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Boy Meets World is an American television sitcom created and produced by Michael Jacobs and April Kelly. It ran for seven seasons on the ABC network from September 24, 1993, to May 5, 2000.

The show chronicles the everyday events and life-lessons of Cory Matthews (Ben Savage). It also stars Cory's teacher George Feeny (William Daniels), best friend Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong), brother Eric (Will Friedle), and love interest Topanga Lawrence (Danielle Fishel). The show also features Cory's father Alan (William Russ), mother Amy (Betsy Randle), and sister Morgan (Lily Nicksay), while introducing the characters Angela Moore (Trina McGee-Davis), Rachel McGuire (Maitland Ward), Jonathan Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn), Eli Williams (Alex Désert), and Jack Hunter (Matthew Lawrence) during its later seasons.

Synopsis

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Season 1: Middle school

The first season begins with Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and his best friend Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong), two average sixth-graders. They do not care about schoolwork, despite the efforts of their longtime teacher George Feeny (William Daniels). Initially, their main interest is sports, though later Shawn and then Cory begin to express an interest in girls. This season focuses specifically on Cory's relationships with the other characters in the show. He begins to understand his parents more and respect them for all that they do. His relationship with his elder brother Eric (Will Friedle) becomes confusing as Eric's constant obsession with girls is foreign to Cory, and he becomes more protective of his younger sister Morgan (Lily Nicksay from this season through the end of the second season). Cory begins to show interest in Topanga (Danielle Fishel), a smart outsider in his class, though he often hides this by insulting and berating her. Cory and Topanga have known each other since they were kids, making romance in their relationship even more predictable. Cory and Shawn's friendship is tested for the first time, and Cory must often choose between doing what Shawn wants him to do and doing what is best for their friendship.

Seasons 2–5: High school

During the second season, Cory, Topanga, and Shawn start high school and meet Jonathan Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn), an unconventional English teacher. Although they initially view Mr. Turner as cool, they soon realize that he is a teacher above all else, which earns him the nickname "Feeny with an earring" from Cory. Throughout the second season, Cory and Shawn try a variety of ways to become popular with their classmates. In doing so, they nearly get into fights with school bullies and in trouble with Mr. Feeny (now their high school principal). Eventually, though Shawn becomes more popular, he maintains his close friendship with the less popular Cory. Shawn's mother Virna deserts her son and husband Chet (Blake Clark), which upsets Shawn greatly. Chet then leaves to find Virna. After this occurs, Shawn lives briefly with Cory and his parents, but soon figures out that it's just not the right fit for him, and later moves in with Mr. Turner. Cory tries at some points to begin a relationship with Topanga, but this is mostly because he does not want to be left out of the dating game. Sensing this, Topanga is wary of his advances, and despite the mutual attraction, the two do not date during this season.

During the third season, Cory finally admits that he wants to ask out Topanga but cannot work up the courage to do it. Consequently, his best friend Shawn asks her out. Although Cory was hurt, he soon realized Shawn set the whole thing up so he could unite Cory and Topanga and make Cory confess his feelings for her. He tells her how he feels, and they become a couple. Later in the third season, Cory and Topanga are worried that their relationship has hit a rut, and decide it would be best to break up while they are still able to keep the friendship. They get back together a few months later when Cory follows her to Disney World to win her back. Eric spends this season desperately trying to make up for his first three years of slacking off in high school. He makes progress, but it is not enough; he is not accepted to any colleges or universities as of his high school graduation. He decides then to take a year off and figure things out, beginning with a summer road trip. After finding out in the season finale that Cory feels estranged from him, Eric invites Cory along for the ride. Shawn nearly makes several life-changing blunders this season, but Cory and then Mr. Turner help him to make the right choices. Cory endures several tests of character this season—everything from being credited for a great deed (which he did not deserve), to being insistently pursued by another girl while he is with Topanga. Sometimes Cory makes the right decision, and sometimes the wrong one, but he learns from each.

The fourth season opens with Cory and Eric's return from their road trip. In this season, Eric finds himself confronted with life after high school. The Matthews' patriarch Alan (William Russ) decides to quit his job and open a sporting goods store with Eric as his partner. After exploring some personal paths, Eric's ill-conceived (and expensive) stunt to use a studio bear to bring in money for Alan's store gets him fired by his father. Confronted with his parents' disillusionment, Feeny's unbending belief in his intelligence, and his lifelong stagnancy, Eric decides to retake the SAT and give college another try. Topanga's mother is transferred at her job to Pittsburgh, which is over 300 miles (480 km) from Philadelphia. The news devastates Cory, but Topanga runs away from her new house and returns to Philadelphia. Topanga's parents decide that she can live with Aunt Prudence (Olivia Hussey) in Philadelphia until she graduates. Shawn's mother returns for a brief period but then leaves again under unknown circumstances at some point between season 4 and season 6.

Later that school year, Mr. Turner gets into a severe motorcycle accident in which he almost dies. The next year Eric, ousted from his parents’ house, begins college at the fictional Pennbrook University. He moves into an apartment with Jack (Matthew Lawrence), who turns out to be Shawn's half-brother. Shawn clearly shows his hatred toward Jack and refuses to live with him because he was upset that Jack never called or checked to see if Shawn and his dad were doing okay (Shawn eventually discovers that Jack never received any of Shawn's letters, or he would have come to see him immediately). However, after being convinced by his father and others around him, Shawn moves in with them but finds he has nothing in common with Jack, which causes a lot of tension. A new student, Angela (Trina McGee), moves to Philadelphia and begins to date Shawn. Over winter break, the students go skiing on a school trip. Cory sprains his ankle and Lauren (Linda Cardellini), a ski-lodge employee, takes care of him and kisses him. Wanting to forget the incident, Cory lies to Topanga that nothing's wrong. When Topanga discovers a letter that Lauren snuck to Cory, they break up. Cory, upset about the break-up, gets drunk and is arrested, along with Shawn. The two agree never to drink again, but Shawn breaks the promise and shows up at school drunk. With the help of Angela and Jack, Shawn realizes that alcoholism makes him volatile, and he seeks outside counseling.

Topanga forgives Cory after encountering her own kiss with an old friend from grade school. She realizes no kiss means more than the ones she shares with Cory. Cory and Topanga reunite and attend the prom together, where they are named King and Queen. On prom night, Cory's mother Amy (Betsy Randle) announces that she is pregnant. Mr. Feeny decides to retire at the end of the school year and move to Wyoming; however, he soon returns from retirement and goes back to teaching. Topanga is accepted to Yale, but Cory does not want her to leave him. At graduation, Topanga tells Cory that she decided not to go to Yale because she wants to be with him; then she proposes.

Seasons 6–7: College

When Cory's parents protest their engagement before college, Cory and Topanga decide to elope, but later elect to get married "the right way," in front of family and friends. Shawn, Cory, Topanga, and Angela join Jack and Eric at Pennbrook. Rachel McGuire (Maitland Ward), a new student from Texas, moves in with Eric and Jack, causing tension as both boys have crushes on her. Angela and Shawn break up due to his claim that they should meet new people and, despite Cory's efforts, decide to stay just friends. They eventually are brought back together by way of Angela's father during his visit to the college, recruiting students for his R.O.T.C. program of basic training in the army. Mr. Feeny returns to take some classes but then is offered a teaching job at the university. During their freshman year, Stuart (played by Ben Savage's older brother Fred Savage), one of their professors, makes inappropriate—and unwelcome—sexual advances towards Topanga, causing Cory to shove him through a glass door at the Student Union. Cory is suspended but for only one day; the Dean (Bonnie Bartlett) believes that Stuart had crossed the line. Mr. Feeny and the Dean eventually gain feelings for one another and begin dating.

Cory and Topanga face a major obstacle in their marriage plans when Topanga's parents go through a divorce, and she decides to call off the wedding. She breaks up with Cory completely and tells him that she doesn't believe in love. Topanga is convinced that she is doing what is best for herself and Cory until her mother comes to explain everything and tell her that love is worth the risk.

Chet dies of a heart attack, and Jack reacts by admitting feelings for Rachel. They start dating, which causes problems for Jack and Eric. Crushed, Eric decides to move out of the apartment so that he doesn't get in the way of Jack and Rachel and later sleeps in Mr. Feeny's car. Shawn goes on a road trip to deal with his father's death, saying he won't come back. He does return however when the new Matthews baby, Joshua, is born prematurely and has a small chance of survival. Shawn receives a letter from his mother, confessing she is not his biological parent. Shawn unsuccessfully searches for his biological mother. Alan offers to adopt Shawn, but he decides that it was not necessary because Shawn knows that he is already part of the family.

Shawn and Cory have challenges in their relationship throughout the season, including on the day of Cory's wedding. Shawn admits that he is no longer Cory's best friend and gives him away to Topanga. Despite this, their friendship remains intact, but Topanga sometimes feels left out. Cory and Topanga get married and move into a shabby apartment for married couples on campus. They struggle for a while, wondering why Alan and Amy refuse to help them, but Alan later admits that he didn't want to deprive of them of the joy and bonding that comes with building a life together when you're new to marriage. They eventually make it a wonderful home and realize that they are capable of doing things on their own as a married couple. The group is growing up—they have to start thinking about what to do with their lives. In one episode, the newer friends get involved in a prank war with the originals (Jack, Rachel, and Angela vs. Cory, Shawn, and Topanga) which ultimately results in an ill-considered prank that exposes a very private secret of Rachel's. The friends are almost completely torn apart by all of this, until Eric and Mr. Feeny intervene by reminding them of the importance of their relationships and, as a result, everyone makes up.

In the series finale, Cory, Topanga, Shawn, and Eric all head to New York City, where Topanga has been offered a dream internship at a law firm. Angela decides to move overseas with her father, and Jack and Rachel join the Peace Corps in Guatemala. The final scene has Cory, Topanga, and Shawn having a final meeting with Mr. Feeny in their old sixth-grade classroom, along with Eric, with each one telling him how important he is in their lives and to cherish each other forever.

Characters

• Cory Matthews (Ben Savage), the series main protagonist who goes through real life scenarios and learns the meaning of life through many life lessons.
• George Feeny (William Daniels), Cory and the rest of the gang's teacher who gives them many life lessons throughout the course of the series.
• Amy Matthews (Betsy Randle), Cory, Eric, Morgan, and Joshua's mother; Alan's wife.
• Eric Matthews (Will Friedle), Cory's ditzy, wild, and crazy older brother.
• Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong), Cory's best friend who comes from a troubled family.
• Stuart Minkus (Lee Norris), (starring season 1, guest season 5) a nerdy child in Cory and Shawn's sixth grade class who has a crush on Topanga.
• Morgan Matthews (Lily Nicksay) (seasons 1-2), (Lindsay Ridgeway) (seasons 3-7), Cory, Eric, and Joshua's sister.
• Alan Matthews (William Russ), Cory, Eric, Morgan, and Joshua's father; Amy's husband.
• Topanga Matthews (née Lawrence) (Danielle Fishel), (recurring season 1, starring seasons 2-7) Cory's main love interest, who became his girlfriend, and later wife.
• Jonathan Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn), (starring seasons 2-4) a cool high-school teacher of Cory, Shawn, and Topanga who fostered Shawn.
• Eli Williams (Alex Désert), (starring season 3) another teacher at John Adams High School and Jonathan's college best friend.
• Jack Hunter (Matthew Lawrence), (starring seasons 5-7) Shawn's lost half-brother and another one of Rachel's love interest.
• Angela Moore (Trina McGee-Davis), (recurring season 5, starring seasons 6-7) Topanga's best friend and Shawn's main love interest.
• Rachel McGuire (Maitland Ward), (starring seasons 6-7) Topanga and Angela's best friend who is also Eric and Jack's roommate.

Production notes

Theme music and introductions

Boy Meets World used a number of theme songs and opening title sequences over its seven-year run. Season one was the only season of the series that incorporated the names of the main cast and series creators within the opening title sequence, while those credits were shown along with the credits for producers and that episode's director and writers during the show's cold open for the remainder of the series. Every episode of seasons one and four through seven utilized a single theme song for every episode; however, the entire second season and part of season three used various instrumental themes composed by Ray Colcord (who also composed the incidental music used between scenes and commercial breaks throughout the show's run). This practice ended with "The Last Temptation of Cory" (season 3, episode 9) as one of the cycled themes became the sole opening title music for the rest of that season. The final theme, written and performed by Phil Rosenthal, of the band Twenty Cent Crush remained for seasons five through seven, though the visuals changed from seasons 5 to 6 to include Trina McGee-Davis (when she moved from recurring cast member in season 5 to series regular cast member in season 6) and Maitland Ward (who was added as a regular cast member in season 6).

ABC Family was the first network since ABC to show all the accurate introductions for each of the show's seven seasons. For the broadcast syndication and Disney Channel airings between 1997 and 2007, the opening title sequence from season four (along with a slightly modified version of the theme music from that season) anachronistically replaced the title sequences for the first three seasons, while the opening titles for seasons four through seven were kept intact.

Philadelphia references

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It is one of many television shows to take place primarily in the Philadelphia area and makes multiple local references. These include Cory's love for the Phillies and Morgan often wearing a Philadelphia Eagles jacket. Eric mentions that he and his father always talk about the Eagles, 76ers, Flyers, and Phillies, the four major sports teams in Philadelphia, and his attempts to be accepted into Swarthmore College—finally ending with Cory and most of the cast attending Pennbrook.

The name of John Adams High School is an homage to William Daniels' long-running role in the Tony-award-winning Broadway play (and later film) 1776, in which Daniels played Founding Father John Adams.

Syndication

Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution (sister company to Touchstone Television, now ABC Studios) currently handles the syndication rights to the series.

Boy Meets World reruns began airing on various Fox, WB, UPN, and independent affiliates from September 8, 1997 to September 1, 2000. During the latter month, Disney Channel assumed syndication rights, with the series running on the cable channel until 2007. To the consternation of some longtime fans of the show, Disney Channel edited many episodes that contained scenes with suggestive content deemed inappropriate for the channel's target audience of 7- to 14-year-olds. All 158 episodes aired during the series' initial run on the Disney Channel, however, due to the adult subject matter and complaints from parents, Disney Channel omitted three episodes from later airings: season five's "If You Can't Be with the One You Love..." (due to its depictions of underage drinking) and "Prom-ises, Prom-ises" (whose main storyline involves Cory and Topanga contemplating losing their virginity on the night of their prom), and season six's "The Truth About Honesty" (due to its sexual references). On May 5, 2014, the show temporarily returned to Disney Channel after a seven-year absence to promote Girl Meets World.

ABC Family aired Boy Meets World from June 21, 2004 to August 31, 2007 and again from April 12, 2010 to December 2, 2015. Though the network in a way inherited the syndication rights to the show from Disney Channel, the episode prints broadcast by ABC Family differed from those seen on Disney Channel and in broadcast syndication as it incorporated scenes cut from the Disney Channel broadcasts (though small portions of certain scenes from episodes during the earlier seasons were cut due to time constraints) and featured the three episodes that Disney chose not to air, incorporated each season's corresponding opening title sequence, and restored the placement of the teaser scenes during the season one episodes to running before the opening titles in the manner that they were shown in the original ABC telecasts (instead of having the cast and creators' names shown during the teasers). However, the program was dropped once ABC Family was rebranded as Freeform. The series also began airing on MTV2 since November 14, 2011, again with the original opening title sequences intact.

On April 18, 2016, Nickelodeon's sister channel TeenNick began airing the series. The series, TeenNick's only acquired program as of 2017, airs as a lead-in to the channel's classic programming block, NickSplat.

Internationally, reruns of the series have been broadcast on Canada's YTV, Family Channel, and ABC Spark; the Canadian version of ABC Family. In Brazil, the show was aired by SBT (terrestrial television) and Disney Channel Brazil (cable television) until 2005.

On September 29, 2017, Boy Meets World became available for streaming on Hulu along with fellow Disney–ABC television properties Dinosaurs and Home Improvement, in addition to fellow TGIF programs Family Matters, Full House, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, Perfect Strangers, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, and Step by Step. On April 11, 2019, It was confirmed that Disney+, a new streaming service owned by Disney, will be carrying the series upon its November 2019 launch.

Cultural impact

Angela's interracial relationship with Shawn was a relative rarity for a major network television show targeting youths at the time. Trina McGee-Davis once remarked that the typical reaction she received from young fans regarding the relationship was overwhelmingly positive and encouraging, often inquiring as to when the characters would reconcile after a breakup. She expressed her personal wish that her character's relationship would serve as an example of color blindness for the world, in lieu of a less positive reaction a similar relationship had received on Ally McBeal at the time.

Eric and Shawn both wore a popular 1990s hairstyle called curtained hair.

The show also addresses the cultural issues of child abuse ("Dangerous Secret"'), sexual harassment ("Chick Like Me", "Everybody Loves Stuart"), and underage drinking/alcohol use ("If You Can't Be With the One You Love…").

Home media

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (as Buena Vista Home Entertainment) released the first three seasons of Boy Meets World on DVD between 2004 and 2005. Because the sales figures did not meet the company's expectations, no further seasons were released. As of 2009, these releases have been discontinued and are out of print.

On August 4, 2008, it was announced that Lionsgate Home Entertainment had acquired the rights to the series. They subsequently re-released the first three seasons on DVD on September 7, 2010, with the same special features from the original releases. Season 4 was released on December 7, 2010. Season 5 was released on May 3, 2011. Season 6 was released on July 5, 2011. Season 7 was released on October 4, 2011, completing the series' run on DVD. Ultimately, Lionsgate was able to release all seven seasons in almost a year's time. All seven seasons of the series are available for download at the iTunes Store.

On November 5, 2013, Lionsgate released Boy Meets World: The Complete Collection on DVD in Region 1. The 22-disc set features all 158 episodes of the series as well as new and previously included bonus features from the original sets.

Awards and nominations

Sequel series

In November 2012, Disney Channel announced that it had greenlit a pilot for a sequel/spin-off series, Girl Meets World. This series picks up nearly fifteen years after Boy Meets World ended, and follows Cory and Topanga's daughter Riley (Rowan Blanchard) as she navigates the challenges of her adolescent years along with her best friend Maya (Sabrina Carpenter).

Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel reprised their roles as Cory and Topanga, while several other cast members from Boy Meets World made recurring appearances, most prominently Rider Strong (Shawn Hunter), Will Friedle (Eric Matthews), Danny McNulty (Harley Keiner), Lee Norris (Stuart Minkus), and William Daniels (Mr. Feeny). Michael Jacobs returned as showrunner. Girl Meets World ran three seasons before ending in 2017.

References

1. Moore, Frazier (July 8, 1994). "Newsmagazines Crowd into Top of Ratings". Sun-Sentinel. Tribune Publishing. pp. 4.E. ProQuest 388687872. Archived from the original on July 8, 2017. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
2. Bibler, Frank (July 26, 2002). "Complete TV Ratings 1994-1995". Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
3. Bibler, Frank (July 26, 2002). "Complete TV Ratings 1995-1996". Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
4. Bibler, Frank (July 26, 2002). "Complete TV Ratings 1996-1997". Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
5. "What ranked and what tanked". Entertainment Weekly. Meredith Corporation. May 29, 1998. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
6. "TV Winners & Losers: Numbers Racket - A Final Tally Of The Season's Shows". Entertainment Weekly. Meredith Corporation. June 4, 1999. Archived from the original on October 29, 2009. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
7. "Top TV Shows For 1999-2000 Season". Variety. Variety Media, LLC. August 6, 2000. Archived from the original on January 16, 2009. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
8. "Twenty Cent Crush". TCC Records. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
9. BMWCentral, retrieved 8/27/2011
10. "'Girl Meets World' to premiere in June". CNN.com. May 2, 2014. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
11. "No Foolin' ABC Family Brings Back Boy Meets World, 7th Heaven; Modern Family Wins Peabody". Sitcomsonline.com. April 1, 2010. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
12. Pavan -- SitcomsOnline.com (November 17, 2011). "Boy Meets World Now On MTV2; South Park Renewed Through 2016, Its 20th Season – SitcomsOnline.com News Blog". Blog.sitcomsonline.com. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
13. Hatchett, Keisha (September 29, 2017). "This Is Not a Drill: Boy Meets World Is Now On Hulu". TVGuide.com. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
14. Buhlam, Jocelyn (April 11, 2019). "Your Complete Guide to Disney+ Entertainment". D23. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
15. McGee-Davis, Trina (February 22, 1999). "TV Can Help World Erase Color Lines". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
16. ""Boy Meets Word" (1993) – DVD details". IMDb.com. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
17. Lambert, David (June 14, 2010). "Boy Meets World DVD news: Announcement for Lionsgate re-releases of Season 1, Season 2 and Season 3". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2010. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
18. Boy Meets World – Lionsgate Announces Season 4: Release Date, Cost, Packaging and Specs! Archived September 15, 2010, at the Wayback Machine TVShowsOnDVD.com September 13, 2010
19. Lambert, David (February 7, 2011). "Boy Meets World – 'Season 5' DVDs Announced: Street Date, Cost, Specs and Package Art". TVShowsOnDVD. Archived from the original on February 9, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
20. Boy Meets World – The Next-to-Last Season of the Show—Season 6—is Scheduled! Archived April 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine TVShowsOnDVD.com April 11, 2011.
21. Boy Meets World – The Long-Awaited 7th and Final Season Completes the Show's DVD Run Archived July 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine TV Shows on DVD July 11, 2011
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23. Wagmeister, Elizabeth (January 4, 2017). "'Girl Meets World' Canceled: Disney Channel's 'Boy Meets World' Spinoff Won't Return for Season 4". Variety. Retrieved January 11, 2017.

External links

• Boy Meets World at IMDb

• Boy Meets World
• 1990s American college television series
• 1990s American high school television series
• 1990s American teen sitcoms
• 1993 American television series debuts
• 2000s American college television series
• 2000s American teen sitcoms
• 2000 American television series endings
• American Broadcasting Company original programming
• Coming-of-age television shows
• English-language television shows
• Middle school television series
• Television series about families
• Television series about siblings
• Television series about teenagers
• Television series by ABC Studios
• Television series by Disney–ABC Domestic Television
• Television series created by Michael Jacobs
• Television shows set in Pennsylvania
• Television shows set in Philadelphia
• TGIF (TV programming block)