Boy Meets World Stars Don’t Hold Back When Discussing Episode That Left Them “Furious”

Three Boys Meets World cast members react to “arguably the worst episode.” Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Rider Strong, who played the respective roles of Topanga Lawrence, Eric Matthews, and Shawn Hunter, have been rewatching the beloved sitcom for their Pod Meets World podcast. They are now up to Boy Meets World season 6, with the latest episode in their rewatch being season 6, episode 8, “You’re Married, You’re Dead.” The episode sees an engaged Cory (Ben Savage) Matthews going to a Hooters-like location with Shawn, and while there, Cory takes off his engagement ring and dances with other women.

While discussing “You’re Married, You’re Dead” on Pod Meets World, Fishel, Friedle, and Strong all agree that the episode is among the worst during the show’s seven-season run. Friedle describes the episode as “idiotic” and as a “bad episode of television all the way around.” Fishel is “furious” with the dialogue that was given to Topanga and feels it was deeply inauthentic for her character. Strong emphasizes that “something felt” off and points out specific choices that feel “weird” and “rushed.” Check out their full comments below:

Danielle Fishel: You want to know what makes me the most angry? I can’t stand it. And I am furious that they put the words, “Well, as long as there’s women willing to dance like that, there will be men to see them” in Topanga’s mouth. How dare you? How dare you?

Will Friedle: This ranks up there with arguably the worst episode for me of the series for every reason. The entire episode, I thought, was idiotic. I know TV. This was not it. This was a bad episode of television all the way around.

Rider Strong: This episode felt very weird to me in that it felt like somebody had written a draft of an episode that was very clearly like Topanga is upset that Cory goes to essentially a strip club or Hooters. And then they kind of backed off of that by, like, having Topanga be very understanding. And in the rewrite, it’s almost like everything the characters are saying is going against the actual plot, and so it felt kind of forced in a way, and then some of the jokes felt rushed. I don’t know. Something felt off. It felt like this was a bad tape night for some reason.

What This Means For Boy Meets World

Not Every Episode Has Aged Well

Boy Meets World remains one of the best sitcoms of the 1990s, but this does not mean that the show is impervious to a thoughtful critique. Fishel, Friedle, and Strong still have a strong love for the show, as evidenced by the fact that they have been gradually rewatching every episode and discussing them through Pod Meets World since 2022. As stars of the show who are now watching it through a new lens, there is weight to their criticism of “You’re Married, You’re Dead.”

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Topanga was a progressive character in many ways, which makes the specific remark that Fishel points out all the more jarring. The episode plays into outdated stereotypes about marriage, despite the overall strength and gradual development of Cory and Topanga’s relationship. As Strong points out, the story even seems to be unsure of what it is trying to say. Not only does the episode feel problematic at times, but the characters’ dialogue feels inconsistent with their actions, which leads to an installment that becomes “forced” and “rushed.”

Our Take On Fishel, Friedle, & Strong’s Reaction To “You’re Married, You’re Dead”

It Is A Bad Episode In A Mostly Great Show

Cory and Topanga look at one another at graduation in Boy Meets World

While “You’re Married, You’re Dead” did not become a banned Boy Meets World episode, it has not aged well, and is maligned even by the show’s own stars. The lackluster episode is not an indictment of the entire show, though. Over the course of seven seasons and 158 episodes, there are bound to be some bad episodes, including those that now feel regressive. For the most part, Boy Meets World is still a sitcom that has valuable lessons to teach, with this episode being a noticeable exception.

Source: Pod Meets World