It has been over a decade since I last watched Saved by the Bell: The New Class but remembering how I grew up watching the hilarious series, I was not able to hesitate borrowing the DVD tapes from the library to watch again.
After watching several episodes of seasons 3, 4, and 5 again, the first thing I have to say about this series is that true enough, the plots and story lines cannot match the original SBTB series. The acting was very wooden at times, the scripts likewise seemed too scripted, the story lines seemed rehashed from the original series, and there weren't as many serious issues the characters dealt with as compared to the original series that hadn't been covered already. All of this made SBTBNC rather average.
Yet there were some things that made SBTBNC very worthwhile to watch. The fashion was definitely better than the original series though that's my opinion because I was teenager myself during SBTBNC's years. Seasons 4 and 5 also hit well with the stepbrother duo of Ryan and Nicky and the hot tempered Maria also being a delight to watch. This series also branches out of the high school and shows what teenagers can do outside of school such as obtaining part time jobs, doing community service at a hospital, and travelling (all courtesy of a good economy during the Clinton years). Surprisingly, the odd and unlikely duo of Mr. Belding and Screech also helped keep the series alive.
One may wonder why Screech is not in college but working as Mr. B's administrative assistant and that is because his days as a Bayside student prepared him for this. After being tormented, cheated, used, bullied, mocked, and ignored throughout high school, Screech very likely felt like an insecure loser, and this was his opportunity to relive high school and try his luck again. His emotional outbursts (though sometimes overacted), his obsession with being the save-the-day know-it-all, his off-campus ventures such as an out of control lottery ticket gambling habit and balloon business (season 4) to a second job as mall security guard (season 5) also proved that Screech was more insecure than ever and was trying to come out as a hero and overcome his perception of himself as a loser. Yet there were times that Screech would cunningly outsmart the students or even Mr. Belding himself which showed that he did shed some of the his old timid self.
This same goes for Mr. Belding who is always friendly to his students but by this late a time is clearly suffering some sort of midlife crisis and tries to deny that he is getting old by refusing to wear glasses (season 4), trying to prove that he has special abilities in all areas (running a hospital experiment, taking ballet classes, running outside businesses at Palisades Mall, and living in a mock space shuttle) and desperately trying to be the best mentor and friend to his students. Underlying the comedy, the theatrics, and the overacting,these two characters reveal very serious, scary, and at times depressing issues that have to do more with life after high school and sends a potent message to young viewers.
All in all, the series is not as bad as one thinks.
After watching several episodes of seasons 3, 4, and 5 again, the first thing I have to say about this series is that true enough, the plots and story lines cannot match the original SBTB series. The acting was very wooden at times, the scripts likewise seemed too scripted, the story lines seemed rehashed from the original series, and there weren't as many serious issues the characters dealt with as compared to the original series that hadn't been covered already. All of this made SBTBNC rather average.
Yet there were some things that made SBTBNC very worthwhile to watch. The fashion was definitely better than the original series though that's my opinion because I was teenager myself during SBTBNC's years. Seasons 4 and 5 also hit well with the stepbrother duo of Ryan and Nicky and the hot tempered Maria also being a delight to watch. This series also branches out of the high school and shows what teenagers can do outside of school such as obtaining part time jobs, doing community service at a hospital, and travelling (all courtesy of a good economy during the Clinton years). Surprisingly, the odd and unlikely duo of Mr. Belding and Screech also helped keep the series alive.
One may wonder why Screech is not in college but working as Mr. B's administrative assistant and that is because his days as a Bayside student prepared him for this. After being tormented, cheated, used, bullied, mocked, and ignored throughout high school, Screech very likely felt like an insecure loser, and this was his opportunity to relive high school and try his luck again. His emotional outbursts (though sometimes overacted), his obsession with being the save-the-day know-it-all, his off-campus ventures such as an out of control lottery ticket gambling habit and balloon business (season 4) to a second job as mall security guard (season 5) also proved that Screech was more insecure than ever and was trying to come out as a hero and overcome his perception of himself as a loser. Yet there were times that Screech would cunningly outsmart the students or even Mr. Belding himself which showed that he did shed some of the his old timid self.
This same goes for Mr. Belding who is always friendly to his students but by this late a time is clearly suffering some sort of midlife crisis and tries to deny that he is getting old by refusing to wear glasses (season 4), trying to prove that he has special abilities in all areas (running a hospital experiment, taking ballet classes, running outside businesses at Palisades Mall, and living in a mock space shuttle) and desperately trying to be the best mentor and friend to his students. Underlying the comedy, the theatrics, and the overacting,these two characters reveal very serious, scary, and at times depressing issues that have to do more with life after high school and sends a potent message to young viewers.
All in all, the series is not as bad as one thinks.