, there are no other commentaries available. While Sta’s are mildly interesting, they certainly do not excuse the lack of thoughts from any of the actors.
The rest of the features are on the sixth disc.
The first featurette is called “Beginnings” and it an interview with the show’s creator, Darren Star. The six minutes basically focus on his motivation for the show, the thought-process behind casting, Tori Spelling’s involvement and its ability to connect with its audience.
The second featurette is called “Meet The Class Of West Beverly High”. This is undoubtedly the best feature on the set. It features profile cards on all of the major characters, including Brandon, Brenda, Kelly, Dylan, Steve, David, Donna and Andrea. The cards offer interesting details about each person and also include clips that paraphrase the role that they play in the highschool. There is also a “Voted” section on the card that basically defines each person’s social standing in the school. Brandon, for example, is voted the most popular. There are also short interviews available with some of the cast members, but not all. Jason Priestley, Luke Perry, Jennie Garth, Ian Ziering and Gabrielle Carteris are the ones included.
The third featurette is called “90210: Behind-The-Scenes”. This is the only featurette that seems like it wasn’t spliced together for the DVD set and that’s probably because it wasn’t. It was a promo for the show that Fox ran. Nothing major here. It includes an introduction of the show’s concepts and quick clips from some of the actors. Blech. It runs for five minutes.
Finally, the fourth featurette isn’t even a real extra. “Looking Back: The Season One Recap” is just an extended episode guide. It offers a more detailed synopsis of each show included in the set.
