Fun Friday: The Girl Meets World Theme Song

I have a bad habit of not really listening to lyrics. No, seriously... I bought a lot of CDs in the late 90s because I'd like a song on MTV or the radio, and then I'd listen to it over and over and learn the words and sing along. But, 15 years later, I'm often only now understanding what the songs are about... and there are several instances where I was 180 degrees off, which is rather embarrassing! I've been trying to be better in recent years, so I don't declare songs as favorites without actually knowing what they're about, but sometimes I'm still swept away by how catchy they seem.

When Girl Meets World premiered, I was among the many skeptics from the start, as the theme song didn't resemble that of its predecessor, Boy Meets World. But, as I've been mentioning in my weekly remarks about the series, the spin-off needs to be judged on its own merit. So, in listening to the theme song without comparing it to anything else, I determined that I like it. It's upbeat and motivational and memorable. Give it a listen:

Rowan Blanchard and Sabrina Carpenter sing about being unsure but confident, and it's pretty empowering. I'm hoping that the tweens, pre-teens, and teens watching the series are getting as much out of this message as I am! Although I encourage you to really think about the lyrics (only the first part of the song is seen on the Disney Channel, it actually keeps going!), here are a few excerpts from my favorite parts...

face to face with changes
what's it all about?
life is crazy
but I know I can work it out
'cause I got you to live it with me

I feel alright
I'm gonna take on the world

I've got a ticket to the top of the sky
I'm comin' up, I'm on the ride of my life

flyin' high
I won't look down
let my fears fall to the ground

what's your favorite part of the theme song?

Girl Meets World: Trio of Halloween Stories

Riley has learned to flirt sometime since the third episode. Unfortunately, seeing Riley pretend not to know how to put on a softball glove brought back memories of me faking similar confusion... in fifth grade. It was spring, we were doing an art project, and a boy I was crushing on was excelling at his... so I waited until he came by my side of the classroom and then mixed up my pieces and loudly exclaimed that I couldn't figure it out and needed help. Of course the girl next to me immediately jumped in to assist, and when I tried to explain my plan, it took her a moment to understand my game. Later that day (this was an ongoing art project after you finished each subject's work), I tried again, and he fell for it. I was pleased with my scheme and the attention he gave me for a minute or so... anyway, let's get to the episode...

Girl Meets World "Girl Meets World: Of Terror" (S01E11): Auggie hosts three mini-stories with a Halloween theme, the cutest of which is about his own fear of the monster under the bed. Cory and Topanga want Auggie to learn to sleep alone, but even the plush Mr. Googly isn't enough to soothe the boy. In fact, he learns that the monster under his bed has his own stuffed animal - Mr. Blobbity. Once the kids get to talking, it becomes clear that Auggie is no longer scared, and the monster must move on. [cute, but would have been better if there had been a scene in a previous episode where Auggie was afraid, to demonstrate that this has been a recurring issue for the kid.]

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Farkle tries to avoid gym class (it's softball week), but when Cory forces him to go, Farkle decides to try get in the others' heads. It works on Maya but not on Lucas, who proceeds to throw the ball at him to teach him not to be afraid. [kinda old-fashioned and boring, no?] This is also the part where Riley takes advantage of the sport to spend time with Lucas.

Riley is afraid to stay the night at Maya's, but Cory convinces her to try it (again). [this whole "call to come home in the middle of the night" thing has happened on a few television shows over the years (everything from The Cosby Show to Bob's Burgers), and I've never understood it... are kids REALLY not excited enough about a slumber party that they'd rather come home and sleep like every other night??] Every little thing scares her, including Maya's Gammy. [Riley asked Cory to DRIVE her to Maya's? are we not in Manhattan anymore?]

[on a side note, I believe this is the first episode in the series where I didn't notice any huge similarities to Boy Meets World... did you catch anything?] 

Girl Meets World: What's My Thing?

While I was excited to see the return to the subway that seemed like such a big deal when the series premiered, I wasn't thrilled that Jackee Harry was back in what seemed to be a different character entirely. Evelyn Rand is an important businesswoman who addresses the United Nations, while the unnamed character in the pilot "worked a 12-hour shift" possibly on her feet the entire time. Yes, these could be one in the same, and maybe that oddity will be explained in a future story, but I still thought it was odd and am curious as to whether it bothered others as well. That quirky continuity abnormality aside, I'm over here dying for Topanga to get a meaningful storyline, and I'd bet I'm not the only one, either!

Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Crazy Hat" (S01E10): The cute and quaint first: Auggie wants an allowance, and when he hints that he needs a specific amount of money, Topanga forks over a Hamilton, thinking that he wants to get her a birthday present. [are we hinting at an upcoming Topanga-centric episode??!?] Instead, he gets Ava some plastic jewelry, which further pushes her bossy ownership over him.

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Cory splits the class into two muffin businesses, with Riley & Farkle leading one while Maya and Lucas spearhead the other. [seriously? only the kids we know (and the teacher's daughter) get to be in charge??] Lucas believes in treating his employees well, having integrity, and using organic ingredients, but he's only selling 14% as much as Farkle, who is loading his customers with pure sugar in a cupcake image. [of course the Texas boy has more values than the son of a very wealthy businessman.] Farkle buys out the other company and begins downsizing, keeping Lucas as the face of the company. Riley and Maya are thrown out, and realize that the continuous rain is ruining everyone's week, so they come up with an umbrella-share non-profit. [I would understand Maya wearing a green garbage bag as a poncho, but Riley doesn't have a raincoat?? and it was totally unbelievable that a sanitation worker would just toss a 100+lb girl into the dumpster.] The girls' subway mentor, Evelyn, will fund the start-up costs, and they get to work putting the system into action. [I don't see that kind of thing working, but I'm not the eternal optimist a preteen is.]

A notable similarity to the original series: Cory struggled with finding his "thing" throughout Boy Meets World, with several episodes devoted to the topic. (I'm thinking of Season 5's "How to Succeed in Business" and Season 7's "The Provider" off the top of my head...)

New Season, New Format

We're changing up our episode recaps and remarks for the new television season, mainly to shift our focus to covering new series and specials before they air rather than after. We believe this will help you make more fitting choices as to what to watch, and it will also help out our subscribers not to receive as many articles about shows they potentially have no interest in, as our current lineup is very broad.

But, we're not dropping recaps with remarks completely. We will still cover pilots we deem promising, and we'll be writing about holiday episodes of those and of our returning favorites. Plus, we are continuing to cover some series in their entirety, particularly cable shows that are tougher for you to catch up on elsewhere. What does this mean for your favorite show? For all of the series we were currently recapping, here are their fates:

                                                      16 & Pregnant: regular posting
                                                      19 Kids & Counting: regular posting
                                                      2 Broke Girls: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Bob's Burgers: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Buddy's Bakery Rescue: discontinued
                                                      Cake Boss: regular posting
                                                      Cake Boss: Next Great Baker: fate to be determined if series is renewed
                                                      Falling Skies: discontinued
                                                      Girl Meets World: regular posting
                                                      Hot in Cleveland: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Instant Mom: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Last Man Standing: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Little People, Big World: regular posting
                                                      Melissa & Joey: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Mistresses: fate to be determined if series is renewed
                                                      South Park: regular posting
                                                      Switched at Birth: regular posting
                                                      Teen Mom 2: regular posting
                                                      The Big Bang Theory: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      The Exes: regular posting
                                                      The Goldbergs: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      The Middle: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Under the Dome: fate to be determined if series is renewed
                                                      White Collar: holidays and special episodes only

what do you think of the posting schedule? sad to be losing regular updates? excited for more new program coverage? 

Girl Meets World: Generations of Friends

I wasn't the biggest fan of the Boy Meets World episodes where they traveled back in time (and I can think of three of them!). Therefore, maybe it's no surprise that I was left unimpressed with this episode, which brought the kids to 1961 (Boy Meets World took two swings at the 1940s and one at the 1950s). Furthermore, the revelation that Farkle, Maya, Riley, and Lucas's ancestors all met is beyond absurd... we know Farkle and Riley both have families who hail from Philly, and Lucas is fresh from Texas. But, contrived plots aside, I liked where the storyline came from, as Cory assigning a living history assignment makes more sense than a freak microwave accident or a cat with a magical ball (there was a Sabrina crossover causing the time travel once). Overall, I think the biggest downfall of this episode is having it so early in the run... audiences still want to get to know the characters, not their ancestral incarnations! 

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Girl Meets World "Girl Meets 1961" (S01E09): The kids aren't caring about Cory's 1960s history class, so he tries to get them to realize that every little decision makes a difference. They then need to interview older people and give reports about the sixties. Riley gets her maternal great-grandmother's journal, and learns that "Rosie McGee" was a beatnik who frequented Ginsberg's coffeeshoppe, owned by Farkle's family. ["chick. down here I'm a chick" seems to be something Riley strives for, as she says the same thing the first time she takes the subway without her parents.] Maya descends from a Maya Clutterbucket, a free spirit who seems like a lying depressed sneak, and Lucas has a country-western great-grandfather named Merlin who was a singer who wound up in jail. [Topanga Canyon!]

A notable similarity to the original series: The kids sit in Cory's class early, asking what they're going to learn today - Cory, Shawn, and Topanga once headed to Feeny's class when they didn't need to be there, wanting more of the man's knowledge passed on.

Girl Meets World: Crushes and Crushed

The first time my husband and I talked, we were in the seventh grade. I can't quote the conversation, as it meant nothing at the time... he was just the boy who sat behind me for a quarter of geography class. Three years later, we began our lifetime of being inseparable, and only three episodes of Boy Meets World aired after that, so I never thought to strive to "be" Cory and Topanga. Years later, though, I thought about how we were similar to the couple in many ways, and how teenagers SHOULD be aiming for a relationship like theirs. They didn't give up when times were tough, they stuck to doing what was right when it wasn't easy, and they grew together while growing up. So, the conversation Topanga and Auggie have about how first loves aren't always lifelong was tough to hear, as I believe they can be. I didn't like the "oh no, I married Feeny" revelation, though!

http://boymeetsworldgifs.tumblr.com/post/97354316461

It really begs the question, though... do enough people try to follow in the Matthews' footsteps? 

Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Smackle" (S01E08): Cory teaches the kids not to assume, using Ancient Troy as his example. [I'm really struggling to see how much history he's actually teaching alongside those Feeny-ish life lessons...] There's an interscholastic debate over school uniforms that Farkle loses to his crush/nemesis, Smackle. When Farkle doesn't return Smackle's affection, Riley and Maya give Smackle but Farkle sees that Smackle is just trying to conduct an experiment to prepare for the next debate: "is beauty only skin deep?" [how did I not see that immediately??] So, he uses Lucas to distract her, but it doesn't work and she wins again. [what is with Riley's red pants??]

Girl Meets World: Parents

It has already been explained that Farkle, like his father before him, counts his As. What's new, however, is the idea that Topanga and Riley might have as many As as the father-son duo, which suggests that Riley is more her mother's daughter than her fathers; Cory was known as more of an average student on Boy Meets World. While the return of Stuart Minkus was fun for long-time fans, it also brought up some questions for the viewer... if Minkus is incredibly wealthy (as illustrated by arriving via helicopter), why is Farkle attending this public school rather than a more exclusive one? 

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Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Maya's Mother" (S01E07): It's career day in Cory's class, and Topanga comes in to talk about being a lawyer. [remember when Mr. Turner hosted career day and Alan handed out coupons as he talked about being a grocer??] When Farkle's father arrives, he believes that Maya and Riley are the girls are always after his son, and they're polite enough to play along.  [Cory didn't obsess over Topanga at the same time Minkus did, so the rivalry was a bit odd. "do you have a helicopter, Cory?" "Nope, do you have a Topanga, Minkus?"] Maya's mother, Katy, shows up a day late, with a tall tale about having a baby in the Colorado River the day before. [I didn't even understand what the point of this shenanigan was!] In reality, she was auditioning for a soap opera, as she's an unsuccessful actress who really just waitresses. [what was with Maya's "our imaginary father" line??]

For art class, Farkle poses in a singlet, and Maya once again astounds everyone with her drawings. [a 48-pound seventh grader? that's pretty undersized.] Maya is asked to submit a piece of artwork to the school exhibit, but she'd rather avoid the spotlight. But, Riley decides that her talent is helping people (and she sees that as superior to her father's close-up magic skills and her mother's hip-shaking abilities), so she enters Maya in the show and invites Katy to attend. [I didn't really "get" the hip thing, and can't recall Cory ever doing magic before...] Maya gets upset, the girls have a paint fight, and in the end the Matthews support Maya in the show because Katy doesn't come anyway. [I was dumb and didn't get the "half of the woman" in the painting until Farkle mentioned it, LoL.] Riley goes to the diner to talk to Katy, and learns that the woman feels she's not good enough for her daughter. [just like Chet thinking Shawn was better off with Turner or the Matthews family.]

Additional notable similarities to the original series abound in this episode, including a showcase of Cory's love/preoccupation with mashed potatoes, and the idea that sharing a parent is tough. Eric once explained how tough it is for two sons to share a father using a metaphor that half a coconut isn't enough for either monkey, but here we saw Maya happy to have half a tuna melt, because having half a mom was still better than no mom at all.

Girl Meets World: New Looks, Same Heart

This is the first episode my husband watched with me, even if he only made it through the first act. I point this out because I thought this installment was particularly well-done in updating the classic Boy Meets World characters and plotlines but keeping the same humor and cuteness that the original series held. As soon as Riley got an invitation and Maya didn't, I knew it was a geek party, a la "The Uninvited," and thoroughly enjoyed the "reveal." This is where my husband laughed and said that the series was doing a good job at being exactly like the old one, but different. This point was further driven home when first-season Topanga made an appearance via mirror. This episode not only marked Topanga's first scene outside the apartment, but also showed that she, like Cory, has not lost touch with her younger self. Though Topanga became that corporate lawyer, she still wishes to have the hope for world peace that her pre-teen self did. [and, strangely, I was feeling a lot of HIMYM's Marshall in that moment as well.] Let's look at the details of that story first...

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Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Popular" (S01E06): Auggie begs Topanga to get him a baked good at Svorski's Bakery, which may soon be closed because of a loophole in the rent-controlled lease. [boo bad loophole!] Auggie wants his LawyerMommy to take care of it, but Topanga doesn't have a say in the clients her firm represents, and her firm is the one pushing out the family business. Topanga realizes that she set aside her hopes for the world to succeed, and decides to embrace her former self. [I think she went a little too granola, but whatever.] She and Auggie show up at the bakery and fight for Mrs. Svorski, by buying part of the business to help Svorski make the tripled rent. [hmmm... I'm not sure how great of an idea this is! but, it will give Maya and Riley (and their pals) somewhere to work...]

Riley notices a classmate putting papers in lockers, and starts getting excited at the boy-girl parties on the horizon. [so it's occurring to me in this moment that I can't even remember my first boy-girl party... but more on that another time.] After practicing her "party walk," she begins to celebrate Maya, who is destined for popularity while she is not. [awww!] However, Riley is the one granted an invitation, because it turns out to be a geek party. [ha!] Because she's the center of that crowd, she decides to embrace the semi-popularity and dresses and acts like a geek. A Harajuku girl, to be exact. She continues to enjoy the influence she holds, but when she can't even spell Harajuku at a spelling competition, she realizes that she can't keep up her position as Queen of the Nerds. [a) what's a group spelling bee?? b) Einstein Academy, the opponent here, is the same show that Cory, Shawn, and Topanga face in the BMW episode "The Quiz Show."]

Girl Meets World: A Locket and a Chicken

Five episodes into this show now, I'm ready to make some larger observations. First, I love the theme song. It's very fitting for both the characters and the time period. Second (and this might be because I watched some Full House this week and no show was better than that one at highlighting the lesson of the episode), I'm okay with the overly sweet morals the series shoves down your throat... Boy Meets World made me feel secure in being a "good kid," and if it worked for that show, may this assist many adolescents today.

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Third, the settings are mid-boggling on both ends of the spectrum! On the one hand, Riley's school has stairs, lockers, classrooms, benches, walls, and even bathrooms (conveniently a girls' room where Cory had a boys' room) in the same place as John Adams. And Cory's classroom being where Mr. Turner's was certainly brings back memories! However, at the Matthews' home, what's with the artwork in the hallway? It seems very odd...

Girl Meets World "Girl Meets the Truth" (S01E05): Maya wears a large gold locket, which Riley won't stop harassing her about until she learns how Maya came to own it. [I was surprised that Riley would buy either that Maya "went to France" or that her "dad sent it" to her.] Maya saw the necklace in a lost-and-found of a store in the Village for months, and claimed it because it was an orphan. [she didn't really expand upon "why" she did that, though. also, what was with the pigeon? ] Riley still claims that Maya took something that didn't belong to her, but Maya wants to keep it because there's a family inside with a father and a mother. [ooohhh...] But, when the girls are out and about and see the family that matches the picture, Maya returns it. [well, yeah. it would have been weird not to at that point.]

Cory gives his class a lecture on truth, then faces the wrath of his wife when the chicken dinner she makes isn't awesome. [we don't hear what Riley has to say about the meal, though.] He keeps making the situation worse by comparing the dryness of the poultry to that of dinosaurs, so Topanga locks him out of the house. [funny to see him try to get back in through multiple window!] Auggie helps his father realize that he should be thankful Topanga cooks for him, even if it isn't always what he wants. [Auggie's line was cute.]

Lucas plays Romeo to Riley's Juliet, but in the kissing scene, Farkle interrupts and calls Maya to the stage. [I don't understand how none of the teachers stopped the situation! also, why wasn't Riley the least bit nervous about Lucas potentially kissing her??] Afterward, Riley doesn't want to tell Farkle that he ruined the play, as she doesn't want to crush him, but because she encourages him, he becomes pompous about his future in acting. He even quits the chess and chemistry clubs, only to find out that he's not very good at acting. He still thanks Riley, though, because she gave him the courage to try something new... and he kisses her chin. [the kiss was weird enough, but I am hard-pressed to believe that he was still grateful in that moment...] Lucas sees it all, and hints at the fact that he wants to kiss Riley when the moment is right. [well, maybe she'll be nervous in the future?]

Another notable similarity to the original series: Riley telling Maya "if you tell me you did it, then I believe you," which Cory said to Shawn.

Girl Meets World: Tradition and Failure

Yes, this show is a little saccharine (see image below). But I rather adore how cute it is. That said, the episode naming scheme is crossing the line. I don't know what sparked the idea to roll with the titles describing what Riley will encounter next, but I also appreciate seeing what parenting obstacles Cory and Topanga must face as well. The idea that "I just don't want to fail" is one that I face regularly, and would like to see illustrated and conquered by multiple characters on this series. Fortunately, with it already coming up for Maya and Cory, I think it will be an ongoing theme. What other recurring topics would you like this family comedy to tackle? 

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Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Father" (S01E04): Maya gets an F on a paper about Darwin, and claims that she must be a failure and Cory has nothing more to teach her. [Shawn says this to Feeny!] Despite the fact that Maya walks out, Riley believes that nothing will change. [um, hello... Cory believing that nothing will change between him and Shawn over and over!] Maya skips school and starts an online program... only to fail immediately. Cory helps Maya realize that she needs to stop trying to sound smart and just say what she knows, because she knows things. [how do the girls leave earlier for school than Cory does?] Maya admits that her father has moved out to live with another family. [Shawn would tell Cory things about his home life that nobody else knew.] 

Farkle wants to dance with the girls at the upcoming event, to which Riley wants to wear makeup. Topanga turns her down,but the bigger issue is that the dance conflicts with the final night of the season at Coney Island. For the Matthews family, that means it's time for the annual "ride the Cyclone" night, which Cory deeply adores. [Maya not wanting to attend the school dance is apparently only a passing thought. Cory asking Topanga to make it all better reminded me of many times in Boy Meets World, particularly when he thought she could save premature Joshua.] Cory eventually realizes that his daughter is growing up, but still has a father-daughter dance to end the school night... and he does it with Maya. [um, I think Riley is a little young to understand the logic there, and would have probably seemed a little more jealous.] 

Another notable similarity to the original series: Farkle counts the number of As he has received, much like Minkus did on Boy Meets World.

Girl Meets World: Riley is the Focus

I think the toughest adjustment to make in watching this series is recognizing that Cory and Topanga aren't the main characters. It makes sense that they're not, but it seems that most spin-offs center around the character(s) that make the jump, rather than other people entirely. [although Harriet was certainly not the focus of Family Matters, LoL.] Still, it's taking me a little while to adjust to relating to Riley and her friends as the protagonists. Of course, Farkle is absolutely adorable, has the best lines, and is disarming beyond belief, but I'm still a little hesitant to fall in love with Maya or Lucas. Auggie has started to win me over, but that's really not much of a chore for a five-year-old! I think that as the series continues, it'll get easier, especially if Riley keeps doing things that I remember her father doing on Boy Meets World, like hiding out in a locker! 

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Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Sneak Attack" (S01E03): Riley is in a great mood, but when she sees Lucas talking to another girl, Missy, she becomes completely jealous. [windows from the hallway into the classroom? that seems like an odd expense, though it's probably safer.] Riley decides to stand up for herself when Missy asks Lucas to the movies, but she doesn't know how to flirt and winds up sticking her finger up his nose. [no guy would hold still like that!] She's beyond embarrassed and plans to stay in her locker, but, fortunately, Farkle is always there to help his friend out. [how does he know how to flirt when Maya doesn't? Shawn certainly knew what he was doing! also, the whole "barf! barf, I say!" thing was totally Cory!]

Riley tells Lucas that she doesn't think he should hang out with Missy alone, but the temptress gets detention with Lucas for the express purpose of being alone with him. [I officially don't like Missy, LoL.] Riley and Maya follow suit. [in a much weirder way!] But, in detention, Lucas talks about having more fun with a group of friends while in seventh grade. [a little preachy and afterschool special narrator-y, no? and who walks out of detention? but the placecards were cute.]

At home, Auggie decides that five-year-olds shouldn't have plush toys from children's television shows, and starts hanging around with Ava, a bossy six-year-old neighbor. She irritates Topanga, and Auggie learns there's no rush to grow up. 

Other notable similarities to the original series: Maya saying "pleasure doing business with you" was an exact quote of Shawn's. Also, the "what was I supposed to do? I xxx, I yyy." was totally Cory! [I think catching little things like this is my favorite part of the series currently!]

Girl Meets World: Fairness and Communication

When I was in seventh grade, our language arts teacher assigned The Giver. One of the journal prompts we had encouraged us to write about the most attractive thing about living in that world, and I wrote with ease on that one. Plain and simple, I appreciated how every kid had exactly the same things... they wore the same clothes, had the same model of house, and all had one sibling and two working parents. As a have-not, I dreamed of equality amongst my peers, so to see how the seventh graders in this day and age deal with similar concerns really played to my interests. Learning that Maya was the one kid in class without a smartphone was a bit eye-opening for me (practically every kid I know is under 12), and Cory deciding to take on the responsibility of connecting her was cute.

Girl Meets World "Girl Meets Boy" (S01E02): Riley has been texting with Lucas at school, and Maya encourages her to talk to him in real life, but she can't manage. [fun fact: there appear to be 12 desks in Mr. Matthews' classroom; Mr. Feeny's was famous for only having 9!] Her shyness regarding personal communication moves to the forefront when Cory talks about the kids not being able to communicate or show emotions because of technology. He assigns a computer-free project, where the kids can't use their phones and must go to the public library to do research. [Cory not thinking his daughter could handle not having her phone seemed odd. As her father, you'd think he would have tried harder from earlier in life. Also, can a teacher actually take away kids' phones like that? I don't think so.]

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Maya, Riley, Farkle, and Lucas are a group, and they actually learn things about one another, like Maya can draw, Riley had a hamster, and Lucas wants to be a vet. [24 horses - wow!] Cory overreacts to his daughter connecting with Lucas, and gives Maya a smartphone so she can keep him posted about Riley. [mixed feelings, but interesting nonetheless.]

In a side story, Auggie draws on the walls and refrigerator, and his parents aren't sure how they should appropriately react.

More Boy Meets World parallels: the obvious one with Cory and Maya having a private conversation in the stacks of the library, just like Cory and Shawn once did. also, when Farkle exclaims that he had no idea Maya could draw, and she responds "neither did I," I'm reminded of a couple different Cory/Shawn moments, with both having the revelation at distinct points in their friendship. [which reminds me... how long until we get to see the adult Rider Strong??!?]

NEW SHOW: Girl Meets World: Riley is Cory

Many fans hoped that Girl Meets World would be just like its predecessor, Boy Meets World, only with females as the center of the show. In many ways, it is, and not every parallel is an easy one... having a paper plane in the theme song and a stylized Earth in the "O" of Girl Meets World come easy, as does naming Riley's school John Quincy Adams Middle (Cory attended John Adams). Having Riley and her friend sneak out a window, however, is tougher, as instead of a woody area of Philadelphia, this generation of Matthews lives in the West Village, so a treehouse becomes a fire escape.

In watching this spin-off, however, viewers might begin to wonder how much of facsimile will really work, though. At school, Riley has her best friend Maya by her side (Cory's Shawn) and deals with Farkle, the class dork crushing on her (Minkus always wanting to hang out with Cory and Shawn), while at home, she has to deal with her weird brother (Auggie as Eric). From previews, we know that there will be generational differences (mobile devices, ahoy!), but how many ways will this series really deviate from the classic 90s family comedy? Already in the pilot, we see the storyline of Cory fighting for the independence to drive a car at sixteen, but Riley sees her nearly-earned her MetroCard as that mark. It's apparent that her personality is design to be just like Cory's, with his anxious behavior, poor lying ability, nervous laugh, deep desire to be cool, and naivety. Maya mirrors BFF Shawn's relaxed demeanor, carefree attitude, and rebellious side. [her smile is a lot like the one Rider Strong always flashed, too.] We'll be here to ride out this series and continue to point out where it's keeping pace with the beloved ABC program and where it runs off the rails.

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Girl Meets World "Girl Meets World" (S01E01): Riley is immediately introduced as being her father's daughter when she's skeptical of what her best friend, Maya, is suggesting. Still, Riley goes against Cory's wishes and takes the subway, where she meets Lucas, a new kid from Texas, who just happens to be in her history class at school. [that lunchroom is the spitting image of the one in BMW! also, Cory as an overprotective father is a nice shift.] She tries to further rebel by not doing her Civil War paper (on "anything you believe so strongly in that you'd fight for it"), but does not just her own three-page essay, but one for Maya as well. [please tell me I wasn't the only one seeing this as a callback to the BMW season 2 episode "Me and Mr. Joad" ?? also, think about the Season 7 episode "Singled Out" where Cory tells Feeny that he always did his homework, he just never turned it in... similar to Riley pretending she didn't complete her assignment.]

When Maya's attempt to light homework on fire results in setting off the sprinklers, Lucas tells Riley that she's better than Maya, and Corey confronts Maya about negatively affecting Riley. [yeah, the "I have nobody at home to help me with my homework" line was contrived, but let's call it an establishing character moment and move on.] Still, Riley decides that her friendship with Maya is worth fighting for, and tells her parents that. [a few too many make-my-world-your-world comments if you ask me!]

Other notable similarities to the original series: Corey's use of "here's what I'm thinking" and "for as long as I can remember," plus Feeny's line "you always do." Farkle using Minkus' line,