Beverly Hills, 90210 ran for 10 seasons/293 episodes, from 1990-2000. The iconic series single-handedly defined and launched the whole teen drama genre that is still going strong today, and made a certain zip code known all around the globe.

As the series opens, twins Brandon (Jason Priestley) and Brenda Walsh (Shannen Doherty) have just moved from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Beverly Hills, California after their father is relocated for his work. It is going to be a bit of a culture shock for these Midwesterne teens in this new town where the sun is always shining and everyone is rich and beautiful. While Brandon was Mr. Popularity back at his old school, Brenda is looking forward to the chance reinvent herself, and actually be somebody, as they start their junior year at West Beverly High. Brenda quickly becomes friends with popular girl Kelly Taylor (Jennie Garth) and her quirky friend Donna Martin (Tori Spelling). Kelly recently broke up with her jock boyfriend Steve Sanders (Ian Ziering) after a year, and there’s some animosity between the two. Steve takes Brandon under his wing and the two become friends—something dorky freshman David Silver (Brian Austin Green) is trying desperately to do. He’s like a little puppy, constantly trying to impress Steve and get his approval—he just wants to be part of the popular crowd, and may just have the over-confidence and determination to make it happen. Meanwhile, Brandon joins the school paper, where he meets straight-laced over-achiever Andrea Zuckerman (Gabrielle Carteris), and there’s a bit of a personality clash between the two. Andrea is all about getting into her top college—even lying about where she lives in order to attend West Beverly High—and takes her job at the paper seriously. She challenges Brandon to do more newsworthy stories, knowing he can be more than just the sports reporter he was at his previous school. Rounding out the main characters is bad boy but sensitive loner Dylan McKay (Luke Perry).

A few years ago we reviewed the 68-disc DVD release of Beverly Hills, 90210: The Ultimate Collection, watching the series for the first time. Now all 10 seasons of the original Beverly Hills, 90210 have been remastered in 4K UHD and released on digital.

For the first three seasons, 90210 follows the students at West Beverly High, mixing in issue storylines revolving around issues of sex, substance abuse, guns and more, along with the typical teen drama of love lives, parental issues, academics, and more. The second and third seasons also include summer seasons, with the gang working/hanging out at the Beverly Hills Beach Club. As the series hit its fourth season, the actors were getting older and there was only so long the show’s creators could stretch out high school, so they made the brave decision to abandon what had been so successful thus far, and take the characters to their next stage in life…college. Fortunately, all of the characters (for the most part) ended up at the same school—California University (even David Silver, who started off the series two grade levels lower than the other characters). This also allowed the writers to explore even more mature themes and storylines, while still giving viewers the same character drama. These seasons also introduce the Peach Pit After Dark, expanding the diner into a night club where even more musical acts could be featured on the show. The college years introduced several new regular characters into the mix, including Clare Arnold (Kathleen Robertson), the daughter of the chancellor of California University; Jesse Vasquez (Mark Damon Espinoza), a law student who has a relationship with Andrea; Valerie Malone (Tiffani Thiessen), a manipulative old family friend who moves in with the Walshes; aspiring musician Ray Pruit (Jamie Walters); and Nat Bussichio (Joe E. Tata), owner of the Peach Pit, also became a part of the main cast. Some of the recurring characters during this era included Emily Valentine (Christine Elise), a women with a troubled past and borderline disorder; Lucinda Nicholson (Dina Meyer), a married PhD student who has an affair with Brandon; Susan Keats (Emma Caulfield), the editor of the school paper who butts heads with Brandon; Colin Robbins (Jason Wiles), an artist who has a relationship with Kelly; college radio station news anchor Tracy Gaylian (Jill Novick), who has a relationship with Brandon; and football quarterback Joe Bradley (Cameron Bancroft) who has a relationship with Donna. With the show’s eighth season, the characters were now graduated from college and trying to enter the working world, which offers all kinds of brand new story opportunities. These final three seasons also brought in new regular cast members and characters, including single mother Carly Reynolds (Hilary Swank); Noah Hunter (Vincent Young), who comes from a wealthy oil family; Janet Sosna (Lindsay Price) an emotionally-guarded woman who strikes up a relationship with Steve; Matt Durning (Daniel Cosgrove), strait-laced lawyer who ends up moving into the Walsh home; and Gina Kincaid (Vanessa Marcil), a former Olympic-hopeful ice skater who may be Donna’s cousin. Some of the recurring characters include Emma Bennett (Angel Boris), a reporter hired by Brandon to work for the Beverly Beat; Sophie Burns (Laura Leighton), and aspiring actress whose relationships causes some strain between the guys;

While the previous DVD releases of Beverly Hills, 90210 were presented in the show’s original full frame 4:3 format, for this new digital release, the series has been remastered in 4K and reformatted into a 16:9 widescreen format, to fill modern TV screens. The 4K video is a noticeable improvement over the previous SD releases—the series has never looked better! The picture is cleaner and more detailed, with rich, beautiful colors. Some scenes have a noticeable but pleasant level of film grain, but in general, the clarity over the previous SD version is much appreciated. The widescreen picture looks natural and never made me feel like I was missing something that had been chopped off. As someone who didn’t watch the show when it originally aired, I didn’t have any 4:3 nostalgia, so it was nice to have the picture actually fill the TV screen. The audio track feels like it is the same as the previous DVD releases—a basic stereo that provides clear dialogue and great-sounding music throughout. Speaking of the music, some of the original broadcast music had been replaced for the DVD releases. It appears that all of that great music from the original broadcasts is still missing from this digital release as well. Unfortunately, the series was produced in the times when music rights for home video releases was not secured right from the start. If I look at a list of the original music, there are some great songs, but having only seen the series after-the-fact, on disc/digital, it’s not something where I have any personal connection or memory of a song being tied to a particular scene. Though, for many fans this may be a disappointment, however, it’s unlikely that there will ever be a release that contains the original music.

While the original Beverly Hills, 90210 series can get very soapy and ridiculous at times, it also has some really strong dramatic moments, as well as some hilarious ones. The series is still extremely enjoyable, and holds up very well years later. Unfortunately, none of the bonus material that had been included on the previous disc releases has been carried over to the digital release.

What’s Included:
Episodes: (219:15:19)

All 10 seasons/293 episodes of the original series. Specs may differ per retailer (currently, Fandango At Home is the only retailer offering the series in 4K UHD format).
• Season 1 (1990–91), 23 episodes:
  “Pilot, Part 1”, “Pilot, Part 2”, “The Green Room”, “Every Dream Has Its Price”, “The First Time”, “One on One”, “Higher Education”, “Perfect Mom”, “Seventeen Year Itch”, “The Gentle Art of Listening”, “Isn’t it Romantic?”, “B.Y.O.B.”, “One Man and a Baby”, “Slumber Party”, “East Side Story”, “Palm Springs Weekend”, “Fame is Where You Find It”, “Stand (Up) and Deliver”, “It’s Only a Test”, “April Is the Cruelest Month”, “Spring Training”, “Spring Dance”, “Home Again”
• Season 2 (1991–92), 28 episodes:
  “Beach Blanket Brandon”, “The Party Fish”, “Summer Storm”, “Anaconda”, “Play it Again, David”, “Pass, Not Pass”, “Camping Trip”, “Wild Fire”, “Ashes to Ashes”, “Necessity is a Mother”, “Leading from the Heart”, “Down and Out (of District) in Beverly Hills”, “Halloween”, “The Next Fifty Years”, “U4EA”, “My Desperate Valentine”, “Chuckie’s Back”, “A Walsh Family Christmas”, “Fire and Ice”, “A Competitive Edge”, “Everybody’s Talkin’ ‘Bout It”, “And Baby Makes Five”, “Cardio-Funk”, “The Pit and the Pendulum”, “Meeting Mr. Pony”, “Things to Do on a Rainy Day”, “Mexican Standoff”, “Wedding Bell Blues”
• Season 3 (1992–93), 30 episodes:
  Disc 1: “Misery Loves Company”, “The Twins, The Trustee, and The Very Big Trip”, “Too Little, Too Late/Paris 75001”, “Sex, Lies and Volleyball/Photo Fini”, “Shooting Star/American in Paris”, “Castles in the Sand”, “A Song of Myself”, “The Back Story”, “Highwire”, “Home and Away”, “Presumption of Innocence”, “Destiny Rides Again”, “Rebel With a Cause”, “Wild Horses”, “The Kindness of Strangers”, “It’s a Totally Happening Life”, “The Game Is Chicken”, “Midlife… Now What?”, “Back in the High Life Again”, “Parental Guidance Recommended”, “Dead End”, “The Child Is Father to the Man”, “Duke’s Bad Boy”, “Perfectly Perfect”, “Senior Poll”, “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window”, “A Night to Remember”, “Something in the Air”, “Commencement, Part 1″, ” Commencement, Part 2″
• Season 4 (1993–94), 32 episodes:
  “So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye”, “The Girl from New York City”, “The Little Fish”, “Greek to Me”, “Radio Daze”, “Strangers in the Night”, “Moving Targets”, “Twenty Years Ago Today”, “Otherwise Engaged”, “And Did It My Way”, “Take Back the Night”, “Radar Love”, “Emily”, “Windstruck”, “Somewhere in the World It’s Christmas”, “Crunch Time”, “Thicker Than Water”, “Heartbreaker”, “The Labors of Love”, “Scared Very Straight”, “Addicted to Love”, “Change Partners”, “A Pig is a Boy is a Dog”, “Cuffs and Links”, “The Time Has Come Today”, “Blind Spot”, “Divas”, “Acting Out”, “Truth and Consequences”, “Vital Signs”, “Mr. Walsh Goes to Washington,Part 1”, “Mr. Walsh Goes to Washington, Part 2”
• Season 5 (1994–95), 32 episodes:
  “What I Did on My Summer Vacation and Other Stories”, “Under the Influence”, “A Clean Slate”, “Life After Death”, “Rave On”, “Homecoming”, “Who’s Zoomin’ Who?”, “Things That Go Bang in the Night”, “Intervention”, “The Dreams of Dylan McKay”, “Hate Is Just a Four-Letter Word”, “Rock of Ages”, “Up in Flames”, “Injustice for All”, “Christmas Comes This Time Each Year”, “Sentenced to Life”, “Sweating it Out”, “Hazardous to Your Health”, “Little Monsters”, “You Gotta Have Heart”, “Stormy Weather”, “Alone at the Top”, “Love Hurts”, “Unreal World”, “Double Jeopardy”, “A Song for My Mother”, “Squash It”, “Girls on the Side”, “The Real McCoy”, “Hello Life, Goodbye Beverly Hills”, “P.S. I Love You, Part 1”, “P.S. I Love You, Part 2”
• Season 6 (1995–96), 32 episodes:
  “Home Is Where The Tart Is”, “Buffalo Gals”, “Must Be a Guy Thing”, “Everything’s Coming Up Roses”, “Lover’s Leap”, “Speechless”, “Violated”, “Gypsies, Cramps and Fleas”, “Earthquake Weather”, “One Wedding and a Funeral”, “Offensive Interference”, “Breast Side Up”, “Courting”, “Fortunate Son”, “Angels We Have Heard On High”, “Turn Back the Clock”, “Fade In, Fade Out”, “Snowbound”, “Nancy’s Choice”, “Flying”, “Bleeding Hearts”, “All This and Mary Too”, “Leap of Faith”, “Coming Out, Getting Out, Going Out”, “Smashed”, “Flirting With Disaster”, “Strike the Match”, “The Big Hurt”, “Ticket to Ride”, “Ray of Hope”, “You Say It’s Your Birthday”
• Season 7 (1996–97), 32 episodes:
  “Remember the Alamo”, “Here We Go Again”, “A Mate for Life”, “Disappearing Act”, “Pledging My Love”, “Housewarming”, “Fearless”, “The Things We Do for Love”, “Loser Takes All”, “Lost in Las Vegas”, “If I Had a Hammer”, “Judgement Day”, “Gift Wrapped”, “Jobbed”, “Phantom of C.U.”, “Unnecessary Roughness”, “Face-Off”, “We Interrupt This Program”, “My Funny Valentine”, “With This Ring”, “Straight Shooter”, “A Ripe Young Age”, “Storm Warnings”, “Spring Breakdown”, “Heaven Sent”, “The Long Goodbye”, “I Only Have Eyes for You”, “All That Jazz”, “Mother’s Day”, “Senior Week”, “Graduation Day, Part 1″,”Graduation Day, Part 2”
• Season 8 (1997–98), 32 episodes:
  “Aloha Beverly Hills, Part 1”, “Aloha Beverly Hills, Part 2”, “Forgive and Forget”, “The Way We Weren’t”, “Coming Home”, “The Right Thing”, “Pride and Prejudice”, “Toil and Trouble”, “Friends, Lovers and Children”, “Child of the Night”, “Deadline”, “Friends in Deed”, “Comic Relief”, “Santa Knows”, “Ready or Not”, “Illegal Tender”, “The Elephant’s Father”, “Rebound”, “Crimes and Misdemeanors”, “Cupid’s Arrow”, “The Girl Who Cried Wolf”, “Law and Disorder”, “Making Amends”, “The Nature of Nurture”, “Aunt Bea’s Pickles”, “All That Glitters”, “Reunion”, “Skin Deep”, “Ricochet”, “The Fundamental Things Apply”, “The Wedding, Part 1”, “The Wedding, Part 2”
• Season 9 (1998–99), 26 episodes:
  “The Morning After”, “Budget Cuts”, “Dealer’s Choice”, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, “Brandon Leaves”, “Confession”, “You Say Goodbye, I Say Hello”, “I’m Back Because”, “The Following Options”, “Marathon Man”, “How to Be the Jerk Women Love”, “Trials and Tribulations”, “Withdrawal”, “I’m Married”, “Beheading St. Valentine”, “Survival Skills”, “Slipping Away”, “Bobbi Dearest”, “The Leprechaun”, “Fortune Cookie”, “I Wanna Reach Out and Grab Ya”, “Local Hero”, “The End of the World as We Know It”, “Dog’s Best Friend”, “Agony”, “That’s the Guy”
• Season 10 (1999–2000), 27 episodes:
  “The Phantom Menace”, “Let’s Eat Cake”, “You Better Work”, “A Fine Mess”, “The Loo-Ouch”, “80’s Night”, “Laying Pipe”, “Baby, You Can Drive My Car”, “Family Tree”, “What’s in a Name”, “Sibling Revelry”, “Nine Yolks Whipped Lightly”, “Tainted Love”, “I’m Using You ‘Cause I Like You”, “Fertile Ground”, “The Final Proof”, “Doc Martin”, “Eddie Waitkus”, “I Will Be Your Father Figure”, “Ever Heard the One About the Exploding Father”, “Spring Fever”, “The Easter Bunny”, “And Don’t Forget to Give Me Back My Black T-Shirt”, “Love is Blind”, “I’m Happy for You, Really”, “The Penultimate”, “Ode to Joy”
• 2160p / Widescreen 1.78:1
• Audio: English Stereo
• Subtitles: English SDH

Extras:

None of the bonus material from the DVD releases has been ported over.

Final Thoughts:

Beverly Hills, 90210: The Complete Series includes all 10 seasons/293 episodes of the original Beverly Hills, 90210 series now in 4K Ultra HD and widescreen. The seasons/episodes are also available for purchase individually. (Note, only Fandango at Home currently offers the series in 4K—iTunes has yet to offer any TV show in 4K, but the series is available in HD.) Fans of the series will likely want to pick this up and enjoy the newly-improved 4K picture quality, and easy of quickly streaming their favorite episodes. However, none of the bonus material from the DVD releases has been carried over. Those who want to see the new widescreen/4K picture before they buy can also check out the series on Paramount+, where the new 4K version of the episodes are now streaming.