Jason Priestly is coming back to 90210.  With Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling already on board for The CW's reinvention of Beverly Hills 90210 next Fall, there has been much speculation about who else might return.  While both Garth and Spelling will make their return in front of the camera, Jason Priestly will make his return behind the camera.  While nothing is yet set in stone, Priestly is in negotiations to direct some episodes of the new 90210.  "I think that's where I'll be most beneficial,” he told the New York Daily News. 




When the new 90210 was announced by The CW, it got me excited.  This is weird, because I was an active hater of the original.  Mostly, this was because I never got into it originally and one of my best friend's was an obsessive fan, and it was always fin to play Devil's Advocate, despite the fact that I rarely watched an episode.  Nevertheless, there's a dearth of absurd, yet satisfying melodrama on TV these days and I thought 90210 would give me the fix I desired.  Then, I changed my mind.

My BuddyTV colleague John Kubicek made a great point in his that immediately made me wary of 90210's return.  He stated, “Though the original can be cited as the genesis for The O.C., Dawson's Creek, Gossip Girl and many others, it was from a far simpler time.  Irony was not as prevalent, and teenage audiences were willing to watch a melodramatic after-school special each week.  If you actually think back, you'll realize that the original series was like a Christian jamboree compared to the outrageous things teens are doing on TV today.”
 
Damn.  He's right, of course, and it makes you wonder if The CW's take on 90210 even has a chance at being popular.  It's a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation.  If The CW goes for a more hip, irony-lined take on 90210, fans of the original will probably be up in arms over the vast difference in tone from the original.  However, if they go for the cheesy melodrama of the original, then those same fans will probably realize that the tone of the original doesn't hold up and the enjoyment they might receive from SoapNet reruns is solely based on nostalgia. 

Here's my thing: The OC was the best 90210 update imaginable.  It was funny and ironic, yet it had that melodramatic spirit of the original Beverly Hills 90210.  And, if The OC could only last four seasons (though, I believe The OC derailed itself in the third season), what hope does the new 90210 have, considering it will almost certainly be inferior to show like The OC.  The ideal scenario is that 90210 finds its very own identity, a happy balance of nostalgia to the original and modern themes, and weathers the inevitable initial backlash from fans of the original.


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
Source: TV Guide
(Image Courtesy of E! Online)