This was Darren Star's baby...the evolution of his brain child from earnest attempt at social relevancy to adult guilty pleasure, was in my opinion, accredited to his vision and the people who helped him achieve that...
With that said, despite Season 1 still trying to find itself before it realized it had the potential to be a great soap opera, Seasons 2 and 3 are where the show comes alive and sparks imagination of where the characters are going and who they're going with. It's like Mr. Star took a tip from 'Serial 101' and began to take pleasure in manipulating his characters socially, romantically and scandalously, but still incorporating heart and wit into his creation, giving us payoff when a character experienced poetic justice or cringe-worthy moments of irony where we couldn't wait to discuss it the next day at school or work... This talent would serve Mr. Star well in future creations.
It's when Star left his "Place" in 1995 to create and write "Central Park West", that despite that show's edge and entertainment value, "Melrose Place" began to sort of dull in its creator's absence. And this is all post infamous explosion in Season 4. Established characters no long experience change executed through story, they just change out of the blue. Favorites also don't interact with each other as much as they do secondary/guest characters. Scenes missing that acerbic, mental sharpness and social commentary are now played down for cheeky laughs. Even production lacks, the music for any climax a constant guitar whammy bar, no more sophisticated ambient. pieces. The only redeeming quality is all the familiar faces still in residence...
Until season 5 and onward, when we begin to lose a handful of characters for the last few years audiences have come to know, experience and identify as "Melrose Face". It's never the same when Jo leaves, when Jane leaves, when Kimberly leaves, when Jake leaves, when Alison leaves, when Sydney leaves, when Matt leaves and when Billy leaves and yes in that order and in almost rapid succession. As much as I want to give credit to the cache of new characters brought on to buffer the notable absences, for me it's never the same. I think because at this point "Melrose Place's" blue collar Bohemia is all but been evicted for a more White-collar tenancy...
I have to wonder, in the way I used to between anticipating some of the earlier seasons, had Star stayed on to write the rest of the series what might we have seen vs. what we saw. Who might have stayed on until the end given Star's knack for using character to initiate story and using story history to draw from...but only in a parallel universe. Special thanks to Thomas Calabro. Josie Bissett (who eventually came back) and Heather Locklear for staying loyal to the show. They never failed to entertain.
With that said, despite Season 1 still trying to find itself before it realized it had the potential to be a great soap opera, Seasons 2 and 3 are where the show comes alive and sparks imagination of where the characters are going and who they're going with. It's like Mr. Star took a tip from 'Serial 101' and began to take pleasure in manipulating his characters socially, romantically and scandalously, but still incorporating heart and wit into his creation, giving us payoff when a character experienced poetic justice or cringe-worthy moments of irony where we couldn't wait to discuss it the next day at school or work... This talent would serve Mr. Star well in future creations.
It's when Star left his "Place" in 1995 to create and write "Central Park West", that despite that show's edge and entertainment value, "Melrose Place" began to sort of dull in its creator's absence. And this is all post infamous explosion in Season 4. Established characters no long experience change executed through story, they just change out of the blue. Favorites also don't interact with each other as much as they do secondary/guest characters. Scenes missing that acerbic, mental sharpness and social commentary are now played down for cheeky laughs. Even production lacks, the music for any climax a constant guitar whammy bar, no more sophisticated ambient. pieces. The only redeeming quality is all the familiar faces still in residence...
Until season 5 and onward, when we begin to lose a handful of characters for the last few years audiences have come to know, experience and identify as "Melrose Face". It's never the same when Jo leaves, when Jane leaves, when Kimberly leaves, when Jake leaves, when Alison leaves, when Sydney leaves, when Matt leaves and when Billy leaves and yes in that order and in almost rapid succession. As much as I want to give credit to the cache of new characters brought on to buffer the notable absences, for me it's never the same. I think because at this point "Melrose Place's" blue collar Bohemia is all but been evicted for a more White-collar tenancy...
I have to wonder, in the way I used to between anticipating some of the earlier seasons, had Star stayed on to write the rest of the series what might we have seen vs. what we saw. Who might have stayed on until the end given Star's knack for using character to initiate story and using story history to draw from...but only in a parallel universe. Special thanks to Thomas Calabro. Josie Bissett (who eventually came back) and Heather Locklear for staying loyal to the show. They never failed to entertain.