Five of the six teen dramas began with main characters who were siblings or would become siblings.
On Beverly Hills 90210 we have twins Brenda and Brandon, while on 90210 there’s Annie and her adopted brother Dixon. The original also had Kelly and David as step-siblings while the new show made Annie and Dixon share a half-sibling with Naomi.
On The O.C., Seth found a brother in Ryan when the Cohens became his guardian.
One Tree Hill has half-brothers Lucas and Nathan.
And Gossip Girl has Dan and Jenny as well as Serena and Eric, along with quite a few pairs of step-siblings, some involving Chuck (with Serena and Eric) and Blair (with non-main character Aaron). And, of course, Dan and Jenny became step-siblings with Serena and Eric.
The lone exception is Dawson’s Creek. No original main characters as siblings in Capeside.
But DC is one of four teen dramas that introduced a baby sibling when the first child, the main character, was in high school or older.
On BH90210, Kelly was between her junior and senior years of high school while David was between his sophomore and junior years when they got a baby half-sister, Erin, now known on 90210 as Silver.
Dawson was a senior in high school when his parents had Lily.
Seth and Ryan were out of high school when the Cohens had Sophie.
Lucas was graduating high school when his mom had a baby girl, also named Lily.
Remains to be seen whether Gossip Girl and 90210 will continue the trend!
John Schneider (Liam’s step-dad, 90210) will star in a pilot for Spike called Back Nine.
Shannen Doherty (Brenda, Beverly Hills 90210) spoke to PEOPLE.com about her fashion style and her admiration of Lady Gaga.
ShelterPop has an article on the Beverly Hills 90210 beach apartment being for sale. In addition to saying that it is indeed separate apartments (the listing I posted earlier this month said it was one house), there’s a picture of the inside–and it looks nothing like what we saw on the show. The intro also describes it as “Donna and David’s beachfront pad”–an odd choice considering David lived there for just one season while Donna and Kelly lived there, albeit off-and-on, for six.
The Wall Street Journal has an interview with Benjamin McKenzie (Ryan, The O.C.) about Southland.
Shutter Island, starring Michelle Williams (Jen, Dawson’s Creek) will be released in theaters tomorrow.
Monday’s One Tree Hill (1.9 million rounded up) dropped a decent amount in the ratings compared to last week. This is a season- and (I believe) series-low.
Variety says One Tree Hill has a “better-than-50/50 shot at returning.”
InStyle has a short article on Sophia Bush (Brooke, One Tree Hill) at New York Fashion Week.
Due to scheduling issues, Jana Kramer (Alex, One Tree Hill) and Robert Buckley (Clay, One Tree Hill) will no longer be participating in the Wilmington police fundraiser this weekend. Instead, James Lafferty (Nathan, One Tree Hill) and Mitch Ryan (Alexander, One Tree Hill) will and possibly others.
Blood Done Sign My Name, a movie Lee Norris (Mouth, One Tree Hill) first told me about in August, starring him, Cullen Moss (Junk, One Tree Hill), Michael May (Chuck, One Tree Hill) and Susan Walters (Principal Rimkus), opens in theaters Friday. Star News has a review of the film.
The CW sent out a YouTube interview with 90210’s costume designer, Frank Helmer.
The contenders for the TV’s Top Couples tournament have officially been announced. They include: David/Donna (Beverly Hills 90210), Dylan/Brenda (Beverly Hills 90210), Chuck/Blair (Gossip Girl),Nate/Blair (Gossip Girl) and Ryan/Marissa (The O.C.).
I’ve never listened to This American Life before but I stumbled across an edition that had a segment about The O.C. that I really enjoyed. It starts around the 30-minute mark.
Autumn Reeser (Taylor, The O.C.), who appeared on tonight’s episode of Human Target, has been cast in No Ordinary Family, which is being executive produced by Greg Berlanti (writer-producer, Dawson’s Creek).
The Wrap has an article giving their renewal/cancellation predictions but the teen dramas aren’t included. (Though the article starts out with quotes from Gossip Girl executive producer Josh Schwartz giving his thoughts on being a “bubble show.” He’s talking in reference to his other show, Chuck, though.) They think Smallville will return, Life Unexpected should be given another chance and Melrose Place needs a miracle.
E! Online is holding a TV’s Top Couples Tournament and you can help narrow down the list of possible contenders. You can vote for Chuck/Blair (Gossip Girl), Dan/Serena (Gossip Girl), Dan/Vanessa (Gossip Girl), Nate/Blair (Gossip Girl), Nate/Jenny (Gossip Girl), Nate/Serena (Gossip Girl), Nate/Vanessa (Gossip Girl), David/Donna (Beverly Hills 90210), Dylan/Brenda (Beverly Hills 90210), Brandon/Kelly (Beverly Hills 90210), Lucas/Brooke (One Tree Hill), Nathan/Haley (One Tree Hill), Pacey/Joey (Dawson’s Creek), Ryan/Marissa (The O.C.), Ryan/Taylor (The O.C.), or Seth/Summer (The O.C.).
Like I did with the Favorite Holiday Episodes series, during the next few days I will highlight some of my favorite Valentine’s Day storylines from each of the teen dramas show-by-show. Warning: it’ll be a bumpy ride!
TODAY: Beverly Hills 90210
1. Episode 2.22, Baby Makes Five
Despite airing an episode in season 1 on Valentine’s Day itself and an episode earlier in season 2 with the name My Desperate Valentine, this is the first actual V-Day focused episode. I like this ep for both its subtle seriousness and its significance. Brenda is eagerly awaiting Valentine’s Day with Dylan (technically their second together, but as I said, we didn’t get a storyline for it in season 1) and turns out Dylan has something a bit unconventional planned: getting blood drawn. As he explains, they’re actually donating their blood in recognition of the person who donated blood for him when he was seriously injured years ago on the 14th. Today the importance of donating blood is brought up time and again by the media but here and then the message was just as important but they don’t hit you over the head with it. Meanwhile, Kelly’s mom Jackie is stressed when she finds out she’s pregnant when she and Mel have only been dating for a few months. Kelly confides in Donna who in turn tells David and soon enough Mel finds out. Mel realizes he loves Jackie and wants not only have the baby but also marry her. And thus, all these years later, we have Silver on 90210.
2. Episode 5.20, You Gotta Have Heart
This episode aired a week before Valentine’s Day but revolved around a telethon at the After Dark for children with heart issues. While most of the Kelly-in-a-cult storyline is just bad, the impact it has on her relationship with Brandon comes to a head in this ep. And when Kelly is MIA for the telethon, Brandon is forced to make out with Donna for one of the segments, which is the only time we get to see these two go at it and, boy, do they go at it! Speaking of going at it, while Donna is somewhat innocently making out with Brandon, boyfriend Ray is being seduced by Valerie.
3. Episode 6.22, Bleeding Hearts
And while most of the Kelly-on-drugs storyline is just bad as well, the impact it has on her friendship with Brandon comes to a head in this ep. His Valentine’s Day plans with Susan are ruined when a drugged-out Kelly calls him for help. With his assistance she gets into a rehab program but when she confesses she’s still in love with him, Brandon doesn’t return the sentiment. David writes Valerie the most moving poem for Valentine’s Day–seriously, I get chills when I hear or read it–but under pressure from Ginger and her blackmail scheme, Valerie encourages him to sleep with Ginger. David is incredibly shocked and hurt that Val would ask him to do such a thing and breaks up with her. This episode aired on Valentine’s Day in 1996.
4. Episode 7.19, My Funny Valentine
I like this episode for the storylines it sets up and for one that reaches its climax. The latter refers to one of the few heartfelt scenes Kelly and Valerie ever shared, as Val pleads with Kel to break up with her high school sweetheart. Cliff returns to town and finds Donna is now with David, leading to a short but sweet love triangle that continues into the next episode and results in one of my favorite D-D kisses. The ep ends with Brandon and Tracy’s V-Day happiness cut short when she finds an engagement ring and assumes it’s for her–except it’s the ring Brandon had for Kelly a few years back and couldn’t bring himself to return after she rejected him. This leads into a moving Brandon-Kelly storyline, one of my favorites, in the next episode and beyond. Oh, and Luther Vandross performs, which is perfect V-Day music.
5. Episode 8. 20, Cupid’s Arrow
So now it’s a year later and Brandon and Kelly have gotten back together…and broken up again. This episode sees them reconciling once again and, well, I’m a sucker for it! Donna and David are no longer together but they end up spending most of V-Day with each other, pissing off their significant others, Noah and Valerie. Unbeknown to either of them, Noah’s brother roofies Val’s drink and she & drunk Noah end up sleeping together, setting up a storyline for the subsequent episodes. The ep also features a cameo from Ian Ziering’s then-wife. Unfortunately, I can’t find a clip worth using as the critical, climatic parts (with B/K and Donna/Noah/Val/David) are at the end of the episode and YouTube has all but that.
PEOPLE.com has a short article on the new season of Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood, starring Tori Spelling (Donna, Beverly Hills 90210)
John Eisendrath (executive producer, Beverly Hills 90210) wrote the script for a pilot called Justice, which was just picked up by NBC. Eisendrath will executive produce the show.
Jacksonville.com has an article suggesting Beverly Hills 90210 fashion (aka 90s fashion) will become big again this decade just as 80s fashion was big the last 10 years.
The Wrap has an exclusive clip from Twelve, starring Chace Crawford (Nate, Gossip Girl).
The comedy pilot Josh Schwartz (creator, Gossip Girl; creator, The O.C.) is doing, called Hitched, was picked up by CBS.
Wonderland, the production company responsible for The O.C., which is run by McG (executive producer, The O.C.), is making a web-based spin-off for Supernatural called Ghostfacers. McG will also executive produce.
PopEater has an interview with Kerr Smith (Jack, Dawson’s Creek).
EW.com has an article about the film Blue Valentine, which stars Michelle Williams (Jen, Dawson’s Creek) and premiered at Sundance.
LimeLife has an interview with Eric Daman (costume designer, Gossip Girl).
If you missed Blake Lively (Serena, Gossip Girl) on SNL, it’ll re-air tomorrow night.
Brian Austin Green (David, Beverly Hills 90210) and Eddie Cibrian (Casey, Beverly Hills 90210) are each starring in upcoming Hallmark Channel movies.
Hilarie Burton (Peyton, One Tree Hill) has a new blog post on the SoGoPro site. Also, this is a pretty cool video about SoGoPro’s first year.
Busy Philipps (Audrey, Dawson’s Creek) is nominated for Comic Actress You Think Of As Your Secret Crush, Knowing She’s Everyone Else’s, Too in TVGuide.com’s Winter Games.
The TV editor at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has an interesting Q & A on Dawson’s Creek. I happen to disagree with both the question and the answer, though! But I have read the book he mentions–Billion-Dollar Kiss: The Kiss That Saved Dawson’s Creek and Other Adventures in TV Writing by Jeffrey Stepakoff–and have discussed on the site here and here.
Many times the school year drives a lot of plot: back to school awkwardness, prom, college applications. But sometimes when you stop and think how old these character are supposed to be, it can not only be a reality check but also expose some consistency issues.
Did you know the original Beverly Hills 90210 showed junior year twice? When the series began in fall 1990, the characters (except for David) were starting their junior year of high school. The show ventured into hit status when they showed new episodes during the following summer and producers decided they needed to milk the high school years. So in fall 1991, it was junior year all over again. Season 3 was senior year and the college years followed with each subsequent season until they graduated from that, too.
Dawson’s Creek started with sophomore year but since the show debuted in January of 1998, we saw sophomore year last a year and a half on our calendar, in season 1 and season 2. Season 3 was junior year and in season 4 we saw them as seniors. Seasons 5 and 6 gave us the first two years of college.
The O.C. is also a bit confusing. When Sandy first meets Ryan in jail, he compliments Ryan on his SAT scores. This takes place during late summer. If Ryan’s already taken his SATs, he must’ve been at least a junior the previous school year. But let’s work backwards for a second: season 3 begins with senior year and takes place a few months after season 2, making 2 junior year. Season 2 takes place a few months after season 1, meaning 1 is actually sophomore year. Why had you already taken the SATs, Ryan?
One Tree Hill make things easy and hard by having seasons 1 and 2 be junior year and seasons 3 and 4 senior year. Whereas BH90210 didn’t have season 2’s junior year be a continuation of season 1’s, OTH did and managed to get four real-world years out of high school while having the characters be older than the freshman and sophomore age.
Gossip Girl began with junior year and followed a straight-forward timeline, giving us college year number 1 in the 3rd season.
It seems the new 90210 learned from the original’s mistake and kicked things off as sophomores. Although in season 2 we’ve seen Naomi preoccupied with getting into CU, she’s only a junior. If there’s a season 3, that should be senior year.
Whew! That was exhausting. Maybe one day there will be a teen drama that only takes place during summer!
There’s been several news stories the past few days about Brian Austin Green (David, Beverly Hills 90210) supposedly tweeting that he and Megan Fox are engaged again. I haven’t posted any of them because I knew the account was fake (it’s been on my fake list in the Twitter Directory for months) but unfortunately several news organizations ran with it without bothering to check with his publicist whether the account was legit. Thanks to GossipCop, it is finally getting out there that this was just one big deception. I hope those other news orgs. are embarrassed and ashamed–and I hope the poser is as well.
Zap2it has a slightly different version of the Jennie Garth (Kelly, Beverly Hills 90210) quote I linked to yesterday. Yesterday’s said she was done with 90210 “for a while” whereas today’s says she’s been done for a while.
Thrilled for Christy-Anne at the presscoverage her One Tree Hill Reunion is getting. So bummed my trip didn’t work out.
Everly, featuring Bethany Joy Galeotti (Haley, One Tree Hill) released new music today–b tracks. vol. 3
Examiner.com has an interview with Lindsey McKeon (Taylor, One Tree Hill). Have you read my interview with her?
TVGuideMagazine.com has what they’re calling an “exclusive” Gossip Girl spoiler but we already know about this. There’s just 1 or 2 more specific details given.
Philly.com has an article on Kerr Smith (Jack, Dawson’s Creek). TVGuide.com and About.com have interviews with him. (In the former, he speaks well of DC and in the latter he says another show he did–E-ring–is his favorite).
This review of Life Unexpected, which stars Smith, references The O.C.
TeenDramaWhore 