I enjoy Maya's casual, resigned pessimism. It resonates with me. Unfortunately, instead of wondering if Maya's fears may come true, I'm instead wondering how they'll convince Maya that she should never have worried in the first place. The Disney ending is a foregone conclusion.
Eh, this didn't bother me. And I'll tell you why: 1) Maya's being silly, so it should be taken as a foregone conclusion that she'll be wrong. Cynicism is one thing, a believe that Life or the Universe is a sentient entity that's out to get her is not. 2) It's Shawn. This franchise would never allow Shawn Hunter to let her down. To do to her what so often was done to him. No matter how grim they played it, no one would buy it.
We're recycling the "Shawn has to let go of Cory so he can get married" thing but with the roles reversed. It's a little flippant for my taste. These two cried and yelled at each other over this. I don't like when their love for each other is used so offhandedly.
Eh, this didn't bother me. AGAIN. Things are different now. Cory's already been married for years, so they're used to how that works. They already don't see each other all that often. And they're 35, not 20. I actually think this was exactly the right tone that they played this in this episode. They play them as loving each other and being very close, without throwing Topanga (or Katy) under the bus to do it, which has always made me uncomfortable.
How is he making fun of their love? Cory's acting exactly how he's always acted more or less. What's silly isn't their love, it's that he's behaving like a jilted lover, when he's... not a jilted lover. And it's always been silly that they do that. This literally will not change their relationship at all. In fact, Cory will likely see more of Shawn as a result of this marriage. Shawn lives upstate. Katy and Maya live in Manhattan. Maya's obviously not leaving Manhattan. So Shawn's moving to Manhattan. Right?
I always walked away from BMW with this feeling that it's okay to be like Cory, to love your friend that way and express it the way Cory does. Yes, it's silly, it's worth a laugh, but it's also genuine. This episode of Girl Meets World paints those feelings like some crazy nonsense way to behave. That's exactly why I used that screenshot, look at how they're looking at Cory. We got laughs out of Cory's dramatic emotions in Boy Meets World, but we never treated him like an idiot for it, and that's what I felt in this episode.
It's actually weird they don't state what the deal is outright. They live in completely different parts of the state. What's going to happen there? I shouldn't have to assume Shawn's moving to Manhattan. And, also,does it make sense that this is what would happen? Yes, Shawn's job can be done remotely.... but he owns a beautiful house. Maya and Katy have a shitty apartment in a bad neighborhood. I don't know. I mean, Shawn's not going to want to separate Maya from the Matthews, since he knows what having the Matthews family around can mean for a kid like Maya. And he'd probably enjoy the opportunity to be close to Cory and Topanga. And if Katy's still trying to be an actress, her moving upstate wouldn't do her any favors. I guess Shawn should sell his house and maybe buy a condo in a nicer neighborhood of Manhattan. Okay, I figured it out.
Everything else aside, Rider and Cheryl are just oppressively good looking. It's insane! EXCEPT SHAWN HAS GOTTEN CHUBBY! MORE ON THIS LATER!
Maya's doubts are looking like the core of the episode, so let's chat some more. The standard strategy on a terrible show would be the kid like "But what if it sucks!" and there's an Emmy-baiting scene where the step-parent-to-be gives a heartfelt explanation of how it won't suck. This is different, since Maya had a scumbag, deadbeat father. ON THE OTHER HAND, hasn't this been her endgame since the day she met Shawn? Maya has been running the Parent Trap the whole time, why is she suddenly overcome with doubt? "Well you see Sean it's because now the whole thing is actually real to her it's perfectly natural for a girl her age MVP," and I could live with that explanation if the characters actually talk about it. But I'm betting they won't talk about it.
I don't know if you guys know this but Maya had a very sad childhood. Thank you Ben Savage (who directed this episode) for not telling Sabrina to cry here.
LIST OF TRUE FACTS:
1. The "snore, yip yip yip" gag has been done more times in Girl Meets World (twice) than Boy Meets World (once).
2. Some others.
End of list.
GMW has a habit of doing this. Making small throw-away never-been-an-important-part-of-Boy-Meets-World things bigger parts of GMW than they ever were of BMW.
3. Cory and Shawn only ever did their handshake, I think, twice on BMW.
4. Jennifer Basset wasn't important enough to bring back.
5. Harley wasn't important enough to be seen as often as we have. That we've seen him more than Alan and Amy makes me mad. And, Christ, speaking of the bullies, we haven't seen Frankie at all, and Frankie was actually Cory and Shawn's friend. I'm much more interested in what happened to Frankie.
6. Lauren's been talked about more in GMW than she ever was post-Starry Night on Boy Meets World. Plays with Squirrels came up in two episodes of GMW, just one of BMW
7. The "Feenay. Fee-hee-hee-heeenay" version of the Feeny call happened only once and yet it's the only one we hear anyone do. The normal Feeny call was generally just Eric screaming "Mr. Feeny?! MR. FEENY!!!!" at his back door.
8. "They want you to take the rolls" "Undapants!" Not big enough lines in their world to deserve callbacks in-universe 20 years later. Who was "They want you to take the rolls" for Cory? No one else remembers that. That was from a daydream in your head.
I don't know how Shawn could love Katy more than Cory. It was a stretch that Cory loved Topanga more than Shawn back in the day (I certainly believe it now, though). It's like when J.D. tells Elliot he loves her more than he loves Turk. No you fucking don't, J.D. Whatever. Otherwise I love this scene.
I'm not a fan of Scrubs.
SHOCKING.
Look, there's a lot of fun to be had with the "Cory loves Shawn more than he loves Topanga" business, but no, he doesn't. When he and Shawn would "break up", it would be either played for laughs or Cory would be pissed at him. When Cory and Topanga would "break up", be it in A Long Walk to Pittsburgh, the Lauren arc, or the parent divorce arc, it destroyed Cory. He seems to enjoy being with Shawn more, Shawn makes him happier, he's more fun with Shawn, but Topanga is certainly more important to him, and she has been since about Season 4.
I say that with all due respect to the Cory and Shawn bromance, which certainly means a lot more to me than the Cory and Topanga romance.
This was an excellent scene. I believe it's my favorite Cory/Shawn scene in the show, although I also really liked them at the cabin. Season 3 has been good for Cory and Shawn. These are not the best Shawn episodes of GMW, but I think they're the best Cory/Shawn episodes. "Home for the Holidays" felt off and remains Shawn's worst episode. "Master Plan" was good, but not necessarily because of Cory and Shawn. "Pluto" is also really good and the only other contender. "Hurricane" wasn't very Cory-focused.
What's your favorite Cory/Shawn scene of GMW, Sean? Am I missing one? And also, what's the best Shawn episode of GMW? Probably this one. Let's wait til the end to answer that for sure.
Topanga gives like some speech about solid ground, I'm not listening, it's total GMW-speak, that pseudo-profound whateverness. Katy mentioned earlier that she was blessed to find Shawn, and she mentions God again here. She mentioned God once a while back when she talked about marriage, so it's a little piece of consistency that I appreciate. And it doesn't feel like a Kirk Cameron movie because no one else comments on it, it's just a little unique piece of character.
I'm not completely sold on Maya's crusade in this episode, but I love that she's completely independent about it. No puppet masters, no strings. No stupid Cory lessons, no egging on from Riley, her motivations have nothing to do with LUCAS, it's just Maya. That's cool.
Speaking of Lucas, not only did I enjoy him not being in this episode which was a big relief (No Farkle was nice too. I do not like those two. Which is a problem.) but the only mention of him was Maya's mocking impression of him. I like anything that mocks Lucas wanting to be a veterinarian.
But seriously. I think someone should make a list of episodes that don't include Lucas and Farkle. I bet the thing they have in common is that they're all good.
Someone will have to explain to me how seeing these preparations on the roof has convinced Maya Shawn really loves Katy. Was that ever even the question? That wasn't the problem. I don't get it, what did this resolve? Let's keep watching I guess.
Yeah Riley and Maya, BLAH BLAH, who the fuck is gonna do it! Who is it! Ahhhhhhhhh!
There ceremony's starting, WHO IS IT???? I'M SCARED TO WATCH, WHO'S IT GONNA BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
 |
| Pictured: A very nervous Sean |
Okay it's Feeny, and now that he's actually here and talking I'm okay with it, but the fact that Turner and Alan don't even show up... I mean Turner actually lives here. Feeny came all the way from Philly and Turner couldn't make it? What a jerk. Somebody's a jerk, it might just be Shawn for not inviting him.
You're adorable. Yes, I was already spoiled, but I thought it was so obviously Feeny. That line could only have been Feeny - I don't think they would have treated Turner or Alan with that kind of reverence. Feeny's treated as an icon within this world, Turner, though respected, is just treated as a mere mortal. And Alan Fucking Matthews is barely remembered at all, which I hate.
"He needs more time, Feeny." is another example of why this show deserves to exist. Thank you, everyone involved, for getting that on television.
"Well Mister Hunter, I always knew you had potential." Okay, look, I am only one man, with only one heart, and I would appreciate it if you didn't fill it quite so full, Mister Feeny. I don't completely agree with the delivery of that line, it was a little jokey when it could have been profound, but whatever. He said it.
Maya interrupts for pretty much no reason, and then they're married.
Let's not pretend that this episode was for the Girl Meets World fans. They made a half assed 5% attempt at including Maya in the story, but this was for us. This was to give us one more big event in the life of Shawn Hunter, which is something I spent many years thinking I wouldn't get to see, and in that way it certainly means a lot to me. This is simply, 100% a must-watch episode. Fans of Boy Meets World who do not care about this show have to see this one. It is astonishing, however, that neither Alan nor Turner were groomsman (or Jack), and there was no Ghost Chet! Ghost Chet can show up at the mall, at a clothes store in the mall, but not at Shawn's wedding? He didn't even need to say anything, just like, stand in the corner or something, I don't know. Come onnnnn, this is one of those times where it's totally okay to do a ghost. Blah.
They did a handwave toward the faces who weren't there by having Shawn do an impromptu wedding, so as to justify people like Jack, Alan, and Turner not being there. Even for people like Turner, who live in New York, you can really come up with any explanation you want for why he wasn't there. Maybe he was out of town that day. Maybe he and his wife had some really important obligation they couldn't get out of. When Shawn gives people only a couple hours notice for a wedding, it becomes acceptable that maybe the timing works out that some important people can't make it.
But, of course, the real reason is it's TV. And TV shows often do this. Have weddings or funerals that are only attended by the main cast members, and past characters who have left the show, or important family members of the critical people, don't come, because the actors weren't available to film that episode, or they didn't have the budget to bring back so many guest stars. While William Russ and Anthony Tyler Quinn (and Blake Clark) likely weren't too busy, this show likely doesn't have a huge budget. Maybe they could only afford one big guest star (since, mind you, Rider himself is already a big guest star) and they went with Feeny. If so, they made the right call. Of Feeny, Alan, and Turner, Feeny is the most important to Shawn, in my opinion. Turner would have been, but he wasn't the constant that Feeny and Alan are. And though Alan cared deeply for Shawn, but it wasn't quite the same. Nobody understood Shawn like Feeny did, not Turner and not Alan. (Plus if Alan comes, it'd be weird if Amy didn't come, and then maybe Josh comes, and it becomes a whole thing)
Matthew Lawrence, though, I dunno what to say. Jack shouldn't miss his brother's wedding. He at least deserved a mention. I can fanwank reasons Alan and Turner didn't make it. But you show up to your brother's wedding, I don't care what you're doing. But this show has completely erased the already tenuous Shawn/Jack connection. If you never watched BMW, you quite literally would have no reason to know Shawn and Jack are brothers. It's never been mentioned.
You're right, that's really funny. I doubt anyone fresh into the Meets World universe knows they're brothers. Or that the ghost Shawn saw in the mall was also Jack's dad.
I'm undecided on Chet. The only way I'd have liked it is Chet watching in the background like you said. There doesn't feel like room for a Shawn/Chet scene in this episodes, especially since Shawn never really felt like he was having any serious doubts, he was pretty steady in this one. He didn't need Chet's help. BUT, if they did that, then it's an instance of Chet being an actual ghost, like in Brave New World and Family Trees, which I hate. I much prefer him being in Shawn's head, like in Road Trip.
Ava doesn't deserve to be here. Neither did Lucas and Farkle, so I can't thank Mark Blutman enough for keeping them out of this episode.
Cool, Shawn got married. I mean fuck, that's pretty cool! I love Shawn, I'm glad he's happy. I'm glad Feeny got to be there. This is an essential episode for all my stupid biased reasons. I can't even begin to evaluate it objectively. I want to believe that the bit about Shawn's middle name was a throwback to City Slackers, where Feeny uses it as an example of something he knows about Shawn. I don't know, maybe.
I made this joke to you earlier, but I'll make it again here, while we're on the topic. They're obsessed with the fact that Shawn's middle name is Patrick in this one. They say it so many times. Feeny even says "Do you, Shawn Patrick, take Katy..." which I don't think I ever hear ministers do when performing marriage. I swear it's like Blutman looked Shawn up on Wikipedia or something, saw his middle name was Patrick, was like "Oh yeah...." and tried to work it into the episode as many times as possible.
Not sure I buy it as a City Slackers reference though. Mainly just because Shawn's middle name was actually one we heard numerous times - which is odd, since we never learned Cory's. He's Cory A. Matthews. Alan? Alexander? Andrew? Adam? Who knows? I hope it's not Alan. Alan doesn't seem like someone who'd name his son after himself, even in a middle name.
Fun fact, Cory and I have the same initials, CAM.
That's not a fun fact at all.
Christian has mostly only responded to my review here, and has his own full review left to write, which will come as soon as possible, so check back!
Hey guys, sorry for my usual delay. I'll keep this brief, because I still have "Real World" to watch, and because I've already said most of my stuff.
First off, yeah, Shawn got chubby! You can really see it in the wedding scenes (three-piece suits aren't particularly slimming for anybody) but it's all over - you can see it well in his blue shirt when talking to Maya about her concerns when she locks the door. Little roly-poly in the tum-tum. I'm not sure why it amuses me so, or why I feel so okay with bodyshaming in this instance, but I just find it hilarious that Shawn got so chubby. Once they all hit puberty, Rider was most certainly the scrawniest of the dudes on BMW. Funny to see him so chub-chub. At least it's not in his face - though who knows what that beard is hiding. Obviously, though, this is... comparatively. He's still a good looking guy, and probably falls on the slender side for approaching-middle-age-Americans. Still, it seems to be happening fast. I didn't notice this at all in "Upstate", I may have to rewatch.
I'm more or less okay with everything in this. I like Shawn and Katy. Yes, we didn't get to see them established enough but... it's a romance between two recurring guest stars, what can we really expect? As much as we love Shawn, and as much as I agree that this episode is largely for BMW fans, the Shawn/Katy relationship as a whole is more about Maya than Shawn himself, it has to be, Maya is our secondary protagonist, and Shawn's been in six episodes.
Everybody's good in this, although I admit I don't pay much attention to Rowan and Sabrina in this. Maya does sometimes become a little exhausting in this in making it all about her, but her concerns about protecting herself and her mom are understandable.
Riley's inability to wake up despite Maya trying to wake her up to talk about something emotional feels unlike her.
I wish they didn't need to beat us over the head over how alike Maya and Shawn are. But... that's always the complaint, isn't it?
The "You must be ready to marry Katy, because only someone who cares enough to ask if he's ready would be ready." thing reminds me of that fable of someone (maybe an animal or something?) asking some sage if he has a soul, and being told "Only those with souls are concerned with whether or not they have one." What's that story called again? Is that an Aesop fable? I guess "souls" doesn't really seem like an Ancient Greek concept. I can't seem to find what that story is through Google.
Shawn and Katy need more friends. I get why you can exclude people like Turner and Alan and Jack and Eric because of the distance and the short notice, but NOBODY else comes? No random friends? Shawn's one thing, but why doesn't Katy have friends? Why is Topanga her best friend? Why doesn't she have a family? Where's Granny Hart?
Wait, Katy Grace Clutterbucket? I thought Kermit was Clutterbucket. Now, I'm all confused! Anybody have more info on this?
I didn't mind Auggie and Ava here. I mean, why wouldn't Auggie come first of all, and Ava does live in the building. Also, I liked the "We've lived our lives." joke. Auggie and Ava are fine as long as they have no storylines for me.
Danielle's delivery of "Great." was funny when Ava caught the bouquet.
Episode Rating: A-
Episode MVP: This is toooooough. I'm giving it to Ben Savage though. I just enjoyed him most. Rider gets the silver, Cheryl gets the bronze.
Loved this episode.
ReplyDeleteAnd LOVED the back and forth in your review guys, bravo. It was a lot of fun to read.
I have my own thoughts to add, but right now, it's really freaking late at night and I work in the morning.
Cheers, gentlemen.
I agree there should have been more people at the wedding. I would have loved Ghost Chet as a groomsman. They should have rearranged things so that Jack could be there. If they only booked Matthew Lawrence for X number of episodes, this should have been one of them. I'm okay with Amy and Allen not being there. It is possible to have Amy and Allen without Josh. They could have the wedding take place while Josh is out of town. Maybe he's off doing a pre-college road trip with friends, and he was too far away to come back for the wedding. Turner should have been there. He lives in the same city, as you pointed out.
ReplyDeleteI liked that this episode dealt with Maya's fear of change.
I wish more episodes of the series could be similar to this one- a plotline with the kids, and a plotline with the adults.
Also, I know this is totally immature, but FIRST!
Did you really think you could post before cryptid
DeleteHe posted while I was typing. I realize now how foolish I was. It was worth a try.
DeleteYou will never beat me Kit! I will always comment first!
DeleteBut you raise a good point, this episode does strike a nice balance for a kids' storyline and an adults' storyline.
I agree that Chet doesn't show up at Shawn's most important moments in life, but when he needs to resolve something important and then Chet is used as Shawn's inner voice. Shawn had nothing to resolve here, so Chet wasn't needed.
ReplyDeleteAs to the lack of guests, when Shawn asked Katy to get married there and then, they only had an hour to get ready before Feeny was arriving, so I have no issue with no one other than Ava (who lives in the building) being there.
One point - I believe the snores and yips are actually tied at twice in each series. In GMW Cory has done the yips both times, in BMW Cory and Shawn each did the yips once. But I do get your point, it was a small thing that they have since made into a big thing.
William Daniels looked much better than he did in Pluto. I was glad of that as he is now 90.
Also Sean - the only other episode that both Lucas and Farkle did not appear in was "Demolition", which wasn't very good.
I would stake my reputation that Shawn never does the yips. It's just the one time in Easy Street (4x12) where Cory yips and Feeny comments that, in his class, Shawn yips. We never actually saw it though.
DeleteAnd it was Christian who wondered about other episodes without Lucas and Farkle. I'm glad you answered though, that's an interesting counterpoint.
1960poster-I love your theory that Chet is there when Shawn needs him, especially to help resolve a problem. When you put it that way, ghost Chet not being there makes perfect sense.
DeleteI also have to add that as happy as I am that Shawn's story has reached it's conclusion, I am kind of disappointed that the wedding went off without Shawn making a disaster of it all first.
DeleteIt's classic Shawn to self-destruct before resolving the issue and having things work out. I feel like we were cheated out of an "Eskimo" moment here. I guess that makes sense seeing how GMW is a Riley/Maya show and not a Cory/Shawn show and so there wasn't time for that without making this a 2 part episode, so I'll live with it.
THAT'S true. Shawn didn't make a disaster of anything, he didn't storm out a single time...
DeleteI didn't think Demolition was so bad. But they also both missed "Meets Terror 2" which is horrible.
DeleteBut then, there's a bunch of episodes where Lucas missed it, and Farkle basically missed it except for a quick appearance. Those ones were basically good.
Not quite a bunch, Christian.
DeleteFriar was only absent from four episodes in Season One, and three from Season Two, if we count "Demolition."
The worst part of "Demolition" was the last five minutes, with that tacked-on ending that really does weaken the episode as a whole, I'd say.
"Terror 2" is an abomination and it never happened.
"Tell-Tale Tot" had no Friar, and minimal Farkle, and it also had Early Zay.
"Brother" had no Friar, and only a bit of Farkle and it's the third best episode of Season One, after Master Plan and Maya's Mother. One of my personal favorites.
"Farkle's Choice" had no Friar, and a LOT of Farkle and it's...eh, I actually haven't seen that episode in a long time. But I don't remember liking it.
"Home for the Holidays" had no Friar and only a bit of Farkle, who doesn't actually interact with the girls.
"Popular" had no Friar, and a moderate amount of Farkle.
Scrubs was awesome. "Maybe someday he'll love me like that," was one of my favourite lines.
ReplyDeleteThe episode was highly enjoyable and made for effortless viewing, which came as a relief. I think it worked even taken as a GMW vehicle.
Enjoyed the review and am looking forward to its completion.
I could write a very thick book comparing and contrasting the shawn/cory and jd/turk bromances. They are both very special.
DeleteWrite that book and I will read it.
DeleteThen write a book about how Scrubs couldn't decide if it was ending for about 3 years, and lasted 3 years longer than it should have. OHHHHH! SNAAAAAP!
DeleteGolly, what a controversial opinion you have there. You've sure rocked the boat this time.
DeleteSo it's just consensus that the whole end of the series is garbage then? Much better.
DeleteI'm a huge Scrubs fan and I just assumed that most fans agreed that the end of the series was bad
DeleteAs long as we all agree that Season 9 is totally the best season of any show ever!
DeleteWhat do you mean that shawn is chubby? I loved the pillow fight scene if you listen closely after the pillow fight scene shawn says screw it. Lol thats like a curse word for a Disney show.
ReplyDeleteI didn't catch the chubbiness either, so hopefully Christian has some solid evidence when he writes that part
DeleteC is right, Rider got a little chubs, but he still looks good.
DeleteI didn't catch any chubbiness but it did appear to me that Shawn got his beard trimmed since "Upstate."
DeleteAlso, apparently that pillow fight was unscripted--but William Russ, who was helping Ben Savage direct, recommended it to Ben and Rider.
i love his beard, i wonder if he were to shave it off he would probably still look more like he did in season 7 of boy meets world he hasn't aged much still looks good. :D
Deletei also loved when shawn quoted Jack Kerouac, On the Road. There was nowhere to go but everywhere, so just keep on rolling under the stars. rider has talked about him on his literary disco podcast.
Deletei also loved when shawn quoted Jack Kerouac, On the Road. There was nowhere to go but everywhere, so just keep on rolling under the stars. rider has talked about him on his literary disco podcast.
DeleteShawn didn't get chubby in his face. It's all belly.
DeleteI mean, look at him. http://www.eonline.com/eol_images/Entire_Site/201673/rs_634x1024-160803132138-634.Girl-Meets-World-Wedding.2.ms.080316.jpg
DeleteYou sure it wasn't just the cut of his suit working against him, Christian?
DeleteI'm tired as all hell, but I'll just say I really loved the episode. Seeing Shawn get married was really a great thing to witness, and not wonder about as some sort of fanfic in my head. Cheryl and Rider have great chemistry on screen and I wish they would have shown more of a relationship before jumping straight to the wedding.
ReplyDeleteI'll have more after Christian's review.
Although as an arc I would have loved (and felt that there should have been) more seen between Shawn and Katy to make this moment feel earned, I still think this was an incredibly good episode that just, for lack of a more adult sounding phrase, makes me really happy.
ReplyDeleteYou know what I loved? I loved that Maya had a gut feeling and concocted a half-baked plan around it. That is SO Cory and Shawn in their prime. That was always the heart of BMW to me -- these two not necessarily being the smartest, but firmly believing in their current plight, creating a plausible (enough) scenario or scheme to get themselves out of said plight and then learning something along the way because of it -- all the while growing and maturing. Did Maya's ultimate epiphany moment totally hit home with me? Not quite, but we got most of the way there and because of the previously mentioned happiness, I am more than good with it.
You know what else I loved? Ben's direction. I know Ben has taken some flack in the past for the episodes he has sat in the chair for, but I think he knocked it out here. That camera move onto Maya sitting up in the bed immediately felt different and fresh. Both nighttime scenes were money. The lighting was great, the content was great and each just gave the show a tangible feeling of importance. Loved it.
That Shawn/Maya scene was tremendous. Maya blocking Riley's entry to the apartment was tremendous. Two tremendous things.
Actually, no, the writer's room making sure we got a Cory/Shawn/Topanga scene pre-wedding, ALSO tremendous. Yes, no Turner, Jack, Matthews' clan and Chet Hunter's ghost is disappointing, but ultimately, yeah, that is logistics and cash flow. In my head, Shawn consulted with everyone who wasn't present at the ceremony through the course of the day, I am glad considering the circumstances we have that we got to see him have one last conflicted pow-wow with his people (any of them, but especially those two) before making it official.
God bless, William Daniels. I liked him in Pluto, I LOVED him here. Who knows how much of him we will actually get in the finale with so many mouths to feed in that one, so if this was his last "substantial" role in the show, I'm with it. I will say though, and granted, this is coming from a BMW guy, but I do think the show could have done more of this three seasons in -- having alumni drop in without a ton of set-up. Younger viewers would catch on, but I digress.
"This is our road" -- what a line read by Rider.
And, I didn't mind Maya interjecting -- selfish? Sure. Good intentions? Sure. It is very possible that the Maya/Shawn dynamic ends up being my favorite thing about this show when reflection kicks in 5-10 years down the line. They have yet to have one scene not deliver -- their moments DID feel earned here and that's a neat thing
So hey, wasn't a perfect episode, but Shawn himself was never perfect -- I don't want him to be. He's found love and a purpose. Feeny got to be there. There were scenes at night that just FELT like BMW. I loved this and hope everyone else did too.
I think this ep was the best of the series. Ava and Auggie made me laugh which never happens and all the characters felt right. Cory was actually BMW Cory and not GMW Cory. Feeny was great as usual.
ReplyDeleteAlso I really agree about the writers taking small jokes and acting like they're a big part of the BMW universe. All those examples are 100%.
Well, at least we know if this show doesn't get renewed the writers will have no problem finding work. Their love for pseudo-profoundness will allow them to easily snap up jobs putting together speeches for politicians.
ReplyDeleteBut seriously despite those annoying little bits which I can't stand this episode was pretty cool. I thought it was disappointing but passable that the Matthews and even Jack weren't there but Turner definitely should have been. And I do agree that it's weird that after bringing back Ghost Chet at so many odd times they left him out of one of the few moments where it'd actually make sense to have him.
I'm glad the term "pseudo profoundness" is catching on. And yeah, I don't want to hear any of these crap rationalizations people have for Turner not being there. If Shawn and Turner don't have any dialogue in the finale... I just can't live with Cult Fiction being the end of it.
DeleteWell, Michael Jacobs tweeted that "Shawn and Turner will reunite in a very special moment." I'm hoping he didn't forget. And considering the picture with, like, all the boy meets world stars, I'm definitely hoping there's some Shawn/Turner interaction.
Delete"Pseudo profundity" would be more correct.
DeleteChristian, were you an English major?
DeleteAlso, a long, long time ago, back when he reviewed "Dangerous Secret" for his original blog, Sean described that a tag for Boy Meets World is "lighthearted and funny, yet profound."
What would a tag for Girl Meets World be? "Humorous, but pseudo profundity limits effectiveness of lessons"
Honestly most of GMW isn't that funny either though so I don't know about that
DeleteGMW Tag: Trying hard doesn't always pay off.
DeleteHey Cryptid, I was a Creative Writing major. But I did get a perfect score on my English ACT THANKYOUVERYMUCH
DeleteOh, and you asked how my trip to NorCal was. It was great, thanks for asking! Visited San Jose and San Francisco.
I can't remember what I got on my English ACT, but I think it was something like 90th percentile. I used my SATs for college, so I don't recall exactly.
DeleteAh, you would have been a couple hours north of us growing up. (California traffic really sucks)
Shipping and I haven't been back to California in years. I miss my redwood trees. San Francisco is not without its charms--who doesn't love Fisherman's Wharf--but it's too crowded for my taste.
These reviews never fail to put me in a good mood after a long weekend in the news industry.
ReplyDeleteThank you boys.
To answer your question, Christian:
Lucas was absent in: Meets Popular; Meets Brother; Home for the Holidays; Farkle's Choice; Demolition; Tell-Tale Tot; World of Terror 2; I Do
Farkle was absent in: Demolition; World of Terror 2; I Do. However, he was used very sparingly in Home for the Holidays and Brother.
I'll post my thoughts later but I actually didn't like as much as you both seemed to.
Sean, I haven't seen much of Scrubs but that doesn't stop me from being a very frequent poster in /r/explainlikedrcox
But from what I've seen, the Janitor is my spirit animal.
I like to TELL PEOPLE that I'm a Cox or a Janitor, but deep down, I'm really a JD, and one day I'll come to terms with that.
DeleteAs long as you can find a Cox, Newbie. Every JD needs a Dr. Cox.
DeleteI haven't seen enough of the show to form an educated guess for myself--we only made it partway into Season 2 before we started watching some other show and forgot to keep watching Scrubs--but Shipping is definitely a Janitor. He sasses everyone we come in contact with.
DeleteDon't feel bad about being a JD, Sean. The world needs more dreamers.
I loved all the parts with the BMW vets and yes,even Auggie made me laugh.That said, Shawn's relationships with both Maya and her mom feel so damn forced, which is sad because they have great chemistry.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I hate that Mya somehow is just so jaded because of her horrible, miserable life of having divorced parents and a dad who left. I know that is a genuine problem, but geeze she (and the writers)seem to completely overreact and over-dramatize it that it drives me crazy especially considering they were just trying to duplicate Shawn.
The difference is that while it did shape who Shawn was as a person,it wasn't his entire character and aside from "really good friend", it feels like Mya's entire character.
She also has art. But yeah, it seems like every storyline that is about her (not her and Riley) is about that.
DeleteTHANK YOU! I had a hard time being invested in this episode because I am so tired of Maya's daddy issues. We settled in Season 1 that her dad was a piece of shit. It's almost like she thinks her mom is going to ruin Shawn.
DeleteI feel like that bit about Maya saying Riley made her "herself" again made her abandon hope is almost a red flag? I may be expecting too much out of this show but I really hope they show that it was just a misconception of our beloved protagonist. Not so Maya and Lucas can be a thing, just so Maya can get her growth back. I liked Riley and Maya's friendship this episode a lot, too. It was cute, it felt natural, in a way it hasn't lately.
ReplyDeleteUmm... didn't she paint "hope" in the park? Doesn't make sense that she'd completely lose it like that.
DeleteThat's true. So I don't exactly get how they came up with this episode. Maybe Maya evened out behaviorally in True Maya, and then now she has to even out emotionally? I don't know.
DeleteI enjoyed the episode, but I am a little miffed that Jack wasn't there. Like I'm bummed out over not having a proper Shawn/Turner reunion, but I'm genuinely ticked off that GMW has seemingly forgotten that Jack and Shawn are brothers. Like that's the whole point behind Jack's existence! Why bother ever bringing him back if your not going to further the biggest aspect of his character?
ReplyDeleteThey brought him back to show him to the fans and give some lesson to the girls. He was so minor that bringing him back now would require a lot of exposition since I bet all the new generation viewers have forgotten about him and they weren't even told he's Shawn's brother. Basically, he's just not a character in this show. And almost the same can be said about Turner. Feeny at least gets referenced now and then and makes an appearance each season.
DeleteYeah, but they at least make mention of how Mr. Turner helped raise Shawn. The fact that they never even mention Jack's relationship to Shawn is a poor reflection on the writers cause forgetting such a major aspect of a character is pretty shity writing.
DeleteI mean, I think there's no chance anyone *forgot* Jack was Shawn's brother... but it's just a testament to how unimportant the Shawn/Jack relationship was that it just doesn't seem like they think it's important enough to mention.
Delete"Why bother ever bringing him back if your not going to further the biggest aspect of his character?" Was that the most important part of his character though? It certainly should have been. But I'd argue Jack became much more defined as Eric's sidekick than as Shawn's brother, rightly or wrongly. (And I think it's wrongly because I enjoyed Eric more pre-Jack)
DeleteYeah, I agree with Christian. After his first few episodes, Jack became less Shawn's brother, and more Eric's sidekick. I think the turnaround happened right after "A Very Topanga Christmas." Which, ironically, had a fair bit of Hunter Brothers drama.
DeleteThere was some good stuff after Chet died, but not nearly enough.
And that's frustrating, in my opinion. Jack and Shawn are brothers--that's important! Maybe it's due to personal biases--Shipping and I are twins and very close--but I want to see Jack and Shawn in the same room.
I have to wonder whether or not the Hunter brothers are estranged. If so, that makes me more sad than angry. But an episode where Riley realizes they're related and tries to Master Plan a reunion, only for it to blow up in her face, would write itself.
Cryptid456-I love the idea for Riley to try to fix the relationship between Jack and Shawn, but I don't think Disney would let her fail. I could envision a two part episode where her plan fails at the end of part one, and Jack and Shawn are on better terms at the end of part two, but not directly due to Riley's intervention.
DeleteI think a good lesson might be-you can try to fix people, but you can't always. Sometimes you have to let them figure things out/work things out on their own.
Now that I'm a bit more awake, I can leave a slightly longer comment.
ReplyDeleteI loved this episode. I genuinely loved it. Sean's right--this one was for us. No Friar sucking all the energy out of the room, no idiotic classroom scenes, minimal pseudo-profound statements. This one was fantastic.
I liked Shawn and Katy a lot--from the finger trap to the flirting to their statements of love. It's fair to say their relationship is rushed, but I don't mind too much, given Rider's limited availability. More to the point, as important as Angela was, I haven't had this much genuine fun watching Shawn with a girlfriend since the episodes with Dana.
And I liked the emphasis on the idea of marriage. On a fair few Disney shows, marriage is simply treated as just the next step in a relationship. But Blutman hit the nail on the head, emphasizing that marriage was something bigger, more intimate. Shawn and Katy knew what they were getting into and knew what they wanted and they wanted it to be special.
Bravo, Mr. Blutman. Bravo.
Other bits I liked? Riley interacted with her mother! It was understated, but Riley resting her head on Topanga's shoulder while Cory pouted about losing Shawn was actually really sweet.
I also liked the scene with Topanga and Katy. It was a nice bit to see Topanga toss aside the magazine and say that all those compatibility tests and the like really don't matter.
And Feeny was awesome. Just awesome. I'm happy that "Pluto" won't be his last go-round. And he's in that season finale, so we'll see him again.
I liked this one a lot, guys. I just liked it a lot.
Grade: A
MVP: Either Rider or Cheryl. Ben and Danielle did a great job too. Everyone did a good job here.
Awesome Scene of Awesome: Feeny cutting short the Feeny Call was great, but I think Shawn cutting Maya's worries off and emphasizing that this wedding was going to happen was spectacular.
Heh, at first I thought they're betraying Topanga's character by having her do the test from the magazine thinking she's too smart to take those things even half-way seriously, so I loved how they twisted that.
Delete"Hey kid, let me stop you right there. This wedding ain't about you." and "We respect your tragedies, Maya, we do. We've had our own." are probably my favourite lines in this show so far.
DeleteI understand that teenagers tend to find a lot of drama in things in their lives because to them, it IS the most important thing to happen to them so far. So I don't blame Maya for being afraid. I'm very glad to see that Shawn, another character who understands that, can give her some of that perspective.
Newest Tweet: Girl Meets Writers @GMWWriters · 8 hours ago
ReplyDeleteNext: Are people naturally good or evil? Riley's debate assignment -- argue for evil. Friday, Riley truly meets the world. One of our best.
If they have to tell me its one of their best before I see it - I have to think it might not be.
Yeah, on paper that's actually an excellent premise, but they say "one of our best" a lot, and the episode is rarely worth the praise.
DeleteIn Season One, they said it for Home for the Holidays, Game Night and Master Plan. Never saw Game Night, but Master Plan was easily the best episode of Season One. And while I enjoyed Home for the Holidays, I definitely understood Christian's criticism of it.
For Season 2, I believe they said that "Forgiveness" was one of their best. The episode is not without its flaws, but there are some extremely powerful scenes in that episode. I don't remember which other episodes they praised as such.
And I think this is the first time they said a Season 3 episode was "one of their best."
In high school I did a debate about good vs. evil too! And I was assigned evil! And I won!
Delete10 points to Slytherin, Christian!
DeleteWe had a bunch of debates in eighth grade as part of the history curriculum, but it wasn't usually as...metaphysical as that. Mostly, it was whatever topic the pundits were having a shouting match over that week.
I've had hope for episodes before, but then I get burned and jaded.
Delete...Actually, I kind of see where Maya comes from.
Angela and Turner were in the script to appear, but they were written out of the script. I definitely think if this was a two partner, Angela and Turner would've appeared. Overall, I liked the episode, but let's just hope this continues.
ReplyDeletedo recaps 4 Make It Pop Nicky Ricky Dicky and Dawn Bella and the Bulldogs and the Thundermans at least do those and BUNKd Stuck in the Middle (better) and KC undercover (better) all the bad kids shows and maybe toons like Teen Titans Go(bad) the new TMNT on Nick really good one The Amazing World of Gumball all the bad kids shows pls I didn't know GMW was bad til I read ur recaps. Sean and Christian yall r AWESOME. I need yall to bREAK IT DOWN. UR RECAPS R A GODSEND BETTER THAN WATCHING the shows. ur recaps r funny, refreshly honest and a breath of fresh air. and soo true.
ReplyDeletei don't think any of that is gonna happen, but im so glad you enjoy reading these!
DeleteI actually recommend Sean or Christian to review Stuck in the Middle, its a really good family show on Disney Channel that's highly underrated already. Season 2 is already filming.
DeleteYeah, guys, lest you let your dreams run away from you - I assure you, there is a 0% chance of us reviewing any other kid's/family show.
DeleteThere has been some idle discussion of a BMW-themed podcast though.
Stuck in the Middle is bad...really, really bad.
DeleteRatings are n for "I Do" 2.06 million views
ReplyDeleteFor season 3 that isn't bad. I'm guessing we'll never see the rating this show had from last August through last October again.
The entire Disney lineup is in a ratings dive. I assume that holds for network TV as well. NCIS is the ratings king for network TV, but it draws about 50% less than Law & Order and ER did in the 90s.
Yep. There's just so many channels now, plus DVR, plus the ability to watch online, plus Netflix and Hulu. Everything's been diffused.
DeleteBut even with all that there are 100 million more people in the country than there were 23 years ago. I can see ratings not climbing, but they shouldn't be nose diving like this.
Deleteif GMW doesn't get renewed, then that means this blog will end as well. Wow, that sucks. Fingers crossed that it gets renewed so you guys can continue this awesome blog; it's so fun to read your recaps.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I think you guys should totally do recaps for other shows if GMW does end up being taken off air. Doesn't have to be from Disney Channel though. Your recaps are just hilarious and I'd like to read more, even for other shows
I don't know if anybody has saw a clip of Girl Meets the real world. But The whole Riley does a "bad thing" is very underwhelming but the part where Riley doesn't give money to a homeless person kind of makes sense.
ReplyDeleteRemember Darion, we don't discuss plot details for episodes yet to air.
DeleteGotcha đź‘Ś
DeleteRiley loves a bay window as much as Cory and Shawn love each other. At least they love people that much.
ReplyDeleteI really only paid attention to Feeny really.
As usual, I agree with most of the review. My partner had a feeling that Topanga's statement about 'solid ground' was a reference to the issues in getting married Topanga had at the beginning of season 7.
ReplyDeleteI loved the Cory/Shawn talk in the middle of the night. Only slight problem I have, is that Cory going on about how he loves Topanga more (and yeah, I do believe that honestly; even in the latter stages of BMW), is that he's saying it to the -one- person that has believed that for probably even longer than it's been true. Shawn has never doubted that; since sometime in season 4. TOpanga has. Cory himself maybe has. But Shawn hasn't.
I got annoyed at Ava crying though. Not for crying, but the reason. They established early this season her parents are divorcing. If that was just a throw-away excuse for Ava to be as she as, that's annoying. Because Ava crying at a wedding, when her own parents are finishing theirs (or have recently finished), would make sense, and make it seem like less a throw-away line.
Will van Roekel-If Ava was crying because it's hard to see someone else get married when her parents are breaking up, that would have worked. Instead, they did the whole old married couple thing, which bothers me. Partly because it's a tad too close to comfort for certain stereotypes.
DeleteKit - Yeah, that was my point. If they're going to do a divorce storyline, do it; don't just use it as an excuse for Ava to do what she does.
DeleteThat, and for all their proclamations that "there is only one Cory and Topanga", all this Ava/Auggie stuff reeks of doing it, except showing that they were like that all their lives instead of retconning it. Ava's not as smart as Topanga, and Auggie doesn't really have Cory's blind faith, but that's just characters. The situation is the same.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletedid anyone else hear Shawn say screw it after the pillow fight? is Disney allowed to have words like that on their show lol. i love the pillow fight scene Cory and Shawn in it was so funny you can tell they were kind of breaking character. i think it was unscripted.
ReplyDeleteI didn't hear him say it; but the end of that pillow fight clearly seemed to be Rider losing it and cracking up.
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr404EamK6I listen closely at the end its not that hard to hear :)
DeleteI watched this episode a second time and it was so boring I don't even have anything to say. I appreciated the connection to when Cory got married and how Shawn acted and their pillow fight because Shawn and Cory are everything this world needs. But there was seriously nothing interesting about this episode. And the quickness of Shawn and Katy isn't really teaching kids to take time in their relationships and invest...even though the kids take their entire lives to say ahello.
ReplyDeleteSee, I think this is where not having Shawn in many episodes is an issue. Because it was, what, at the beginning of Season 2 that Shawn asked Maya's permission to date Katy? It's been a while; but we haven't seen it, because Shawn isn't in many episodes.
DeleteI felt the same way about this episode. I just don't but the Shawn/Katy relationship. It was incredibly sudden, and I don't feel any chemistry between the two.
DeleteI absolutely agree...no chemistry at all and not having Shawn around more gives room for way too many plot holes.
DeleteI take something back...it was interesting because anything with feeny is worth it.
ReplyDeleteOk, I guess I'll drop my comment/review now since I might be waiting forever for Christian's review. That's not slight to him, I'm just ready to post.
ReplyDeleteI really loved this episode. Yes, I loved it. As I said above, I never thought I'd see Shawn get married, so that pretty much covers any ills this episode might have. And really, it didn't have many. I'm not saying this to be mean, but I think by keeping Riley for the most part out of this episode dialogue wise made everything run smoother. It all relied on the chemistry between the relevant parties to the episode, which were Shawn, Cory, Topanga, Katy and Maya. And they all clicked when they had to. How great of an addition has Cheryl Texiera been to this show? She's had immediate chemistry with just about everyone she's interacted with. Honestly, she's been one of the best things about this show.
If I had to gripe about anything, it would be that while Feeny was treated with respect, his dialogue outside of the vows was mostly laughed over. Like Sean pointed out above, his line about Shawn reaching his potential is an insanely powerful thing to be said, and they glossed over it. It's very disappointing.
All in all, I can't beat this description of the episode. "It was made for us". It really was, and I'm happy to say that, in my opinion, it didn't disappoint.
Episode Grade: A. I unabashedly love this episode. It was good nostalgia feels.
Episode MVP: Rider Strong. I know I didn't bring him up much, but for me, he was the best thing about this episode. He hit every note he needed to to make all his scenes work. Tremendous showing by him.
How dare you slight me this way? On my own blog.
DeleteActually, that line from Feeny more than just it was glossed over, it came across as kind of snarky. And not Snarky in a way you'd expect of Feeny. He may have spent more time stating how much he believed in Eric; but he didn't really doubt Shawn had potential, but the way that line was delivered, it suggested he did. I hope that wasn't the intention, but that's how it came across.
DeleteDefinitely agree with pw and Will about that line. ENORMOUS missed opportunity.
DeleteI don't think that's necessarily a bad thing to say about Riley, pwfan.
DeleteThere were a fair few times where Cory was mostly in the background of an episode, while the others took the limelight.
i can't remember any off the top my head for a Shawn-centric episode, but there was "Uncle Daddy," where the focus was almost entirely on Eric. Cory was there, but he didn't do much--he served a role for Eric to explain why Alan does what he does, but Morgan could have been used as well.
There's plenty of episodes where Cory in the background. The most significant example is "By Hook or By Crook" - the A plot is Eric dating the T.A. who helps him cheat, the B plot is Shawn helping to get Turner's bike fixed. Cory's got, like, a Z plot where he's sick and pretending it's mono to get Topanga jealous. It's literally two brief scenes. It's so dramatic that I think Ben Savage must have been basically unavailable for filming that week and they just shot these real quick in like an hour.
DeleteFrom memory, he actually did have mono, he was just lying about how he got it.
DeleteBut yeah. Cory in BMW, and Riley in GMW, might be the nominal 'leads' as it were; but it's really an ensemble cast that doesn't -require- them to be front and centre to make an episode work. Sometimes I wish Riley was held back in an episode, because I think it'd work better with her in a lesser role.
Oh, I forgot about "By Hook or By Crook," that's a great episode.
DeleteAnother one is "Eric Hollywood." Sure, Ben Sandwich has a few scenes, but I don't think Cory even appears on-screen. He runs like a scared rabbit when Topanga tells him that Shawn and Jack have the chicken pox--I think we glimpse the back of his coat when he runs back to the elevator, but that's it.
Hey, Christian, I meant to ask this ages ago--how was your trip to Northern California?
I apologize Christian.
Deletedon't apologize to that joker.
Deletecryptid, he went to cali, immediately ate in and out and then died.
Huh. You know, it's strange. Shipping and I grew up off the Central Coast of California and we never once had In and Out Burger.
DeleteBut if Christian died, does that mean he's a ghost now?
Yes.
DeleteDon't apologize to me. I am dead.
DeleteOk. I'm good with that.
DeleteAre you All Dead, Christian, or are you just Mostly Dead? There's a big difference between All Dead and Mostly Dead, because Mostly Dead is Slightly Alive.
DeleteLate to the party because life.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all,
Sean, I enjoyed your commentary on this episode. In particular, "ON THE OTHER HAND, hasn't this been her endgame since the day she met Shawn? Maya has been running the Parent Trap the whole time, why is she suddenly overcome with doubt?"
This made it VERY, VERY DIFFICULT to feel at all invested in Maya this episode. I get that she has a piece of shit father. Really, I do. But it was almost as if Maya thought Shawn would leave because Katy would change him. We established in fucking Season 1 that Maya's dad being a piece of shit is all on him.
But who gives a fuck?
CORY AND SHAWN WERE AMAZING!!!
I feel that Shawn/Katy, while the actors have fantastic chemistry, is forced in the sense of them being together so quickly. However, it is also completely in character for Shawn to not want a long engagement. Therefore, I wasn't that surprised by no Turner or no Matthews. It's sad though.
Christian, you brought up how under-appreciated Alan is and I agree 100%. This is a guy who Shawn refers to as his dad. In that episode in Season 7 where Shawn gets all mopey about Virna not being his mother, Alan offered to ADOPT Shawn. ADOPT! And the episode ends with Shawn giving Alan one of those handprint clay art thingys.
Feeny was fantastic but I'd kill for one scene where he says "Shawn, you've done more than I ever thought you could. You have unlimited potential. I'm very proud of you."
And then we all cry.
Christian, you also mentioned not liking Lucas or Farkle. I'm with you on Lucas and I don't think it needs to be brought up again.
Farkle on the other hand, I see a sliver of potential but he's wasted on having to deal with his girlfriend flirt with anybody that has testosterone. He hasn't done much this season so while I don't dislike him, I'm indifferent.
One more thing. Sean, from you: "Katy mentioned earlier that she was blessed to find Shawn, and she mentions God again here. She mentioned God once a while back when she talked about marriage, so it's a little piece of consistency that I appreciate. And it doesn't feel like a Kirk Cameron movie because no one else comments on it, it's just a little unique piece of character."
Agreed fully. It's in Katy's character almost from the start that she believes in God and it has NEVER felt forced because she seems to be comfortable with her faith, regardless of how others feel...which makes me so glad that in that piece of shit Belief episode, Katy didn't try to make Maya believe in God...because speaking from experience...seeing family members trying to convert the younger generation...that doesn't go well.
So, I'll give a B+
I agree it feels like Farkle's character has been wasted this season. It was cute when Smackle flirted a bit with Lucas when she was first introduced. But she's been in a relationship with Farkle for almost a year now and it seems like she's only gotten worse she flirts with every guy on the show now it's not cute anymore. Although if they're planning on breaking these two up this flirting may just be foreshadowing.
DeleteSmackle never flirted with Friar in the first two seasons--she would misinterpret his casual demeanor as flirting, and often get angry about it.
DeleteThat was consistently funny. But this, I agree, isn't funny.
From memory she kinda did flirt in her very first episode. And I was never clear if she was really misinterpreting that or she was doing it to get in Farkle's head.
DeleteNewest Tweet - Girl Meets Writers @GMWWriters · 23 minutes ago
ReplyDeleteThis Friday: Riley confronts the world.
Next Friday: Zay confronts Joshaya.
Next week sounds interesting.
100 bucks says we're all underwhelmed next week.
DeleteI can find no evidence Girl Meets Real World is scheduled to air up here any time in the next two weeks. The GMW page on disneychannel.ca doesn't appear to have been updated since Ski Lodge 2 was the next new episode.
DeleteI don't if "cancelled" is the right term when a Canadian network stops airing new episodes of an American series, but that might be what is quietly happening.
Being in Canada too, I thought I was going crazy because my PVR doesn't tell me anything about a new episode this week, or the next.
DeleteI'm not really appreciating being shut out like this, Disney. =/
First, that sucks Milestones and somer. It doesn't seem fair--I always hate it when a show I like has episodes that air earlier in other countries.
DeleteOn to the Tweet itself,
Gotta say, as happy as I am to see Joshaya get confronted, on what planet does it make sense for Zay to do so? He's never had a conversation with Josh and he and Maya don't seem to have a rapport that would indicate a conversation of this seriousness.
You would despise living here then, Cryptid. Except for a few shows which due to overwhelming popularity are fast-tracked, we are consistently month behind everything. Not to mention laws for when Pay-TV was first introduced here requires that free-to-air get first rights of refusal.
DeleteIn regards to Zay and Joshaya? Zay has quietly become the person who is the most... willing to confront things. Having said that, it better be Maya he talks to; because though the rapport isn't quite there with him and Maya yet, it's not even close to being there with him and Josh. And they probably didn't want Farkle to -again- be the one to bring relationship issues to the forefront.
I dunno, Will. Australia has the Yowie, the Bunyip, the Queensland Tiger, surviving Megalania, and, through Tasmania, the Thylacine. I think I could learn to like it there.
DeleteI'm interested to hear you describe Zay as the most willing to confront things. That may change after tonight's episode, but as of now, I don't see it.
I don't have much of an opinion on Zay, but that's to be expected. He hasn't had a storyline of his own yet, and he hasn't had a conversation of actual plot relevance with Riley since his introduction.
Given his bond with Friar, I'm inclined to dislike him. As far back as "Creativity," when Zay mentioned how Friar described the girls, it indicates to me that he knew for a very long time about the origins of the Triangle, and often seemed amused by it. And considering how much I hate Friar...
But you have a point, using Farkle again would be redundant, especially if they don't use him and Isadora together to act as a foil.
I wish they'd use Alan or Amy for this. I miss Alan and Amy...
So Shipping, I've seen Girl Meets Bear and I have to say it was excellent. Not as good as Jexica or Permanent Record, but close. You would have lost that 100 bucks.
DeleteI was underwhelmed with I Do. Not that it was bad, it wasn't, but that with Shawn, Katy and Feeny I was expecting the best episode since Yearbook.
However, Zay confronts Joshaya, is a bit too strong for what actually happened.
Ah, the limitations of the English language, and the limitations of a 140-character limit strike again.
DeleteAs far as I can tell, the only other Disney show with new episodes in the last two weeks of August is Bunk'd, and those seemed to be delayed up here too. Not sure what that means, but I'm hoping it means an only temporary return to watching GMW and reading GMWR a few weeks or so later.
DeleteI found I Do so agreeable, and my disagreements with what others found disagreeable in such well-worn territory, it didn't matter that I was out of town for most of the week and not really in a position to participate in the conversation. But this might be the last opportunity for a while, so I will probably find something to say about it.
Yeah well, most willing to confront things doesn't say much, because only Farkle out of the others really seems willing to confront things at all. (Out of the kids, anyway).
DeleteI'd want them to use any of the adults. Alan and Amy would be good, but likelihood is low. Shawn seems a possibility; and I could even accept Cory if it was done outside of the classroom.
GUYS RIDER STRONG IS ON REDDIT! ASK ME ANYTHING!
ReplyDeletehttps://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/4ykugb/im_rider_strong_im_in_a_new_movie_with_john/
"Playing happy Shawn turned out to be kinda boring. Except I love working with Cheryl."
DeleteOh Rider.
That was pretty excellent. Every time I think I can't like him more, there he goes.
DeleteExplicitly shutting down shipping on GMW, what a guy.
DeleteI read some of it. Asked a question about his new projects, realized it was redundant, and then asked what it was like working with Bill Daniels.
DeleteI liked what he said about how some of the actors didn't get as much to do as they should, Ethan Suplee as Frankie and Antony Taylor-Quinn as Turner, in particular.
I completely agree with him that BMW found its niche in "Cory's Alternative Friends" and one of the best written episodes ever was "Chick Like Me."
I like that he shut down the shipping, but that doesn't exactly change that romance is far too large a part of this show.
Also got a chuckle out of his firm statement that Turner would win in a four-way cage match against Shawn, Harley and Griff.
DeleteAlso interesting to learn that the "DON'T BLOWN ME OFF, GOD!" speech was written last-minute. I guess that's why it's so strange lol.
DeleteI feel like Turner winning that four way fight is, like, canonical. We know from "Back 2 School" that Turner can take Harley in a fight. We know from... I dunno, the one where Harley comes back, that Harley can take Griff in a fight. That means it goes Turner > Harley > Griff. That leaves Shawn as the only 'X' factor. We know Freshman year Shawn couldn't take Harley, but looking at them both as adults... I'd still put my money on Harley. Shawn's scrappy, but he's got a pretty small build, and even with his MASSIVE WEIGHT GAIN I'd bet Harley's got 25 pounds on him easy.
DeleteSo, in short, I'm saying Turner > Harley > Shawn > Griff (assuming Griff of today is built like Adam Scott of today): Tough, smart guy beats tough, dumb guy beats scrappy, skinny guy beats lazy pretty boy.
DeleteMore interesting: Alan vs. Turner (circa Boy Meets World, Alan's older now)
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteWell, Alan was a superb boxer in his weight class. But he's got to have about ten years on Turner. That starts to add up.
DeleteNot to mention that we're looking at two very different styles of fighting. Kickboxing has quite a few more moves to it than the regulation boxing I assume went on in the Navy.
In a straight up boxing match, I give it to Alan. But in a less-rigid brawl?
I think I'd give it to Turner, simply because he's younger, and I think taller by an inch or two--though that might be hair.
So, yeah, probably Turner.
What about Frankie Stechino? The Enforcer! He could squish anybody.
I think younger would matter now, if 65-year-old Alan fought 55-year-old Turner. But back then? 40 year-old Alan vs. 30 year-old Turner, I don't think is such a huge difference. And yeah, Turner's a little bigger, but I just think Alan comes off more ferocious. While yes, Alan's trained as a boxer, he's also got kind of a brawler nature to him too. He grew up in a rough and tumble neighborhood, was a lot like Shawn when he was younger, fought in the Navy, and is a trained boxer. Turner, meanwhile, grew up pampered in Connecticut, has no formal fighting training or military training, and just seems to have a much less... ferocious temperament. I dunno. Yes, physically Turner is bigger and looks more built, but I think Alan.
DeleteOh, Turner's a kickboxer? I may not have remembered that.
DeleteIt's hard to say. In Back 2 School, Harley asks Turner what he teaches and he says "English Lit... And kickboxing." A joke? A threat? Who knows. I'd say the truth of that comment decides the fight
DeleteI forgot about upbringing. Alan does have an edge to him that Jonathan doesn't have.
DeleteHow old is Alan exactly? I know William Russ is sixty five, but I always thought Alan was a little older than that. Alan had a birthday, in "Family Ties." Did they say how old he was?
And while Turner never actually raised a hand against anybody, Alan's confrontation with Mr. Mack was physical. And I have little doubt that if he had a mind to do it, Alan could have killed Mack. He said he'd kill to protect Shawn, and I believe that wasn't an idle threat.
The episode where they talked about his birthday they said he was in his 40s. That would put him in his late 60s at best now.
DeleteOf course they also said he was in the Navy/Coast Guard (differed in several episodes) while in "I Ain't Gonna Spray Lettuce Anymore" they say he got the job at the supermarket at 16 and stayed for 25 years, so its hard to say what if anything we know is correct (he couldn't have been in the service if the history in Spray Lettuce is correct.
Just because Alan worked at the supermarket for twenty-five years, doesn't necessarily mean they were consecutive. He could have done a few years in the Navy, and then went back to the supermarket because it was what he knew.
Delete"I'm Alan Matthews, I'm 42 years old, I am a grocer."
DeleteThough I have only watched the episode once, I retained a keen memory of the nick-of-time intervention of the kickboxing teacher. Probably because fresh in my mind was the shit and abuse hurled at Rileytown for its failure to be to bullying what the opening sequence of Saving Private Ryan is to D-Day.
DeleteI kinda got the impression he was shutting down "my couple is better than your couple". Romance is a big part of the show, doesn't mean people need to argue, at points quite cruelly, about who should be with who.
DeleteI mean, romance is a major part in just about any show aimed towards either pre-adolescent, or teens, but you don't always need to have these wars about who should be with who. Or give them silly little names.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete"Wait, Katy Grace Clutterbucket? I thought Kermit was Clutterbucket. Now, I'm all confused! Anybody have more info on this?"
ReplyDeleteIn Girl Meets 1961, Maya's great-grandmother was May Clutterbucket. I thought that was on Katy's side?
No, May Clutterbucket was on Kermit's side. Granny Hart is on Katy's side. It's just that Katy kept Clutterbucket's name even after the divorce...which doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but we've seen logic stretched far greater on both Girl Meets World and Boy Meets World.
DeleteI go into that in the 1961 review. While, yes, it would make more sense (why would Katy tell Maya about her ex-husband's grandmother rather than her own?) at one point Katy and Maya were living with "Granny Hart" - either Katy's mother or great-grandmother. Who's Hart. It makes no sense for Katy to be living with her ex-husband's grandmother, so the Hart family has to be Katy's. So, why would her name be Clutterbucket?
Delete"It's just that Katy kept Clutterbucket's name even after the divorce...which doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but we've seen logic stretched far greater on both Girl Meets World and Boy Meets World."
DeleteHaven't we heard her called Katy Hart though? Is it possible we haven't and we just assumed her name was Katy Hart because Hart is Maya's last name?
Honestly the anachronisms of 1961 were a trainwreck in themselves, so perhaps they just made up another error so Feeny could make that joke. Who knows? This show's not perfect by any means.
Delete...That's all I got. What episode was "Granny Hart" referred to, though? I must have missed that.
A lot of women, especially in professions where name recognition is important keep their married names after a divorce.
DeleteWe know when Kermit left Katy, but not how long they remained married after that before the divorce happened. Katy, being an aspiring actress, would have been doing auditions with her married name (unless she used a stage name) for years and it might have been better for her to keep it after the divorce to keep name recognition with casting personnel and directors when even trying to get parts.
I would assume that married life will see her give that up and deal more with home life and her job at Topangas.
If we heard her called "Hart," then I'm fairly certain that was in Season One. I think it may have happened in "Maya's Mother," when Katy first introduced herself...but I'm not positive.
DeleteNow that I'm thinking about BMW and character surnames, why didn't Jack Hunter take his stepdad's name?
Fair point, 1960. Doesn't Topanga retain Lawrence at her law firm? Or did she hyphenate her last name?
DeleteI believe Cory introduced Katy as Katy Hart to the class in "Maya's Mother". I just can't be bothered to go watch it right now to find out.
DeleteI believe she hyphenates as Lawrence-Matthews Cryptid
DeleteNobody answered my question on what episode "Granny Hart" was referred to.
DeleteShe wasn't just referred to, she was seen. In "Girl Meets World of Terror 1"
DeleteOh damn okay. That's one I haven't managed to catch due to it only airing around Halloween. Thankfully that'll be in about two months so I'll definitely look out for that one.
DeleteStrongly agree about “great,” which alone justified Ava’s presence. I laughed out loud. I also enjoyed Auggie’s confusion about Feeny.
ReplyDeleteAlso agree that, as wonderful as it would have been it have had more Shawn and Katy, we were never going to see the romance between two recurring characters. Adult recurring characters to boot.
I have never had issues with Maya’s daddy issues, and this was a circumstance that would bring them to the fore. Also no problems with her thinking she was born under a bad sign. By Disney-character standard, she practically has a hellhound on her trail.
Fun fact: I missed my brother’s wedding. No outrage or annoyance from me about who wasn’t there for Shawn and Katy’s.
The only part that felt a bit flat for me was the scene with the successive “cold feet” fake outs.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteCan I ask the story behind you missing your brother's wedding? If it's personal, I don't mean to pry, but just as it fits this situation I'd be curious how it compares: Did the wedding happen in kind of a slapdash fashion? Did you have a pressing engagement? Were you coming from far away? How does your and your brother's closeness compare to Shawn and Jack? How did that go over with your brother?
DeleteI missed my sister's wedding. Even though we knew she was engaged, the wedding was quickly planned and she and her then fiancé insisted on getting married on a Friday (I'm not sure why) and I was then in the military and couldn't get leave to go, even though I was stationed not far away.
DeleteSometimes things are just out of your control.
I guess it's kinda personal, but I will explain anyway. My brother and I have a long-standing pact about sparing each social obligations. For decades, for example, we have ignored each other's birthdays. I go out to visit him and family each Xmas, and we always pick up where we left off. But, we are rarely in contact in between. Neither of us are much good on the phone.
DeleteThe pact probably doesn't cover weddings, and his first one was inescapable. But this was a second marriage for both of them, and I didn't have the same preexisting friendship with his second wife that I had with his first. I lived even further from home than I do now. I was being spared the travel costs, they were sparing themselves the headache of putting me up, and the same dynamics that created the pact made it no big deal for either of us that I wasn't there. It's just how we are.
"Look, there's a lot of fun to be had with the "Cory loves Shawn more than he loves Topanga" business, but no, he doesn't. When he and Shawn would "break up", it would be either played for laughs or Cory would be pissed at him. When Cory and Topanga would "break up", be it in A Long Walk to Pittsburgh, the Lauren arc, or the parent divorce arc, it destroyed Cory. He seems to enjoy being with Shawn more, Shawn makes him happier, he's more fun with Shawn, but Topanga is certainly more important to him, and she has been since about Season 4."
ReplyDeleteYeah, since Season 4, Topanga has became more important to Cory than Shawn. At the same time, I think Cory needs Shawn as much as he need Topanga, but with Shawn, I think Cory has become seeing Shawn more like a family, like a brother, which is greater than just a best friend. Shawn has always been a family to Cory and the Matthews, Shawn, himself, also knows that. But Topanga, if you think about it, there can actually come a time or day that they could leave each other and might not contact each other again, Cory been having those experiences with the people around him like Shawn's family and Topanga's parents, or like Shawn and Angela, so that's why he's afraid to lose Topanga that much. Friendship is actually stronger than romance/love.
Cory always hold on to Shawn just as much as he's holding on to Topanga,but there's come a time where he had to let Shawn go. But Cory knows that even if Shawn's not with him, he'll still always be there for Cory no matter what. But with Topanga, it's different, because if he let Topanga go, then that means Topanga might not come back to him again. With Shawn, Cory's confident enough that he'll still be around and still be there because Shawn's already been part of Cory's family. As you see, even when Shawn left New York since 13 years, when he came back, he's still keeping intact with Cory and the family, he's still there. But Topanga, it won't be this way.