[Article] Saved by the Bell: The New Class ? The Seemingly Superior Spin-Off

[Your Name]

Personally, I wasn't really interested in the original (only ever saw a
few episodes) and have never seen any episodes the spin-offs.


From ComingSoon.net ...

Saved by the Bell: The New Class - The Seemingly Superior Spin-Off
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ComingSoon.net, 25 Sep 2023 11:00am by Stephen Wilds

Saved by the Bell was a phenomenon no one was expecting, but one
that didn't catch on in its first incarnation - Good Morning Miss
Bliss. Once the program was re-tweaked, the core version of the
show only ran for four seasons, and it was clear there was room
for more. After the kids graduated and went Hawaiian Style, fans
were given two spin-off series. One of these was where the bulk of
the cast was intended to spend their College Years, but that only
lasted one season. The group was given their proper sendoff with a
Wedding in Las Vegas and a couple of guest spots before returning
to the roles years later. That secondary offspring was largely
written off by many fans. However, while the original cast
struggled to keep their spot, The New Class took Bayside to
incredible heights.

If we're looking at the numbers, Saved by the Bell proper ran for
86 episodes over 4 seasons. The New Class continued on much longer,
lasting 143 episodes and running seven seasons. Some speculate that
the show was only meant to go for two or three seasons, based on
the original contracts. The sixth and seventh seasons are only 13
episodes instead of 26 (just like the first season) due to them
splitting the last batch to let the program run longer.

The New Class was considered successful, generating a ton of
merchandise, including a board game as well as a 10-novel book
series. The ratings were rock solid, especially after the initial
season. Though some fans felt slighted by these new students at
their high school, the show did bring in more viewers who were just
learning about SbtB via re-runs, as well as an audience that wasn't
familiar with the original cast at all but connected with the fresh
faces.

Much like its predecessor struggled in the time with Miss Bliss,
the first 13-episode season of The New Class was accused of being a
carbon copy of its namesake. The new pupils acted as watered-down
stand-ins of the previous tenants.

Scott Erikson fills the role of the new Zack, a charismatic schemer
who's a bit of a gutter human. Thomas "Tommy D" De Luca is a less
likeable and dumber version of Slater, while Lindsay Warner is Kelly
with an attempt at more depth. Megan Jones and Vicki Needleman have
traits similar to Lisa and Jessie, but fit less into those molds.
Most remember Barton "Weasel" Wyzell, who acted as the new Screech.
Though some fans who hung around from the previous run appreciated
the familiarity, the producers were smart enough to realize that
wouldn't work long-term and shook the cast up.

Over the years, some of the actors were fired or simply let go,
others opted not to re-sign, and a few left due to personal reasons.
But for any fans who thought having Tori show up in random episodes
was confusing, trying to follow this group of kids could require a
flow chart. The second season saw an overhaul of the sets, and began
a trend of adding new re-tooled characters without making much
mention of where the previous cast members went.

I won't name all of the performers who graced the halls of Bayside,
but there are several talented people who became a part of the SbtB
family and went on to have extensive careers. Isaac Lidsky (Weasel)
certainly has the most interesting story outside of acting. Actors
like Bianca Lawson (Megan), Jonathan Angel (Tommy D), Natalia
Cigliuti (Lindsay), and Sarah Lancaster (Rachel Meyers) all stand
out in various ways and leave solid impressions on the show.

There are a few duds, but the only addition that felt completely off
was Christian Oliver as Brian Keller, another Zack-like who happened
to be a foreign exchange student and was hard to like. I suppose the
showrunners noticed that too, because he was only around for the
second season. He soon returned back home to Switzerland with no one
remembering him.  

The two mainstays of course are Dennis Haskins as Principal Richard
Belding and his new assistant as of season two, Samuel "Screech"
Powers, once again played by Dustin Diamond after the end of
The College Years. Haskins is incredible as always and has chemistry
with the new cast while dialing his kookiness up a notch. Diamond's
return helped the show and some episodes show off his talents while
others see him get a bit too weird and goofy.

These two pillars of SbtB become their own side duo, sometimes in
grating ways, but they are also likely part of how it ran for so
long. A few of the old teachers return for brief appearances as well
as a ton of notable guest stars that have since become quite famous.
We also see some recognizable names of several behind-the-scenes
talents that stayed on or returned as well.

Members of the original cast including Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Zack),
Lark Voorhies (Lisa), and Mario Lopez (Slater) ended up making a
guest appearance or two and occasionally showing up in flashback
clips. A few of their real-life and character names were also used
with new characters to pay homage to the stars who paved the way.
The old cast apparently did promos with the group of kids from
season one, but these reportedly only aired during a re-showing of
Hawaiian Style and seem to be difficult to find now.

Characters weren't the only thing revisited in this spin-off. Before
season two's revamp the original sets were used along with a few
additional outdoor shots and more pre-recorded footage. The kids are
constantly doing 'adventure' episodes, making it seem like they were
never in school. They notably visited Cal U, the site of the other
spin-off, and it appears those sets were later redecorated for
additional vacation segments as well. The group received several
versions of their own Malibu Sands-style summer job breaks with
escapades at the Palisade Hills Country Club, Gold Canyon Ranch,
Sleepy Mountain Ski Lodge, France, a cruise ship, space camp, and
more, but my favorite tales like these are located in the mall.

There is also some criticism lobbed at the show for revisiting so
many plots similar to the original show. Even within just The New
Class episodes, previously established elements were ignored, which
is normal for sitcoms to have a stern status quo to return to after
each storyline. But like their predecessor, this series wasn't
always aired in production order, making things even more confusing.
Combine that with the rotating class and this show truly did try and
give viewers the feel of being a teacher at Bayside - watching
everything old become new again, just with different kids trying the
same tricks.

The New Class may be a bit more risqué than the original show. Both
had male stars go shirtless and their female performers appear in
bathing suits and other tight outfits, but this iteration seemed to
do that quite often, showing a lot more midriff, and allowing for
some extra sexually suggestive jokes. Nothing ever goes too far and
this new take on the school was arguably aimed at a wider age range,
but the themes discussed over the larger number of episodes do seem
to be a bit heavier. Yes, there were also still a couple of
culturally inappropriate jokes and characters dressing up in
stereotypical outfits of people from other countries. It almost
feels like it wouldn't be SbtB without those problematic elements.  

This sounds like a mountain of negatives against the show, but for
those who loved the original, so much of this series works. It's easy
to root for several of the new kids, even if they don't stick around,
and though not every scene is as snappy as it could be the chemistry
builds quickly and the events feel familiar in a positive way. There
are a lot of episodes, but I kept finding myself wanting to watch
more to see what else happened. Just because it has a lot of things
to point out doesn't mean I'm entertained any less. It's less of a
guilty pleasure and more exploration and history. 

I'm not alone in this, as the show was reportedly doing well leading
into its last two seasons. Even at the end, NBC was looking at two
other potential spin-offs and there was even a play in the works.
None of that came to pass, but the franchise certainly lived on, even
spawning the continuation series in 2020. The New Class had left
showrunners and executives confident. So why is it so largely ignored
now? Most fans seem to have either forgotten the follow-up series or
shun it, while the network rarely mentions it and doesn't even have
it available to stream anywhere. 

It's a shame. The New Class made the grade the studio wanted. They
put in the effort and brought a lot of school spirit, surpassing their
elders in some ways. Still - they just couldn't compete after high
school.


<https://www.comingsoon.net/tv/features/1346219-saved-by-the-bell-the-new-class-the-seemingly-superior-spin-off>

[Ian J. Ball]

On 9/24/23 6:02 PM, Your Name wrote:

> Personally, I wasn't really interested in the original (only ever saw a
> few episodes) and have never seen any episodes the spin-offs.
>
>
> From ComingSoon.net ...
>
>    Saved by the Bell: The New Class - The Seemingly Superior Spin-Off
>    ------------------------------------------------------------------
>    ComingSoon.net, 25 Sep 2023 11:00am by Stephen Wilds

Well, you still continue to pull from one of the worst websites out
there - This article is complete bullshit: TNC was absolute *junk*, esp.
after its first season...

[BTR1701]

In article <ueqm6o$1ja8u$1...@dont-email.me>,

Your Name <Your...@YourISP.com> wrote:

> Personally, I wasn't really interested in the original (only ever saw a
> few episodes) and have never seen any episodes the spin-offs.

I was only ever interested in Kelly Kapowski.

[anim8rfsk]

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/SZQAAOSwKL5cNntE/s-l1200.webp

--
The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but it is still on my list.

[Ian J. Ball]

TNC had some lookers, esp. Sarah Lancaster.

[anim8rfsk]

Chuck her!

[BTR1701]

On Sep 24, 2023 at 7:31:13 PM PDT, "anim8rfsk" <anim...@cox.net> wrote:

> BTR1701 <atr...@mac.com> wrote:
>> In article <ueqm6o$1ja8u$1...@dont-email.me>,
>> Your Name <Your...@YourISP.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Personally, I wasn't really interested in the original (only ever saw a
>>> few episodes) and have never seen any episodes the spin-offs.
>>
>> I was only ever interested in Kelly Kapowski.
>>
>
> https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/SZQAAOSwKL5cNntE/s-l1200.webp

Where's my bunk?

[Ubiquitous]

In article <ueqm6o$1ja8u$1...@dont-email.me>, Your...@YourISP.com wrote:

>Personally, I wasn't really interested in the original (only ever saw a
>few episodes) and have never seen any episodes the spin-offs.

What spinoff? You mean when they went to college?

--
Let's go Brandon!

[Ubiquitous]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOzBfsm4VCo

--
Let'a go Brandon!