Game Time: Brains & Brawn (1993)

It seemed almost inevitable that NBC would try another Saturday morning game show, and they did, in the summer of 1993.

Brains & Brawn shares its title with a similarly themed quiz show that NBC aired in 1958. This time, though, this was a means of promoting the network's "Teen TV" lineup. Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Saved By The Bell) served as MC. The series only lasted three months, and hasn't been attempted since.

Part of the reason it didn't do too well the 2nd time around was its air time. Brains was slotted at 12 noon (ET), where a lot of shows go to die. The NBC affiliate in my market was inconsistent with the schedule, and didn't air the show right away. Yeah, that's a killer. Apparently, Bell wasn't that big in upstate NY.

Of course, you know, Gosselaar has had one acting gig after another since, as he moved directly to Bell's primetime spinoff, The College Years, which lasted just as long, and currently stars in TNT's Franklin & Bash.

Edit, 11/23/24: Had to change the video. Here, Mark-Paul is joined by Tatyana Ali (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), and Mario Lopez captains one of the teams.



NBC's track record with Saturday game shows remained intact. Pretty bad. Rating: B.