Jason Wahler The Hills

The Hills returns tonight for its final season ... most likely. It could be extended a bit. Regardless, here's a look back at some moments that defined its first five:

FORGET PARIS: In the first season finale, Lauren Conrad made a brutal mistake that would haunt her for two more years, choosing to spend the summer with tool Jason Wahler over accompanying Teen Vogue editor Lisa Love to Paris.

Fortunately, Whitney Port stepped in and fast-tracked her fashion career. Not that LC is hurting for cash, or boyfriends. Kyle Howard's a big upgrade over J-Wahl.

FALLING DOWN: As a Teen Vogue intern, Whitney endeared herself to millions after what could have been her worst moment, falling on stage after Vogue tapped her to model Hilary Swank's Oscar gown on Good Morning America.

The way she composed herself and handled the embarrassment with grace and dignity only impressed the higher-ups more, though (sorry to rehash this, Whit).

Two prominent former loves of Lauren Conrad.

THE LC SEX TAPE: It did not exist, but boy, did it spark a lot of celebrity gossip. Spencer Pratt (and in turn, THG) got so much mileage out of this twisted rumor.

BABY MAMA DRAMA: More than once, Heidi Montag has effed with Spencer regarding pregnancy. All a big hoax to watch him squirm? We're all for it even if so.

KISSING BRODY J: Everybody does it at some point, but Lauren and he had such chemistry. Still, despite the Las Vegas birthday hookup, Brody Jenner and Conrad determined they work better as friends, which they've remained since.

THE TRANSFORMATION OF HEIDI MONTAG'S FACE: Enough said, and ongoing.

WORSE THAN HEIDI: LC accused Audrina Patridge of insinuating she hooked up with Justin-Bobby - and that Audzo is worse than Heidi Montag as a result.

A shot from Heidi and Spencer's wedding - the non-staged version.

CAREER EVOLUTION: The show began with a focus on young women and careers in L.A., then became about quasi-celebs whose careers were being on The Hills.

THE WEDDING: Heidi and Spencer's wedding had something old, new, borrowed and even blue ... the dresses worn by both Lauren Conrad and her old nemesis, Kristin Cavallari, who replaced her as the star of the show. Cold, MTV. Cold.

F*%KING PIRANHAS: Kristin didn't wait long to stir up trouble, calling out Audrina and Stephanie Pratt and declaring "you f*%ked with the WRONG girl."

GROSS LOVE TRIANGLE: On a list of things we didn't need to spend a full season watching, Kristin and Audrina fighting over Justin-Bobby would be tops.

Lauren Conrad who?

Officially, The Hills cast is LC and her hot female friends (and enemies). But without the men in their life, MTV's "reality" hit wouldn't be worth watching.

First there was Jason Wahler, a frequently-drunk, always-meatheaded holdover from Lauren's Laguna Beach days who wreaked havoc on both shows.

Then The Hills gave us Spencer Pratt. Heidi Montag's boyfriend / fiance / ex-fiance / manager is a master of manipulation and passive-aggressive rage.

Now it's Justin-Bobby (real name Justin-Brescia) causing fans to scream in agony as he belches and mumbles his way into Audrina Patridge's heart.

You gotta give it up for these guys from a pure entertainment standpoint. They've had quite a run for four seasons and counting. The only question is ...

Who's your favorite Hills villain?

The Hills is a great show.

Cute girls, meatheads chasing after them, career and family issues we can all relate to. Reality TV or completely scripted, you know you can't turn off the drama.

In anticipation of The Hills' fourth season return this evening, here's a video of the cast reflecting on one of the first three seasons' most riveting plot lines - the controversial (alleged) Lauren Conrad sex tape.

Does it exist? One celebrity news site asked Spencer Pratt, Brody Jenner, Jason Wahler, Heidi Montag and Lauren Conrad herself ...

Who even remembers when The Hills cast looked like this. Smiling, young, innocent ... soon to be infected by the cancer that is Jason Wahler.

Ah, the good old days. Sure, there was always drama, but it wasn't nearly as fake. Well, at least not the boobs of Heidi Montag ... or Audrina Patridge.

You gotta love The Hills - past and present. Bonus points for any reader who can name the dude Audrina and Whitney Port are sprawled across!

As 2007 draws to a close, it's time to reflect and pay tribute to the stars who made this a year to remember. On that note, The Hollywood Gossip is announcing its 10 finalists for its first annual Celebrity of the Year award.

They've given us their best, their worst and, in a more than a few cases, their naked pictures. Now it is time for us to give a little something back with this special feature, because without these celebrities, we are nothing.

We previously profiled High Schol Musical hunk Zac Efron at #7. Now, without further delay, we present Celebrity of the Year finalist #6 … The Hills cast!

In a manner of speaking, Lauren Conrad is the straw the stirs The Hills drink. At the same time, without Lauren's smarmy and sexy supporting cast, this Laguna Beach spin-off would never have been catapulted to its massive success.

In Season 3 of The Hills, the end of LC's friendship with Heidi Montag turned into to a public feud, with conflict outside the show spilling into the media.

A Year in The Hills: Star Lauren Conrad led her life, Spencer and Heidi staged a lot of pics, Jason Wahler went to rehab and jail, and Whitney Port sure looked pretty.

Amidst rumors of the Lauren Conrad sex tape, much of the season served as a mole hunt as Lauren had suspicions that the (false) sex tape rumors of were spread by Heidi and boyfriend Spencer Pratt (both Heidi and Spencer denied it).

Combine that central theme with former star Jason Wahler getting arrested four times, Spencer and Heidi getting engaged and staging bikini photo shoots every other day, LC's friend Whitney Port stepping into the limelight, and romance rumors involving Lauren Conrad and Brody Jenner, and a hit series was born.

The drama was so widespread that even bit players such as Gavin Beasley, Stephanie Pratt, Justin-Bobby Brescia and Jenn Bunney got in on the action. It was a year to remember on The Hills, and with at least eight new episodes coming next spring, we can only hope for a repeat - and then some - in 2008.

That's the focal point of this drama-filled episode.

In her continuing efforts to forge a friendship with her former flame, Jason Wahler, star Lauren Conrad wasn't exactly expecting to learn that ...

1. He has a new girlfriend.
2. Oh, and they're living together.
3. They're engaged! Surprise! Woo!

Jason drops bombs #1 and #2 during a lunch date with LC, inviting her to a housewarming party thrown by himself and his new gal. She accepts.

Only when Lauren and Audrina Patridge attend said party do they learn the full extent of Jason's relationship with Katja Decker-Sadowski.

The big moment comes when a drunk frat guy offers a toast - with a plastic cup of beer, just pumped from a keg - to celebrate the engagement of Wahler.

Lauren's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

Her heartbreak and complete shock evident, LC feigns happiness for a time, though later she confides to Jason that "I think you're being an idiot."

After all, he's only 20 years old and still in a recovering alcoholics program that recommends he not date anyone... let alone get engaged to someone.

A calm Jason Wahler just rolls with his ex-girlfriend's criticism, though, and is clearly happy with Katja Decker-Sadowski, a tennis player at USC.

The highlight of the night came when a clearly jealous Katja interrupted Lauren's during her heart-to-heart with Jason on the deck, heaving herself on Wahler's lap in one of the most awkward moments in Hills history. What a bitch!

Left: Jason and fiancee Katja Decker-Sadowski. Right: LC and Whitney.

The next day, Lauren Conrad reflected on the events with a cooler head, saying "this could have been me ... but as much as I love Jason, I'm glad it's not!"

She also noted that she's dreamed about the day gets engaged and it doesn't involve plastic cups of beer and Bob Marley posters. Same here, Lauren!

In other news, Whitney Port drops the ball a little at Teen Vogue when she is in charge of a photo shoot for a band, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, but goes out and parties with them late the night before and everyone shows up late. Fortunately, her editor, Lisa Love, only gives our girl a slight reprimand and tells her to step it up.

Lastly, the loathesome Spencer Pratt is not psyched about registering for wedding presents. Or telling his parents that he's engaged to Heidi Montag. The episode ends with Spence's sheepish admission that his folks don't even know... despite the fact that he's a media whore who appears on a well-known reality show!

Thoughts? Feelings? Comments? Sound off in our Hills forum.

Back her weekend away with the bumbling Justin-Bobby (Justin Brescia), Audrina Patridge announces that the volatile couple is sooo back on.

Lauren and Whitney, meanwhile, discuss the development at work the next day, where Whitney teases an obviously concerned Lauren Conrad.

"They probably worked it out on their own," Whitney Port chides at her friend, adding, "no need for everyone else to get involved!"

Then none other than Jason Wahler calls, and Whitney shoots Lauren a look of disapproval over LC's decision to answer that Blackberry.

Jason takes Lauren to dinner at the new L.A. hotspot Ketchup, a place owned by none other than Paula Abdul boy toy J.T. Torregiani.

Wouldn't you know it, Spencer Pratt just happens to be taking Heidi Montag to that very place to celebrate her promotion at Bolthouse.

After Jason and Lauren share some awkward moments of nostalgic flirtation, the drama starts to go down when a sarcastic Spencer spots them, and says "It's great to see you guys back together, really, it's heartwarming."

LC restrains Jason, who wants to go over to their table and start $h!t. But the needling Spencer sends over a water and a Shirley Temple over to their table, prompting Conrad and Wahler to leave - and get heckled as they do.

Spencer's take: "I wonder if she picked him up in rehab or jail?"

Heidi's take: "After everything she's been through with Jason, and me... who was there for her, through all that hell, is the one she won't talk to... it's baffling."

Jason's take: "Who cares about them?"

Lauren's take: Not a lot, but she gave Jason Wahler SERIOUS kiss-me-now eyes when he drops her off afterwards. Damn, girl! Fortunately, J doesn't make a move. Lauren is really desperate for some loving, guys. Make a move!

Elodie's take: "What exactly did you do to her that makes her not even want to accept a drink from you? And also, you know, you were also friends with Audrina, and she doesn't talk to you anymore. You were friends with Whitney too. You don't even know what's wrong and what's right anymore. It's so sad!"

Oh. Snap. Clearly Heidi Montag's "all business" defense doesn't fly with Elodie, who's still bitter over losing out on that Bolthouse job and pretty damn sick of listening to Heidi whining and bossing around her new assistant.

All in all, The Hills weren't as alive last night as weeks past, but there were some cute moments, unintentional comedy, and groundwork laid for future meltdowns and cat fights. In short, it was a terrific half hour of reality television.

The much-hyped Lauren-Jason reunion was a little anticlimactic, and was put off until the closing moments, but it turned out to be remarkably sweet.

As much as a scene featuring Jason Wahler can be, anyway.

Genuine and a tad awkward, Lauren Conrad was honest with her man when he asked why she cut him out of her life: "I had to make a clean break from you."

If LC were Audrina, she wouldn't have said "I want to be friends with you someday, not now," rather, she would've ridden into the sunset with J-Wahl.

Yes, roomie Patridge had done so earlier - literally - with Justin-Bobby (Justin Brescia) after taking him back for the 80th time. So touching.

Props to the producers at MTV for accenting both scenes with an emotional pop ballad about the perils of love and the challenge of finding one's soul mate. This may be reality TV, but it feels like a movie with an eight-figure budget.

Meanwhile, Friday Night Lights is pure fiction, yet feels like a documentary. But we're getting way off topic from The Hills here.

Anyway, Lauren and Jason met up for coffee and a heart-to-heart. Much as we look for ways to bash Jason Wahler, he seemed sincere and regretful, admitting to "being so out of control" and apologizing for his bad habits and behavior.

A calm, coherent, and clean cut (though still a little scruffy) Wahler was a nice change for fans of The Hills. Heck, we sure prefer him to Spencer Pratt. We wonder if this was all shot before his engagement to Katja Decker-Sadowski.

In any case, Whitney Port was shocked - in her typical, expressive fashion - when she heard about Jason's return. We always love Ms. Port and her role. Lauren would be advised to take her boss Whit's sage advice to heart. Girl knows her stuff!

LC and friends made a number of mature conclusions about guys this week, albeit ones they will probably ignore despite better judgment ...

• Lauren Conrad stated that, as soon as you stop thinking about bad guys, they can sense it, like radar, and call. So true, girl!
• There is no such thing as the perfect guy, noted Audrina Patriduge.
• Not everyone's going to be your Prince Charming, added Whitney Port.
• Oh, and never date your trainer. Audrina and Lauren ended up going out with their personal trainer, Jarett, and his lame friend, Derek, who Lauren was so turned off by, she could barely hide it. He talked about himself the entire time. Needless to say, LC's one-date streak curse remained intact.

Nooooooooooo!

Say it ain't so, LC. Please?

The Hills star Lauren Conrad was reunited with her ex-boyfriend, Jason Wahler, for a walk down Sunset Boulevard on Thursday in Los Angeles.

Wahler, 20, is said to be dating tennis player Katja Decker-Sadowski. He's also has been at Chapman House, Orange County's inpatient rehab facility.

Lauren Conrad, 21, has reportedly visited J-Wahl in rehab.

According to reports, MTV was filming portions of Season 3 of Lauren Conrad's hit MTV reality show, The Hills, which is due to air beginning in August.

Sadly, Jason and Lauren were seen side by side and deep in conversation during the recent taping, which occurred outside the eatery Ketchup.

LC's enemies, former BFF Heidi Montag and her conniving, slimy fiance, Spencer Pratt, were also spotted inside the restaurant. Sounds like night full of winners!

At least Josh Henderson was nowhere to be found. Although compared to the likes of Jason Wahler, perhaps we should be wishing he were on LC's arm.

For those of you not familiar with the dating history of LC and Jason, they broke up when he cheated on her with ex Jessica Smith... then again on Season 2 of The Hills.

Wahler has since been arrested four times ... in four different states!

Want the inside scoop on the breakup between Laguna Beach alumni Lauren Conrad and boyfriend Jason Wahler? You know, the one that happened sometime after the season finale of The Hills, but that wasn't shown on TV?

Well, who better to deliver the news, albeit in disjointed, convoluted fashion, than Jason himself. On his myspace blog, he details the rumors... the turmoil... the drama... the anguish... *sniff*

Frankly, MTV bad boy Jason (right) always struck the editors at T.H. Gossip as a bit of a drama queen, not a very good boyfriend to Lauren, and a self-centered meathead. With circa 1996 frosted hair. But that's just us, and beside the point.

Here's excerpts from his blog, if you want to know Jason's take on LC, their breakup, and life in general. If there's one thing we learned from it, it's that being rich does not necessarily guarantee you a good education in this country. And that just because you write many paragraphs about something does not mean they contain anything useful. Note that below is the abridged version...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Alright so in the past week I've recieved [sic] tons of comments and emails saying things basically referring to Lauren & Mine's [sic] relationship. First and foremost its obviously non [sic] of your business, But theres been scandals/reports of people saying different things of why we broke up and so on....

... Let me first begin this by saying Lauren and I are not together anymore. The media has gotten the biggest kick out of it and so on. And as they seem to call it 'funny' I dont think its very funny myself... Their [sic] saying I went phycho [sic] and she broke it off with me, I was flirting with girls and so on... The next paragraph will explain the true and honest story.

... Starting around Mid/Late July after we got back from our trip, we just constantly started arguing. I'd call her and she'd be busy and couldn't talk, so she'd call me later and I didn't have time to talk. And that basically went on for about a week. Then when we finally found the time to be around each other, things just seemed to slowly drift apart.

... It's not that we didnt wanna be around each other, we just simply had nothing really to say. So withen [sic] the next week we hung out a couple times and every time we hung out it just got further and further apart to the part where it just looked like we didnt even know each other. So I basically went up to Laguna for the weekend and when I came back to Los Angeles things have just compleetly [sic] changed.

... Then all it took was me to say "so is this the end" and thats when the downpour came. We constantly fought and argued for about a week, until we just decided that we couldnt be together anymore, and our relationship just wasnt working. I was out at clubs partying, and she was doing the same and our trust for each other faded. Either way you put the relationship, it wasn't my fault, and it wasn't her fault. It just happened that way, and I'm sorry that it had too but it was the best for both of us.

... To be honest and truthfull [sic] saying goodbye to a relationship that had lasted to long with a person that I cared so much for, hurt more than anything. I would have given it all to make it work, but I put my best effort foreward [sic] and so did she and sometimes things just don't always work out the way you plan for them too.

... The only thing you can do is save their memories, keep them in your heart, and move on with your life. Which is exactly what I'm going to do. No matter what happens in life I'll always wish Lauren the best and I really hope she finds 'the one' I'm just sorry I wasnt it.

... As far as the future looks as of right now, there really isn't much of a chance for use to be together again. We're both moving foreward [sic], and hoping for the best. As of right now were just 'friends' were not good friends and were not enemys [sic].

... We dont ignore each other, but yet again we dont go out of our way to hang out. I still love her more than anything, she was my first true love. I wish her nothing but hapiness and success in life and her career.

... Maybey [sic] after the reading of this you will see me more than just 'laguna beaches [sic] bad boy' ... or at least id [sic] hope so."