If only high school were indeed this glamorous. For the gang at West Beverly Hills High School, senior year beckons as they begin to prepare for their impending future while, of course, enjoying the luxuries and flesh at their disposal. Beginning with them savoring their final summer vacation and ending with them accepting their diplomas and throwing their graduation caps skyward, a new box set spanning eight discs and twenty-nine episodes comprises Beverly Hills 90210 – The Third Season.
Perhaps the most iconic year of the popular television series, the third season marks a turning point for many of the characters as they edge toward the end of high school and anticipate the practicalities and ambitions of adulthood. Brenda and Donna, for instance, spend their summer in France, essentially on their own and without the supervision or scrutiny of parents. When school begins, Brandon gets promoted from sports columnist to co-editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, initializing his ascent as a journalist. Donna begins to translate her abundant love of shopping into what ultimately becomes a constructive and lucrative career path of fashion design. Also, Andrea applies to various Ivy League universities, fielding her options with the hope of landing a coveted slot among the freshman class at Yale.
For teenagers on the verge of independence, some of them contend with decidedly grown-up issues and circumstances. Brenda and Dylan struggle in the last throes of their two-year love affair as Dylan begins to look at Kelly in a new light. Steve risks his academic future on a “legacy key” that tempts him into breaking into West Beverly’s computer system to boost his lackluster grades. Brandon leads a protest against the school board when they bar Donna from graduation as a punishment for her inebriated spectacle at the senior prom. And in the season’s most traumatic and significant moment, Dylan helplessly watches his father die in a car explosion. This incident would inevitably influence and torment Dylan’s existence throughout the enduring tenure of the series.
Sure, some of the plotlines seem far-fetched and oftentimes outlandish, but for a generation of devoted fans, Beverly Hills 90210 provided an hour’s indulgent respite from reality. Wednesday nights were reserved, often with great anticipation and interest, for watching how this melodrama would proceed. And while it would continue for a subsequent seven years, in its third season, this landmark series was just hitting its stride.
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