Happy Anniversary Saved by the Bell

30 years ago today the television show Saved by the Bell aired its first episode ¹. This will come to no surprise from people that know me but I’m kind of obsessed with Saved by the Bell.

I was born in 1983, so I was six when the show first aired. A show revolving around High School kids doesn’t seem like a show a six year old would be interested in, but I had two older sisters that also watched the show. That being said, I think I did most of my SBTB watching on weekday mornings and afternoons. In fact, I didn’t watch SBTB in its normal time slot, on Saturday mornings, until the last season or two. Superstations TBS and WGN used to air back to back episodes before and after school. Local station, KPLR channel 11, also aired back to back episodes in the afternoon, so I could potentially watch six episodes in a single day. I was in heaven.

So what is it about the show? It’s cheesy. The acting isn’t the best. The storylines are completely unbelievable. I don’t know what drew me to it. Perhaps I thought High School would really be that way. Zack was the definition of being cool. Kelly was a babe. Whatever it was, it had me hooked. I still watch the show to this day, though now it has been designated as the go-to show I drift in and out of consciousness to when I’m sick.

So now that you know (or have been reminded) of my obsession, let’s take a look at posts from past years on the topic of Saved by the Bell.

• The World Can be Saved (by the Bell) – In this post I discuss how watching Saved by the Bell can solve the world’s problems.
• The Lost Episode of Saved by the Bell – Come watch a promo video that follows the Bayside High gang travel through a world of Saturday Morning TV references. Includes appearances by John Candy, Marsha Warfield and Sherman Hemsley.
• Saved by the Bell: The Game – A board game that Target put out featuring characters from the show.
• Go Bayside – The podcast, hosted by comedian April Richardson, that discussed each episode of the show and the made for TV movies.
• Teens React to Saved by the Bell – Teens from Teens React react to watching Saved by the Bell. Funny to see how different generations react.

So take a trip through your memories and remember a simpler time when you were a child. Flip on Hulu and watch some episodes. Don’t have Hulu? iTunes has the complete series on sale today for $19.99.