Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Episode 7x22 "Brave New World (Part 1)"

It's hard not to get sentimental in this last week, but let's try to keep it wrapped up until the end. We'll call it a tribute to Shawn Hunter, us bottling up our feelings.


The first scene has Cory yell-explaining to Shawn and Eric that he doesn't want to go to New York. There's that lighthearted guitar music in the background to show us this isn't supposed to be some dramatic conflict. And you know what? That's perfect. I hate coming into a series finale with some great conflict to be resolved in the last ten minutes. There's no marriage or confession of love, no baby being born, no fight to the death. It's not a climax, is what I'm saying. We're just saying goodbye and remembering the good times.

First up to bat is the Cory-Topanga set of flashbacks. Oh, it's only two. Well they're good ones, when Topanga wants to see if her and Cory's energies converge, and when she kisses him for the first time in Cory's Alternative Friends. In Real Time, Jack shows up to inform everyone that he's joining the Peace Corps. What, like you need a reason? Then Topanga arrives to tell Cory that she doesn't want to go to New York after all. Cory's pretty damn excited, so we get a little montage of him and Shawn cheering in unison throughout the series. And then they dance.


We'll keep a running list. So far we've got
*The roots of Cory+Topanga, and
*The child-like excitability of Shawn and Cory.

In The Backyard, Eric invents the final Feeny Call of the series, prompting clips of
*The Feeny Call throughout time.
There are a handful missing though, in particular the one from Playswith Squirrels. There's a compilation of all of them on youtube though.

Feeny finally admits that he loves the Feeny Call, which makes every fan's heart swell up with joy. And of course he made the pull-string Eric doll as a gift for his old mentor.


I actually never noticed until now, but Eric very casually pulls the doll out of that grill next to him. How long did he hide that thing in the grill? That's pretty funny.

Back on track, Eric asks Feeny to give Cory "the usual," which in this case is
*Advice from across the fence while Feeny gardens.
There's only two little clips of it, but we can take this to represent the general act of Feeny giving life advice to Cory. Feeny explains that he moved one of his plants from a pot in the living room to the plot here in his yard.


This plant metaphor refers to the possibility that Topanga will stop growing if she has to stay here in Philly. Feeny explains further that whats stopping her isn't her concern for Cory, but rather her fear of failure. There's something else here that's very important and is mentioned very quickly. Feeny doesn't come right out and say it, but he heavily implies that the reason Topanga didn't go to Yale wasn't because of Cory after all, but rather this fear of going to a new and unfamiliar place. I didn't remember that part of the conversation, and no one ever mentioned it in the comments, so maybe this slipped through the cracks for a lot of people. Do you folks buy this? That Topanga only claimed to be staying for Cory? That would mean her proposing to Cory was an anchoring maneuver to not have to face her fears at Yale. It seems kind of slapdash to me, and it changes a pretty massive part of their history. I kinda dig it though. It's interesting, and I feel like I'm learning something new about this series I've seen a thousand times.

Right, so now Cory has decided to help his wife leave her metaphorical living room plant-pot, and head to the garden of New York. New Jersey is the garden state, but that's not important. He reaction gives no indication that she was afraid, but whatever. We get some clips of
*The storied romance of Cory and Topanga,
from 3x01 up through Starry Night and Graduation, skipping over their breakup in The Grass Is Always Greener, but including the Lauren Arc (without any actual footage of Lauren, oddly enough).


It's another solid clip reel, but I can't believe they left out both instances of Topanga drawing a heart on her face with lipstick. Not just solid, but long, four whole minutes showing us their journey up to Topanga proposing at the graduation ceremony. It's still  not done, actually, as we get a quick recap of the wedding arc, including Eric setting the curtains on fire which is always a treat, and ending with a clip of them exchanging vows. So all said and done it was actually six minutes. Shawn better get six minutes too.

Back in Real Time, we do in fact get Topanga admitting that she's scared of failing. I expected Cory to insist that she won't fail because she never fails, but that's not what happens. Even now, in the very last episode, the show impresses me by defying my expectations. So Cory explains that if she fails, he'll still be immensely proud of her for taking a risk for what she wants and for having the courage to face her fears. It's one of the best things he says to her in the whole series. A+.  


You know, it's scenes like this that make me look back at the "Topanga's parents divorce" arc and hate it even more than I did at the time. Topanga and her interactions with Cory have been absolutely delightful for the last chunk of season 7. It's a shame we had to get through so much crap to get here.

In The Backyard, the showrunners decide to remind us that Morgan is a character on the show. She's equipped with her usual snark, because that's pretty much the only characteristic they thought of in the three and a half seasons since Ridgeway took over the role. Amy is, according to Morgan, "psycho" over the relocation to New York.


Amy is apparently pacified when Alan points out that Eric will be going to New York as well. I thought we were done with that running gag where Eric's parents don't respect him at all, but here it is. That's a shame.

For reasons unknowable, Jack and Rachel are hanging out nearby in the kitchen, and Jack learns that Rachel has decided to join the Peace Corps. So you're telling me they both came to this decision completely independent of the other? I'm calling shenanigans. It was Rachel's idea in the previous episode, and there's no way he would have considered going by himself. He must have already known somehow. Whatever, it's not important. We get some clips of Jack, Rachel, and Eric doing this and that, but it's short since nothing important ever happened with Rachel. Except maybe the end of Seven The Hard Way, BUT THEY LEFT THAT OUT.


The rest of the gang make their way into the kitchen, and Eric and Topanga have evidently maintained the bond we saw in She's Having My Baby Back Ribs as they put their arms around each other while Eric explains his excitement about New York.


WOAHOHOHAOHAHOAHHHHHHHHH. Break out your tinfoil hats people, this train is leaving the station! Look at that last frame,


Big. Daddy. Rocks. To follow up on Topanga's comment, we get to see some clips of
*Eric's shenanigans,
and is it a coincidence that the first two are strictly between him and Topanga? YOU DECIDE. Other than feeding that conspiracy theory, I don't think they picked the right clips for this at all. This is supposed to be THE Eric highlight reel, and aside from a two second clip from Shallow Boy (which I absolutely adore), they're all from seasons 6 and 7, which means they're all just punchlines where he's a total idiot. What. The fuck? I'm asking honestly right now, what the fuck is this? Eric has moved me to tears how many times and they want to show him getting struck by lightning in The Union? Yes most of these clips are funny, but he's so much moreeeeeeee. How could they do thisssss, this isn't how he should be remembered. We already had an "Eric is funny" reel with the Feeny Call earlier, and Topanga is specifically being sentimental, she knows he has a good heart, but we don't see any of that in these clips. This is a bottom-line failure by the showrunners. Yeah there's another set of clips in the next episode, but it's restricted to Eric's relationship with Alan. What about Eric and Cory? What about Eric and Feeny?

Up next is ANOTHER set of Eric clips, this time the story of his friendship with Jack. But this too is just focusing on Eric being silly. Nothing from You Light Up My Union or Playswith Squirrels, the two most meaningful interactions between Eric and Jack. How could they do all this Eric stuff without a single clip from Seven The Hard Way when he single-handedly restores their group friendship? I'm just so confused how they chose these clips. There's nothing bad about them, but there are some seriously important moments that should have been here.


That is a nice picture though.

Finally, and most importantly, it's time to address
*Cory and Shawn, "the greatest friendship of all time."
Cory and Shawn are reduced to tears at the thought of saying goodbye to each other, it plays out very similar to the "WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT IT" bit at Cory's wedding, and it's equally lovable and hilarious. The clip reel comes on, including, among others, "You're Cory, I'm Shawn, just like it's always been. What else do you need to know?" which is a fantastic choice, I absolutely love that one, an excerpt from the library scene in An Affair To Forget, one of my all time favorites, the scene with the celery poster, "UNDAPANTS," and of course "THEY WANT YOU TO TAKE THE ROLLS!"

This one they got right. Only about three minutes worth of clips, but definitely the most enjoyable segment of the episode for me. It could have been one of Eric's segments with the right clips, but alas, Shawn and Cory are taking home the prize. Topanga, as it turns out, has packed up all of Shawn's stuff so he can move to New York with them, which I think makes up for her nonsense at the beginning of the season.


The episode ends with that bit from Cory's wedding where Shawn asks him if he "really likes" Topanga, which was an awesome idea.

I don't think there's any point in scoring these last two episodes, so let's just keep talking. It's completely insane to me that they only used clips from seasons 6 and 7 (except that Shallow Boy one) for the "I want you to be Eric" clip reel, but other than that this episode is basically perfect. They never even imply the existence of Angela, but if you weren't thinking about it you wouldn't even notice. You can totally feel the love between all the characters here at the end (especially Topanga and Eric woop woooooop). Alan is one of the most important characters in the show and he didn't get much attention, but that's fixed in Part 2, so...

I think that's all I've got to say for now. Again, I know it's tempting to get sentimental about the blog, I'm right there with you, but I do want to hear what you have to say about the actual episodes, so let's try to focus on that until we're done. Which is... terrifyingly soon. See you Friday.


33 comments:

  1. I don't know why, but I always tear up at the last two episodes, Confidence. First started watching BMW at the age of 6/7 on Disney Channel. Grew up with Cory, Topanga, Shawn, Eric, Jack, Angela, & Rachel. In a strange way, they're part of my family.

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  2. I might be remembering Feeny and Topanga's conversation before graduation, but I think she comes in asking if he thought she'd do well in Yale. He said she would and she should only not go if there was a really good reason not to. Then she proposes to Cory. I might be remembering it wrong, but I think it can fit into what they did in the finale.

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    1. Hmmm that whole thing needed more exposition, Topanga never got the attention she deserved. Especially after seeing her goodbye lines to Feeny in part 2, there was so much potential for her. But noooooo Eric had to disguise himself as a woman instead.

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  3. I feel like I've seen some indication that Jacobs/the producers really prefer "dumb Eric," and that they didn't think they really hit the right groove with him until he became a mental patient. Not remembering where I saw this, but it could explain the choice of clips.

    Shawn's "Are you freaking kidding me? We have to say goodbye for an HOUR!" is one of my favorite moments in the show. I always quote it whenever I'm saying goodbye to a friend for a long time.

    I really, really question the choice to put Topanga in those RIDICULOUS pigtails for the end of this episode/the entire second part. It seems minor, but it kinda takes away from the great scenes for me because she looks so completely ridiculous. Bad choice!

    Finally...I've always felt it's sort of weird that they all end up going to New York so suddenly. It makes sense that they would want to, and it's very cute, but besides Topangers, what are they gonna DO there? Are Cory and Shawn going to transfer to some school in the city? Are they all going to live in a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment together? How are they going to afford that as a recent college grad with no experience and three college students from moderate-to-poor backgrounds? I dunno. I don't NOT like it. It's just kinda strange to think about.

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    1. (I posted this once, and I think it got eaten. I apologize if this shows up more than once.)

      There's a DVD commentary where Jacobs tells Will that they didn't find his character until later on, the implication being that late series Eric is the "best" one. I can imagine that, as a comedy writer who has seemingly exhausted a character's emotional arc, it would be freeing to write nonsense and silliness, but as a viewer, it's depressing.

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    2. And that should have signed my name.

      -- Drew T.

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    3. Yeah, another commenter said that rather than any of the characters, it was Jacobs himself who gave up on Eric. Feeny never would, but Jacobs did. And I agree with that.

      Topanga probably knows that Eric likes pigtails.

      As for New York, I started watching Friends recently, and I think it's just a general rule that tv shows can't ever acknowledge the cost of living in New York.

      And Hi Drew :D I should have watched all the DVD commentary while doing this blog, but I confess that I haven't :(

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  4. They actually do have a brief mention of Angela in the end when Shawn's jokingly saying "Cory I can't leave here, I've got a mom, a dad, a job, a girlfriend.... AAAAAAAHHHH" it's obviously referring to all of his losses throughout the series, most recently being Angela, hence the girlfriend part


    Now once again I've got a random piece of info here I remember reading online years ago but have no proof and this one might be false... But I swear I read once that ABC begged the cast and crew for a season 8 with the main four living in New York Friends-style, because TGIF was dying, Sabrina was switching channels, the new shows were flops, and of course BMW ending, so they needed a mainstay to save the block, but the writers claimed to be "out of ideas"

    Idk I think I read that on IMDB or something so take that with a grain of salt but it kinda makes sense

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    1. I was actually reading an interview with Rider Strong last night where he said that both he and Ben had been accepted to universities mid season 7 and everybody knew they were done. That doesn't mean the network didn't beg them though. I wouldn't be surprised if that's true.

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    2. I've heard the same about the C, E, S, and T only Friends clone. It was to be on ABC family rather than ABC proper to help get ABC Family off the ground was my understanding.

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  5. Actually Ridgeway was on the show for FOUR and a half seasons, which makes it even SADDER that they did NOTHING with her character. Since this will probably be the one of the last times I'll be able to ask you, what is your favorite season and episode of Boy Meets World? I agree with the whole flashback problem with Eric. Even with the Corpanga flashbacks, they showed the clips of Eric setting shit on fire? Like, what does that have to do with Cory and Topanga?

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    1. Yeah I forgot how to do math XD

      And you can check out the epilogue for those answers :D

      The curtains thing was really out of place, I don't know what they were doing. It's like OH JUST IN CASE YOU FORGOT, ERIC IS A MORON. JUST THOUGHT I'D REMIND YOU.

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  6. Can't believe they didn't show any clips from Eric's journey to college. "I didn't get in," or his interview with the Dean would have been great. And his scene from Security Guy: "I knew I could do it too." Goddamn it.

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    1. THERE we go, there's the comment I'm looking for. You are spot on, it is infuriating. How could they? My boy.. My darling Eric... Reduced to nothing but a court jester...

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  7. Getting close now! Between Parks and Rec wrapping up this week (I still like the theory that Griff just ended up later becoming mayor of "Ice Town") and reliving BMW's finale, it's a fine time for sentimentality. But maybe not 'til Friday.

    I'm not sure why, but this finale hits me harder the older I get. I enjoyed it well enough when I first caught it, but it resonates a lot more with me nowadays (particularly the last scene). I like your rundown of this part, and you're very on-point with Eric's whole bit.

    Eric would be a strong contender for my favorite character in the series (behind Feeny, of course. Everyone's behind Feeny) if it weren't for him getting broader and broader after the 4th/5th season. But like another commenter implied, it feels like Jacobs and crew truly prefer his S6/7 self for whatever reason, and it's kind of a shame. His arc upon graduating high school was one of the absolute best in the show, and he still delivered a lot of laughs in the process. Heck, I even liked him as the antagonistic older brother early on. I hope GMW does his character justice, but I'm not too optimistic that they won't make him overly goofy like in the last couple seasons here.

    Otherwise, everyone's really fun in this show. Cory/Topanga's drama comes to a quick and fitting conclusion that makes everybody come across as understanding and likable. The Shawn bit is emotional as well as funny (him poking fun at losing everything is a hilarious tongue-in-cheek meta moment). Good stuff all-around.

    Looking forward to the big wrap-up party on Friday!

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    1. Hah, yeah, I absolutely subscribe to the theory that Ben and Griff are the same person. Adam Scott is a god, and that Parks finale was great.

      I'm pretty scared about seeing Eric on GMW, all signs point to a return of Season 7 Eric and I really don't want that... But I agree, Feeny is #1, and then season 3,4,5 Eric.

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  8. "In Real Time, Jack shows up to inform everyone that he's joining the Peace Corps. What, like you need a reason?"

    Isn't Jack joking here, generally being classist and saying he's not going to help anyone? It's later in the episode, I think, where he decides for real, and it's based on Rachel's decision. Am I misremembering?

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  9. I can't believe this is it. This Friday you're going to review your final episode. Congratulations, Confidence. I mean it. Congratulations.

    For the past year and a half you've had me coming back every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday (I live about 12 time zones ahead of you), and quite often in between, checking for new reviews and reading comments. The only other sites i've visited as regularly and as consistently are Reddit, Facebook, and Google News, and those are platforms, not content producers. I think this is an achievement. I don't work in publishing, so i don't know the jargon. Audience engagement? Content stickiness? Whatever it is, you've done it. Single-handedly.

    I have no idea what you're going to do next, but i want to wish you all the best, and i hope you find some way to leverage what you've done here, because i think it's something special. Please keep us up to date too, if you think it's anything we might be interested in.

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    1. Btw, just thought i should mention: over the last year and a half i've commented under quite a few names: Magnús, Kevin, Carl Alexander Ludvig von Hacklheber, etc.

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    2. Wow, that's amazing to read, thank you so much, you man of many names! Aw man, that's so cool... Thanks again, really. I saved reading your comment until I was done, but yeah, thank you. Seriously. If you didn't see the last post yet, I'm looking to do something for Girl Meets World, so I'm sure I'll see you around again :D

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  10. Here's something I wonder with the timeline, and hope Girl Meets World somehow explains this. They go to New York City where they still are today, Cory much have finished and graduated college since he's a teacher, did he transfer to a school out there since they'd only been in college two years, and since they had Riley on December 8, 2001 that would mean they became parents before graduating college, makes you wonder how they managed it with their families back home.

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    1. The one thing I've learned from making this blog is that making timelines for the BMW universe is a fool's errand XD They just refuse to be consistent

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  11. iirc, they had a shooting script for this one with a few cut lines, if anyone's interested.

    When Cory and Shawn say goodbye, after Cory says 'No no no', it went on to:
    'I love long good-byes. I was just doing it to save you from crying!!!'
    SHAWN: Really?

    Rachel had a line mentioning Angela:

    RACHEL: I mean, I could just see Angela now, surrounded by culture and handsome Frenchmen, having the time of her life. What do you think?
    SHAWN: (EMOTIONAL) I think you’re the cruelest person on Earth.

    And a bit where Cory's telling Topanga they should move, and she says 'I have better grades than you, Shawn and Eric' and he says 'So does my shoe.'

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    1. Whaaaaaaaat that's wild! If you find the source on that, I'd definitely like to see it

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  12. Oops, there was more, Cory says 'Why does everyone take Topanga's side?' and Eric says 'Boobies'. (Furthering the inevitable Eric/Topanga ending preferable to GMW, lol.)
    And Eric talks about being a tugboat captain (?!)
    http://www.geocities.ws/porkboy5556/BraveNewWorld.html

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    1. The "boobies" part is actually in the episode, I remember it on the original airing and on reruns on ABC Family, but for some reason it's the only line cut out in the whole series on the DVD release.

      It's disappointing because I always really liked Eric's delivery of that line

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    2. That's... really strange...

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    3. I remember that line because it was one of the only breast jokes in the entire series. Most of the time they focused on the "tushie". I wonder why they cut it for the DVD release? Did they think it was in bad taste?

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    4. The transcript of the episode shows that a little more than just that line was cut. It stems from the fact that the DVD release and streaming services have the finale cut in two parts when, in actuality, it aired as one single episode. This adds an additional intro and a flashback that isn't necessary in place of content that actually aired on ABC in 2000. This happens with Full House also on their DVD and streaming releases...

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  14. There are not two instances of Topanga drawing a heart on her face. The first story was retconned in the one where she did draw a heart, which pisses me off to this day because the original episode was so great. She drew some sort of circle with four lines through it to go with her poem about the sun.

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  15. I don't think Topanga lied about her reason for going to Yale. I think it's pretty easy to have multiple reasons for doing something, and her fear of failure almost definitely would have contributed to her decision. It's convenient to leave that part out of your love story, though.

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