Discover Why 2008's One Tree Hill is Super Hot and Sophisticated

In 2008, American teens, twenty-somethings, and thirty-somethings can really sink their teeth into the bold new season of One Tree Hill. In a brilliant move, the writers of this former high school soap drama have fast-forwarded the lives of Haley, Lucas, Nathan, Peyton, Brooke, Mouth, and Skills four years into the future. After the first seven episodes, it is hard not to be hooked.

Why is this season super hot and somehow more appealing than previous seasons? The chemistry between the characters combined with the visual appeal of the actors is not new. This soap was always a nice combination of ordinary people (Mouth) and beautiful people (Brooke and Peyton). The show has also consistently weaved a combination of questionable social themes and strong values. For example, Haley James Scott (played by Bethany Joy Galeotti) is the beautiful, smart teacher who gets married in high school and later has a baby. Remember, Haley always does things in the right order. With the new season, we find that she is now a mother of a darling four-year-old, a first-year high school teacher, and the strong wife who is keeping floundering Nathan on the straight and narrow.

Haley provides an intriguing contrast when compared with Brooke (Sophia Bush), the rich party girl who goes through booze and beaus like bottled water. The more mature Brooke had actually evolved in the previous season into a more mature girl who cared more about friendships than backstabbing and cheerleading. Now she has returned to Tree Hill to be near her friends and her national clothing line is doing well. She is currently struggling to keep her mom (Daphne Zuniga) from ruining her life and her rekindled high school friendships.

All of the characters have evolved into stronger adults who make wiser decisions. The bad boy, pretty boy combo of Lucas, played by Chad Michael Murray, is still a bit confused in this incarnation. He is wavering back and forth between his live-in girlfriend, Lindsey, and his old flame, Peyton, both of whom moved to Tree Hill to be with him. At the end of Episode 7, Lucas asks Peyton why she returned to torture him, and she admits that she still loves him and that is why she returned. Instead of taking her back, Lucas makes a rash decision to go home and propose to Lindsey. In case you missed it, Peyton had turned down Lucas' marriage proposal during the first year she was away at college in Los Angeles, which we learned in a flashback episode in this season.

Another explanation for the show's new appeal to older (but young) adults is that the show is really focusing on contemporary twenty-somethings. It is now more believable that everyone is sleeping around, falling into and out of serious relationships, struggling with career decisions, and finding their adult personas. You have to get into the vibe of the club scene, the band hired by Peyton's new label, the interaction between the characters and the people they meet in their new careers, and the unfolding drama between Peyton and Lindsey as they prepare to duke it out for Lucas' heart. It is also possible that Brook still has a thing for Lucas because she jokes about it. She tries too hard to be a good friend and support Peyton's replay for Lucas. How long can she keep it up?

There are also some interesting new characters in the cast. The big surprise is Jason, a grungy band singer played by Kevin Federline. Although his part does not seem like one to stick around, he has been on several episodes. His performance gives a whole new dimension to the current drama of Britney Spears. One wonders how she ever married this roughneck.

There is also a hot, nightclub bartender named Owen, who in Season 7 rebuffs a flirtation from Brooke. He said he will ask her out after she grows up. Right now, she should just enjoy being 22. There is also Millicent, Brooke's cute and wholesome new assistant and the nanny hired by Haley who is making a play for Nathan. It is unclear if the Lindsey character will stick around. How short-lived will Lucas' intention to marry her prove to be?

You have to catch the rest of this season to find out how Lucas will figure this love triangle out. Somehow his new career as a successful novelist turned basketball coach is not quite believable as he struggles between true love, bad boy, and two-timing pretty boy. Watch and see this deliciously lovely evolution of One Tree Hill.