Off Campus has been the talk of the 2026 TV schedule, and it has shot its cast into a new level of stardom that has some comparing them to the stars of Friends. Now, as they film Season 2, the actors are branching out and doing brand deals and other work. So, it tracks that Belmont Cameli would do a Starbucks ad, and it’s fitting that Martha Stewart had an A+ zing to throw at him during it. However, there’s a wrinkle to this that we need to discuss.

Now, if you’re like me, you were probably shocked when you saw this ad, because up until the release of this video, I had never had a thought that included both Belmont Cameli and Martha Stewart. However, that notion plays into this ad, as you can see below:

As you can see in the video, Stewart talks a bit about pumpkin spice latte season being basic, but perfect. And then Belmont Cameli shows up, asks for a straw, and pokes fun at Stewart by saying, “You would get it hot.” In response, the TV personality said:

Well, this is hilarious for a few reasons. First of all, it feels like everyone streamed Off Campus with an Amazon Prime subscription and is obsessed with the book-to-screen adaptation. So, it’s wild that Stewart would question him. However, on the flip side, this is a great zing because Cameli is a very new household name. While he’s been working for a while, this hockey romance undoubtedly is the primary reason most people know who he is now. So, to an extent, I get Martha’s question of “Should I know him?” because he's been known for far less time than her.

However, there’s a wrinkle to this that makes it even better, because Stewart actually wasn’t even with the Garrett Graham actor on set. She explained that to everyone too, as she commented on the Instagram post about the commercial:

After reading this, the “Should I know him?” hits even harder, because Stewart clearly was not actually looking at Belmont Cameli when she filmed this. It would seem they did their parts at different times and simply looked at stand-ins while saying their lines, which is a common practice. So, her joke kind of isn’t a joke, which honestly makes it better to me.

I also have to say that Stewart referring to the actor as “this guy” in the comments seems to imply that she really might not be fully up to speed on Off Campus. Obviously, I don’t know that for sure, but at bare minimum, her statement plays into the silly commercial and her not knowing who Belmont Cameli is in a very funny way.

Now, after all this, I’d love to hear Martha Stewart’s thoughts on the sexually explicit Amazon Prime project that turned Belmont Cameli into a viral heartthrob. I’d also love it if they could actually meet so we could see how she really reacts to one of the biggest breakout stars of 2026.

The 2026 TV schedule introduced us to Off Campus, and since then, the actors who bring Briar U to life have skyrocketed to a new level of fame. Belmont Cameli, Ella Bright, Stephen Kalyn, Mika Abdalla, Jalen Thomas Brooks and Antonio Cipriano have become heartthrobs online, and people love seeing these colleagues and friends interact both in the show you can stream with an Amazon Prime subscription and in real life. Now, someone has compared this group’s dynamic to the cast of Friends, and some valid points were made.

This comparison came up when a source made claims about just how tight the Off Campus cast is to Deux Moi. They said that they are genuine friends, they’re all going through this crazy situation together, and allegedly their dynamic is very healthy. Here’s what the source had to say:

This all comes amid fan speculation that there’s drama among the cast. In an episode of the Deux/U podcast, Deux spoke about this, and she made it abundantly clear that she does not believe there’s any drama at all among these actors. That’s where the direct Friends comparison came in, as she explained:

To this day, the cast of Friends is beloved for their friendship both on screen and off. They’re also still incredibly tight; as Jennifer Aniston once said, they’re “family forever.” I mean, Aniston, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow talk about each other and post about being together fairly regularly. While the Off Campus cast has only been working together for about a year, they also speak very highly of one another and the genuine friendship they all share.

Take one look at the comments section on Ella Bright’s Instagram post about performing with Suki Waterhouse (which her castmates went and saw), and you’ll see exactly what I mean. Almost all of them were posting about how much they loved her and that performance. And that’s just the most recent example of them going out of their way to support one another. If you watch an interview or look at their social media, it becomes clear quickly that this group is tight and dealing with this whirlwind together.

On top of the genuine friendship, these casts have also experienced extreme rises to stardom. Friends is one of the best sitcoms, and it sent its six actors to a level of fame that’s overwhelming. A similar thing is happening to the cast of Off Campus. This show made them household names and served as a major breakout moment in their careers. I also think these projects are worth comparing, because these shows didn’t just propel one actor into the spotlight, it put a light on an entire ensemble.

Obviously, the two shows are quite different. Friends is simply a sitcom about six friends (and there's some romance). Off Campus is a romance series that puts a couple at the center of each season. However, at the heart of Prime Video’s book-to-screen adaptation is the friendship between Garrett, Logan, Tucker and Dean, as well as Allie and Hannah. Yes, romance is the primary focus; however, the bond all these characters share as pals is very comparable to Friends and one of the reasons why I love it so much.

So, overall, I totally see why someone compared the cast of Off Campus to the Friends ensemble, and I hope that stays true as this hockey romance continues into Season 2 and beyond. Now, if you want to see all these friends in the projects that made them…well…friends, you can stream Off Campus on Amazon Prime and Friends with an HBO Max subscription.

You know, I always thought that if we saw one of the Off Campus stars in a sexy ad, it’d be for a company like Calvin Klein. However, in a total plot twist, Stephen Kalyn proved that you can make cell phone commercials steamy through his shirtless Verizon ad. Now, as this “simple is sexy” campaign takes the internet by storm, the actor’s co-stars from the sexy Prime Video project and his real-life fiancée shared their A+ reactions.

So, after playing the often-shirtless Dean Di Laurentis in the book-to-screen adaptation of Off Campus, Stephen Kalyn partook in a steamy ad for Verizon. In it, he fearlessly danced around a studio while a voiceover that sounded like something straight out of a romance novel played. Take a look:

Obviously, the guys of Off Campus had to show up to support their boy. So, down in the comments on Kalyn’s post, Belmont Cameli, who plays Garrett Graham and is no stranger to a sexy scene, as well as Antonio Cipriano, who plays John Logan, commented:

• Belmont Cameli: this happened to a guy I know once
• Antonio Cipriano: sign me tf up

I’d love to know which “guy” Cameli is referring to, and that query makes the comment even funnier. Also, it sounds like Verizon has a new customer in the Logan actor. Alongside those comments, the last of the guys from the off-campus house, Jalen Thomas Brooks (he plays John Tucker) and Ella Bright (she’s Hannah Wells), liked the post. So, the Off Campus cast really showed up to support the Dean actor and his sexy cell phone ad.

However, I think my favorite comment has to be his fiancée’s. Kalyn and his partner, Victoria Lovatsis, have been together since 2012, per People. As Off Campus took over the 2026 TV schedule and people continue to stream it with an Amazon Prime subscription, she’s been very supportive of him. And that trend continued here with one hilarious comment:

This truly made me laugh out loud. What a clever comment for her to post! Plus, while she’s showing her love for the phones here, we also know she adores the guy holding one in this ad.

Those close to Kalyn weren’t the only ones with clever comments, however. Fans were leaving their funny remarks as well, writing things like:

• haleymiller: Thank you for your service …. Literally
• zariaanichelle: Stephen please I’m trying to work
• tatiana_kushner: This is crazy work for a telephone company 😂 Respect.
• ohjoy: They could place any product at the end of that video, and we’d all be buying it. 🔥
• sydneynaseef: absolutely hilarious that this is an ad for a cellular service
• thebohobookblogger: This is basically a Verizon, Calvin Klein ad, cool.

I agree with that last comment. If I hadn’t seen Verizon mentioned in the caption, I would have thought this was a Calvin Klein ad. Honestly, it reminds me of the Calvin Klein campaign Jeremy Allen White did a few years ago.

Anyway, overall, the comments on this post are incredibly entertaining and complimentary. And that totally fits the vibe of this whole campaign, too. Verizon was going for sexy with this ad, as the caption states, and Stephen Kalyn was the perfect person to help them do that, seeing as he’s set to lead Season 2 of Off Campus. Plus, the fabulous comments from his co-stars, fiancée and fans further proved how great this whole situation is.

Spoilers for Off Campus Season 1 and the book The Deal are ahead! If you haven’t watched it, you can stream it with an Amazon Prime subscription.

Before Off Campus took over the 2026 TV schedule, I witnessed a lot of talk about what should be kept the same in this book-to-screen adaptation of The Deal (Elle Kennedy’s first book in her Off Campus series). On multiple occasions, I saw fans mention the hands-off law. However, it's revealed in the finale that the show totally changed the way this situation plays out. So, I had to ask Belmont Cameli, who plays Garrett Graham, about this difference, and I loved how he defended it.

How The Hands-Off Law Changed Between The Deal And Off Campus

In both the spicy hockey romance book and the sexually explicit Amazon Prime show, it’s revealed that there’s a hands-off law on campus that stops any man from getting near Hannah. So, understandably, she storms into the boys' locker room to confront Garrett about it.

When Hannah confronts Garrett in the book, he proudly says, “Of course I did,” when she asks if he invoked the hands-off law. He then explains that he did it because he was “afraid” Hannah was so stubborn she would sleep with someone else to prove a point while they were broken up and then regret it.

Meanwhile, in the show, Garrett literally did the exact opposite of that. In fact, he told Hannah in the finale that he “never said any of that” and would never say anything like that. Instead of him enacting this law on campus, it was a misunderstanding, as his teammates spread a rumor that Garrett would “beat anyone up who hit on Hannah.”

That’s a pretty dramatic change to make, and fans really debated it in the comments section of CinemaBlend’s TikTok about Cameli’s comments that we’re about to discuss. However, I loved that they did it, and so did the Garrett Graham actor.

Belmont Cameli Defended The Hands-Off Law Change So Well

Along with changes like Logan kissing Hannah instead of Dean and the fact that a lot of Dean and Allie’s book was moved into Season 1, the hands-off law was an update made as this story moved from book to screen that I loved. So, during my interview with the Off Campus cast, I asked Belmont Cameli how he felt about it. Here’s what he had to say:

I also feel like it would have felt out of character and controlling. Plus, considering Garrett’s journey in the season surrounding his dad and being scared of being like him, I think the last thing he’d do is a possessive and toxic move like this.

Further explaining his feelings about this change and why Garrett wouldn’t do something like this, Cameli said:

So, yes, while fans love the hands-off law in the book, it felt like a fitting and important change to make in the show.

Now, as we move into Season 2 of Off Campus, which will center around Dean and Allie, I’m looking forward to seeing how the series continues to adapt its source material. That’s because, while a lot stayed the same, the Prime Video show also made deliberate and bold changes that really worked, like this one involving the hands-off law.

When I think about celebrities' reasons for working out for roles, their looks and abilities to perform a given task come to mind first. On Off Campus, the actors who play hockey players had to get in shape to both look like collegiate athletes and perform the hockey scenes. However, Belmont Cameli, who plays Garrett Graham on the 2026 TV schedule hit, revealed another reason why he had to “put on mass” to play his hockey player that surprised me.

Belmont Cameli, Antonio Cipriano, Jalen Thomas Brooks and Stephen Kalyn -- they play hockey players and housemates Garrett, Logan, Tucker and Dean, respectively, in this book-to-screen adaptation -- had to train before filming the show. Kalyn was the only one with prior hockey experience, so the other three had to learn how to play the sport. They also worked out to get in hockey player shape, as Cameli explained to Men’s Health:

Now, why was his main goal to put on mass? Well, while I’m sure it helps him look fantastic and perform on the ice, it also helps him stay safe. Explaining why he builds mass while working out for Off Campus, Belmont Cameli said:

I know hockey is a very physical sport, and it’s demanding on the body. So, I totally see what Cameli is saying here. By building mass, he can take hits better (whether he’s being hit by other players or running to the boards). While he and his castmates might not be playing legit hockey, they are still on the ice and simulating games, so they need to be able to perform like they play the game, take after take.

They also need to be ready for the wear and tear that comes with it; by gaining mass and getting in better physical shape, they are able to be “safer,” as the Garrett actor put it.

So, yes, working out and putting on mass like this helps Belmont Cameli look like a college hockey player and makes workout montages (à la that Top Gun: Maverick football scene), intimate moments and shirtless scenes in the show (because this is also a sexually explicit Prime Video program) look great. However, it also helps them prevent injury.

While they’re fictional hockey players, they’re still out there, on the ice, skating and ramming into people and the boards. So, it’s important that they train in a way that makes it so they don’t get injured easily.

Now, to go see how all this hard work paid off, you can stream Off Campus with an Amazon Prime subscription.

Within the first two minutes of Off Campus, both Hannah and the audience see Garrett Graham naked. As Hannah is cleaning the locker room, she catches Garrett showering, and she sees everything. So, quickly, this entry on the 2026 TV schedule made it clear that it would not be shying away from the sexual nature of the Elle Kennedy books it's based on. Now, Belmont Cameli, who plays Garrett, has opened up about how he really feels about being nude on camera.

Much like romance hits like Heated Rivalry and Bridgerton, Off Campus does not shy away from sex or nudity. In fact, the steamy moments are huge parts of all these stories. In the case of the sexually explicit Prime Video program, specifically, Garrett and Hannah have multiple sex scenes, and because Garrett is the captain of the hockey team, we see the guys in the locker room and without clothes often. So, Cameli has to be shirtless or clothesless on more than one occasion. Speaking to that point and how he feels about this, the Garrett actor told Bustle:

Cameli went on to explain that the book-to-screen adaptation uses its source material's “female gaze lens,” and whenever there is a scene that involves him taking off his clothes, there’s a reason for it. So, he was not against it in the slightest.

Further explaining that point, he said that anytime he had to remove clothes, he felt like it was serving the story. So, having a meaning behind the nudity while also creating a “sexy and appealing” show was important:

I totally see what he’s saying, and I’ll use two very different examples from the show to explain why.

As I mentioned at the top of the story, the first time Hannah sees Garrett, he’s naked in the shower. That moment of nudity set the tone for the show, provided a memorable meet-cute for the two characters, and gave us a look into Garrett’s life as a hockey player.

Then, later in the show, during a pivotal intimate moment between Hannah and Garrett that ultimately displays the trust she has in him, the removal and changing of their clothes serve as signifiers of how comfortable they are.

So, yes, while seeing shirtless hockey players is a nice sight, there’s also a lot more to the nudity in Off Campus than that. Outside of Hannah and Garrett’s relationship, Dean’s playboy tendancies are highlighted by his lack of clothes in day-to-day life. Meanwhile, Allie and Sean’s intimate moments that involve nudity tell us a lot about how strained their relationship is, while her steamy scenes with Dean highlight their effortless chemistry.

Overall, I totally see Belmont Cameli’s point. Yes, due to the nature of Off Campus, he will be “sexualized to an extent.” However, the show handles its nudity and sex with care and intention. So, there’s always a purpose to these moments. Plus, the Off Campus cast told CinemaBlend about how they worked with intimacy coordinators to ensure these moments were filmed in ways that were comfortable and safe for everyone.

Now, to see this hit hockey romance and how it uses nudity and sex to tell this story, you can stream Off Campus with an Amazon Prime subscription.

Spoilers for Episode 2 of Off Campus, as well as the book The Deal, are ahead! Read with caution, and stream the series with an Amazon Prime subscription.

When I was reading the Off Campus novels and preparing for the book-to-screen adaptation’s premiere on the 2026 TV schedule, I saw so many posts from readers about wanting to see the moment where Hannah kisses Dean in an effort to prove to Garrett that she does not have feelings for him. Then, I watched the show, and was shocked to see it changed that scene to involve Logan in the kiss instead of Dean. So, I had to ask the guys who play them about this, and they told me why this update actually packs a bigger punch.

As I mentioned, in the book Season 1 of Off Campus is inspired by, Garrett and Hannah shared a kiss that’s for “practice” because she was still trying to woo Justin. However, it’s clear both she and Garrett were feeling real feelings as they made out. Then, Dean walked in, called them out, and told Hannah that if it was just for practice, she should kiss him. So, she did.

In the show, it’s a bit different. Hannah and Garrett still made out for practice. However, it’s Logan who walked in on them. So, in an effort to prove Garrett wrong, Hannah walked up to Logan and told him she was going to kiss him. Then she does. It’s a big change, and because fans love the book scene so much, I had to ask Antonio Cipriano, who plays Logan, about it. Here’s what he said:

I also agree that “contextually,” this change really helps out Logan’s subplot in the hockey romance. In both the books and the show, he has a pretty big crush on Hannah. In the novels, it’s obvious, but there aren’t very many moments that help us understand why he’s into her. In the show, there are many added scenes that prove he’s been paying attention to her and yearning for a long time.

Then, this kiss is like the final nail in the coffin. It gives Logan a moment of physical interaction to hang on to, and it helps us see him fall even further into his crush.

Stephen Kalyn, who plays Dean, pointed that out too. While it would have been fun to see his character in this moment, having Cipriano’s character be the recipient of the kiss did way more for Logan’s story than it would have for Dean. Further explaining that point, Kalyn told me:

Plus, along with this being a nice emotional beat for Logan that helps us see his crush on Hannah, it’s still a hilarious scene. Much like Dean’s reaction in the book, Logan’s reaction is priceless, as Jalen Thomas Brooks, who plays Tucker, and Kalyn pointed out with the following back and forth:

• Jalen Thomas Brooks: That moment afterwards, where you’re like [makes a shocked face] ‘What was [that]?’
• Stephen Kalyn: The reaction is hilarious.

Overall, I was a big fan of this change, both from a story and humor perspective. It worked really well, and it helped raise the stakes when it came to Logan’s crush on Hannah.

It’s also just one of many examples of brilliant updates (which also includes making Justin a singer instead of a football player and a change to the hands-off law) that this show made from its source material. While Off Campus is a faithful adaptation, it also takes its own risks and forges its own path, and I think they all work very well.

So, yes, while it was a bit of a bummer to see the Dean kiss go, changing it up to be Logan was brilliant, and 100% packed a bigger punch.

I don’t know about you, but ever since I watched Heated Rivalry with my HBO Max subscription, I’ve been yearning for more hockey romance. Thankfully, Prime Video is delivering just that on the 2026 TV schedule with the book-to-screen adaptation of Elle Kennedy’s Off Campus series. Now, as its premiere approaches, I have to tell my fellow romance girlies that you are not ready for this treat we’re about to get on May 13.

Now, don’t get too carried away with the Heated Rivalry comparison; the commonalities begin and end at hockey. However, that’s part of why this new show is so appealing. It dives into the world of college hockey and follows Briar University’s captain, Garrett Graham, as he makes a deal to fake date music student Hannah Wells. What follows is a lovely story full of steamy romance and heartwarming moments that launches us into a world that has the potential to expand with even more love stories.

So, with that said, let’s discuss why Off Campus needs to be your next obsession.

This Cast’s Chemistry (Both Romantic And Platonic) Is Off The Charts

I think the reason Off Campus works so well comes down to the cast. Elle Kennedy’s books are irresistible because of the love stories at the center of each and the found family that’s developed across the series.

So, to start with the romance, Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli play Hannah and Garrett, the couple at the center of Season 1. Their chemistry is amazing, and they balance the lighthearted banter that Hannah and Garrett are known for in the books with the deep and emotional plot points that are sprinkled through their story. Seriously, it’s impossible not to fall in love with these two and their love story.

Then, the show gets even better because of the leads’ co-stars. Like the Bridgerton books, each Off Campus novel focuses on a different couple: book one is Garrett and Hannah, book two is Logan and Grace, book three is Dean and Allie and book four is Tucker and Sabrina.

The aforementioned boys are teammates, they all live in the same house, and they're the guys who tie the books together. They’re like brothers, and the actors who play them feel like they’ve known each other forever. In the show, Cameli is joined by Stephen Kalyn as Dean, Jalen Thomas Brooks as Tucker and Antonio Cipriano as Logan. Eventually, Kalyn, Brooks and Cipriano will lead their own seasons (assuming the show gets renewed to cover all four books), but for now, they support Cameli and Bright expertly. Plus, their energy together has me totally believing that they could have played for the same college hockey team in real life.

Overall, though, what’s undeniable here is the star power and chemistry amongst this cast. They know exactly what they’re making, it feels like they love it a lot. There’s also no doubt in my mind that each guy can carry his own season of this hockey romance. In short, they didn’t just understand the assignment; they aced it.

As A Fan Of The Books, I’m Over The Moon About How Well The Show Understands The Assignment

Speaking of the assignment, Off Campus in general is an expert adaptation of its source material. The show created by Louisa Levy maintains everything I love about the books (including one very key intimate moment between Garrett and Hannah), while also updating the story in ways that are meaningful and give the show its own perspective.

It also does not lean away from how sexy the books are. In fact, it leans right in. Much like Bridgerton and Heated Rivalry, Off Campus is not scared to be spicy, and it uses the intimate moments to drive the romance forward.

So, when you mix that with a wonderful cast of characters played by actors who get exactly what they’re making, you get an awesome romance adaptation. That’s why I said you aren’t ready, girls.

As a romance girlie, I’ve been yearning for more shows like this that warrant the fandom and adoration the romance genre has in the book world. So, get ready to binge your next obsession, as Off Campus premieres for those with an Amazon Prime subscription on May 13.

If you’ve read the novels that Off Campus is based on, you know that this upcoming book-to-screen adaptation will be a sexually explicit Amazon Prime series. So, with that in mind, I asked the cast of this hockey romance about filming the more intimate scenes, and while “nobody’s thrilled” to be doing them, they told me how they fostered a safe and productive work environment to create these important, romantic and sexy moments in the show.

Now, much like other steamy shows like Heated Rivalry and Bridgerton, sex is a big part of Off Campus. In Season 1, which will premiere on the 2026 TV schedule on May 13, we’ll see the leads, Hannah (Ella Bright) and Garrett (Belmont Cameli), make a deal to fake date so Hannah can woo her crush Justin (Josh Heuston) and Garrett can pass philosophy under the tutelage of Hannah. Obviously, things go further than that, and they enter into romance of their own, which, yes, gets spicy.

So, I asked Bright and Cameli how they created a safe and comfortable environment on set to film these intimate moments. During an interview with CinemaBlend, the Hannah actress said:

If you go back and look at the Bridgerton cast’s comments about filming sex scenes, it becomes apparent quickly that nothing about sex scenes is sexy or impromptu. And while they are still “awkward” to film, as Season 4 lead Yerin Ha put it, after a few takes, “it’s actually quite OK.” According to her, that’s thanks to having a scene partner she could trust.

That was part of it for the Off Campus cast, too, and they also spoke about their intimacy coordinators and having a crew they could trust. To that point, Cameli told me that no one was “thrilled” to be filming these heated moments. However, because it was a “team effort,” they were able to create them in ways that didn’t make anyone uncomfortable:

Now, diving into how they created this environment, Josh Heuston, who plays Justin, told me that they had intimacy coordinators on set for every sex scene, and there was a lot of rehearsal and blocking involved. Between that and making sure everyone felt “safe,” they were able to create the steamy scenes for Off Campus:

Along with having a supportive crew, intimacy coordinators and a lot of planning, Mika Abdalla, who plays Allie, also highlighted the fact that the cast really is friends, which helps too. Explaining how their real-life friendships make moments like these easier, she said:

If you’ve seen the Off Campus trailer, you can tell that this show won’t be shying away from the sexier side of its source material. And it’s even better to know that these moments, which are both intimate and vital to the story’s plot, were treated with care.

Now, to see what happens and how Off Campus turns up the heat, you can stream the new hockey romance with an Amazon Prime subscription starting on May 13.

Of all the TV shows from the '80s and '90s that were ripe for reviving in 2020, I cannot say that Saved by the Bell would have been at the top of my list. As much as I obsessed over the original series and the College Years spinoff – I wasn't into The New Class, admittedly – I didn't think the overtly goofy Saturday morning high school comedy would mesh well with self-awareness and other modern comedy tactics. But I will happily admit that I was wrong on all counts, and Peacock's Saved by the Bell revival is better than I ever could have imagined.

Redeveloped for streaming audiences by former 30 Rock and Mindy Project writer and producer Tracey Whigfield, Saved by the Bell is a splendid mix of those aforementioned comedies' clever and quirky humor combined with an updated approach to the topics that the original series covered: school cliques, school events, friendships, romances and "very special episode" topics. I'd even say the new episodes are more hilarious than anything else in this franchise, but let's explore the reasons why the new Saved by the Bell is a must-watch experience for old-school fans.

Seeing The O.G. Saved By The Bell Cast Together Again

This is definitely the biggest no-brainer of the bunch, since so many Saved by the Bell fans have been clamoring for a proper reunion ever since Zack and Kelly got married in Vegas. (And yes, that Tonight Show reunion sketch from 2015 only whetted our appetites for more.) Thankfully, the Peacock revival utilizes series regulars Mario Lopez and Elizabeth Berkley in smart ways as Coach A.C. Slater and guidance counselor Jessie Spano, and also makes the most out of recurring returners Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Governor Zack Morris, Tiffany Thiessen as his First Lady, and Lark Voorhies as the living-elsewhere Lisa Turtle. Yes, it's always strange to see teen characters as full-on adults and/or parents, but this is the best possible version of that weirdness, and even seeing Ed Alonzo's Max made everything feel like home.

All The Classic Saved By The Bell References

In 2020, nothing about a callback to a '90s joke referencing a pop song from 1965 (by way of a 1983 Tom Cruise movie) should be successful, but you're damned straight the new Saved by the Bell's "Barbara Ann" dance scene is upper-echelon nostalgia. And that's basically the revival in a nutshell. The ten-episode season is PACKED with verbal and visual nods and easter eggs from the original series, from long-gone characters such as Leanna Creel's Tori Scott and Dustin Diamond's Screech himself, who gets an update tied to his robot Kevin, which ruled. My favorite, though, is Jessie's heightened reactions to anything involving caffeine.

The New Saved By The Bell Teen Cast Members Are A+

Thankfully, Tracey Whigfield and her creative team didn't cast the new Saved by the Bell to match the original character dynamics beat for beat (b-b-b-b, go Bayside!), and embraced a more diverse cast. Haskiri Velazquez's intelligent, inquisitive and non-schemy Daisy is a solid choice to take over Zack's central role, and she shares a rivalrous-yet-amicable friendship with Mitchell Hogg's hyper-privileged Mac Morris, who is a chip off the blonde, egotistical block. Alycia Pascual-Peña provides another grounded character as the tradition-breaking Aisha, with Dexter Darden bringing some sardonic distance as the musical-loving Devante. Rounding out the bunch is transgender actress Josie Totah as the self-obsessed (yet charismatic) reality TV star Lexi Haddad-DeFabrizio and Belmont Cameli as Bayside's football captain Jamie Spano, who may be my favorite absolute dumbass to hit TV in quite a few years. There are no weak links here, even when it comes to the side characters.

John Michael Higgins' Toddman Is A Great Replacement For Mr. Belding

The younger generation isn't the only awesome addition to Saved by the Bell's revival, with the always excellent John Michael Higgins portraying Bayside's principal Ronald Toddman. (His "backstory" arc is worthy of many chef's kisses.) While Dennis Haskins' Mr. Belding was a lovable cornball scapegoat for Zack's schemes, Mr. Toddman is more a victim of his own downward-spiral luck as opposed to being bamboozled by students, though that does happen, too. Arguably best known for his hilarious roles in Christopher Guest's mockumentaries like Best in Show and A Mighty Wind, Higgins is a natural comic actor that can sell completely awkward moments that other actors would falter in, and Mr. Toddman experiences plenty of them.

Diversity And Real-World Issues Are Handled Gracefully And Hilariously

While the original Saved by the Bell featured various PSA-esque episodes about topics like drugs and drunk driving, the Peacock revival far more naturally works topical issues into its storylines without stereotypical schmaltz and melodrama. After all, the basic premise is about a mostly Black student body being forced to transfer to a rich white school, and all of the issues that derive from that (both legitimate and Mac Morris-created). We have Daisy tackling problems regarding school politics and Aisha facing criticisms for joining the football team, and it's a breath of fresh air for Lexi's transition to be part of the plot without making things uncomfortably controversial. Similar to situations concerning mixed-race relationships, Bayside students embrace it all, and Saved by the Bell handles everything appropriate and, when applicable, quite hilariously. (Well maybe not everything, but most things.)

Seeing New Sides Of Classic Saved By The Bell Locations

Out of everything that happened in the new Saved by the Bell episodes, I honestly think I was most shocked by how the Peacock series crafted full sets for the show's iconic locations, such as the main Bayside hallway and The Max. Since multi-cam sitcoms tend to only build sets without the so-called fourth wall, Saved by the Bell fans had no idea what Bayside's front doors looked like or, as seen above, that the back wall of The Max featured a long counter with cushioned stools that further played up its diner aesthetic. Not to mention how weirdly awesome it is to see new exterior shots of Bayside and The Max.

Peacock's reimagined Saved by the Bell revival is currently streaming all ten Season 1 episodes on the service now, so hurry up and watch them all so you can then take your time in rewatching them over and over, just like you did with the original series! In the meantime, head to our Fall 2020 TV premiere schedule and our Winter and Spring 2021 TV guide to see what new and returning shows are on the way.