'Beverly Hills, 90210' 25th anniversary: Our favorite episodes 

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\'Beverly Hills, 90210\' 25th anniversary: Our favorite episodes

Over the last few months, EW Community Contributors Joanna Skrabala and Tamar Barbash have been counting down to the 25th anniversary of the original airing of the

pilot. Twenty-five years ago today, on October 4, 1990, the Walsh twins arrived in sunny California, and the journey of a decade began.

Beverly Hills, 90210 tribute: Favorite Characters

Beverly Hills, 90210 tribute: Favorite Couples

Beverly Hills, 90210 tribute: Bests and Worsts

In our final piece, we join with Karen Belgrad to give you our favorite episodes of

for the first time or want to relive some of the best moments, start here. But let us know: What favorite episodes of yours didn’t make our list?

Season 1, Episode 6, “Perfect Mom” (originally aired November 22, 1990)

Just in case you haven’t been keeping track, I’m a certified fan of Kelly Taylor. As an impressionable youngster watching this show, I was supposed to root for Brenda Walsh—and maybe I did for the first five episodes—but once “Perfect Mom” unraveled before me, I knew Kelly was the one for me. The girl who appeared to have everything lacked a heck of a lot when it came to Jackie Taylor, Kelly’s not-so-glamorous alcoholic mother. Kelly broke down, became vulnerable, and allowed the viewers to see a different side of “perfection.”

Season 3, Episode 19, “Back in the High Life Again” (originally aired January 27, 1993)

Brenda, Kelly, and Dylan’s love triangle was as weird and convoluted as you can get. It encompassed secret flings, lies, Paris, cookies, and finally the ultimatum! In the end, Dylan was pretty split. But (thankfully) it was Kelly who attended Jack McKay’s prison-release party—and that tipped the scales in her favor. I clearly remember watching the Kelly/Dylan/pool scene as it aired and getting totally stoked that Kelly was winning! Plus, the final scene remains one of my all-time favorites. Does that make me a horrible person?

Season 10, Episode 27, “Ode to Joy”(originally aired May 17, 2000)

The series finale isn’t an action-packed, keeps-you-guessing kind of TV outing—but it’s a lovely piece of closure strewn with small reunions and familiar faces. The gist: Donna and David are (finally) getting married—on a whim—and the group comes together to throw the perfect last-minute wedding. Felice Martin and Jackie Taylor take the lead on the wedding plans; Brandon sends well wishes via TV; Valerie and Andrea return for the bachelorette party; MUNZ returns for David’s stag night; and Nat walks Donna down the aisle. It’s a great sendoff and a perfect ending for the show’s 10-year run. Bonus: Dylan and Kelly decide to rekindle their on-again-off-again (and on-again-off-again) romance.

Season 1, Episode 13, “Slumber Party” (originally aired January 31, 1991)

The episode that added depth to the already pretty, “Slumber Party” included emotional talking points on cliques, eating disorders, and, unforgettably, date rape. No viewer ever looked at Kelly Taylor the same after hearing the heartbreaking story of her first sexual encounter.

Season 2, Episode 13, “Halloween” (originally aired October 31, 1991)

While Donna’s immobilizing mermaid costume is legendary, the strength of this hour falls to Kelly as she is assaulted at a Halloween party. And while her friends arrive to help her out of the situation before she is raped, it’s a harrowing situation for Kelly that will be revisited in season four’s “Take Back the Night.”

Season 3, Episode 28, “Something in the Air” (originally aired May 12, 1991)

The show can title the episode whatever it wants, but to legions of viewers, it is simply known as “Donna Martin Graduates.” This is the rallying cry of an entire senior and junior high school class standing by their underage, drunk friend to overturn a completely reasonable (no drinking/being drunk at school functions) policy. Oh, and there’s something about the dress code for the next group of upperclassmen, which don’t matter because our favorites move on to college (and a beach house).

Season 1, Episode 10, “Isn’t It Romantic?” (originally aired January 3, 1991)

Arguably the most compelling relationship of the early seasons of

is that of Brenda and Dylan, and it all started in this episode. When Brenda finds Dylan in his hotel room getting reamed out by his father, things take a bad turn. Brenda doesn’t like the way Dylan is acting and demands that he take her home. He chases after her and smashes a potted plant, before ultimately breaking down in tears and kissing her. Dylan opens up to Brenda about his rocky relationship with his father, and a spectacular relationship is born.

Season 3, Episodes 29–30, “Commencement, Parts 1–2” (originally aired May 19, 1993)

Once Donna Martin was cleared to march with her class, it was time for the gang to graduate from Beverly Hills High School. After three years (two of them as juniors!) of watching these teens in high school, it was an emotional affair for us all. Chock-full of fun flashbacks and optimistic looks ahead, these two hours of television remind us why we love this show so much.

Season 6, Episode 10, “One Wedding and a Funeral” (originally aired November 8, 1995)

When Dylan decides to track down his father’s killer, Tony Marchette, in order to exact revenge, no one expects it to lead to one of the show’s most beautiful love stories. But that’s exactly what happens. Marchette’s daughter, Antonia (Toni), is beautiful and kind, and Dylan ultimately falls deeply for her. The two decide to marry, and Dylan agrees to end the feud with his father-in-law once and for all. Unfortunately, his bride’s father has other plans. In a twist so heartbreaking I can barely write about it without crying, Marchette sends out assassins to kill Dylan, but they mistakenly kill Toni instead. The episode is also Luke Perry’s farewell, as Dylan takes off in order to mourn his great loss—but watching him cry over her wedding dress is one hell of a goodbye.

A social worker, mother, and avid television watcher, Tamar greatly enjoys analyzing and chatting about her favorite TV shows. She loves nothing more than good stories and great chemistry. Currently recapping Shameless, Rookie Blue, Friday Night Lights, and Forever. You can find her blogging about TV over at Tamar's TV Corner.

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