Recap: Amid the bustling inside The Blaze newsroom, some random flunky tattles to Ahn-drea that Brandon hasn't finished his editorial yet. Ahn-drea assures the anxious lad that she'll make certain Brandon meets his deadline, and that the layout is done correctly before it hits the presses. What a huge relief. Incidentally, Brandon is sitting only a few feet away...but he's oblivious to everyone around him as he stares intensely at the blank screen of the computer. He finally starts typing, and his typing is accompanied by an annoying voice-over that is carried out throughout most of the episode. The scene cuts to the Peach Pit, and Brandon voice-overs about how all-American it is to have a football game, a high school dance, and a burger joint all combined in one tedious storyline. So far, the West Beverly High football team stands undefeated after three games, something that never happens 'cause usually the players are so shit-tastic whenever they're on the field. Brandon is sitting at a table, yukking it up with the jocks...while Brenda is sitting at a different table with Dylan, discussing the upcoming Pigskin Prom. Dylan can't grasp why she'd want to volunteer to be the head of the prom committee, then makes a lame joke about how she wants to date a jock. Brenda jokes about how she's madly in lust with Tony Miller - a sad irony since Tony Miller ends up being her pity date for the big graduation dance at the end of Season 3. Brenda explains to Dylan that all the money that gets raised during the Pigskin Prom will be donated to the Alvarado Elementary School for their Christmas drive. Dylan praises her civic-mindedness, but then whines about not wanting to go to the prom. Donna and Kelly are sitting together at the counter. Donna is peeved by the disturbing sight of Sue Scanlon pawing David and whispering sweet nothings into his ear. Ew. Kelly confirms for Donna that the young skanklet is indeed shamelessly coming onto her boyfriend. The football players ask Brandon to make a prediction regarding the outcome of their next game, but Brandon declines and just says that the opposing team, Shaw High School (located in the 'hood), is a very strong team. Steve, meanwhile, is on the phone, relaying back to everyone the latest high school football scores. He reports that Shaw just defeated whatever team they were playing by a score of 49:0, then adds that there was some sort of violence at the end of the game. Everyone at the table shrugs disinterestedly as Brandon voice-overs how much he regrets not jumping on the story immediately. The Walsh house. At the breakfast table the following morning, Papa Walsh reads aloud an article from the paper that describes the fatal shooting of two students from Shaw High School. Apparently, they were slain in the stands during the latter part of the football game. Brandon furrows his brows and remarks that the West Beverly High football team is supposed to travel out to the 'hood and play Shaw next week, and Papa Walsh somberly tells him he highly doubts that the game will happen. West Beverly High. Brandon enters the boys' locker room to sit in on a football team meeting. One of the players, who happens to be black, says that after the shooting he has no desire to play at Shaw. Tony Miller asks him why he's so worried, him being a bro and all. The black kid shoots him a look of irritation and tells him that the kind of violence that occurs in the 'hood is less about skin color than it is about where a person lives, how they talk, and what kind of car they drive. Coach Chapman enters the locker room and informs everyone that practice has been canceled because he needs to rush off to an emergency school board meeting. Auditorium. Brenda and Donna are holding music auditions for the Pigskin Prom. The bands are all rehearsing at the same time, and the result is a ghastly cacophony of badly tuned instruments. Donna tells Brenda she should have just hired David so that they could have skipped the audition process altogether. Yeah, 'cause why give any opportunities to the 99.95% of the students who aren't part of their tiny A-list clique? David is onstage, prepping himself and his keyboard, while Steve is carefully monitoring the rehearsal. He sternly tells his managee that he'd better get this gig. Just as Brenda announces that the audition is about to get underway, Kelly breezes into the auditorium. She excitedly tells her gal pals that her dad called from Barcelona that morning, and gushes about how it was the best conversation they've ever had. Donna looks at her with concern, since she knows he's let her down many times before. Kelly acknowledges his failings and explains how apologetic her dad was for being such a deadbeat for the past fifteen years...and that they cried together on the phone. Kelly says that he'll be flying to L.A. on Friday night just to see her...which means she won't be able to go to the Pigskin Prom. She then tells Brenda that since she's bailing on the dance, she should probably resign from the dance committee. Back at the audition, the first band to perform is Grudge Master...and while they're definitely not great, they're about 100x better than David's unspeakable attempts at hip-hop. Kelly, however, isn't impressed by Grudge Master and asks Brenda why she doesn't just hire David. I really miss those early Season 3 summer episodes when Kelly seemed to fully grasp how badly David's "music" sucks ass. Board of Education building. Brandon is loitering in front of the building, waiting to hear if the upcoming football game is being canceled. A few minutes later, Mrs. Teasley and Coach Chapman exit the building. They look annoyed to see Brandon there, and tell him that a decision hasn't been made...and that there probably won't be one for several days. As Brandon heads back to his car, a black kid rushes after him. His name is Jordan Bonner, a student from Shaw High School. He noticed Brandon talking to Mrs. Teasley and Coach Chapman, and asks him if he knows anything about the upcoming game. Brandon tells him that a formal decision won't be made for at least a few days, and remarks that his school's administrators are concerned with the safety of the students - but Jordan scoffs at this and says that their concern is unnecessary. The Shaw students were killed by a rival gang, but it has nothing to do with anyone from Beverly Hills...or "you people", as Jordan calls them. Brandon retorts that since "his people" will be sitting in the same bleachers that the teens were sitting in when they got shot, it is a valid concern. Jordan brushes it off as an isolated incident, but predicts that the school board will cancel the football game. Brandon argues that the board is doing everything humanly possible to make the game happen, but Jordan just snorts derisively. He refers to Brandon as "Brandon from Beverly Hills" and snarls that he doesn't know squat. Brandon voice-overs that fifteen minutes later, the school board made the decision to officially forfeit the game with Shaw. His voice-over then blends in with the words he's typing on the computer in the newsroom, where Ahn-drea and Gil are hovering over him, curious about how the editorial is coming along. Gil is concerned about Brandon meeting the deadline, which is only forty-five minutes away. Egads! Brandon assures him he'll get his editorial done in time, so Gil leaves for the day. However, the second he's out the door, Brandon tells Ahn-drea there's no way in hell he's going to be finished in forty-five minutes. She looks annoyed and insists that she's going to need his editorial within the hour - otherwise they'll be in deep "you know what". LOL. No I don't know what, since The Blaze isn't even a real newspaper, and its readership is limited to the students and faculty of one very privileged high school. How much could possibly be at stake here? Brandon lies through his teeth and promises Ahn-drea he'll have the editorial finished in an hour. Donna bursts into the DJ booth and starts berating David for inviting Sue Scanlon to third-wheel it with them to the Pigskin Prom, so he explains that Sue is an old family friend and that she really likes music. Donna snaps back that Sue is nothing more than a slutty groupie and that she doesn't want her hanging around...and David easily calms Donna with a kiss and assures her that she has nothing to worry about. The Blaze newsroom. Brandon is still working on his editorial when Ahn-drea pokes her head inside the newsroom and asks him if he's done yet. He snaps that he's not done, and that hearing her pace up and down the hallway isn't going to help him finish it any sooner. Hee! Ahn-drea is very freaked out about the looming deadline, so Brandon finally tells her that there's no way he's going to meet it. He does, however, promise that the editorial will be done first thing in the morning, and that he'll take care of doing the layout and getting all the copies printed up. Or photocopied. Or whatever it is they do to disseminate this rag. He bids her good night, then practically shoves her out the door and locks it. He then voice-overs that a window of opportunity has just opened, and that he and Jordan Bonner have something mysterious up their sleeves. He calls up Jordan and invites him to stop by the newsroom...and assures him that no one else is around. Brandon voice-overs his observation about how the students of West Beverly High are isolated from the world's problems and are therefore unable to see past their own concerns. Well, d'yuh - isn't that the basic premise of the show? To demonstrate Brandon's point, the scene cuts to the main outdoor quad, and Kelly is heard telling the gang about the reservation she made at Spago for her and her deadbeat dad. Dylan starts griping again about how he doesn't want to go to the dance, and so Brandon suggests that it should be canceled altogether. Steve strongly disapproves of that, 'cause he arranged for two A&R guys to attend the dance so they could discover the musical genius that is David. LOL. Brenda then snarls that just 'cause the football game was canceled, it doesn't mean that the entire world has to come to a grinding halt. Brandon argues that it's weird to have a Pigskin Prom in the absence of a football game, but Steve argues that the kids at West Beverly are way more into going to a dance than watching a football game anyway. When Nikki is asked to express her opinion on the matter, she refuses to throw in her two cents and says she prefers to remain in "the neutral zone". This phrase immediately clicks with Brandon, and minutes later he's in his Mustang, driving through the tattered remains that is this show's version of South Central L.A. He voice-overs about his secret plan to get the football game rescheduled, and how it will change the world...and by the world, he means the two dozen or so football players and however many spectators a game in the 'hood usually attracts. Brandon arrives at Shaw High School and is jarred by the experience of having to go through a metal detector. He meets up with Jordan and tells him about his idea to move the football game to a neutral location. Jordan thinks it's a dumb idea, so Brandon pouts about the way he keeps dissing him yo. There's something extra lovable about Brandon whenever he ventures out into the 'hood. Jordan explains to his coddled new friend that moving the game away from Shaw is the equivalent of handing the neighborhood to the gangs, and insists that everyone needs to take a stand and demand that the football game be played where it was originally scheduled to be played. Jordan then hands Brandon the editorial he wrote, and the two stroll down the hall. Jordan shows him the locker that belonged to one of the shooting victims and says that the slain kid was his friend. When Brandon asks if he was a gang member, he immediately regrets the question and says it probably doesn't matter. Mmm...it might matter a little bit. The two then agree to publish their editorials, side by side, in each of their school newspapers. Brandon's editorial will be a eulogy for the forfeited football game, while Jordan's will be an actual eulogy for his slain classmates. That settled, Brandon flees to the safety of Beverly Hills, 90210. The Blaze newsroom. Gil tells Brandon that Jordan's editorial is way too over-the-top to publish. Ahn-drea agrees and remarks that it's too incendiary and has far too many expletives. She wants Brandon to edit it, but he refuses to touch it, which doesn't matter anyway 'cause Gil refuses to allow it to be published in any form, period. As Brandon continues writing what is fast becoming the most time-consuming, dragged-out editorial in the history of Blaze editorials, he bitchily voice-overs that the students at West Beverly High only care about the dance. And it's at that very moment that he gets the idea to use his editorial as an open invitation to invite the students of Shaw High School to attend the Pigskin Prom. Jordan stops by The Blaze newsroom to drop off an updated version of his editorial. He's surprised that Brandon was willing to print his first expletive-filled version...but now he wants the new version to be the one that gets published. Well that was pretty fickle and dickish of him. Brandon hands Jordan his editorial...and as Jordan scans it, he tells Brandon that it's way too crazy an idea to invite Shaw students to a West Beverly High dance. Brandon, however, insists that they have to shake things up. The next day, Brenda looks puzzled as she reads a copy of The Blaze. She encounters Brandon as he's heading toward his locker, and starts reading aloud his editorial. When she finishes, she angrily tells him he had no right to invite the Shaw hooligans to her Pigskin Prom without checking with her first. She's worried that the administration will cancel the event, but Brandon brushes off her concerns and tells her she's overreacting...however, when he continues walking down the hall, a bunch of people call out his name and then glare at him while holding a copy ofThe Blaze. Looks like shit just hit the fan. Buckle up, 'cause this episode's about to get slightly less tedious than the tedious tedium it's been up until now. The Blaze newsroom. Brandon apologizes to Ahn-drea for secretly publishing his editorial, but he strongly felt it was something he had to do. Ahn-drea is angry he didn't trust her enough to confide in her. Gil bursts into the room and tells Brandon they're going to have to do some serious damage control, and says he covered for him with Mrs. Teasley by telling her that the editorial somehow got published by mistake. Brandon insists that it wasn't a mistake, and Gil sternly tells him that if Mrs. Teasley knew that the editorial had been intentionally published, he'd be booted out of school. Really? 'Cause that would seem like a giant overreaction. Ahn-drea now gets mad at Gil for covering for Brandon, and she's so galled at the two of them that she flees the room to take a walk and let off some of her excess hot air steam. Outside, Brenda is ranting to Dylan that Brandon is a traitor. As a general rule, Dylan doesn't like to get involved in their bickering, so he shifts the conversation and tells her that he really liked Jordan's editorial. Brenda then non-sequiturs that if the dance gets canceled, they can always show up uninvited to Spago and meet Kelly's father. Dylan grimly tells her that the odds of Kelly's deadbeat dad actually showing up in L.A. and keeping his promise to Kelly are slim to none. Out in the hallway, Brandon gets heckled by Tony Miller and a fellow jock about how he should stick to writing the sports page. Nikki breezes over and jokingly asks him if the editorial was an elaborate ruse to get out of going to the dance with her, then tells him how much she admired what he wrote. Steve, however, is pissed off that the A&R guys might not have a chance to discover David's musical genius and thereby make him a rich business manager...and Donna voices her displeasure about what could be a missed opportunity for David. They all look over at David in the DJ booth, where his pathetic moping can easily be viewed through the booth's large window. Forget about it, Davey. Your musical breakthrough is never meant to happen. Principal's office. Mrs. Teasley lectures Brandon about how her first obligation is the safety of her students, so he counters by asking her if the students at Shaw would be welcome at West Beverly if there hadn't been a shooting. She doesn't give him an answer, but the look on her face says hell no. Brandon dramatically concludes that the students at Shaw have never been welcome at West Beverly. Well...perhaps not - but I don't ever recall my high school having dances that were also open to the entire student body of a different high school. They just had their own dances. Clothing boutique. Brenda, Kelly, and Donna are in fitting rooms, trying on new dresses. Brenda tells them that Mrs. Teasley called the principal at Shaw, who told her that the Shaw students probably won't come to the Pigskin Prom, despite the open invitation. She adds that they'll still be getting security guards just in case the ruffians cause any trouble. Donna, meanwhile, complains that Sue Scanlon will probably fawn all over David the whole night. Brenda emerges from her fitting room in an unflattering white dress that has see-through fabric on the arms and torso. Blech. Donna is wearing a more traditional looking short tight black dress and it looks pretty good on her skeletal frame. Kelly is also buying a new dress, but it's for her evening out with her deadbeat dad...and it's a very pretty royal blue number with a zig-zag corset thing across the back. Brenda delicately asks her if she's sure her father will actually come, and this immediately raises Kelly's ire. She derisively tells Brenda that she lives in "Walsh Land" and doesn't understand other people's problems and that she should just shut up. She then stalks back to her fitting room. David's/Kelly's house. David asks for Kelly's opinion on what he's wearing, which is an atrocious, shiny, leopard skin-esque jacket. Jesus. Did he really need to ask? Kelly grimaces and tells him it looks like something Steve would pick out for him...and so he wisely changes into something else. Kelly then asks him how she looks in her blue dress, and David dutifully tells her she looks beautiful. Kelly looks down at her watch and remarks that her dad is running a little late. Uh oh. David reminds her that if her plans change, she can always come to the dance. The Walsh house. Brandon gets a call from Jordan, who tells him that a lot of kids from Shaw are on their way to attend the dance at West Beverly High...and adds that some of them have been drinking. Brandon quickly hops into his car and races over to the school. West Beverly High. David girlishly raps as he does a mic/sound check...and Steve looks on, excited about the evening ahead. Sue Scanlon is also particularly excited. She's standing on the dance floor in front of the stage, enthusiastically clapping for David and making squeaky "ooow" noises - LOL - as Donna glares at her in annoyance. Brandon, Brenda, and Nikki arrive...and Brandon anxiously looks around for Gil. Jordan is at the door trying to get in, but the hyper-vigilant security guard won't let him pass, so Brandon and Brenda have to walk over there in person and order the guard him to let him in. Locker room. David is having a meltdown, freaking out to Steve 'cause he somehow just realized he's about to humiliate himself by rapping in front of a roomful of black kids from the 'hood. Steve's unhelpful, yet hilarious, response is that he should be relieved he's not a country and western singer. True that. Suddenly, Sue Scanlon enters the locker room and purposefully strides toward David decked out in cycling shorts, which seems to be her slutty outfit of choice. Steve immediately heads out, but not before he reminds David that musicians usually enter "the business" to get young tail. Sue, meanwhile, continues to advance, telling David that the band is hot. The band? David has no band - so far it's only ever been just him onstage. She then starts to massage his shoulders, and he pulls away from her, looking extremely icked out. He reminds her that her dead brother Scott used to be his best friend before he offed himself in Season 2, and that the two of them hooking up would be creepy and incestuous. Sue finally gets the message and snarls that he doesn't know what he's missing. Tony and the rest of the football players make it known that they're ready to rumble with the Shaw students, should the need arise. Gil and Ahn-drea finally arrive, and Brandon gives them both a heads-up that they may have a potential Jets versus Sharks situation on their hands. The Peach Pit. Dylan enters the diner and briefly chats it up with chatty Nat before noticing Kelly sitting alone at a table weeping. He slouches toward her with a plate of food to see whassup. Kelly tearfully tells him that some woman called her on behalf of her deadbeat dad to inform her that he wasn't able to fly to L.A. after all, but that he'll make it up to her next time. Kelly says that the last time this happened, she got high with some guy...but was pretty messed up back then. Dylan quips that a dance isn't a dance without Kelly Taylor, and invites her to accompany him to the Pigskin Prom. Kelly accepts his offer. Dance. Dylan and Kelly arrive at the school and notice a long, chaotic line-up of Shaw students trying to get in. Security guards snark at the Shaw students that the dance is only for the mostly pretty white people who attend West Beverly...and so the 'hood kids argue that they got a personal invitation to the dance from Brandon Walsh. Dylan and Kelly breeze past the guards without incident, and this exacerbates the already tense situation. Brandon charges over to the entrance and orders the security guards to let everyone from Shaw inside...and when Gil backs up his decision, the Shaw kids start filing in. Everyone is bopping to a bland '90s beat while David stands onstage and wiggles his narrow hips. The Shaw students amble around, amused by the sight of their privileged counterparts dancing awkwardly without a scrap of rhythm. The West Beverly football players look rigid and on-guard, and Brandon has to stop them from advancing on the Shaw football players. Suddenly, a crowd forms around two guys fighting...but it just ends up being Tony Miller pretend fighting with one of his football teammates. After that, everyone just stares daggers at each other until Nikki saves the day by politely asking one of the Shaw guys if he'd like to dance with her. He checks her out and accepts, so Donna follows suit and asks a different Shaw guy to dance. Onstage, David is still wiggling his tiny hips while he works up the courage to start rapping. Ahn-drea asks Brandon to dance, and they both laugh as he declines. He asks her if she's forgiven him for inviting the Shaw students to the dance, and she grins and says, "Maybe." David then finally bites the bullet and dives into one of his rap lite songs. Seconds later, a black kid from Shaw climbs up onstage to adjust the sound...and then starts rapping along with David, which does a lot to dilute the high-pitched quality of David's girlish voice. After that, everyone dances together and has a rockin' time. A bit later, Dylan and Brenda dance to a slow song, and they look happy and kiss. Kelly walks by and gets pulled into their dance, making it a threesome - which is super ironic. Elsewhere, Donna and David dance together. He assures her that nothing is going on between him and Sue Scanlon, and Donna believes him and gives him a happy kiss. Jordan tells Brandon that his two deceased friends would have liked the dance...and they also would have liked Brandon. He then points out the Shaw students who are on the football team, and Brandon says he still wants to reschedule a game between the two teams...and as the camera begins to fad out, the two saunter toward the Shaw football players, who look like they've just started to warm up to the West Beverly High football players. Thanks for reading! If you are enjoying TVofYore's recaps, consider thanking me by buying me a "coffee"!
6 Comments
MTCIII65
3/26/2019 04:23:53 am
Well, it looks to me like the parents of WBHS are more interested in whether the school is going to be a condom dispensary than how the school organizes dances for the student body.
Reply
Myriam
12/12/2019 01:38:11 pm
Brendon's melodramatic VO over the entire episode reminded me of Lucas (played by Chad Michael Murray) in One Tree Hill... he was often reading parts poetry or literature classics with a dramatic voice in VO throughout One Tree Hill eps. So. Cringy.
Reply
Helena
6/9/2020 12:41:45 pm
A lot of SINGLE guys would be glad to go out with Kelly Taylor... JUst stay out of Brenda's relationship.
Reply
fanfan
10/3/2021 08:51:35 am
Brenda : "Why is it everybody thinks they know what's best for everybody else ?" really ? ask yourself first.
Reply
fanfan
10/3/2021 09:39:55 am
by the way, I LOVE Kelly's blue dress
Reply
Cheryl
1/13/2023 12:56:18 pm
I liked how their dancing ended racism.
Reply
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