So, 90s subtlety over today’s tricks wins every time for me. Hints are generally more compelling than tricks because tricks often leave fans feeling betrayed. It’s such a tiny detail, but again, it’s one that shows today might leave out to intensify the drama of the episode cliff.Įither choice is a sacrifice because the beginning of the next episode is perhaps less intense since we get a hint that everyone is going to get out of this fire. We don’t know for sure if Kelly and Allison are going to live by the end of the episode, but we do know that help is at least trying to get to them.
Sometimes, 1990s TV understands that better than modern shows, and makes a stronger effort to get there. There are so many topics shows have yet to explore properly.
This is just another example of how far TV has to go. Not that Beverly Hills, 90210 properly explores the topic of religion at all through the series. But a well-known prayer? I’m not so sure, even if they only get through about two lines. Would someone go as far as to write a traditional prayer in a script? God hears people’s prayers that their friends stay alive while in surgery on TV these days, sure. It’s a notable few seconds because I can’t help but wonder the type of response the scene would get today. Related Beverly Hills, 90210 Re-Watch: Speechless (Season 6 Episode 6) No matter what you believe in, even if it’s nothing at all, it’s intense to watch two women who think they’re going to die soon turn to the last bit of hope they have.
Kelly’s recovery journey is nowhere close on “Up In Flames” but let’s talk about the best parts of the final scene of the episode.Īllison and Kelly say The Lord’s Prayer as they are about to be surrounded by flames. If we’re honest, not even 2019 is ready for that but it would’ve been amazing to watch.
Imagine a TV show focusing on a heroine with a physical imperfection working to recover, regain confidence, and date again? It would’ve been an intriguing journey to watch if Kelly had survived the fire with her face burned and scarred. It would be surprising if she weren’t on the verge of a modeling career. Most of us don’t have jobs comparable to any character on TV who lives in 90210. On a TV show, it’s also an intriguing one to ask. Perhaps some people find the latter question shallow. Will Kelly survive? Not only that - but will her beautiful face survive the fire? She’s on the verge of getting not just any modeling job, but the cover of Seventeen magazine. Hulu/CBSįorgetting that for a second, the end really does work as a way to get viewers to tune in to the episode next week. Kelly survives the fire pretty much intact. Of course, fans know the outcome of the episode. Related Beverly Hills, 90210 Re-Watch: The Big Hurt (Season 6 Episode 28) The episode in question is from 1994, though so let’s go back there. “The more extreme the better” is often the 2019 motto.
It also wouldn’t be surprising if every other series regular who is at the party is stuck in a different room with their lives on the line. The reason why the whole set up is good TV is that when I imagine something like this done in a 2019 version of Beverly Hills, 90210, Dylan is the person who is stuck in the fire with Kelly because he’s yet another regular character that fans care about. So, it seems like a typical arc done for ratings and maybe it is. Dylan definitely should’ve come out the victor in that particular love triangle. She visits Dylan in rehab, and they have more chemistry in that platonic conversation than Kelly and Brandon do their whole relationship. But that might just be because Brandon is preoccupied with Emily Valentine. Kelly is totally thinking about Dylan on the episode, too.
Plus there is the fact that Kelly’s boyfriend cheats on her the night she might lose her life. We see the flames encroaching on Kelly and Allison in the last scene. The episode’s biggest cliff involves one main character in a life-threatening situation. Vintage TV outshines its modern competition often when it comes to subtlety. The cliffhanger, though very extreme and definitely done for a little bit of shock value, is very good. We’re going to start this re-watch of Beverly Hills, 90210 Season 5 Episodes 13, “Up In Flames,” at the very end, because I chose to include it for a very specific reason.