90210 - Up In Smoke

Starring: Shenae Grimes, Tristan Wilds, AnnaLynne McCord, Jessica Stroup, Michael Steger, Matt Lanter, Jessica Lowndes, Gillian Zinser, Trevor Donavan, Manish Dayal
Rating: ****

Air date: January 2012, E4

We're back and bitchier than ever. With the summer drawing to a close, the gang are about to head into their new lives as college students. They have had a turbulent year, and an exciting summer but everybody is now looking forward and growing up. But of course they are going to have their dramas, I mean it is 90210.

Annie and Dixon (Grimes & Wilds), the Wilson twins have had a lot of changes over summer. There mum has gone to Paris with her boyfriend, their old teacher, and they have both had their own summers to deal with. Dixon was touring with a DJ around America so has had the time of his life, and Annie has been coming to terms with the loss of Marla, her boyfriend and all the money Marla left her in her will. Now with college looming decisions have to be made, with Dixon settling in to his beach side apartment, he decided to pursue music rather than college, with Annie Marla's family are contesting the will. On top of that Annie's boyfriend returns from "finding himself" with a big surprise for her.

Naomi (McCord) is still as spoilt as ever, still as bitchy as ever and has had her own eventful summer to deal with. We left her last series with her boyfriend Max, and she thought she was pregnant. At the start of this season we discover that she wasn't pregnant after all, and Max's reaction showed his true colours and she is no longer with him. She is now set for college, putting Max behind her and partying in front of her. She buys a big extravagant house, which Annie and others move into, and throws a huge party to try and reinstate her social status before becoming a freshman again. Of course the party doesn't go to plan and things go wrong as usual. Liam (Lanter) is back from "finding himself", and is ready to take the next step with Annie, but because she has started to move on, things don't work out. She rejects him twice, sending him on a drunken rampage on the beach. He soon wakes up on the beach unsure of the nights events, only to find out he spent all his money on a dishevelled shack on the beach, which was slowly going bust.

Navid and Silver (Steger & Stroup) are still in love, still happy and are looking forward to their future together. With Navid's production company kicking off and Silver slowly recovering from last years events, things seem to be on the up for them, until Navid's sister Jasmeen moves in with them. She is staying with them so she doesn't have to move with her mother abroad, as she wants to graduate with her friends. With this taking it's toll on  their relationship things are bound to get rocky, and of course a surprise return doesn't help much either.

Adrianna (Lowndes) has returned, and she is still as much of a drama queen and attention seeker as always. After swapping Silver's Bi-Polar medication around, and messing with everybody last year, everyone dislikes her and she has lost all of her friends. So over the summer she has gone to Africa to prove she can change, but of course when she returns, nobody is ready to forgive her, especially not Silver, leading to a heated argument at Naomi's party.  Alone and desperate she seeks comfort from Austin, the new kid on the block, Dixon's new roommate and Naomi's new sworn enemy, this will be fun. Teddy (Donavan) has broken up with Marco, and is still trying to come to terms with his sexuality, his future and finding love. His main hurdle this series is going to be coming out to his family, and the effect that will have on him emotionally and mentally. If what I have read about his story arc is true, then this is going to be a very inspirational and historic storyline for the show and the character/actor.

Ivy and Raj (Zinser & Dayal) have had a bittersweet summer. They are newlyweds so are celebrating their new life together, but their honeymoon was spent in hospital, as Raj started his Chemotherapy. The set up is going to put an obvious strain on the couple but hopefully they'll stick it out, and last till the end. They clearly love each other, and I imagine there is going to be a lot of emotional scenes for them this season.

All in all it was a good season opener, not as exciting as last years, but a nice way to catch up with them all, and see them set off on their new adventures. I'm sure this season will be packed with twists and turns, and will be just as funny, emotional and Beverley Hills as all the other seasons. The acting was good, and they all ,finally, seem to be extremely comfortable in their roles, and I'm really looking forward to see this season unfold. I'm not sure when it starts in the UK, but it will be on E4 at some point in the near future, so look out for it. I'll be back to give my thoughts on the season so far during the Christmas hiatus.