The upcoming final season of One Tree Hill won’t start until mid-season, but things are already gearing up, and the first exciting bit of news from Zap2It is that Tyler Hilton is coming back. Yes, the lady-stealing musician Chris Keller will once again be forcing the men of One Tree Hill to lock up their gals.

The idea of bringing back old characters to help send One Tree Hill off in style is a great one, especially because the first eight seasons have featured so many memorable characters. Obviously top on anyone’s list would be Peyton (Hilarie Burton) and Lucas (Chad Michael Murray), but besides them, I can think of plenty Tree Hill residents, past and present, I’d love to see one last time.

Here are my top 10 One Tree Hill characters I want to come back for the final season.

Karen: Now that Karen’s Café has been reopened, it’s time Lucas Scott’s mom came back to see what Haley has done to her old place.

Deb: Nathan’s mom would also be a welcome return, if only to try and seduce Skills one last time. I only hope she doesn’t come back with a perverted clown for a husband.

Whitey: The last time we saw Whitey, he was giving Dan some advice on the long road to redemption. The old school basketball coach could definitely come back for one last lesson.

Keith: One Tree Hill has never shied away from ghosts, and while Dan Scott was almost fully redeemed at the end of season 8, talking to the ghost of the brother he killed would be the best way to atone for his sins.

Owen: Sure, Joe Manganiello is busy with True Blood, but maybe he could stop by one last time to show how rehab worked very well for him, since he’s now an insanely hunky werewolf.

Tim and Bevin: If One Tree Hill wants to go back to the beginning for a nice symmetry, why not bring back this unlikely duo who got married and had a son they named Nathan? Besides, I think, if my calculations are correct, Tree Hill might have a 10-year high school reunion coming up.

Felix and Anna: The big troublemakers of season 2, I have no idea why the Tagarros would come back, but I sure would like to see if Anna ever settled down with a nice girlfriend and how military school worked out for Felix.

Psycho Derek: Matt Barr isn’t doing anything since Hellcats got canceled, so why not have a story where he gets released from prison.

Which old characters would you like to see return for One Tree Hill‘s final season?

(Image courtesy of the CW)

John Kubicek

Senior Writer, BuddyTV

John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire DiariesSupernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.