A hit in its time slot, it thrust its young cast into the spotlight.
It’s worth remembering though, thatcertain elements ofSaved by the Bellhave aged badly.
Navigating the layers of improbability, trying to pull off something like this nowadays is unimaginable.
Imagining the same ’90s demographic attempting to watch an episode ofEuphoriaseems unfathomable.
Lisa had said no multiple times in every episode, yet Screech never stopped pursuing her.
Moreover, he was often encouraged by his friends not to give up and keep at it.
Custom image by Yeider Chacon
Lisa was by no means a wallflower, and could very much handle herself.
In fact, her retorts and put-downs could be considered bullying in itself.
The two would bicker and one-up each other, with varying degrees of success.
An iconic sitcom of the early 90s, Saved By The Bell follows six students (Zack Morris, Kelly Kapowski, A.C. Slater, Jessie Spano, Samuel “Screech” Powers, Lisa Turtle) and their years at Bayside High School in Palisades, California.
There was no need for such a dark twist in a usually cheery sitcom.
Jeff was brought in as the foil to Zack in his relationship with Kelly in season 2.
He was in college and Kelly’s boss at The Max, and the two began openly dating.
However, the fact that nobody batted an eyelid at this was very much a sign of the times.
Zack decided to help by raffling off a kiss from Lisa, with absolutely no discussion or consent.
When the raffle doesn’t raise quite enough money, he turns to selling her clothes.
Again, with no prior discussion.
Blatant disregard for boundaries and personal space aside, this borders on assault.
It also shows a complete lack of respect between people who are supposed to be friends.
4The Zack Tapes Episode
There is a lot to unpack about this episode.
But using it for such dastardly purposes is far from lighthearted.
Zack tries to manipulate his fellow classmates to go out with him using specially crafted subliminal messaging tapes.
It works at first, but his plan soon gets foiled.
This is highly inappropriate and should have been seen as such even then.
Or at least it would demand to see some severe repercussions on the perpetrator.
With Tiffani Thiessen and Elizabeth Berkley both unavailable for any additional shoots, the creators decided to get creative.
She became Zack’s new romantic interest and was part of some memorable storylines.
Additionally, after her departure, the originally planned graduation episode aired, with Thiessen and Berkley back.
It’s still a very strange arc to navigate during a re-watch.
During a family history assignment, Zack finds out he has some Native American heritage.
What ensues is a mishmash of cultural appropriation, stereotyping, and backward thinking.
There is no way the hero of any modern program would be shown acting this way nowadays.
1The Girls of Bayside Calendar
So many wrong things happen in the episode “Model Students”.
Firstly, Zack and Screech take candid, unsolicited pictures of the girls' swim team.
These are fully illegal images of teenagers in bathing suits.
The girls change their tune when a professional photographer shows interest in showcasing them in a teen fashion magazine.
It’s undoubtedly one of the more jarringSaved By the Bellepisodes to watch.
