Brandon Walsh, played by Jason Priestley, was the original lead character in the popular 1990s American television dramaBeverly Hills, 90210, and the first character introduced in the Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise. Brandon was best known for his altruistic nature and strong moral values. Unlike his close friend Dylan McKay, who was portrayed as an anti hero, Brandon's motives were often unselfish and he was more of a traditional hero than Dylan. His friendliness made him so popular among his peers that, during the show's run, his sister Brenda, and friends Dylan and Steve all revealed that they considered Brandon the best friend they ever had.
''Beverly Hills, 90210''
Back story
Born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota with twin sister Brenda, Brandon was the eldest child of Jim & Cindy Walsh. As a result of Jim's job promotion, the family moved to Beverly Hills in 1990, where Brandon and Brenda enrolled at the localWest Beverly Hills High School where in the pilot they met new friends Steve Sanders and Kelly Taylor. In episode two, "The Green Room," Brandon befriended loner Dylan McKay. He befriends many others in his years spent in Beverly Hills. Brandon was known to have problems with gambling, which affected his relationship with his friends. He also had trouble resisting temptation when dating Kelly, shown with Emily Valentine and, coincidentally, a woman named Emma Bennett.
Love life
During the show's run, Brandon gained notoriety for having a high number of relationships with women, sometimes only for one episode, played largely by series guest stars. Among the most notable were the troubled Emily Valentine, who tried to burn down the West Beverly High Homecoming float; the bigoted Brooke Alexander, who assumed Andrea Zuckerman was rich just because she was Jewish; and sophomore Nikki Witt, a persistent girl who comically wore down Brandon's defenses during the episode "The Back Story." In Season Four Brandon had an affair with university professor Lucinda Nicholson. Ultimately, his longest relationships were with Kelly, who attempted to win Brandon's heart twice throughout the series, succeeding the second time. Their relationship was strengthened after Kelly moved in with him once his parents and Brenda had moved away. In between relationships with Kelly, Brandon became involved with two of his co-workers. As a junior, he had a passionate relationship with his editor at the California University newspaper, Susan Keats. Brandon and Susan pledged to take a cross-country trip in the summer of 1996, but Susan ultimately accepted a position with the Clinton-Gore re-election campaign, leaving Brandon to instead take the trip with Steve. During his senior year, Brandon slowly fell for the anchor at the CU television station, Tracy Gaylian. Tracy one day found the engagement ring Brandon tried to give to Kelly in a dresser drawer, and assumed that it was for her. When Brandon explained that it wasn't, Tracy became distrusting of him. The two patched things up, and Brandon agreed to sell back his ring at the jewelry store, exchanging it for a bracelet. Once Brandon left, however, Kelly went to the store and bought the ring for herself. Brandon later took Tracy to Hong Kong to meet his father, but upon their return to the United States, Brandon realized his true feelings for Kelly and broke up with Tracy. Tracy and Brandon reunited in Hawaii in the season 8 opener, leaving Kelly perturbed, but her doubts were erased when she met Tracy's fiance.
In an episode of the TV series What I Like About You , Charlie asks Val if he knew her when she was younger. He asks if they went to high school together. When Val answers that she does not think so, Charlie asks if she can remember that he was the editor of the school magazine and that she was friends with his sister.
Departure
left the showat the beginning of the ninth season. However, he remained credited as an executive producer for Beverly Hills, 90210 until the end of the series. After the 9th season, Jason Priestley appeared as a guest on the show. Priestley regrets leaving the show too early.
Missing years
It was revealed that Brandon's job in journalism had taken him to many locations around the world. In 2000, he sent a video to Donna and David at the time of their wedding as he could not make it to the ceremony. In the third spin-off, 90210, he was also revealed to have kept in contact with Brenda, Dylan, and Kelly. Dylan is the one who asked Brandon for Brenda's email so he could get in touch with her.
''90210''
Although he has not appeared in the spin-off 90210, Brandon has been referenced by numerous characters. In "The Jet Set", Brenda tells Kelly that Brandon is currently in Belize and that he thinks Kelly is beautiful. Kelly replies that she has spoken to him as well. Brenda also tells Nat that he still craves Nat's signature megaburgers. However, Dylan, and not Brandon, is revealed to be the father of Kelly's son, Sammy. In "Model Behavior", Brenda tells Kelly that Brandon had given Dylan her email, which indicates that both he and Dylan are still on good terms. Later, Brenda tells Ryan that she is going to leave Beverly Hills for a while and go visit Brandon and his family. This indicates that Brandon has either gotten married or started a family with an unknown woman.
Reception
The character has a mostly positive reception from critics.
