S03.E21: Girl Meets Goodbye

[Tara Ariano]

Description TBA.

[Primetimer]

Will they stay or will they go now?

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[Skyfall]

I'm not crying, you're crying! If it ends like this they hit all the right notes.

[peachmangosteen]

When is this airing?

[TDT]

Some good points on rewatch:

-Eric and Feeny meeting for the final time(and apparently developing a feud that will probably never be touched upon)

-Shawn and Turner finally interacting(and Shawn adopting Maya though IMO who didnt see that coming from a mile away)

-the two Morgans(another potentially good spinoff idea)

[Tara Ariano]

Just now, peachmangosteen said:

When is this airing?

It aired at 6 PM ET. I believe it's repeating at 9. Or it's been on the Watch Disney app since this morning.

[absnow54]

Was the guy who walked into the cafe at the end the original Josh from the flashback? If so, that was a pretty clever way to fit in all the Matthew kids. I'm too old for this show, so saying goodbye to these kids wasn't too hard (except maybe Farkle) but I'm sad we won't get anymore reunions with the original cast.

[StaceyNotStacie]

I didn't even think about the kid who walked in at the end. I figured it was a random person. 

The last two episodes were much better than the previous episodes this season. The triangle totally ruined the show. I got a little teary eyed when I was the entire cast, especially when they showed Feeney. 

I'm fine if this is the finale, but I'm hoping Netflix or some other network picks this up and reboots the series. 

[Aliconehead]

It probably was the same boy since the little Joshua was played by the son of Michael Jacobs

[Rowsdower]

54 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

Was the guy who walked into the cafe at the end the original Josh from the flashback?

Ding ding ding!  That was, indeed, Daniel Jacobs, son of creator Michael Jacobs.

[gpgurl50]

I really enjoyed the finale.  The fact that it traded on BMW nostalgia as it did the rest of the series felt oddly fitting.

[KaveDweller]

2 hours ago, Stacey1014 said:

I didn't even think about the kid who walked in at the end. I figured it was a random person. 

The last two episodes were much better than the previous episodes this season. The triangle totally ruined the show. I got a little teary eyed when I was the entire cast, especially when they showed Feeney. 

I got all excited when they showed the whole original cast in the apartment, and slowly panned to Feeney on the side. I don't know how they got the audience to control their cheering to be with the camera though. Wouldn't the audience have seen them all at once? I also especially loved seeing Feeney interact with Eric and Shawn interact with Mr. Turner. GMW didn't have emotional connections between the kids and the adults like that. In season 1 it seemed like they were trying to do something with Cory and Maya, but it never really panned out.

It was totally weird seeing the two Morgans interact though. When I heard they would both be in it, I thought they would be in alternating scenes without anyone acknowledging it or something.

Don't know how I feel about Shawn adopting Maya though. It felt a little too perfect. And does she really have to change her name to Maya Hunter? I get that her dad's an asshole and all, but she's had the name her whole life. He can still be a legal guardian without having the same name.

[Dee]

What was the point of having Stuart & Harley in the finale if GMW wasn't going to do anything with them?

[ohjoy]

That tied a lot of stuff up very neatly, especially considering nobody actually moved away.

I will always love Eric.

Seriously ready for the Farkle spinoff featuring Smackle and Zay (and Lucas) now.

[Spencer Hastings]

I love that they used the two Morgans simultaneously.  Both girls made the role their own (even though I prefer the first) and should have been a part of this.  The tag in from #1 to #2 was great.  Auggie's gasp of realization and "Is there going to be another me?!" was great. 

Seeing Daniel Jacobs was great.  To tie him in with the speech that Cory originally recited to him and using his "Topanga" was a nice way to honor the character and rehashed speech.  Too bad he had more lines than both Harley and Minkus. EDIT:  apparently their scenes were cut.

Turner and Shawn had me feeling all sorts of ways.  Of course Maya's adoption ruined it for me but I'm here for the tears and nostalgia. I had to rewind at the callback of the Matthews parents wanting to adopt Shawn, but Shawn choosing to remain a street urchin.

Auggie and Ava forever.  Smarkle forever.

Overall, they did a good job pleasing both BMW and GMW fans.  This episode was mostly meta and I loved it.  If this thing is saved they need to find badass, I Am Woman Topanga because this decision is BS but I get it. 

Edited January 21, 2017 by Spencer Hastings

[Brian Cronin]

I liked it, but yeah, they really should have come up with some other scenario for why they had to possibly leave. 

I don't mind Minkus and Harley getting no lines. They're not really family, ya know? They're lucky to be there period. 

[DarkRaichu]

Good final show

Farkle & friends should get their own show.  Even Maya acknowledged Farkle was the one that bind the group together.  May and Riley were too self centered for that role :P 

Lol at Smackle who did not see Riley as a threat

[Spartan Girl]

How dare they not have Eric do one last Feeny call?! I waited three years for that!

Well, at least they had a scene together. Too bad they can't have their own spin off.

[Fostersmom]

14 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

Don't know how I feel about Shawn adopting Maya though. It felt a little too perfect. And does she really have to change her name to Maya Hunter? I get that her dad's an asshole and all, but she's had the name her whole life. He can still be a legal guardian without having the same name.

I love how shows act like it's as easy as Katie and Shawn getting married and Maya signing something for Shawn to adopt her. Birth parents are never a consideration in these scenarios. 

So, Topanga is going to put her career on hold so Special Snowflake doesn't have to leave her window seat and friends? Awesome. Suddenly the bakery she's never seen in is her happy place. Right, got it. 

[kav]

We will get to see why Eric was mad at Feeny on a future tube video.  

[madfortv]

There were some cute one liners in the final two shows.  It was great that Corey was fully supportive of Topanga (especially after he saw how much she would be making LOL).  How they fit everyone in was great though a couple of people didn't get any lines. I will miss most everyone except for Riley and Maya.

[jade.black]

This was much funnier and cuter than most of the series has been. I even laughed out loud at Farkle asking about that girl (the third best friend) and then interrupting Riley as soon as she started speaking by deadpanning that he didn't care. I also loved that Feeny and Eric have an unexplained feud. It was so nice to see the old cast! Mr. Turner! Morgans! I even noticed right away that the kid at the end was original Josh... he looks just the same as he did as a kid.

Zay, Smackle, and Farkle were the best of the kids (as usual) in this episode. I was shocked that Lucas and Riley actually had a scene together... although we haven't seen so much as a back pat between Riley and Lucas for all the talk of them being a couple. It's glaringly obvious when your 5 year old couple Auggie and Ava hold hands and behave like they're together while the high school couple barely interacts. And did they totally drop the idea of Zay and Maya casually hanging out? Josh showed up and Maya was back to the way she's always been.

As much as I liked the finale... well, for as much as I'd expect out of this show anyway... I was pretty annoyed that they didn't have Topanga take the job. What do she and Cory even have going on in their lives in NYC? We never see them with friends or advancing in any way. London would have been the right step. If the show gets picked back up, I'm sure they could have come up with some plot to move them back. They could have even paid to keep their NYC apartment with Topanga's supposedly ridiculous salary increase. It's not like the BMW/GMW universe has ever strived for believability anyway.

[Cowgirl]

3 hours ago, jade.black said:

Zay, Smackle, and Farkle were the best of the kids (as usual) in this episode. I was shocked that Lucas and Riley actually had a scene together... although we haven't seen so much as a back pat between Riley and Lucas for all the talk of them being a couple. It's glaringly obvious when your 5 year old couple Auggie and Ava hold hands and behave like they're together while the high school couple barely interacts. And did they totally drop the idea of Zay and Maya casually hanging out? Josh showed up and Maya was back to the way she's always been.

Amen to all of this.  Also, did they just forget that Eric is a U.S. Senator?

I enjoyed the metaMorgans. Thanks to those of you who pointed out that the customer at the end was the actor who played little Josh on BMW.  I just thought it was weird and kinda random when I watched it. 

I liked the tie in with "Belgium 1831."

[TAG42481]

On 1/23/2017 at 0:50 PM, jade.black said:

As much as I liked the finale... well, for as much as I'd expect out of this show anyway... I was pretty annoyed that they didn't have Topanga take the job. What do she and Cory even have going on in their lives in NYC? We never see them with friends or advancing in any way. London would have been the right step. If the show gets picked back up, I'm sure they could have come up with some plot to move them back. They could have even paid to keep their NYC apartment with Topanga's supposedly ridiculous salary increase. It's not like the BMW/GMW universe has ever strived for believability anyway.

Remember, they only thought this was a SEASON finale when they filmed it, not a SERIES finale.  It was filmed over the summer.  Putting the show in England for season 4 would have been a total reboot since you'd only keep the 4 Matthews from the current cast.  You'd be replacing everybody else.

Had this been planned as a SERIES finale, I think London would have been the right move.  Even that would be paying homage to the BMW ending with Cory and Topanga moving to a new city.

[Virtual]

Thoughts that popped in my head after seeing this episode were Eric behaving ungratefully towards Feeny, which I found to be lousy of him. Feeny helped him become who he is, and apparently because he didn't help Eric enough according to the video I heard about (even though Eric is well into adult years and should figure things out for himself), he throws a childish fit.

I also figured that whatever speeches Harley and Minkus gave to Cory and Topanga were cut out. Speaking of which, I believe this episode was the first time those two were in a room together during any Meets World Series episode.

Can't help but think that there are still tiny loose ends here and there, but at the same time the show felt really forced at times. Boy Meets World was more natural, likely because they weren't a spin-off show trying to be like its predecessor at times.

[BigDave]

As a stand alone episode it was fine for what it was. I'm not a big fan of meta scenes in TV shows. I like being lost in the moment, but GMW is certainly not the only show that is guilty of it (BMW did the same thing towards the last few years of their run).

My issue with the episode, and really the entire series, is the lack of any "realness". Nothing feels real or authentic. The friendships, the "relationships", and even Cory and Topanga's marriage, which is astonishing considering how close they were in the original. Why would Topanga care about Harley and Minkus' opinion about her move? Why would the entire classroom feel saddened at Riley leaving as if she spent 2 seconds talking to anyone other than the regular characters? It's just so stupid and contrived that it's hard to get into it.

There was really no way from them to write this episode with any consistency since the entire series was all over the place. At least it's mercifully over, and if it does get picked up, it won't be on Disney. I don't think Disney is as much to blame as the writers are, but maybe another network will give it a bit more freedom. If the series dies at this point, I think that would be preferable, though. 

[Mabinogia]

22 hours ago, BigDave said:

Why would Topanga care about Harley and Minkus' opinion about her move? Why would the entire classroom feel saddened at Riley leaving as if she spent 2 seconds talking to anyone other than the regular characters? It's just so stupid and contrived that it's hard to get into it.

This is why I felt the whole episode was just ridiculous. They pulled out every BMW star they could but that was completely lost on most of their audience. I think that was the problem with this entire series. It didn't know which audience it wanted, the kids who watch Disney Channel or the parents who used to watch Boy Meets World. I feel like this episode would be a total fail for the kids who don't know who half these people are and it fell a bit flat to me, a BMW fan because it was so lacking in any real heart. I suppose the cast enjoyed seeing each other again so there's that.

[Cowgirl]

If they had made it an hour-long episode, all the cameos would have fit in better. 

[Splishy Splashy]

What I really don't understand with the Disney Channel is they seem to end shows that are the most successful at the time on there channel just like Wizards Of Waverly Place. I understand that it may have to do more than just the channel as some of the major cast didn't want to do the show anymore, but to me I just don't get it. The kids in the show pretty much this is all they have done so far that has been a success in their career and it isn't like they have out grown it yet. As for the adults I really don't understand why they would want to leave a successful show. Do they honestly feel that other projects are going to start falling into their laps now. Look what happened to Ben Savage, Danielle Fishel, and Rider Strong once BMW ended. There careers tanked. It will happen again.There is a much better chance for the success of Rowan, Sabrina, Peyton, Corey, and August to take off than the adults. I just don't understand it. That being said, I think the final episode like many said was a BMW reunion and really should have been more of a why are we leaving wrap it up show. It was kind of a disappointing ending to me.

[xffanatic]

On 1/30/2017 at 9:30 PM, BigDave said:

As a stand alone episode it was fine for what it was. I'm not a big fan of meta scenes in TV shows. I like being lost in the moment, but GMW is certainly not the only show that is guilty of it (BMW did the same thing towards the last few years of their run).

My issue with the episode, and really the entire series, is the lack of any "realness". Nothing feels real or authentic. The friendships, the "relationships", and even Cory and Topanga's marriage, which is astonishing considering how close they were in the original. Why would Topanga care about Harley and Minkus' opinion about her move? Why would the entire classroom feel saddened at Riley leaving as if she spent 2 seconds talking to anyone other than the regular characters? It's just so stupid and contrived that it's hard to get into it.

There was really no way from them to write this episode with any consistency since the entire series was all over the place. At least it's mercifully over, and if it does get picked up, it won't be on Disney. I don't think Disney is as much to blame as the writers are, but maybe another network will give it a bit more freedom. If the series dies at this point, I think that would be preferable, though. 

I too felt like this show was all over the place and didn't have the heart or reality of Boy Meets World.  Even when they tried to do real teen issues, everything felt so dumbed down and afterschool special preachy.  I do tend to blame the fact that it was on Disney Channel which is just aimed at children, unlike BMW which was aimed at kids, teens, and adults.  The show just couldn't grow with them like it could on another network. 

[paulvdb]

I agree that the showrunners tried to deal with issues that could not be handled very well within the constraints of Disney Channel. It would have been better for the show to be on Freeform (formerly ABC Family) or if the showrunners had made a different type of show that did not try to deal with these issues.

[methodwriter85]

My belief has always been that this show SHOULD have tried to aim for something like Goodluck, Charlie. It tried to hard to be deep when it should have been fun.