Best Sitcom of the 1990s: Saved by the Bell Essay

As a tween in the 90s, I was in love with Zachary “Zach” Morris. Who is Zach Morris you ask? Well, he was only the coolest guy alive at Bayside High School in Palisades, California, and the star of the sitcom Saved by the Bell. Zach (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) along with his friends, A.C. Slater (Mario Lopez), Screech Powers (Dustin Diamond), Lisa Turtle (Lark Voorhies), Jessie Myrtle-Spano (Elizabeth Berkley), and Kelly Kapowski (Tiffani Thiessen), were high school best friends who grew up in front of my eyes on the TV screen. This television show only lasted for four seasons but is still one of my favorite shows.

How Saved by the Bell Changed my Life

Okay, maybe the subtitle above is a bit dramatic, the half-hour show did not actually change my life, but it did give me my first crush, Mark-Paul Gosselear, my first nemesis, Tiffani Thiessen, (in her defense, she had no idea I hated her for stealing my man), and introduced me to many stereotypical high school roles that I later experienced for real in my life. As I said above, Saved by the Bell did not change my life, but it introduced me to high school and made me excited to be a teenager.

Let me Introduce you to the Cast

The creators of this popular NBC show made sure to cover all the necessary high school roles when they created this sitcom. Zach was the epitome of fresh and was always ending up in some trouble. A.C. Slater was the jock of the bunch, and probably had the biggest heart of them all. Screech was the token dork of the group and could be counted on always to make the audience laugh with his smart, nerdy behavior. Kelly was gorgeous and the main squeeze of Zach. As a result, Zach would do just about anything to swoon the beautiful Kelly. Lisa loved fashion and often got in a bit of trouble for gossiping. Lastly, Jessie was a straight A student who was a bit of a feminist, and the on again/off again girlfriend of A.C. Slater.
Mr. Belding: The Fearless Leader of the Pack

Reigning them all in was their Principal Mr. Richard Belding (Dennis Haskins). Mr. Belding attempted to rule with an iron fist, but instead usually found a soft spot for his six favorite students. When Mr. Belding did try to come down on the kids, Zack and A.C. usually had a fool-proof plan to trick their dimwitted principal.

• Cast attended the fictional Bayside High School
• Show was based in Palisades, California
• Show ran for four seasons
• Aired original episodes from 1989 to 1993
• Created by Sam Bobrick