One stunning tenant rents out her body to pay her medical school bills.
Another is hellbent on becoming Hollywood’s next great personal publicist.
A loving young couple are on the verge of engagement, occasionally distracted by the come-ons of fellow tenants. And a handsome blond rebel is secretly thieving his way to riches.
These beautiful and hard-bodied 20-somethings share an address, 4616 Melrose Place, and a mystery.
As you may have heard, the mystery concerns a familiar face.
When the CW’s wickedly fun “Melrose Place” unspools Tuesday (at 9 p.m. on KWGN-Channel 2), fans will recognize a favorite troublemaker from the 1990s original.
This is not a spoiler. In fact, the CW network and the producers of the updated “Melrose Place” have been working to spread the word of the shocker that occurs in the first minutes of the series. They’ve used it in advertising, they’ve promoted it to critics. They want fans and newcomers alike to be clued in when the action returns to the courtyard apartments.
The shock that’s no longer a shocker: In 1997, fans were devastated when a car hit the show’s Sydney Andrews (Laura Leighton) on her wedding day, killing her. But in this week’s pilot of Todd Slavkin’s and Darren Swimmer’s remake, Sydney is very much alive and serving as the property’s landlady — until she’s discovered floating in the apartment complex pool 10 minutes into the show.
New faces, new drama, same pool. (Actually, it’s a new set created to look like the old one, if it were expensively remodeled.)
Katie Cassidy (“Harper’s Island”) lights up the screen as the driven would-be agent and central mischief-maker Ella Simms. Michael Rady and Jessica Lucas, as the loving couple Riley and Jonah, deliver understated chemistry. Aussie actress Stephanie Jacobsen pours on the attitude as economically strapped Lauren. Shaun Sipos smolders as David, the poor little rich boy and estranged son of Michael Mancini (who is also back, played again by Thomas Calabro). And Colin Egglesfield is all pout as Auggie, a chef who struggles to stay sober.
The usual assortment of addictions, infidelities, lies, seductions and criminal acts arrive poolside. The murder mystery will hang over the first half of the season.
Bringing back to life and then killing off a fan favorite is more than a gimmick. Creators Slavkin and Swimmer say it is intended to signal that “anything can happen” on this darker iteration of the series.
They don’t like to describe their series as leaning toward “camp,” but it does tend toward the over-the-top.
“We’re huge fans of noir,” Slavkin said, “and ‘Sunset Boulevard’ is one of our favorite films.” The goal is to tell Sydney’s story in the past and reveal how she still affects the current characters.
Camp or noir, it’s a randy soap filled with pretty people drinking fruit-flavored martinis — and that may be good enough for viewers looking for bikini-friendly escapism.
“Melrose Place” ran from 1992 to 1999 on Fox. While Slavkin and Swimmer say they were fans, they set out to produce a show that is a tribute to the original but that follows its own story.
The familiar title is an advantage in the crowded marketplace, but the creators acknowledge the show will have to make it on its own with a new generation of viewers.
Leighton returned as Sydney because she saw “no downside.”
“I think Sydney’s always been sort of doomed to be the center of controversy, and she’s very much in that position,” Leighton told critics. The producers are coy about other returning guest stars, but say “the door is open.” Presumably Heather Locklear got the memo.
Joanne Ostrow: 303-954-1830 or jostrow@denverpost.com
