Throng

The OC
Friday July 6, 10.40pm

The OC - just like Beverly Hills 90210 before it - has created fashion trends, buzzwords and made stars out of its gorgeous young cast. Don't miss the final season of TV2's sizzling drama.

High school seems like a distant memory to the young graduates in wealthy coastal community Orange County. They have been thrust into adulthood after the heartbreaking death of their friend Marissa (Mischa Barton).
Ryan (Benjamin McKenzie) turns to cage-fighting to dull the pain of losing Marissa. Sandy (Peter Gallagher) returns to the Public Defender's office, and he and Kirsten (Kelly Rowan) reach out to another troubled teen, but this one is not a stranger. It's Marissa's little sister, Kaitlin (Willa Holland), the number-one troublemaker at Harbor School, and too much to handle for her mother Julie (Melinda Clarke), who's off making some trouble of her own.

Summer Roberts (Rachel Bilson) attends Brown University in Rhode Island, where she has reinvented herself as a left-leaning, tree-hugging activist. Meanwhile, her boyfriend Seth Cohen (Adam Brody) is working at a local comic book store... and hanging out with the local socialites for stimulation.

Star Rachel Bilson is enjoying her character Summer's metamorphosis from pampered California girl to heartfelt hippy: "I really like the direction they've pointed her in. Dealing with her best friend's death, she turns into sort of a tree hugger, which I think is nice to see on a TV show, especially as with such a young audience that it might raise awareness [for environmental issues]."

Bilson, who has graduated to starring roles in movies such as The Last Kiss with Zach Braff, is grateful for her big break in The OC. "I am so thankful to [series creator] Josh Schwartz because I was a guest star and didn't have that much to do. He just kept writing me great stuff and I had the opportunity to do that. It was, honestly, the best thing that could happen to me and it was definitely life-changing for me personally and professionally. So I'm just grateful for it all and I've had so much fun with the character. I love everything she gets to do, especially the comedic stuff. It's nice to practice your comedic skills once in a while, and so I think I'm very fortunate."

The final season of The OC starts Friday, July 6, at 10.40pm on TV2.