Girl Meets World All 71 Episodes Ranked and Reviewed. The countdown continues with two new entries.
63.Girl Meets the Truth S1
Summary
In this episode, Riley lies to Farkle about his acting abilities, and Maya takes a locket from the lost and found and refuses to give it back. In the side plot, Cory tells Topanga the truth about her cooking.
References
There was a reference to spear carriers and Hamlet, a play and part Cory played in season 1 of Boy Meets World. Also, there were chunks of many different Boy Meets World episodes. For example, Riley being super obsessed with the universe is inherited from her father via season 4, where Cory insisted that he and Shawn get caught for a caper because the universe cares about them.
Also, Riley being really bossy and not understanding why Maya needed the locket is a trait she inherited from her mother via season 3, where Shawn gets a Pig to fill a void, and Topanga calls animal services.
Also, there is the fact that Riley thought her lie to Farkle would die down, but she had to learn the semi-hard way; that is not how lies work. Cory went through a similar problem in season 3 of Boy Meets World, where he told a big lie that made him popular, and he thought it go away, but it did not. So mostly, this episode is like season 3, Truth and Consequences, where the boys learn the truth is not always black and white.
Review
This episode's conflict boils down to whether or not it is better to be brutally honest like Cory was when he told Topanga he did not like her cooking or tell white lies like Riley, who pretended to like Farkles acting. In the end, via Auggie, Cory learns brutal honesty is not the way. Auggie informs him he should have appreciated Topanga's cooking cause she made it for him. Riley also learns her lesson via having to kiss Farkle as a consequence. However, Farkle also thanks Riley for her kind nature which muddies up the lesson a bit.
This episode had many flaws; in my opinion, the fact that Farkle forcibly kissed Riley is a big one. I understand he was not trying to attack her, and Riley does not feel attacked, but she clearly was not into it, and Disney should not communicate that stealing a kiss like that is okay. Also, Riley wants to know whether lying for a good reason is okay and the question is not definitively answered. It is a shame they did not answer the question because it is a good one. It is important to learn not to lie and Betray yourself to make other people feel good.
Also, Cory was a jerk to Topanga, and at this point, he should know better. I know they played it up for laughs, but I still was not feeling it. The comedy made it hard to take the story seriously because Cory is so cartoonishly wrong. It was a good idea to include the parents but, Boy Meets World did this very often in a better way. They made the adults' problems comical but realistic and related to the story. Girl meets world failed to live up to that in this episode.
Finally, the Lucas Riley romance is a little stale. Lucas had a nice line at the end about taking his moment. They are trying to do the Topanga season 1-2 thing where they build a friendship first. However, for that to really work, Lucas's moments need to be way more impactful, and he needs to help Riley through things or give her advice similar to how he did in episode one. Still, it is not easy because they try to make him season one Topanga and season 2 Topanga all at once, getting to know Riley and being a really good friend to her all at once.
In the end, Maya's story saved the whole episode that and Auggie. Maya was the one who introduced the more interesting conflict by taking something that was not hers. Also, Maya furthered the complexity of the episode and her character when she revealed she, not some little kleptomaniac. Instead, she was longing for the picture inside the locket, the picture that represents her ideal family. Auggie was funny as always and also somehow served as the voice of reason.
Grade C-
Streaming Assignments
Homework: and Consequences Season 3 BMW, This Little Piggy Season 3
Extra credit: BMW Season One Plays The Thing, Season 4 B&B, and B&E, Season 3 Hometown Hero
62. Girl meets Cory and Topanga S2
Summary
In this episode, Riley is deflated when she starts feeling inferior to her parents. In the side plot, Farkle tries to be an athlete.
References
There are several callbacks In this episode. First, they show two scenes from Boy Meets World, one from the episode Boy Meets Girl and Cory's alternative friends. Second, they do a nice callback at the end of the episode to Cory's Philly hat that he gave to Topanga, and we see Riley with it years later. Third, this episode is most like seasons six and seven and one episodes: Once when Cory felt he was average after meeting a prodigy. Another instance is when he feels inferior to Topanga in season 7. Also, when he felt he had to be a genius to get respect in Boy 2 mensa in season 1.
Review
This episode was okay. It was not terrible, but it was not great either. I think it relied way too much on nostalgia. Once again, the show talked to its fans who compare Cory and Topanga to Riley and Riley, feeling the pressure to live up. I do not hate the idea of this episode or the idea to send Maya and Riley back in time to see that their parents were not perfect. However, I do not like the execution.
When Riley and Maya go back in time, I want to hear way more commentary from them. What they are thinking and saying is what makes this relevant to Girl Meets World; otherwise, we are just rewatching the scene. Also, I was not too fond of their choice of episode. It just seemed like they were going to a hit episode instead of trying to make a point. There are times when Cory and Topanga were not perfect. How about the Eskimo, where they learned a similar lesson to what Cory taught them in class. Season two is filled with episodes of Cory being insecure if they needed a season one episode; how about when Cory did not make the A team in basketball and felt like he was lost in the shuffle at school and home.
The Farkle and Lucas story of trying to make Farkle an Athlete was mildly entertaining but ultimately did not add much to the story, especially when their story concluded that your team would help you reach home. Not such a good take-home when Riley is trying to stand on her own. However, to be fair, Riley learns that it is a good thing that Cory and Topanga are on her team. However, I do not think it was wrong of her to want to make an impact on her own, and I wish the show would have nurtured that inclination.
This episode does a poor job of letting Riley forge her own path. Riley has a problem; she thinks her parents present a standard she cannot live up to. How does Riley solve that problem? What action does she take? The answer to those questions is the part of the episode that was make or break.
Unfortunately, Riley mostly just whines and her "actions "are just comedy bits like joining the circus or the nunnery, where they reinforce the idea that Topanga or Cory are great. In Boy Meets World, when Shawn did not think he would amount to anything, he joined a gang. Riley could have fallen in with a bad crowd to subvert her parent's greatness by doing something completely different and gotten in over her head and learned a lesson from it. Alternatively, as Cory used to in season 2, she could have hatched a scheme to try and become her parents and got way over her head and learned why it is vital just to be herself.
Those options would have been far more entertaining than whining and watching her parents to get all her answers. This problem reflects a season one problem of not letting the kids have actual arcs stakes and real-life situations. I thought Girl Meets World seemed to be past it until this episode. One good thing the nostalgia train did provide was the great last moment in the classroom when Riley puts on Cory's old Philly hat.
Grade C
Streaming Assignments
Homework The average Cory season 6, The Provider season 7, Boy two mensa season 1
Extra credit Cory's alternative friends season 1 boy meets girl season 1 band on the run season 2 wake up little Cory season 2 fear strikes out season 2 Eskimo season 5
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