In tonight’s episode of Baywatch Nights, Lifeguard Mitch (David Hasselhoff) is struck by lightning while saving the life of an awkward and really pale first time surfer.  It’s then up the Paranormal Investigator Mitch to discover all of the surfer’s secrets.  Not surprisingly, it all goes back to aliens.

At the risk of starting the obvious, the second season of Baywatch Nights is probably a show that would have never existed without the success of The X-Files.  The first season of Baywatch Nights was a straight detective show.  Because no one watched the first season, the 2nd season found Hasselhoff investigating a different paranormal event every week.  What I find interesting is that, after battling sea serpents and all the rest, Mitch could apparently easily go back to his day job as a lifeguard.  Seriously, I would be so paranoid after meeting just one monster, I can’t imagine how I would react after meeting three of them.  I definitely wouldn’t be smiling while watching people go into the water.  I would be demanding that the beaches close.

Anyway, this episode makes Baywatch Nights‘s debt to The X-Files pretty clear.  Personally, I just like the super cheap lightning effect.

This episode originally aired on October 20th, 1996.

Enjoy!