Bonjour, Miss Bliss

My opinion of this original version of "Saved By The Bell" has remained virtually unchanged since it premiered over a decade ago. Basically, it's rarely funny, sometimes quite slow-moving, and yet, I still occasionally watch the reruns because it is a pain-free way to kill some time. That's hardly an endorsement, but it is quite the compliment considering how weak this show really is. I can't explain why I watched it when it first aired, and I can't explain why I sometimes watch it now...perhaps these days it's a nostalgic thing, but I don't really know. One thing's for sure: unless you grew up watching this and "Saved By The Bell", you shouldn't bother giving this show a chance.

I loved Hayley Mills in the original series as Miss Bliss. But the rest of the series just displayed many stereotypes that we would be better off without. A brainless jock, a Barbie doll ditz, a spoiled rich kid, a young womanizer and a geek just for starters. Selfish, self indulgent teens with no real substance. With the exception of perhaps one or two characters, their first instinct was always to dupe someone or get something they were told they couldn't have. It was always at the expense of someone else. The only time they showed any morals or regret was when they were caught and told how they should act. And while they made fun of geeks at every opportunity, how is it that Scheech (a self admitted geek) was one of their circle of friends? Of course he was the fall guy for many a prank. Pityful. I would not let my children watch this show....ever.

I recently watched some of this series again for nostalgia. The show centers around legendary actress Halley Mills who plays a school teacher in a small town in Indiana and her interactions with her students. Of course we all are introduced to the main antagonist Zach Morris, played by Mark Paul Gossler. We also have a supporting cast including Dustin Diamond, Lark Voorhies, and Denis Haskins. There are other trivial characters as well. This show would set up the foundation for the reboot which became the beloved classic we all fell in love with in the early 90's. The show I thought was not bad, it had its good points. I do believe they focused too much on the Miss Bliss character which led to lower ratings initially. When the show was reformatted and focused on Zach with a better supporting cast that included Mario Lopez, Tiffany Amber Theissen, and Elisebeth Burkley, and of course bringing Lark, Dustin, and Dennis from the original show, their chemistry clicked and the show became a hit. Good morning Miss Bliss was not entirely bad it was just not engaging enough with some bad casting choices. Thankfully that was corrected and the show was successful with better writing which became Saved by the Bell. Love it or hate this first incarnation of the show started it all, so if anything we owe this little show a nod from all of us SBTB fans.

Good Morning, Miss Bliss is not as bad as people make it seem. It has plots similar to that of Saved by the Bell, with the exception of the romance but the major flaw that the show faces is humor. This is not a funny show! However, like SBTB the show does raise some questions like why does the Janitor hang out with the principal and teachers? Whatever the reasons I always like to ignore this show and just think of it as a rejected first draft.

As a kid born in 1985, I became of a learning age around 1990. At that time, SAVED BY THE BELL was just starting off. Zack, Slater, Kelly, Screech, Lisa, Jessie, Mr. Belding... they were all there. Reruns started about two years after that.

And the reruns messed with my head.

You see, I had no prior knowledge that this Bayside-based high school sitcom actually had roots in a former show entitled GOOD MORNING, MISS BLISS. But apparently everyone else had, so there were no explanations when these episodes were aired under the SAVED BY THE BELL moniker and threw my entire viewing experience off its axis.

It was ve-e-e-ery '80s. Zack was pretty young (around 14 or 15?) and he was aside a prepubescent Screech and two new kids that seemed to be 1989 in the raw. Miss Bliss was weird; and the episode where they invest in potatoes is just damn bizarre.

Like the entire show.