Saved by the Bell - TV-PG

Classic teen sitcom still entertains. Tweens OK.

TV Rating: TV-PG Network: TBS Genre: Comedy

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know that adolescent kissing is prevalent, as are references to heavy petting, which means it's up to them to decide whether tweens are mature enough to understand the significance of this behavior. The sarcastic remarks and mild insults constantly aimed at Screech sometimes border on mean. There are sanitized discussions of major teen issues such as peer pressure, drunk driving, and drug abuse.

Families can talk about the value of friendship, as well as how to cope when friends are the source of peer pressure. Have your teens friends ever landed them in a tricky situation? Because the series presents an idealized picture of high school, families can also discuss how difficult high school can be in real life. How is your teen's school different from Bayside? Boy/girl relationships, boundaries, and inappropriate behavior are also topics that families may want to talk about.

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Melissa Camacho

Surviving a variety of incarnations, SAVED BY THE BELL is a positive series about school, friends, and lessons learned. When the series first aired as Good Morning, Miss Bliss (starring Haley Mills) on the Disney Channel in 1987, preteens were introduced to Principal Richard Belding (Dennis Haskins), precocious Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar), eccentric and somewhat nerdy Screech Powers (Dustin Diamond), and popular Lisa Turtle (Lark Voorhies). The series morphed into Saved by the Bell in 1989 when it moved to NBC and became a permanent fixture of their Saturday morning line-up until 1993. (These days, it airs in syndication and is available on DVD.)

Saved by the Bell offers a world that reflects the ultimate high school experience, as seen through the eyes of Zack. At Bayside High, Zack, Screech, and Lisa are joined by good-looking transfer student A.C. Slater (Mario Lopez), sweet Kelly Kapowski (Tiffani Thiessen), and intellectual over-achiever Jessie Spano (Elizabeth Berkley). The Bayside clique is a diverse but tight-knit social circle that most junior and senior high school students can only dream about. Plots range from the silly (Zack and Slater bet on who can kiss a girl the longest), to the romantic (Zack skips the prom when girlfriend Kelly can't afford to attend), all the way to the serious (underage drinking and driving and pill addiction).

It's all pretty cheesy, but it's also well-intentioned. At the end of each show, lessons are learned -- lessons that are often guided by Principal Belding or, when dealing with more major issues, a parent. The show's adults, while often presented more as caricatures than real people, are respected and are received as mentors by the kids. But as is the case with most average teens, sexual innuendos (albeit innocent ones) and mild profanity are an integral part of the Bayside teens' lingo. While the significance of these words clearly goes over the head of most young children, they're clear enough for preteens to understand.

Nonetheless, Saved by the Bell offers an opportunity for viewers to watch relatively good kids learn from their mistakes and grow from the process. This growth process continues in Saved by the Bell: The College Years, the follow-up series in which Zack and his friends soon discover that the popularity and pranks that characterized their high school experience don't work in college. (Plus, in an ironic twist that gives hope to all teen geeks, Screech becomes a "big man on campus.") Even though it only lasted 19 episodes, the third reincarnation of the series offers the same positive messages about school, friendship, and the value of learning from one's mistakes.

Other classic sitcoms for preteens and teens include Full House and Growing Pains.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content Boy/girl social dynamics. Discussions of crushes and romance. Teens kiss and date. References to heavy petting.
Violence Occasional scenes of kids pushing each other. These actions are quickly stopped by other kids or an adult and are portrayed as hurtful and inappropriate.
Language Mild ("butt," etc.).
Message
	Social Behavior Promotes positive behavior, respect toward adults, taking responsibility for one's actions, school spirit, and the value of friendship. Teens of various ethnicities and social backgrounds are featured. Anti-social/racial behavior isn't tolerated.
	Commercialism References to "designer" fashion, but no specific designers are highlighted. Brands of food and beverages are non-specific. The make of particular cars, such as the hood of a Mercedes Benz, is occasionally noticeable, but isn't discussed specifically.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco Some shows discuss substance use, including under-age drinking and the abuse of over-the-counter pills. Usage always provides the characters with a lesson about staying clean and sober.