Growing up I went to a myriad of high schools: West Beverly, Bayside and Sunnydale High, just to name a few. I know what you’re thinking: “Reese, were you some sort of teenage derelict with a long list of academic expulsions or were you some military brat moving from town to town, always the mid-year new girl?” Of course not — the answer is much simpler than that. I am merely a loyal viewer to any series that depicts the trying times of high school students. Watching these shows week to week was like graduating with degrees from all over the country (well most high school premised shows are set in California so at the very least, lot of degrees from California.)

For generations, television shows have tried to emulate the formula of high school life. The recipe for a good high school cast roughly remains the same no matter which show you are watching: Take a group of good looking teenagers, add trials and tribulations (i.e.: drunk driving, teen pregnancy, drug abuse, how to properly slay a vampire or, on rare occasions, homosexuality) and stir. I should note that when the topic of homosexuality does arise it is usually during sweeps (hat tip to The O.C.). But molds are being broken of late with shows like South Of Nowhere where gay characters are (gasp) recurring.

Recently the LA Times posted a few of their favorite teen casts, here is the best of that list with a few additions:

Beverly Hills, 90210

90210 created such a perfect high school formula that The CW has decided to do a remake of the show for their upcoming Fall season. But how can anyone replace Steve Sanders and his assortment of colorful button down shirts and those tight curly blond locks? Lightening doesn’t always strike twice, so let us be wary of this new generation of rich kids from Beverly Hills.

My So-Called Life

No series better encapsulated what it is like to be a teenager better than My So-Called Life. Angela Chase (Claire Danes) and her perceptive narratives was relatability to those awkward teenage moments. The show flourished with fans and critics (but sadly not with TV execs who canceled the series) because the characters were so unpolished and flawed. Even Angela, our narrator and protagonist, had her moments when you gushed with embarrassment for her.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Battling such demons in your mind as a teenager such as “should I skip 8th period math class and go to mall or stay and learn these damn algebraic equations once and for all” is hard enough. Add to that battling actual demons from the underworld that can seriously kill you … well that is just plain stressful. Such is life in Sunnydale with Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Willow (Allison Hannigan) and Xander (Nicholas Brandon ). These three teens slay vampires, fall in love and still manage to make it to school on time each day without even a single guidance counselor suspecting anything of their cuts and bruises. Buffy The Vampire Slayer balanced terror and humor without skipping a beat. The show even broke ground in having one of its characters, Willow, become one of the most prominent lesbian characters in network television history. … continue reading

If you were alive in the 1990s, then you are aware of the ever-popular show Beverly Hills, 90210, about trendy high schoolers from the chic Beverly Hills zip code who never seemed to graduate. OK, they did graduate, but it took a really long time.  

The CW network owns the rights to create a new version of the 90210 series, but the project still hasn't been greenlit.  I'm not sure why they're delaying this brilliant piece of magic.

As an avid fan of the original show, I sat in my bedroom at night and pictured myself as the cool, rebellious Luke Perry, aka Dylan McKay (what a fabulous and truly believable character name), but now in retrospect I was really Nat from the Peach Pit. Beverly Hills, 90210 changed me, as it changed so many other teens wearing hypercolor shirts and MC Hammer pants.

Although there is no replacing the lovely and extremely talented Tori Spelling, I have decided I want to do my own casting for the lesbian version of 90210, and it would go something like this:

Brandon Walsh, played by Ellen Degeneres

This is an obvious choice but had to be made. Ellen is the perfect twin protagonist to lead this pack of cliquey lesbians.

Brenda Walsh played by Jill Bennett

The other twin protagonist/scene-stealer with a dark streak can only be played by our very own AE hottie Jill Bennett. … continue reading

When I was a kid, I watched a lot of Saturday morning television — Hong Kong Phooey, Underdog, Krofft Superstars, etc. But even though I've outgrown (most) children's TV, I never fully broke the weekend morning TV habit. My guilty pleasure of late has been watching Beverly Hills 90210 on SOAPnet on weekend mornings.

(Right now they're in the college years, and I keep enjoying little nuggets inspired by the year that Darren Star and I overlapped at UCLA.)

So you'd think I'd be excited about the news I heard the other day — a spin-off of 90210 is reportedly in the works. But, you know, I wasn't so much. In fact, I thought it sounded like a pretty stupid idea. (As Dlisted.com said, “9021-NOOOOOO!!!!”) The show ended eight years ago. (And it should have ended at least 10 years ago.) There's no word yet on which cast members will return, and Darren Starr isn't even attached to the project. Additionally, the original audience is all grown up, and I don't know that they would really be interested in much more than a reunion show. So, I don't really get it. But apparently, it's not for me; it's for the Gossip Girl crowd, and is intended to be essentially a West Coast companion piece. Which still doesn't explain to me why it's going to be a spin-off of a long-dead show.

Of course, 90210 has already spawned one uber-successful spin-off, Melrose Place.

Melrose was one of those crazily successful spin-offs that has probably spawned all sorts of spin-off envy in development executives. It wasn't a particular favorite of mine, but I did like it in the relatively tame first season, before Michael Mancini became Dr. Evil and when the main drama was the will-they-or-won't-they tension between Billy and Allison.

But rather than just puzzle over the 90210 spin-off, I'd rather reminisce about spin-offs I recall fondly. Here are a few of my favorites:

Rhoda (1974 — The Mary Tyler Moore Show) … continue reading

Listen, I really have something I need to get off my chest ... something that will most likely have you either raising your fist in a Norma Rae–style show of solidarity or storming my castle with torches and pitchforks.

I adore Tori Spelling.

Ahh, all right. I feel better for having come out of that particular closet. Now that my admission is out of the way, allow me to get to the whys of the matter.

Bev Niner. Though my heart will always belong to Christine Elise as Emily Valentine (who, you, know, was SO punk because she wore, like, plaid shirts and leggings and hats and do you remember that one time when she got Brandon to take Ecstasy (except they called it U4ia instead of Ecstasy) and they were rolling around on the hood of his car and Brenda was all like “Brandon, what is WITH you?” and Brandon was all like “Pfft, whatevs, Brenda” but then Brandon realized that life should be, you know, hugs not drugs and he totally gave Emily Valentine the boot? I love that episode), the most enduring Beverly Hills, 90210 moment comes courtesy of Tori Spelling’s Donna: yes, I’m talking about hundreds of West Beverly Hills High School chanting “Donna Martin graduates!” in protest. Sure, Donna got wasted at the prom and broke all the rules but is that any reason not to let her graduate? Gawd, adults are SO uptight.

Not only did Donna go on to graduate despite her illicit imbibing, she was dyslexic, almost raped, stalked, taken hostage, had her own clothing store, dabbled in prescription drug abuse, and held onto her virginity until the end of her college days. Sure, she didn’t end up in a cult or battle amnesia as Kelly (Jennie Garth) did, but still. It makes me feel a little silly for getting so melodramatic over sophomore year BadPermGate.

Wait, no it doesn’t. A perm? What the eff was I thinking?

After graduating once and for all, Tori moved into omigawd I SO love her territory by joining fellow actresses like Tracey Gold and becoming a Queen of the Lifetime Movie. From Death of a Cheerleader to Co-Ed Call Girl to the movie with what’s undoubtedly the greatest title ever (yes, you know I’m talking about Mother, May I Sleep With Danger?), she spent a large part of the ‘90s as either a victim or a bitch in many a delicious made-for-TV flick. … continue reading

My brother just sent me an email with the subject line "Kill me please." The body contained the news that Tori Spelling and her husband, Dean What's-his-name, are in talks to become the next wife/husband team starring in Chicago on Broadway. (The others were Amy Spanger/Michael C. Hall and Lisa Rinna/Harry Hamlin.)

After my initial wave of nausea subsided, I decided that I was not going to be upset at this latest bit of stunt casting. It's time to accept that Chicago has been reduced to regional dinner theater. I've found that the most cathartic funerals usually contain both weeping and celebration. I've already wept, so now it's time to celebrate. Rather than celebrate Chicago or the theater, I'm going to take a moment to reminisce about the phases of Tori Spelling's career that have brought me joy rather than pain. I'm skeptical about the musical theater phase — and I've chosen to ignore the reality show phase — but she has brought me discrete moments of happiness over the years.

1. The Child Actor phase: Jamie (Red Feather), Troop Beverly Hills … continue reading

Not really, I'm sure that she's a lovely person (despite whatever erroneous conclusions you might draw from those battery and vandalism charges, restraining orders, and the required anger management courses). But she's taking on a very Grinch-like role for her next TV movie, Christmas Caper on the ABC Family Network. In it, the Republican actress will star as a thief who tries to "steal Christmas" when she returns to her hometown in suburbia.

I think this is choice casting. If some little Cindy Lou Who look-alike resists forking over the loot, Doherty can always just punch her in the face!

And if that's not enough Doherty for you, she's also been cast in a gay spy series produced by gay network here! Kiss Me Deadly: A Jacob Keane Assignment will star Queer as Folk alum (and out gay actor) Robert Gant and will be available to subscribers in November. … continue reading