Bland and beautiful

90210 perhaps is a shade better than other high-school soaps like One Tree Hill but of course,thats not saying much.

90210 Season 2
Friday and Saturday,10 pm,Star World
Season 2 of 90210 is a complete overhaul of Season 1 with Annie shedding her holier-than-thou aspirations (hardly possible after killing a man and allowing another to click nude pictures of you); Naomi dating a podgy,middle-aged man with a wife and children in a bid to get over Liam; a newly glamorous Silver fighting to save her relationship with Dixon and Adrianna pledging to turn into no drama Adrianna. We suspect this is a term that was coined by the producers more out of compulsion than choice as,after sex,drugs,rehabilitation and pregnancy,they must have exhausted the potential for drama in Adriannas life. Of course,considering the fireworks between Adrianna and newcomer Teddy,she might soon add infidelity to her ever-growing list of accomplishments.

Shenae Grimes as Annie Wilson continues to act solely by squinting her eyes to annoying slits and the others,Jessica Stroup as Erin Silver,Michael Steger as Navid Shirazi and Anna Lynne McCord as Naomi,befitting their roles as a motley crew of spoilt,rich brats,have more vintage Halston gowns and Lamborghinis than acting chops. As yet,we remain unsure as to the purpose of introducing the sketchy character of Teddy Montgomery (played by Trevor Donovan) of the blonde-haired,blue-eyed good looks and the tenuous claims of taking Adriannas virginity.

One criticism of the first season was that the characters didnt look like they lived in Beverly Hills. The problem has been adequately addressed in the second season with the beautiful Santa Monica beaches,a glamorous beach club,hot cars and designer clothes. Naomis and Annies former love interest Ethan Ward played by Dustin Milligan has been removed from the cast which,we were convinced,was a wise decision considering we didnt notice his absence until way into the second episode.

However,with the abounding number of sub-plots and cross-connections (we get the feeling that the makers are feeling around in the dark hoping to strike gold),90210 remains in danger of sinking into a teenage Bold And The Beautiful with thinner women and better locations. The dialogues are drenched in clichés and stock phrases and the plot adheres to the sex,lies and deception formula of most teenage dramas,which means that even before Adrianna cheats on Navid,we know shes going to and even before Naomi gets her hands on the nude photos of Annie,we know shes about to get them.
Verdict:
90210 perhaps is a shade better than other high-school soaps like One Tree Hill but of course,thats not saying much. Watch it for the authentic glamour quotient if not for the bland plotline.