Set in the fictional town of Palisades, California, Saved by the Bell follows six teenagers through their fun-filled days at Bayside school and their antic filled nights at their favourite hangout The Max. Heartthrobs Zack and A.C are forever vying for the attention of Kelly, the prettiest and most popular girl in school. Screech is the class clown and electronics genius, and fashion conscious Lisa is mostly occupied with expanding her wardrobe. Jessie is the neutralising force, often trying to convince the gang to do the right thing, all while school Principal Mr Belding is continuously trying to connect with the younger generation...

Saved by the Bell: Season One contains all 16 episodes of the show's first season. Originally broadcast in 1989, this collection dives straight in at the deep end. Thankfully there's no pilot show that introduces the characters - although the fifteenth episode does act as a flashback show.

Anyone coming to this show new will probably cringe at the bad acting (Mark-Paul Gosselaar is particularly annoying as Zack - the sort of smug, cocky little lad your mother warned you not to hang about with); the corny gags and the out of date fashions. But anyone who watched this as a teenager on its original run will have a special place in their heart for the show.

Highlights on this three disc collection include:

The Gift: Screech is struck by lightning, an accident that bestows a gift on him - the ability to see into the future. Never one to miss an opportunity, Zack uses Screech's new power to win a few bets - as well as prepare for a forthcoming test.

Screech's Woman: Zack and Screech's science project isn't going so well after Screech, whose doing all the work, becomes depressed that he can't get a girlfriend. To help his friend out, and ensure their science project is completed, Zack pretends to be a woman and rings Screech. But when Screech wants to meet up Zack is left with a bit of a problem.

Cream for a Day: In his chemistry class, Screech accidentally invents a cream that instantly gets rid of spots. Soon all the kids want some of this miracle cure, but is this ointment too good to be true?

The Beauty and the Screech: Screech offers to tutor Kelly as she's having problems in her maths class. But, as she gets to know him better, she starts to develop a crush on him.

King of the Hill: Kind of an origins story. This is a flashback episode that sees Slater's first day at the schools and sets up the love triangle between him, Kelly and Zack.

Save That Tiger: With the annual game due to start against the Bayside Tigers and the Valley Bulldogs, both teams try to out prank the other. But have the teams gone too far this year?

For me, personally, the episodes that work the best have Screech at the centre. The rest of the characters are too cocky or are underused in the episodes - Screech is the only one you constantly end up rooting for. He's also the character that Zack uses the most.

Extras include the Publicity Photos picture gallery.

If you can get past the poor acting and terrible jokes, then this series is worth rediscovering.

7

Darren Rea