You know you loved to watch. Cause there’s no way that Bay watch was able to become the most-watched television show in the world during its decade-long, slow-motion run from 1989 to ’99 without a lot of people who tune in. Even if they don’t want to admit it.

“At least two people have come up to me and said, ‘I learned CPR by watching CPR. Bay watch and I saved a life,’ says Jeremy Jackson, one of many actors looking back on their roles in the global phenomenon After Baywatch: Moment in the Suna fantastic, surprisingly honest four-part Hulu docuseries from ABC News and filmmaker Matthew Felker. From its origins as a spec script meant to capitalize on the growing interest in California surf culture, to the casting of David Hasselhoff and its ill-fated single season on NBC, to a record-breaking popularity that spawned countless imitators, a movie adaptation, and countless jokes, Felker has crafted not only a love letter to the show, but one of the most important historical documents for a generation who knows Bay watch was much more than just a celebration of scantily red bathing suits or a gateway to Playboy films.

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“It was a serious look at life as a lifeguard, and when I say that, people laugh,” admits Erika Eleniak, who played Shauni McClain when the show premiered in 1989. “But it’s true. There were cop shows, there were lawyer shows, there were doctor shows … this was about lifeguards. And everything we did, we did by the book. The swimsuits were standard ones. Everything was done on NBC by the rules of the time.” When it was canceled by the network and went into syndication, “it all went out the window,” she adds.

“When it was on NBC it was kind of a family show, CHiP’s on the beach,” points out her original cast member Billy Warlock. “As it went on, it became more and more about beautiful people… it changed a little bit.”

Yes, the sun-soaked drama about Los Angeles County lifeguards, led by Hoff’s Mitch Buchannon, is best known for feeding the world a steady diet of bombshells, including Eleniak, Pamela Anderson, Yasmine Bleeth, Nicole Eggert, Carmen Electra and Traci Bingham. There’s no denying that the surf was frothy from all that skin (and let’s not forget that the boys could get it 24/7, too!). But there was also, beneath the sunscreen and musical montages, a shockingly innocent series that regularly taught moral lessons and tackled environmental issues with the help of an insane roster of guest stars (Mariska Hargitay! Bryan Cranston! Carrie-Ann Moss! Hulk Hogan! Shaggy!), with sex barely hinted at.

For a show that was so naked on the surface, there were deeper things going on. It was a little tame but still beguiling, with serious themes in a package that didn’t take itself too seriously (unless you’re David Chokachi, who admits on the show that he takes his package very seriously). And it was a hell of a lot of laughs – even the Hawaii-set final season that gave us Jason Momoa and the underrated Jason Brooks.

Maarten de Boer / TV Insider

We’ll probably never have a show with such a pop culture bang as Bay watch again. So it’s worth it for those who keep it close to see that it gets such an extensive deep dive from Felker’s hand and authentic, often unfiltered insights from the actors. As you can see from our recent conversation with Eggert, Bingham, Felker, Warlock, Jackson, Chokachi, Electra, Eleniak, and Alexandra Paul, they’re not only aware of what the show was for people, but what it means to them now. Honestly, can you imagine a sleepover with Bingham and Electra? And hello, Mr. Warlock in his Silver Fox era!

Much of the cast has remained close through some of the show’s most vocal and very public difficult times, and even the actors who never worked together share the connection of being on the show that we still talk about today. A bond, Eggert reveals, that made pitching the project to the expanded ensemble a lot easier. “We got to know each other at different reunions and parties and get-togethers,” notes Eggert, who helped Felker round up the former contestants. “So it was really fun to reach out to everyone and see if they wanted to be involved.”

After all that running, saving and decades of disrespect from fans who denied they were secretly fanatics, they too deserve their moment in the spotlight.