For years, I’ve been a massive fan of Boy Meets World. Not only do I own all of the DVDs and watch the series regularly but I’ve also been known to work obscure references to the show into everyday conversation. To be honest, while I definitely remember watching the program during its initial run on ABC, it was during its syndicated years that it became one of my all-time favorites. Now, more than 30 years after Boy Meets World debuted, it’s riding a new high of popularity thanks in part to the rewatch podcast Pod Meets World hosted by stars Rider Strong, Danielle Fishel, and Will Friedle. To celebrate, that trio plus Trina McGee, William Daniels, and Bonnie Bartlett joined a panel at C2E2 — which, very thankfully, I was able to attend.
As if seeing the legendary Mr. Feeny himself wasn’t enough, the panel happened to be taking place on Daniels’ 96th birthday. Naturally, this led the packed house to sing “Happy Birthday” to the beloved actor before the questioning and answering truly got underway.
One of the downsides of having a popular show such as Pod Meets World is that avid listeners will likely already be familiar with many of your stories and general feelings on certain topics. Despite this, although there were some predictable responses, there were plenty of fresh moments to be found during the hour we got to spend with the stars. What’s more, the interplay between them not only added an extra dose of fun to the proceedings but also highlighted what a family the cast is.
Like many long-running shows with massive fanbases, there are some Boy Meets World controversies. Among them is the question as to whether or not Topanga should have attended Yale rather than deferring her Ivy League ambitions to stay closer to Cory. Asked for her opinion on the matter, Fishel diplomatically laid out an argument for both sides. First, she said that, if it were her, she’d have pushed for Topanga to take up the opportunity at Yale. Furthermore, she expressed that anyone with influence in Cory’s life would similarly want to encourage him to let Topanga set off on her own for a while. On the other hand, Fishel noted that Topanga was always destined for greatness and that it wasn’t necessary for her or anyone else to attend a more prestigious school in order to be successful.
Another highlight of the panel was somewhat unexpected for those who have listened to Pod Meets World. As Friedle explained on that show, he retired the famous “Feeny Call” after passing it onto the stars of Girl Meets World. Yet, when someone mentioned that it was Daniel’s birthday and Bartlett added that he wanted Fridele to do it, the actor obliged… sort of. While stopping short of doing the full bit, he did let out an unmistakable “Fee-nay,” leading to an eruption from the crowd.
Turning to the fan Q&A portion, when asked what the most emotional episode of the series was to film, nearly all of the cast declared it was (of course) the finale. With McGee not appearing in that episode, she said that it was the penultimate episode “Angela’s Ashes” that stood out to her. Speaking of that final episode, though, Daniels likely brought many in the audience to tears when speaking about the show’s iconic ending:
While panels like this one are often billed as “reunions,” the truth is that this cast has come back together several times before (even prior to the podcast). Perhaps most notably, this includes on the Disney Channel show Girl Meets World. When the stars were asked about working on that sequel series, Strong likened the experience to “time travel” given some of the parallels between his experience and the ones the new cast were having.
As a long time fan of Boy Meets World, I couldn’t help but smile throughout this entire 60-minute panel. In fact, it was probably among the top three sessions I’ve experienced in the four years I’ve been attending C2E2. Put simply, this event was really a dream come true and I’m so glad I was there to witness it. Of course, I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing the gang return for future events as well — but, in the meantime, I’ll be keeping up with Pod Meets World to help scratch my BMW itch.