The Tori Paradox, among other hidden symbols...
Recently, the TV show Saved by the Bell has been aired on Cartoon Network; this is a very nice way to spend my midnights. Today, Joe and I were talking about Hazzy moving away, and the people that have come and gone through our group; I brought up Saved by the Bell, a show that as a kid, I modeled my life after, because this show epitomized the high school experience, this kind of stuff happened everyday [you know, crazy antics and what not]. How do Hazz and Saved by the Bell connect? Here is how:
For half of the "senior year" at Bayside, Jessie and Kelly are completely part of the action, just as they'd been for the last three seasons. However, they're suddenly absent for twelve consecutive episodes, having been replaced by "Tori," and attractive, brassy brunette in a black leather jacket who displays elements of both their personalities [Kelly & Jessie]. Within moments of her arrival, Tori is completely absorbed into the Bayside; she's romantically pursued by Zack and Slater and generally behaves as if she has always been one of their closest friends. This lasts until the graduation episode, when Kelly and Jessie suddenly reappear as if nothing ever happened. Meanwhile, Tori does not appear at graduation and is not even mentioned.
On paper, this seems idiotic, borderline insulting, and-above all-unreal. But the more I think back on my life, the more I've come to realize that the "Tori Paradox" might be the only element of Saved by the Bell that actually happened to me. Whenever I try to remember my friends from high school,[or] friends from college[year]...my memory always creates the illusion that we were together constantly,just like those kids from Saved by the Bell. However, this was almost never the case. Whenever I seriously piece together my past, I inevitably uncover long stretches where somebody who (retrospectively) seemed among my closest companions simply wasn't around.
The "Tori Paradox" was a lazy way for NBC to avoid thinking, but nobody watching at home blinked; it was openly ridiculous, but latently plausible. That's why the "Tori Paradox" made sense, and why it illustrated a greater paradox that matters even more: Saved by the Bell wasn't real, but neither is most of reality.
Coming and going is more normal than it should be...
For half of the "senior year" at Bayside, Jessie and Kelly are completely part of the action, just as they'd been for the last three seasons. However, they're suddenly absent for twelve consecutive episodes, having been replaced by "Tori," and attractive, brassy brunette in a black leather jacket who displays elements of both their personalities [Kelly & Jessie]. Within moments of her arrival, Tori is completely absorbed into the Bayside; she's romantically pursued by Zack and Slater and generally behaves as if she has always been one of their closest friends. This lasts until the graduation episode, when Kelly and Jessie suddenly reappear as if nothing ever happened. Meanwhile, Tori does not appear at graduation and is not even mentioned.
On paper, this seems idiotic, borderline insulting, and-above all-unreal. But the more I think back on my life, the more I've come to realize that the "Tori Paradox" might be the only element of Saved by the Bell that actually happened to me. Whenever I try to remember my friends from high school,[or] friends from college[year]...my memory always creates the illusion that we were together constantly,just like those kids from Saved by the Bell. However, this was almost never the case. Whenever I seriously piece together my past, I inevitably uncover long stretches where somebody who (retrospectively) seemed among my closest companions simply wasn't around.
The "Tori Paradox" was a lazy way for NBC to avoid thinking, but nobody watching at home blinked; it was openly ridiculous, but latently plausible. That's why the "Tori Paradox" made sense, and why it illustrated a greater paradox that matters even more: Saved by the Bell wasn't real, but neither is most of reality.
Coming and going is more normal than it should be...