Part of me wanted to write this month's TV column on "Mad Men" following its finale, but after already eulogizing "Parks and Recreation," "Parenthood," "Sons of Anarchy" and "Boardwalk Empire" this season, I'm just not mentally prepared to go there yet. Maybe next month. Or when the second half of the show's seventh season ends up on Netflix.
Instead, I'm going for a decidedly lighter note. I never imagined I'd be fully hooked to a TV show on the Disney Channel as a 29-year-old, but I am.
To my credit, the main reason why I find myself watching "Girl Meets World" week after week is because of its predecessor, "Boy Meets World," which was a staple of my childhood.
Following that show's tone while still managing to be firmly set in a more modern time, "Girl Meets World" features Rowan Blanchard as Riley Matthews and Sabrina Carpenter as Maya Hart, two best friends wandering down this road that we call life, just as Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong) did 20 years ago.
Yes, Riley is Cory's daughter-and Topanga's (Danielle Fishel). Just 14 years after the last episode of "Boy Meets World" aired, "Girl Meets World" sees the Matthews clan-Cory, Topanga, Riley and little bro Auggie (August Maturo)-living in New York City. Riley, Maya and their friends go to John Quincy Adams Middle School, where Cory is their history teacher, a la Mr. Feeny (William Daniels) in "Boy Meets World."
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The first season of "Girl Meets World" deals with some of the harsh realities of growing up in a safe setting, just as the original series did, and in addition to seeing Cory and Topanga as regular characters, Shawn has come into play as a recurring character, and Cory's parents (William Russ and Betsy Randle) also stopped by for a holiday episode.
The first five episodes of the second season of "Girl Meets World" aired a couple of weeks ago, and Cory's brother Eric (Will Friedle) made his first appearance, along with a couple of Feeny spottings.
What I enjoy most about the show is that it devotes equal time to Riley and her highs and lows while still managing to pack in tons of "Boy Meets World" references and characters to make older watchers happy. (And yes, for the Disney Channel, 29 is old.)
"Girl Meets World" airs Friday nights on the Disney Channel. New episodes from the second season start airing again on June 5, and season one is available to stream on various services, including Amazon. (You can find episodes of "Boy Meets World" there, too.)
