Boy/Girl Meets World

[Spark Of Spirit]

I'm currently watching through my copy of season 4 which I just got, man that one has a great string of episodes.

So, I just re-watched all of season 3 of BMW, and for the most part it was as good as I remember. One thing that kind of bugs me is that in the last episode of the season Cory brings up an issue that was never at all present in the series at any point before. He says he barely knows his brother and that they rarely ever spent time together, but there was never any indication of this being a big issue at any point before. Maybe I could overlook it, but the fact is that on the contrary there are lots of times in past episodes where Cory and Eric were both involved with the main plot or dilemma and worked together and did stuff. They had plenty of interactions with each other. I just felt that the whole issue for that episode came completely out of left-field and didn't really have that much to do with any character development or sub-plots that had built up throughout the course of the season.

It's not that he wasn't around him, so to speak. I think it was just that Eric never really tried to know Cory during the first three seasons, he mostly teased and ignored him and I guess he couldn't see past that. And the reality finally got to him that his relationship might never improve beyond just squabbling with each other. I think it was more of a subtle thing they built into a plot point, but yeah it does come on a bit strong but I do think it fits right in to the show. Eric did kind of never really did treat Cory as much more than his annoying little brother at that point in the show even when they worked together, but it was never really seen as much of a big deal. After all, brothers are like that, right?

And to be fair, this does actually change their dynamic in the show and in season 4 their relationship is a lot stronger. While they do rib each other like brothers do, they tend to actually do more things together and Eric sees him as more of an equal as opposed to just his younger brother.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Well, before addressing your point, I just want to point out that I did in fact like the episode itself at its core. While I do feel that it was kind of forced in terms of continuity, having an older brother of my own, I can completely relate to how that particular episode portray's Cory and Erics relationship. In fact my older brother still largely ignores me to this day, so watching it now really got me reflecting on my own life a little bit, which is kind of a testament to how timeless this show can be sometimes.

That said, I do feel that Eric did treat Cory with more respect than just an annoying little brother at various points in the series. There were numerous times within the first 3 seasons where he tried to cheer Cory up when he was in a slump, and in the episode previous to the season finale, he even went so far as to cover for Cory when he went to Disney World for 2 days to try and get back together with Topanga. I do agree though that after this episode, Cory and Eric had a noticeably stronger brotherly bond and had way more interactions together in later episodes of the series, but I do still feel that they had a reasonably solid relationship before this episode as well.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I'm on season 4 of BMW. I really find Shawn's story-arc revolving around trying to find a home and then in this season trying to be a family with his parents again to be one of the most well-written and compelling character portions of the show. I also like how it doesn't have a happy ending to it and that by the end of everything Shawn has to learn to rely on his friends and treat them as family, and how he does end up having a much stronger bond with his friends because of that. I always felt that by the final season of the series Shawn could be considered as much a brother to Cory as Eric (in some cases even more so since they have been best friends since the beginning of the show).

Actually, one of the things that I liked best about this show in general was the sense of realism it had to it. It rarely ever sugar-coated any issues it tackled, and there were plenty of instances in which various characters suffered serious consequences for previous events, but I also like how they are realistically able to overcome their problems. That's probably why I liked this series so much, since for someone like me its really easy to relate to, as I've encountered many of the problems it tackles myself, in my own real life.

[Avaitor]

RIP Davy Jones.

[Avaitor]

You know, I've been thinking, and I believe that Shawn's character arc would've turned out stronger if he didn't go to college. During their senior year, the writers kept on pushing that he went to schol with Cory and Topanga, even though he didn't have the motivation for it and had just as much reason to not go. I think Shawn could've just found a job and stayed in Jack and Eric's dorm and not much really would have changed. College isn't for everyone, after all.

It also could have given Shawn more time to have his sabbatical after his dad died, and given him more time for thinking.

Otherwise, I really like his storyline over the course of the show. I think he had the strongest one of all.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah, Shawn definitely had the most interesting character arcs, mostly because he lead the most tragic life throughout the course of the series, what with him being poor, his un-biological mother running off twice (and him finding out that she wasn't his real mother only towards the end of the series) and his father dying. Also there was Mr. Turner who I could talk about but the show just wrote him off after that car accident episode, and I can't help but feel that it was too abrupt for a character was was honestly fairly important among the cast, especially since he had such a big impact on Shawn's life. It just didn't feel right the the show never even acknowledged him after season 4 ended. If his actor was leaving the show for good, it probably would have been a more substantial move to either kill off his character or send him off for good, since at least that way it would be a huge impact on Shawn that could be referenced throughout the rest of the series.

Other than Shawn, I also really liked Eric's character arc throughout the series. As someone who has an older brother who is honestly pretty smart when he gives a shit about something but is completely lazy and too hesitant to try for something that he doesn't think he can achieve, I can totally understand a lot of Eric's struggle throughout the show as he is just that type of character. The episode where he found an internship at the news station that he liked and didn't want to try for college anymore because he felt secure there is actually so similar to something that happened in my older brother's life that its a bit eerie, but it just goes to prove how experienced the writers were with handling serious coming of age situations in life. I mean, yeah, most of the time stuff in the show was played for laughs, but there is always a sort of truth in those scenarios that you can understand if you've been through them yourself or have seen other people you know go through those situations, and its a big reason for why the show has aged so well for me.

[Avaitor]

You see, I really liked Eric's character arc too, except towards the end when they totally dumbed his character down. Even then, he was still mighty funny IMO, just not relatable in any capacity. And I especially liked his storyline in season 4 where he spent time out of school and fought to make it into Pennbrook.

But that's why I don't like the part of Shawn's storyline where he decides to go to college after all. The show already had a poignant subplot with one of its characters deciding if college was for him with Eric. I honestly think that Shawn would have turned out the same if he didn't go to Pennbrook. Didn't he join the army at the end of the show?

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

No, actually. His brother joined the Peace Corps, and Shawn went to live in New York with Cory, Topanga, and Eric (though what job he would have over there, I have no clue).

And yeah, they did really screw up with Eric's character in the final season, though for all intents and purposes his story arc was mostly done by the end of season 5, so I didn't mind them turning him into a comic relief character so much, and at least he got one serious episode analyzing his relationship with Cory in the final season, so he still had his moment. I do think it was kind of insulting to his character to play him off as a complete moron in the final season, though, as that really ticks me off. It has been well established before that Eric is fairly intelligent when he's actually trying, and it was really annoying how they played him off as an oaf almost all of the time, as he was quite good with his social skills in previous seasons, as well. I honestly have no idea what the writers were doing with his character in the final season, but they really didn't treat him with the proper respect that he deserved as a character.

[Avaitor]

You see, it's been so long since I've seen the finale that I forgot.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I think the issue is that season 5 wasn't a good season for characters. It was funny, yes, but it seemed like a lot of characters and stories were just thrown out the window and little seemed to happen except that whole cheating thing. I like season 5 and all, but it's probably my least favorite season on a story and character level.

As for Shawn going to college, I think it was something he needed to do. Shawn, unlike Eric, actually was always motivated to succeed and only seemed to come at a stumbling block when he was doing things he thought he shouldn't be doing like when his background was brought up. He was very insecure about his roots to the point where he seemed to think that living them out was the easiest way to make those issues go away, when clearly that never helped him out. I think he needed to go to college (stay in college is another thing entirely) in order to test himself to see if he was really better than what he considered himself. I don't think him not even trying to get in would have done much for his character.

[Avaitor]

I guess you're right. I also just remembered the episode where he snuck into a philosophy class and really enjoyed it, even though his writing was awful.

Another thing that annoyed me a little about the later part of the show is how Morgan was almost completely written out. She wasn't one of the best characters to begin with, but it feels weird when you look back and see that she used to be a prominent part of the show, then just got completely swept under the rug by the time Eric goes to college. I guess that can be attested to how sitcom writers don't know how to write for girls, but I think it's sad that she never got to have Feeny as a teacher or got much advice from him.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Yeah, Morgan was kind of pushed to the side, which was a shame. I was kind of hoping they would have split the plots like they did before for Cory and Eric and make it Cory/Eric and the gang and Morgan instead. Most of the group were together all the time anyway, focusing on someone else would have been nice. It's why I enjoyed the first 4 seasons most of all because they frequently had other characters than Cory and Shawn in the B-plot, showing a lot of characters getting by than just the duo. I was kind of hoping that would have continued with season 5.

But then season 5 did kind of destroy Mr. Turner and Franky, ratcheted Eric up pretty hard (and his plots lost a lot of heart), brought in way too much romance stuff, and the humor leaned too hard on the absurd most of the time. As I said, I still liked it, but I think season 6 brought it back a bit.

I dunno, I always thought there was some kind of change of the guard or something with BMW, because change isn't really gradual, it kind of just happens when Cory and Shawn enter senior year.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Well, I didn't mind Morgan getting pushed to the side too much, even though I agree it would have been nice to see her get some moments to her character in the later seasons.

That said, I was pretty pissed at how they just wrote-off Franky like that. He actually had some decent character development in seasons 3 and 4 and actually became quite likable, yet they just completely ignored him in season 5, except when they brought him back for for just a little bit in the graduation episode and completely butchered his character by setting him back to the ground 0 of being a generic school bully when his character had already evolved so much past that point in season 4 (I really believe the writers of that episode probably didn't know anything about any episodes involving Franky).

[Spark Of Spirit]

That said, I was pretty pissed at how they just wrote-off Franky like that. He actually had some decent character development in seasons 3 and 4 and actually became quite likable, yet they just completely ignored him in season 5, except when they brought him back for for just a little bit in the graduation episode and completely butchered his character by setting him back to the ground 0 of being a generic school bully when his character had already evolved so much past that point in season 4 (I really believe the writers of that episode probably didn't know anything about any episodes involving Franky).

Graduation- Written by: Matthew Nelson & Bob Tischler

^The episode in question.

Sixteen Candles and Four-Hundred-Pound Men- Written by: Matthew Nelson
Fishing For Virna- Written by: Matthew Nelson (This episode has some really great Franky and Herman moments)

And most importantly:

New Friends and Old- Written by: Matthew Nelson

That's the episode where Franky turns a new leaf.

Either Bob Tischler completely rewrote Matthew Nelson's script, or Matthew Nelson forgot everything HE established. I'm wondering if this is like KOTH season 7 where they actively went to the staff and told them to throw continuity out the window, because I can't see how anyone could do something like that, but season 5 seems to actively avoid anything from previous seasons.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Wow! In that case either Nelson's script was heavily tampered with or he just flat-out didn't care about Franky's character anymore, and just put him in there because it was a graduation episode and the staff wanted to get cameo's from all of Cory and Shawn's old classmates (which is probably why Minkus made a brief appearance as well).