Beverly Hills, 90210 Re-Watch: Earthquake Weather (Season 6 Episode 9)
There is an earthquake, a birth in an elevator, a proposal, and beauty pageant qualification rounds on Beverly Hills, 90210 Season 6 Episode 9, “Earthquake Weather.” Oh, and a hit is also ordered, and there’s domestic abuse.
On one hand, how could I not add this episode to the rewatch list I made so long ago? On another, I still can’t help but ask myself why I did.
So much happens, but it’s not an extraordinary episode by any means.
Dylan’s proposal to Toni in the cold open actually has a depressing vibe to it. The music behind the scene is slow and melancholy, foreshadowing their fate as a couple. Plus, it’s annoying to have to listen to Kelly whine about it.
That storyline at least fits the show, whereas Donna’s continued association with Ray is so poorly executed it makes domestic violence seem like a cheesy after-school special to be laughed at rather than a serious issue.
It was probably a bit groundbreaking to cover this topic in the ’90s, but is it really such a huge revelation that Ray was abused as a child and that’s why he becomes physically violent when he is mad?
Donna using Ray in her answer for The Tournament of Roses only makes it worse. It’s supposed to be a full-circle moment where she realizes we need to do better for our kids.
It’s true, but it’s hard to watch domestic violence addressed to help someone move forward in a fake pageant. No shade to actual contestants — I know they help real causes, but there is just nothing authentic about the scene.
Plus, Ray breaking the window he goes to the beach house to fix is more childish than anything else.
But so many men are acting childish on the episode. Sex happens in college but the dialogue around it all episode is cringeworthy. Do people really talk about their plans to “make the earth shake” that much? Isn’t it more fun to just do it?
I suppose I picked this episode because delivering a baby in an elevator is dramatic and having it named after you is unique. But, Brandon, Susan, and the pregnant woman’s storyline is also cliché.
We’ve seen elevators break down on TV so much that by 2021 that nothing about the storyline makes me anxious. Beverly Hills, 90210 wastes no time getting it back on after baby Brandon is born, either.
The earthquake doesn’t actually bring any tension at all to the episode unless we count the fact that it’s the reason that everyone goes to casa Walsh. Kelly and Valerie breathing the same air is always nerve-wracking to watch.
We’ve all seen this before, so obviously, that last scene with Anthony ordering the hit on Dylan is the hardest scene to watch because we know what is coming.
Still, Beverly Hills, 90210 is better than this. As heartbreaking as the future is, hopefully it brings out the show’s full potential.
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What did you think of this episode of Beverly Hills, 90210? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Esme Mazzeo
Esme Mazzeo is a lifestyle and entertainment journalist from Long Island. When she's not writing for work, she's writing for fun, or searching for something to satisfy her sweet tooth. She thinks rainy days are the best kind of days. Certified night owl.