On BH90210, Tori Spelling is still suffering for the sins of her father Aaron Spelling

Variety

"For nearly two decades’ worth of the life of our culture, Tori Spelling has been apologizing for herself," says Daniel D'Addario. Apologizing for being the child of privilege who was given a role on her dad's teen series. In response, Spelling has submitted herself for mockery on everything from her VH1 sitcom So Notorious to her Oxygen reality show Tori & Dean. Even BH90210, which Spelling co-created, manages to be cruel in the fictionalized version of herself. Spelling, says D'Addario, "gamely turns in a performance as a warped sort of fame monster, unable to live outside the spotlight but so unwanted by her public that she’s run out of money or options. The show’s engine — the reason the characters reconvene — is the onscreen Spelling’s idea to revive the franchise, sprouting not out of ingenuity but the desperation of a financially strapped mom." D'Addario adds: "Spelling has been a hard figure to know precisely what to do with for decades. She’s a nepotism case whom it’s hard to begrudge, because what was given to her has so plainly cost more than Spelling can ever earn back. And she’s a genuinely likable (really!) figure whose charm has to force its way around the blunt fact that she only knows how to tell one fairly unfunny, uncomfortable joke, and it’s at her own expense. The more she tries to prove her gameness or candor, the deeper the persona she’s working with digs in." ALSO: Here's your first look at Beverly Hills, 90210 matriarch Carol Potter on BH90210.