The Hills: An alternate ending

The original cast of "The Hills," with their original faces and bodies (for the most part) in 2006.
source: MTV.com

Last week, MTV released an alternate ending to reality series "The Hills," which ended its run in 2010. For all the talk and mocking of "The Hills," it seems kind of lost on the general population that it started out as a somewhat humble little "reality" show in fall 2004 that, in itself, was a response to the popularity of the television show "The O.C."

I loyally watched pretty much every episode of "The Hills" because I'd loved "Laguna Beach" so much, and not because I always enjoyed it. When Kristin Cavallari joined the cast, I cheered because I'd always been "Team Kristin," never "Team Lauren." Sure, she was more dramatic and perhaps arrogant, but she also stood up for herself and didn't take crap from anyone.

Anyway, the "Hills" ending that aired in 2010 showed Kristin seemingly on her way to the airport, headed for Europe. An acoustic version of the show's theme song, "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield, plays somberly in the background. Kristin looks out the window of her cab towards her proverbial future as Lauren had once done in her flashy convertible, driving up the 101 from Laguna Beach, California to Los Angeles. And as Kristin had herself done in 2005, when she drove up the same route a year after Lauren, to begin college in Los Angeles.

We are then shown each of the cast members looking contemplative, juxtaposed against old footage of themselves. As the scene returns to Brody Jenner, the Hollywood sign behind him begins to move and is removed from the frame, and the camera pans out to reveal a soundstage, lights, production crew.

The alternate ending has an appendix to the original ending: that of Brody returning to his apartment to find Lauren Conrad nonchalantly waiting for him on his couch. We are meant to believe that they are together, and that Brody is still hiding something from Lauren when he refers to Kristin as "a friend." After a short, stilted exchange and dramatic glances into nothingness (a "Laguna Beach/Hills" trademark), Brody smiles at Lauren and she breaks into a wicked grin.

Lauren wins. She's always been a step ahead of Kristin, paving the path for her as far as MTV reality shows are concerned. But this time, she finally gets the guy, too. It's not Stephen Colletti, but Brody Jenner's not a bad alternative.

I don't know, guys. What do you think of the alternate ending? Which do you like better? Do you think Lauren should've taken the "high road" and stayed out of the finale altogether, or do you think it was cheeky of her to return for the last scene and, effectively, "win" the Lauren vs. Kristin battle?

What I will say, though, is that I really loved the flashbacks to the earlier seasons, and particularly to the first two seasons of "Laguna Beach." We've all come a long way, and for some of the cast members, it was apparent through all the facial and bodily augmentations. There was a time when they were young, brash and somewhat innocent, and there was a time when there was probably some truth to the words that came out of their mouths.

"The Hills" as it ended, with two original cast members, in 2010.
source: MTV.com