I feel old.

In the spirit of exam procrastination, I was looking around for some tv show to watch. I saw 90210, and I decided what the hell. I liked the real 90210, so why not give the new one a go? I wasn't under any impression that it would be good, but then again... the real one wasn't that good either.

It was better than this though.

I was only four years old in 1990, so obviously, I didn't watch it from the very beginning, but I remember coming home from school to watch this every day. Norway is generally a liiiiiittle bit behind on the times when it comes to daytime television. I bet I could still find Full House being aired somewhere, if I just looked for it. Beverly Hills was just one of those shows that they used to run over and over and over again.

I did, of course, have a big crush on Brandon and Dylan. Kelly was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen and I wished for long blonde hair and a brilliant smile like hers. Brenda was cool, and she and Brandon set themselves apart from that glitz and glamor that the other kids were wrapped up in.

I expected the new characters to be a little bit like them, but I was very much mistaken. I was a little surprised that "Brandon" was black, and he was adopted rather than Brenda's twin. He's also not the sweet guy that you just instantly love. I think "Silver" is supposed to be the reincarnation of David Silver, but I can't really tell, because she's a girl, not a little dork, and she has anger issues because of something Naomi did to her a long time ago. Speaking of Naomi, I can't figure out if she's like Kelly or Donna. She's certainly set up to be Kelly, with the whole 'most beautiful and popular girl in school' thing going on for her, but she seems to have a sprinkle of Donna in her as well. And then there's Ethan. I think he's supposed to Dylan, since he's a surfer, but that's the only reference I can see. That, and he's with the Kelly character, but they're already hinting at a connection with "Brenda".

I know that I probably shouldn't read so much into the characterizations. It's a spin-off show. They don't have to stay true to the characters from the old show. I was just expecting it, that's all.

That's not what really bothers me about the show though. What bugs me is the drama. I've only seen forty five minutes, and I've already seen adoption angst, cheating, a drug deal, purse snatching, a nasty video posted online, a fight, lying, more cheating, ex-boyfriend/girlfriend drama, unwanted teen pregnancy and subsequent adoption, and probably a whole lot more that I can't think of off the top of my head. Someone should seriously tell the writers that they don't have to fit everything into the first episode. They should save some for the rest of the season.