The 90210 cast hit the high seas Feb. 15 to film scenes for an upcoming episode, and photos reveal that these kids are swapping partners like square dancers! Not only was Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) spotted cozying up to Preston (Nick Zano), but her ex-boyfriend Austin (Justin Deeley) was looking awfully chummy with Adrianna (Jessica Lowndes). Let’s try to make sense of these new pairings, shall we?

Naomi and Preston doesn’t seem like such an out-there match — the girl does love money, after all — but Austin and Adrianna? The last time I checked, Adrianna was in a relationship with Dixon (Tristan Wilds) and Austin was quickly becoming someone’s special friend in prison.

But hey, maybe it’s just a hug between old make-out buddies.

How do you feel about these potential pairs? Hit the comments section with your thoughts on “Austianna” and “Praomi.”

— Andy Swift

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America’s brightest zip code is about to go dark — for one week, anyway. The cast of 90210 was spotted filming funeral scenes Feb. 1 in Los Angeles, and several recurring characters were curiously absent from the shoot: cancer-stricken Raj (Manish Dayal) and newly incarcerated Austin (Justin Deeley). Any theories? I’ve got, oh, a billion.

My gut is telling me two things: “Put food in me” and “it’s Raj.” Considering viewers were led to believe he was dying last season, and his cancer has only gotten more serious, he’s unfortunately sitting atop my list of suspects.

(Counterpoint: It’s been noted that this “doesn’t look like a typical Hindu funeral,” and considering they went in that direction for Raj’s wedding, it’s safe to assume they’d also do so with the funeral. Thanks, Sunny Jacob!)

Vanessa’s death, on the other hand, would be decidedly less tragic — especially for fans desperate to see Annie (Shenae Grimes) and Liam (Matt Lanter) back together.

In my mind, here’s how that would happen: Annie downs a bottle of vodka — preferably an expensive one, now that she’s a baller – then runs over Vanessa in her car like she’s a homeless chick. But instead of sleeping with Vanessa’s psycho nephew, Annie drives (drunk) to Liam’s bar, where they proceed to make sweet love on a pile of Marla Templeton’s dollars. Everybody wins!

(UPDATE: New shots of Arielle filming funeral scenes have surfaced. Sorry, “Lannie” fans!)

There’s also the possibility that Austin will get shanked in prison, but I doubt the inmates would want to get rid of him. He’d be so much more useful to them alive.

— Andy Swift

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Austin (Justin Deeley) has been M.I.A. since his little fight with Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) in Vegas, but he’s back in all his cowboy glory on the Nov. 22 episode of 90210 – and he’s bringing the cavalry. “The Thanksgiving episode is fun,” Justin tells HollywoodLife.com exclusively. “Naomi and Austin go to Griffith Park and ride horses, and everybody assumed I knew how to ride just because I’m from Kentucky.”

Justin also tells me we’ll discover a lot more about Austin later this season, and tonight’s episode merely “scratches the surface.”

“You’ll learn about his past and you’ll find out why he is the way he is,” Justin reveals. “You’ll also find out more about his relationship with his dad, who really seems to try to keep him down.”

The dad Justin is referring to is, of course, the one played by Billy Ray Cyrus on the big Vegas episode. Justin admits he was psyched to get to work with the music legend, and his expectations were more than met.

“Billy Ray is awesome,” he says. “‘Achy Breaky Heart,’ his first big-time song, came out when I was in maybe third grade. We had a talent show every year at my school, and that was the number one talent show song to do. So getting to meet him was cool. He was the most kind and genuine person. He looks you right in the eye when he talks to you and he’s full of wisdom.”

— Andy Swift

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Plus, watch a sneak peek of the Nov. 22 episode below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

The fourth season of 90210 is shaping up to be a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll. Cobra Starship graced The CW’s most infamous zip code last week, and now American Idol finalist-turned-country star Kellie Pickler will make her debut on the Oct. 18 episode as Sally, an old friend of Austin (Justin Deeley). We got the scoop on her big episode from Justin himself!

“It was awesome,” Justin told us. “[Kellie] is the sweetest girl ever. Her story, as every knows from American Idol, is wonderful. I’m a big country music fan, so getting to work with her was cool, and to hear some of her road stories made it even more fun for me as well.”

But while Kellie is certainly the main attraction on tomorrow night’s episode, she isn’t the only act we’re looking forward to. As part of a benefit show, everyone’s favorite nerd Max (Josh Zuckerman) makes a little debut of his own — as a magician!

“I feel like I’m learning a whole bunch of new skills this season — magic being one of them,” Josh told us when we spoke with him back in September. “They had a real magician on set and he taught me a few tricks.”

But don’t expect Max to parlé this little magic act into a full-time job. Josh said he doubts we’ll see him in that role — or that sparkly suit — again anytime soon.

“That costume has a useable life of one day,” he told us. “I think that’s probably the only magic act you’ll see Max in for at least a while.”

— Andy Swift

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Plus, watch a sneak peek of Kellie on 90210 below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Oct. 11 episode of 90210 served as an hour-long reminder of why I don’t get political: Everybody ends up getting hurt. Or they become prostitutes. Regardless, the gang had a rough go of things this week — and it might be too late for two fan-favorite couples to pick up the pieces.

Teddy (Trevor Donovan) made his triumphant return to Beverly Hills this week, but if he had idea how much drama was waiting for him, he might not have been in such a rush to come back. He bumped into Shane (Ryan Rottman), an old flame from Barcelona, only to discover his uncle was running for Congress against the very politician Shane had sworn his undying allegiance to!

Oh, and did I mention that politician was played by Brandy? Because she was totally played by Brandy. I literally cannot stress that fact enough.

In an ongoing effort to boost her sorority’s profile on campus, Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) decided to help students register to vote — and with a little event-planning assistance from everybody’s favorite cowboy, the “Strip to Vote” party was born! Unsurprisingly, Naomi and Austin (Justin Deeley) did most of the stripping, ultimately finding themselves in an awkward, clothes-less position with Max (Josh Zuckerman.)

Meanwhile, Annie (Shenae Grimes) continued her G-rated escort business — seriously, a sex-less dinner date is not technically prostitution — but this time she brought a new girl into the fold. Yes, Navid’s naughty little sister is now Annie’s partner in Disney-level crime. This is sure to end adorably. Not well, but definitely adorably.

Things also got tense between Liam (Matt Lanter), Jane (Kristina Apgar) and Jane’s zombie husband this week, as a scuffle between the dudes landed pregnant Jane in the hospital. I really hope the baby’s OK. But more importantly, I really hope zombie husband doesn’t start nomming on Liam’s beautiful brain. Who would run the bar?!

Lastly, and certainly most tragic, is what went down between Navid (Michael Steger) and Silver (Jessica Stroup) this week. Silver got back to her intrepid reporter roots — I’m bummed she gave up on that dream, by the way — and found out about Navid’s uncle’s little illegal car ring. But instead of understanding, she basically broke up with him and moved in with Naomi until he gets his life together. Talk about overreacting! I think someone’s off their meds again…

OK, your turn to rant. Do you think Navid and Silver are really donezo? And what about Naomi and Max? Plus, who wants to bet money that Jane’s baby is really Liam’s? Drop a comment with your every ridiculous thought!

— Andy Swift

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Of all the lessons I learned from watching the Oct. 4 episode of 90210, the most valuable was how Liam (Matt Lanter) was able to turn a bar commercial into a Guys Gone Wild shoot in three easy steps: (1) Spill beer (2) Remove shirt (3) Add wind! And I’m glad business picked up, because if pregnant Jane (Kristina Apgar) spent one more day crying in that empty bar, they’d have to rename it “Tears and Beers.”

Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) also learned an important lessons this week: Never trust a cowboy. It turns out Austin (Justin Deeley) was using her to free himself from Holly (Megalyn Echikunwoke), who he was apparently hooking up with. So when her nerd-in-shining-armor Max (Josh Zuckerman) told her he transfered to Caltech to be closer to her, choosing him over Austin — who “tastes like hay,” apparently — was a no-brainer. Naomi will continue to occasionally make out with Austin in her kitchen, but she’s definitely dating Max. I think. Possibly.

Annie (Shenae Grimes) helped sabotage Holly’s (Megalyn Echikunwoke) sorority in the final game, but her victory was short-lived. She was kicked out of the house, and it took about five minutes for her to ask her friend if that whole “escorting” business was still an option. Honestly, sometimes you just gotta throw up your hands and give in to prostitution when it’s the only sensible option. Get it, Annie.

Speaking of the hot mess Wilson family, Dixon’s (Tristan Wilds) nasty little pill addiction took a turn for the awesome this week. After discovering he was fresh out of the good stuff — and really, there is no sketchier place to pop pills than an empty stairwell — he hit up a Charice look-alike on the beach for a little seaside drug deal.

Come to think of it, I’m not entirely sure it wasn’t Charice’s Glee alter ego, Sunshine Corazon. She clearly transferred schools:

And in “I totally called it last week” news, Adrianna (Jessica Lowndes) made a new friend – who turned out to be none other than Jane’s presumed-dead husband! Seriously, the next time I tell you all that someone is going to rise from the sea, you’d better believe me.

What did you think of tonight’s episode? Which guy should Naomi choose? And how excited are you for an epic Dixon breakdown? Drop some comments!

— Andy Swift

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“Let The Games Begin” couldn’t be a more appropriate title for the Oct. 4 episode of 90210, because just as Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) prepares to dominate CU’s annual Greek Games, the men in her life — Austin (Justin Deeley) and Max (Josh Zuckerman) — will also be going head-to-head.

“Austin had no idea Naomi was involved with another guy,” Justin tells HollywoodLife.com. “Once he sees [Max], it becomes, ‘Well, I can’t lose to this guy.’”

Remember all those really interesting, juicy plot twists that came about at the end of 90210‘s third season — like Naomi (AnnaLynne McCord) being pregnant and Annie (Shenae Grimes) inheriting a butt-load of money? I hope you weren’t as into them as I was, because the fourth season premiere pretty much wiped the whole slate clean.

For starters, Annie lost out on her inheritance and had to defer from Carnegie Mellon for a semester. This led her to the hallowed halls of California University — and straight into the arms of Jeremy (Matt Cohen.)

Liam (Matt Lanter) returned from his big fishing expedition, but after Annie turned down TWO of his proposals, her knight in shining side-swept bangs got fed up with her. He sauntered over to a nearby beach bar, got drunk and ended up buying the place for $25,000. (Looks like we’ve got ourselves a new Peach Pit!)

Desperate to get to the top of the CU food chain, Naomi — who is not pregnant — bought herself a big-ass mansion to throw parties at. The downside? Her new pad came equipped with a pot-bellied pig and a smart-mouth cowboy named Austin (Justin Deeley) who also served as the resident pot-grower.

But hey, that’s good news for Naomi’s fellow tenants Ivy (Gillian Zinser) and Raj (Manish Dayal). Sorry, did I forget to mention they live there with her? Because they do.

And speaking of random house guests, Navid’s (Michael Steger) little sister decided to stay in Beverly Hills to finish out her senior year — their mom moved to Switzerland, joining the rest of the show’s parents in whatever black hole they’ve disappeared into — so she’ll be shacking up with them at Silver’s (Jessica Stroup) house this season.

OK, back to Naomi! Her little coming out party started off great — bonfires, shirtless valet workers, etc. — but it quickly went up in flames. Literally. When the cops showed up to bust her for a noise complaint, she tossed Austin’s pot into the bonfire to hide it from them. You can probably guess what happened next: The feds cuffed her and carted her off to jail. Plus, everybody at the party got super-duper high.

But wait, I saved the best (aka most bat-s**t) for last! Everyone’s favorite pill-meddling psychopath Adrianna (Jessica Lowndes) showed up to Naomi’s party and got quite the tongue lashing from our girl Silver. It was something to the effect of “You’re dead to me,” which reminded me of her little tiff with Naomi back in season one. Austin, however, wasn’t quite through with Adrianna. He lent her a sympathetic ear, which obviously led to a sympathetic shirt to wear the morning after.

Ladies and gentlemen, the bitch is back.

OK, your turn to babble: Are you bummed that Naomi isn’t pregnant? Do you think Annie made a mistake turning down Liam’s proposal? And am I the only one waiting for Adrianna to do something crazy? Drop a comment with your thoughts on tonight’s premiere!

— Andy Swift

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