You weren't kidding about how much they packed into Melrose Place; I haven't seen it since its initial run, and when I heard the canon submission described, I was in disbelief that that was still in season 2 (essentially season 1 of Melrose Place As We Know It). By that point Michael had already been through Jane, Kimberley, and Sydney.
One thing that occurred to me is that the name "Jake" never came up in the recap %u2014 wasn't he at one time the ostensible star/audience surrogate? I know he was the subject of the 90210 backdoor pilot.
Seconded on wishing more had come out of Thomas Calabro. For such a successful show, it sure didn't launch many careers.