Fun, sun, ocean breezes, and wait — is that Zach Braff? Yes. Yes it is. It seems like every TV show — or at least every sitcom — has an obligatory beach episode jammed in somewhere or other. Often it’s a time-out from any regularly scheduled drama, a vacation from the plot line, as it were, or sometimes it’s just an excuse to show ladies in bathing suits in a relatively plausible way. Well, we don’t mind. Now that it’s officially summer, we deem it to be the beach episode of our daily lives, and so for a little sandy inspiration, we thought we’d take a look at ten of our favorite classic beach-themed TV vacations, from the ridiculous to the, well, ridiculous. Click through to watch clips from the list, and let us know which of your favorites we’ve missed!
Happy Days, Season 5, Episode 1: “Hollywood”
A history making moment if ever there was one. The Fonz goes waterskiing in a leather jacket. A shark appears. A few moments later, an idiom is born.
That 70’s Show, Season 5 Episode 1: “Going to California”
Start at 2:00. Eric’s nerdy wave when he sees his long lost love just kills us. Plus, this is the only slow-mo reunion run on the beach we’ve ever seen that ends in a tackle and somebody getting kicked in the back.
Friends, Season 4 Episode 1: “The One With the Jellyfish”
Interestingly, Monica and Chandler get married later. Joey is still digging holes.
The Office, Season 3, Episode 23: “Beach Games”
The Office meets Survivor. Thankfully, in this episode, no one was baring any flesh. Although, let’s not lie, we’d have liked to see Stanley in a banana hammock.
Saved by the Bell, Season 3, Episode 6: “Fourth of July”
The gang worked at a resort for about 6 episodes in season 3. Bikini contests! Surfing! Shirtless Zach! Ratings soared.
The Munsters, Season 2, Episode 2: “Herman, the Master Spy”
All we can say is, look at all that awesome swimwear.
The Brady Bunch, Season 4, Episode 1: “Hawaii Bound”
This episode led to the famous Tiki episode, which lead to our next show. Ah, intertextuality.
Scrubs, Season 8, Episode 14: “My Soul on Fire”
Classic. Ladies gotta eat.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Season 5, Episode 17: “Beach Blanket Bizarro”
Sabrina’s aunts place a “Good Clean Fun” spell on her sleazy getaway spot. It actually looks like more fun to us. Is that lame?
The Wonder Years, Season 3, Episode 1: “Summer Song”
Kevin meets an older girl!