Beverly Hills, 90210 Re-Watch: We Interrupt This Program (Season 7 Episode 18)
Donna’s actual stalker is revealed on the surprisingly powerful episode — Beverly Hills, 90210 Season 7 Episode 18, “We Interrupt This Program.”
Evan is unassuming and sweet at first until he suddenly exposes his criminal nature and takes hostages in a desperate and misguided attempt to force Donna to become his girlfriend.
The episode aired in 1997, two years before school shootings became a widespread issue because of the Columbine High School shooting.
If not for the ending, it would be easy to label “We Interrupt This Program” as average, unwilling to go beyond terror and depict the tragedy and reality of many shootings — people die.
But Donna’s plan to unarm Evan by convincing him she is in fact in love with him, while disturbing, is also smart. It’s hard to watch her kiss the man who has held her hostage, exposed her virginity, and made her call herself a “bitch” on broadcast television.
The reality is that people have done worse to save their own life and the lives of others.
Donna displays an amazing amount of courage when she is able to knock the gun out of Evan’s hand, run to grab it, and has enough forethought to point it at him and turn the tables. Thankfully for her own mental health, the authorities move in and she doesn’t have to shoot him, but if she did it would have been self-defense.
Examples of women being that brave seem rare on TV today. This makes the fact that this episode aired in 1997 all the more important.
Beverly Hills, 90210 always makes mistakes when tackling important issues like this one. I find it hard to believe that the S.W.A.T. team would miss their first chance to swarm Evan and that they would so quickly leave just because he spots them, but I have thankfully never been in a situation where I had to find out.
Still, it’s powerful and important to see a woman like Donna be her own savior, especially because of all of the characters on the show, she is often portrayed as a weak link.
She deserves more, including a better boyfriend. Yet again, David lets me down by being awful to Donna when she asks him for help before she is taken hostage.
This is done for the plot. For some reason, Beverly Hills, 90210 wants David to be dismissing Donna and spending time with another woman while his girlfriend is still trying to process and recover from the fact that she had a stalker and thinks he has been caught.
It doesn’t want him distraught and worried about Donna while he is going through yet another one the next day (that he could have been watching on TV), either.
Donna and David’s relationship will grow as they do, but in 2021, I keep being surprised that I rooted for them at all.
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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.