“Boy Meets World” was one of those shows that somehow stayed off the radar of most television audiences; yet is still gained enough popularity to warrant a 7 season run. Even now, it is enjoying a highly successful run in syndication on the Disney Channel. It was kind of like the “The Wonder Years” in that it was a quiet little coming of age comedy series, that had just enough of a dash if drama to appeal to those with a nose for quality television. Fans of the series didn’t need car chases or shoot-outs, just a simple look at how complex life can be through the eyes of a young person. I have to admit to not watching “Boy Meets World” when it originally aired, not for any lack of interest, but because it aired during that time in my life when I wasn’t watching much TV. I was very familiar with the series and the fact that it starred Ben Savage (younger brother of Fred Savage). It always looked to be interesting, but I just didn’t tune in.

A couple of months ago, the first season was released on DVD and became aware (once again) to the error of my ways as it was a much better show than I imagined it would be. Watching most of the 1st season on DVD I quickly recognized the quality that kept people watching week after week.

It was refreshing to see that Cory Matthews (Savage) was a 6th-grader that was actually presented as such. Not some smart-alecky kid, wise beyond his years, but more of a thoughtful kid who thought he was wise beyond his years. Here was a kid who saw things the way many of us did when were younger. We all had a rather skewed view of the world and thought we knew everything. It wasn’t until later that many of us realized we didn’t know all that much. (Sadly I still know a few people from my high school years that never learned that lesson.)

The second season a bit stranger, in that somehow it seemed that Cory sped-educated through 7th, 8th and 9th grades. And the stories got just a little weirder as well, though one in particular rang true for me. In “Who’s Afraid of Cory Wolf”, our hero finds himself going through puberty but is led to believe that he actually becoming a werewolf. Look for the great Phyllis Diller in this one as she is featured as an old fortuneteller.

“Boy Meets World” also boasted quite an impressive cast of actors. William Daniels starred as Cory’s teacher and next door neighbor. He would often teach Cory lessons in life as well as academics. I’ve always enjoyed William Daniel’s performances, whether as the rich dad in “Blind Date” or his voice work as K.I.T.T. in the otherwise abysmal ‘Knight Rider” series. William Russ was Cory’s dad, and he’s one of those highly underrated actors I’m always ranting about. His work here was superlative, and quite the contrast from his role as the undercover agent posing as a hit man he played in one of he story arcs of television’s “Wise Guy.”

Then we come to Will Friedle, who at the time was completely unknown to me. It wasn’t until the airing of the animated series “Batman Beyond” that his name became somewhat better known in our house. In that regrettably short-lived series, Friedle did the voice work for Terry McGinnis, who was to become the older Batman’s protégé. That was a great series that didn’t stay with us as long as it should have, and Friedle’s voice work opposite Kevin Conroy (Batman) was outstanding. Watching “Boy Meets World” though, finally puts a real face to the voice, and shows what a talented actor he really is.

When Buena Vista Home Entertainment is released the 1st season on a 3-disc DVD, the only extra features were commentaries. It’s pretty much the same thing this time around, with some of the cast members showing up on five of the episodes to share stories and memories. Admittedly, they all offered up some humorous anecdotes and were well worth listening to. The one main difference is that one of the episodes, “Fear Strikes Out”, has two different commentaries. One is an audio only while the other is presented as a video commentary. The video portion of the commentary is presented as a picture in picture, with the commentary part covering about a quarter of the episode’s image.

So far, I’ve really enjoyed watching “Boy Meets World”, and I’ve become especially curious to see the rest of the series.

Episodes:
Back 2 School
Pairing Off
Notorious
Me and Mr. Joad
The Uninvited
Who’s Afraid of Cory Wolf?
Wake Up, Little Cory
Band on the Run
Fear Strikes Out
Sister Theresa
The Beard
Turnaround
Cyrano
I Am Not a Crook
Breaking up is Really, Really Hard to Do
Danger Boy
On The Air
By Hook or By Crook
Wrong Side of the Tracks
Pop Quiz
The Thrilla’ in Phila’
Career Day
Home

Starring: Ben Savage, Betsy Randle, William Russ, William Daniels, Will Friedle, Rider Strong
Extras: Audio Commentaries on 4 Episodes
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby 2.0
Studio: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
Release Date: 11/23/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Boy Meets World: Season 2 a B.