Though Zack Morris is technically the main character of Saved By The Bell, that does not mean he is the most liked among fans. Due to his many obvious flaws in the show, it's quite clear, especially after all these years, that Zack is not one of the best Saved By The Bell characters or a fan favorite by any means.
Normally the main characters are also the protagonists of the show, but Zack's charm and good looks could not save what he lacks in his personality. Between his misogynistic tendencies and his hastiness to throw his friends under the bus to save himself, there are quite a few episodes that stand out in terms of his worst moments.
“Aloha Slater”
Season 1 Episode 6
Upon finding out that Slater's father wants A.C. to move with him to Hawaii, a jealous Zack gets the idea to tell his friends that Slater is dying and the only way he will leave to get treatment in Hawaii is if they are so mean to him he will leave. When Kelly volunteers to move to Hawaii with Slater in his final days, Slater plays along with the prank to teach Zack a lesson.
Though Zack knew his plan had fallen through, he never apologized or told Slater why he came up with such a horrible plan out of jealousy and insecurity in the first place, and in true Saved By The Bell fashion, Zack's wrongs were forgiven and forgotten, never to be brought up again.
“Driver’s Education”
Season 2 Episode 4
Though there were a few times Zack was a great friend, this episode was not one of them. When Zack quickly grew jealous over Slater potentially getting his driver's license before him, he sabotaged his best friend so he would fail to cause Zack to get ahead.
Not only did Zack rig the practice car to crash causing a head injury to Kelly and Slater, but he continues to blame Slater for the accident since he was driving and claims that he would be man enough to fess up if it was his fault. If there's one thing Zack does better at than lying, it's not ever apologizing.
“Miss Bayside”
Season 2 Episode 8
It's no secret that Screech's "friends" borderline bullied him and pushed him around, but Zach took it way too far in the "Miss Bayside" episode. When the school was holding a beauty pageant, a conversation emerged about guys entering too, not just girls.
Not only did Zack's shenanigans cause his girl friends to go head-to-head, but he framed Slater for punching Screech in the face, and later even excused Screech's story by claiming he's mentally unwell, all to cover up his schemes. What could have been a great progressive episode turned out to be a brutal one, filled with Zack's backstabbing.
“Jessie’s Song”
Season 2 Episode 9
Every Saved By The Bell fan remembers this iconic episode for Jessie's breakdown, but what they don't remember is Zack egging on Jessie's addiction due to his ignorance. When Slater confronts Zack with concern about Jessie becoming caffeine pills, aka speed, to stay up and study, Zack brushes it off and even gets angry at the suggestion.
If only Zack had listened to his concerned friends, he could have banned together with them to put a stop to her drug abuse, but since he chose to live in ignorance with a lack of care, the problem ensued until Jessie had a breakdown.
“Running Zack”
Season 2 Episode 13
In an episode so controversial even the actor who plays Zack, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, had to apologize, "Running Zack" depicts a careless version of Zack as he not only admits to not caring about his Native American ancestry but making a caricature out of his ancestors in front of the class.
Luckily his teacher was able to talk some sense into him about why it was wrong to do what he did, but Zack should have done more research to find out why dressing in Native American headdresses and mocking them was not at all appropriate.
“Date Auction”
Season 3 Episode 15
When Bayside decides to organize a Date Auction to raise money for the Cheerleading squad, Zack gets bought out by a girl named Wendy, who he was not happy to see. Wendy made several efforts to excitedly talk about the dance, but all Zack did was made excuses and lied every time to get out of their plans.
Wendy comes to her senses and gets angry at Zack, claiming that shouldn't be treated any different just because she doesn't look like the other skinny girls at Bayside. Zack later comes around, not because he realized on his own that he was being "fatphobic," but because he was just saving face.
“The Bayside Triangle”
Season 4 Episode 5
With the weight of impending graduation on their hands, Lisa makes a last-ditch effort to win over fashion recruiters for her dream school by throwing a fashion show, and Zack volunteers his "help" for selfish reasons, aka getting close with the models. Out of seemingly nowhere, Zack takes advantage of Lisa's vulnerability by kissing her several times, with one time being observed by Screech.
Even though Lisa never had any interest in Screech, Zack knew that Screech had been pursuing her since day one and was crushed seeing them kiss. Zack once again refuses to take any accountability or apologize and by the end of the episode, all was forgiven again, so it seems his consistent lack of apologies always somehow ends in his favor.
“Teen-Line”
Season 6 Episode 2
It's no secret by now that Zack was quite bad with girls, no matter how confident he was as a "ladies' man." This remains true in the "Teen-Line" episode when Zack initially plays it cool with Melissa over the phone, before discovering in person that she was in a wheelchair.
Not only was it bad enough that he looked at her differently, but he tried to overcompensate by pointing out her disability and being performative when accommodating her in public. Though he may have thought he was coming from a good place, all he did was embarrass her.
“Drinking and Driving”
Season 6 Episode 5
When Zack and his friends chose to party one night and drink a few beers, he stupidly offers to drive everyone home while he was under the influence. Not only did he try to be the tough guy, but he ended up crashing Lisa's mom's car into a telephone pole.
Instead of ever apologizing or owning up to his wrongdoings, he makes his friends lie to cover up his mistake. Luckily, once they realized they couldn't lie anymore, all of his friends came forward and confessed the truth, and Zack's dad even gave him a stern talk about how they could have gotten seriously killed or killed someone else. At least someone in this town has a brain!
“The Will”
Season 6 Episode 7
Many fans would probably admit that they would have liked to attend Bayside back in the day, however, times like these proved just how many unnecessary competitions they held where chaos would always inevitably ensue. After a wealthy school donor passes away and leaves a good amount of money to the students, they decide to host a battle of the sexes in a series of competitions to see who gets the money for their sports teams.
Not only does Zack display several signs of severe misogyny, but he cheats his way through the competitions and sabotages the girls on multiple occasions. After the millionth time of refusing to own up to his wrongdoings and starting a whole gender war, he is somehow forgiven at the end of the episode, yet again.