<insert crazy ramblings here>

or What Would Jessie Do?

Most people's moral compasses are pretty firmly set by the time they reach puberty*. So the moral tales we are told as children massively influence the adults we grow up to be. I grew up watching a whole slew of TV programs with moral messages (Captain Planet being an extreme example with a post episode epilogue, in case you hadn't already got it). I'm not talking about stuff like Grange Hill, which had moral messages, but also had plenty of shades of grey. The one that I think typifies it most, is probably Saved by the Bell.

I should make it clear here, that approximately half of my life, and thousands of units of alcohol, have passed since the last time I last saw an episode. So my recollections are hazy and pickled, and I've done no research on it. All anecdotes about episodes are entirely made up, but are the sort of thing I could see happening.

In fact it's entirely possible that I've completely failed to recall the real sentiments of the show. I'm probably assigning a whole buckful of cliches from other shows to this one. This isn't about the actual Saved by the Bell series; It's about the one that lives on inside my head.

For those of you who haven't seen it, Saved by the Bell followed the wacky adventures of group of kids going through an American high school*. They were:

• Zack: The Grifter
• Slater: The Jock
• Screech: The Nerd
• Kelly: The Cheerleader
• Jessie: The Self-Righteous one
• Lisa: The Gossip

The zeroth rule of Saved by the Bell is: ( Diversity exists, and is not a big deal. )

Corollary to zeroth rule: ( Friendship transcends societies boundaries. )

This entry's long enough as is, so follow ups to come.

* Not saying that people can't change. Just that they don't often.
** I am not counting College Years, or New Class in this, as they were fairly different, and fairly rubbish, respectively
*** Did we ever see the rest of the team?