Boy/Girl Meets World

[Spark Of Spirit]

[Avaitor]

Mr. Matthews?
Mr. Squirrels.
Eric?
Plays With.

Ho boy.

But yeah, Angela and Morgan seem like the biggest bets. Or Mr. Turner, which especially seems doable since Jacobs has mentioned that he wants to determine what happened to him. I don't think that many people care about Jack or Rachel, and while I'd like to see Frankie and Joey, they're not that important in comparison. And I severely doubt that Linda Cardellini will show up again.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Frankie and Joey would be cute as, like, cameos. Let's say Harley's having a poker game and invites Cory to it and Frankie and Joey are there with him. A whole episode centered on them wouldn't be needed necessarily. Jack and Rachel are liked, but there's a reason they weren't in the final scene in the series finale. They're just not as important as the rest of the cast. I can see both of them showing up at some point, but they probably won't be big deals. Mr. Turner I have no doubt is going to appear at some point. He'll probably have an episode with Shawn at the same time. I kind of hope Lauren doesn't appear again, because that story has long since been put to pasture.

All of this is totally eclipsed by the fact that Will Friedle is returning, though. I do hope he keeps his wackiness less tied to stupidity and more to ignorance, but I'll take monstrously dumb Eric over no Eric.

[Spark Of Spirit]

This episode was really good, but what it really made me wish was that Rider Strong was a regular. 

I didn't think he would add that much to the show, but he fits in like a glove. Either way, I'm glad to hear he will appear more often in season 2 and have a bigger role.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Man, Rider Strong's still got it. He can pull off Shawn perfectly after all of these years, and Shawn's chemistry with Cory is still priceless.

I really like how he interacted with Riley and Maya in this episode, and it was great to see a fully grown Josh along with his and Cory's parents. The only disappointing thing is at Alan and Amy didn't really have much to do in this episode. Hopefully we'll get a later episode in a future season which covers their role as grandparents.

And yes, we really need Eric and Feeny to appear on this show. In particular, Eric definitely deserves his own episode. It doesn't matter who he interacts with. I'm sure that he'll manage to steal any scene that he's featured in.

[Avaitor]

Didn't Jacobs say before that he wanted to show some kind of rivalry between Cory and Alan in regards to their parenting? I am a little surprised that we didn't get to see him and Amy on the show before now, especially since it was obvious that they were going to be overshadowed by Shawn. Because really, Alan and Amy were always well-written parents, but they're not the characters we wanted to see on the show above all.

But they're still great! And wow, so is Rider Strong! Similar to Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel, he hasn't forgotten his beats for a minute, and it was just a delight to see him back on screen again. This is what I was hoping for the show, and it does seem like it's happening- a best of both worlds scenario to please kids for today, but keep fans of the original happy. All Disney needs to do is at least consider airing some of the original here or there. Even put it up on their site, maybe?

And yeah, I'm caught up. You can still tell that this is a Disney show, but the writing is definitely a little better than their usual live-action stuff. I usually get some solid laughs here or there, even if there's an odd groan as well. Also, I was totally surprised to see Herbie Hancock in the previous episode. I'm not sure why he was there, but hey. Although that wasn't as weird as the time Larry David was on Hannah Montana.

Oh, and "Girl Meets 1961" is nominated for a WGA award for children's programming. Like I said before, I find the ending a little cheesy, but the writing otherwise is pretty strong in it, so that's not a bad choice at all!

Edit: Also, I didn't notice this until I randomly went on the wiki page, but in the award episode, Cory's award to Maya was the "Griff Hawkins Totally Cool" award. And that's as close as Adam Scott is getting to the series. 

[Spark Of Spirit]

To be fair, nobody was really pulling for Griff to return. 

Didn't Jacobs say before that he wanted to show some kind of rivalry between Cory and Alan in regards to their parenting? I am a little surprised that we didn't get to see him and Amy on the show before now, especially since it was obvious that they were going to be overshadowed by Shawn. Because really, Alan and Amy were always well-written parents, but they're not the characters we wanted to see on the show above all.

I think they did it in the best possible way. It would have been nice for even Shawn to be there in episode one, but their idea of introducing Riley's world and her friends and life first was the best idea to hook kids into the show. And that seems to be working as the show is pulling in ratings in the usual demos (the show is by far the best written show they have, which helps, too) while still having enough (like Minkus and Harley) to keep older audiences involved.

Now that we've spent a season getting to know the new characters, I think we'll be seeing more of what you just mentioned.

Oh, and "Girl Meets 1961" is nominated for a WGA award for children's programming. Like I said before, I find the ending a little cheesy, but the writing otherwise is pretty strong in it, so that's not a bad choice at all!

Not quite as good as BMW's back in the past episodes, but it was enjoyable. I'm glad to see this show appears to be popular with kids as well as older audiences.

[Avaitor]

Allow me to rank Cory's loved ones in his heart

1- Shawn
2- Riley and Auggie
3- Topanga
4- Nana Boo Boo (RIP?)
5- Alan and Amy
6- Eric
7- Maya
8- Mr. Feeny
9- Josh
10- Morgan, I guess

[Spark Of Spirit]

Uncle Poppy is right up there.

[Spark Of Spirit]

He's back! KyleEric Matthews himself!

[Spark Of Spirit]

"Playing Eric Matthews"

[Spark Of Spirit]

I'm really enjoying GMW (every episode seems to better than the last) and the recent episode with Shawn's return made me want to go back over BMW and what I liked best and least about each season. So I came up with this list.

Best and worst episodes of each season:


Season 1

Best: The Fugitive

While BMW was a fairly good family sitcom before this, I think it was this episode that showed what it was capable of. It takes a simple idea of a prankster's prank going awry and in the process established Shawn as an essential character to the show. Eric, Topanga, and Morgan's friends (what little we saw of the latter's, anyway) were more or less revolving doors throughout the series, but Shawn became a mainstay because of this episode. At the same time as being true to life for those of us who have friends like that (or maybe we were those friends) it also added shades to all the other characters in the show and I think was the episode that showed BMW did serious better than most other sitcoms of its day. On top of it, it lead to a great parody in "Hollywood Eric" at the end when Shawn comes barreling into the kitchen saying "Cory, I blew up another mailbox." which signifies how important the episode was in the show's development.

Worst: Boys II Mensa

I could have flipped for this or "The B-Team of Life" mostly because it runs with one idea for the full length of the episode to the detriment of every other character. Neither of these are bad episodes, but they don't do much of anything for me. I think I also picked this one because I barely ever remember anything about it until I watch it again.


Season 2

Best: Sister Theresa

Season 2 was a complete step up from the original, even its early episodes showing more of a spark than season 1, but the episode I find myself most enamored with is this one. This is also the only episode in the series that shows another side of Harley, which was what lead into his transformation in GMW to Cory's friend to be believable. In this episode we learn why Harley is so angry at everyone and everything, and it manages to be really funny at the same time.

Worst: Who's Afraid of Cory Wolf?

I have never correctly understood this episode. Not to say I don't know what they were going for, just that I don't understand why they didn't stop before they made it. It doesn't really work. The wolf thing is jarring for a show like BMW and the plot and comedy feel like they came from another show. It actually reminds me of Pigmalion from KOTH, except even though that episode is completely out of sync with the show it's in, it at least is well done. I don't really feel this episode is.


Season 3

Best: New Friends and Old

No surprise here. This is the episode where Frankie turns over a new leaf. It's also really funny. To be honest, it was hard to choose a best episode for season 3 because it's so good, so I just went with my personal favorite. Frankie was a great character who only improved when he became friends with Cory and Shawn and had some of my favorite lines. But really, almost any episode could have gone here.

Worst: I Never Sang For My Legal Guardian

All I can say is that some episode had to be ranked last. This isn't a bad episode at all, the main plot makes a lot of sense, but it has never been a favorite. For one, the sub-plot with Eric is boring and an Eric plot should never be boring. But it is. On the other hand, Chet coming back never actually went anywhere in either the show or Shawn's character development making this episode not do much except eventually writing Mr. Turner out of the show. So, yeah, it's my least favorite.


Season 4

Best: You Can Go Home Again

This is a pretty perfect season, yet I still went for the season premiere that had almost no Shawn or Topanga in it. Why? Because it's still probably my favorite or second favorite episode. Eric grew a lot over the last three seasons and this episode sets his tone for the rest of the season, that of the scared and unfulfilled townie, but it's here where it feels the strongest. Alan comes to the rescue and helps Eric make the hardest decision of his life so far (it doesn't get easier for him after this episode, either) lead in to one of the best conclusions of an episode in the series. It also sets the tone of the season which is thematically about change. On top of it, every scene with Cory is hysterical. Pretty much the perfect BMW episode to me.

Worst: An Affair to Forget

In a season of change, this loses out because it's the only episode where nothing really changes. It's still funny, but, man, I can't stand Shawn's girlfriend. People like her have never failed to get under my skin. All in all, not bad, but certainly last.


Season 5

Best: Raging Cory

This was the 12 episode in the season and only the fourth serious one (and two were consisted of a single two-parter) which really tells you of season 5's biggest problem. That said, the focus on father and sons lead to both a lot of good jokes and bonding which managed to add depth to all three characters, especially Eric who had been little more than a joke magnet every episode so far in season 5. All in all, next to "The Eskimo" and the Angela two-parter, it's the clear best episode here.

Worst: Heartbreak Cory

I hated just about everything in this episode. Yes, it lead to Cory and Topanga breaking up, but that's not why. Cory lies, Shawn lies, and they do it for no reason other than they don't trust Topanga "not to freak out". Umm, doesn't she have a reason to? You spent all night talking to some girl when you're already in a relationship and you don't see anything problematic with it? I could understand Cory doing the wrong thing here (because he did EVERYTHING wrong in this episode) but Shawn's advice was so catastrophically incorrect I had to wonder if he had ever actually met a female before in his life. While I can stomach the other break-up episodes in the season (I actually think "Starry Night" is legitimately great), I never liked that it both took up so much of the season and started with such an infuriating episode that I still have problems watching. Yeah, it's the clear loser here.


Season 6

Best: Better Than the Average Cory

I think this episode gets better with age. Mainly because we live in a society whose media is currently heavily focused on radical individualism over community and viewing the "commoners" as inferior. Everyone has to be rich, popular, and socially acceptable to matter. But this episode says the opposite. It is the common man that has built everything we take for granted, and the common man who were are most likely going to end up being. But now that's a bad thing. This episode aired in 1998 and it is a bigger problem now than ever before. I'm honestly surprised this episode still airs, and not only that, but GMW regularly made it a point when the show was being developed that it wouldn't be about fame or success but about a normal girl. All that said, that celery picture is the show's artistic peak.

Worst: And in Case I Don't See Ya...

This episode pretty much includes everything I didn't like about the end of BMW (particularly in season 5 and 7) and it also manages to center on Eric at his nadir. For one, I like the Truman Show, but this parody makes no real sense in the context of the show and effectively dates the episode in the process. For another, Eric is unbelievably stupid here to the point that he's annoying. The other problem is that the Cory and Shawn plot would have made more sense if they didn't already know Mr. Feeny would have said no from years of experience. Just not a fan of this one.


Season 7

Best: Family Trees

This might be the most underrated episode in the whole show. I never hear anyone talk about this episode which effectively closes Shawn's character arc for the series. This episode is neither as wacky as some of the episodes in this season nor as well-remembered as the wedding and honeymoon episodes or Angela's arc and the finale, but nonetheless is as strong as them or better. Shawn finally puts his past behind him and realizes it's time for him to grow up and put some good into the Hunter name. The scenes both at the graveyard and at the surprise party are probably Shawn's best scenes in the series and certainly leads him to be a fully fleshed out character. The surprise party subplot makes up for the mood by being really funny, too. I do wish Eric had been more empathetic to Shawn (especially considering his own arc with Tommy), but in season 7 we were luck enough to not have an episode with Eric as a complete dimwit, so I'll take what I can get.

Worst: How Cory and Topanga Got Their Groove Back

That Eric and Jack plot. What in the world. Otherwise the main plot doesn't really do anything new, but it's the Eric and Jack plot that always leaves me scratching my head. What were the writers thinking on that one?


Anyone have some picks of their own?

[Avaitor]

Cool list!

I actually recently watched "An Affair to Forget" recently, and while I don't think it's the best by any stretch, there's enough good bits to make it look.

"Where should we meet?"
"Paris!"
"That's the first place she'd look!"

But in hindsight, maybe there isn't enough good moments to justify such a tired plot.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Cool list!

I actually recently watched "An Affair to Forget" recently, and while I don't think it's the best by any stretch, there's enough good bits to make it look.

"Where should we meet?"
"Paris!"
"That's the first place she'd look!"

But in hindsight, maybe there isn't enough good moments to justify such a tired plot.

No, I agree that it's a fine episode. Season 4 is just really strong as a whole, there isn't really a bad episode. But I had to choose one episode and that was the best choice for me to make.

[Avaitor]

Big GMW announcements!

Wow! I'm really excited for the second season now.