14 times ‘Girl Meets World’ paid homage to ‘Boy Meets World’

Familiar opening credits

Before Boy Meets World got a cool theme song and even cooler opening credits sequence, the opening credits consisted of a strange animated globe and paper airplane, accompanied by strange electronic music. For the first two seasons, Girl Meets World’s opening credits paid homage to the original, with a brand-new paper airplane and turning globe.

Season 3 of Girl Meets World featured a brand-new opening credits sequence, also modeled after the final BMW opening credits. 

Mr. Feeny, Fee-ee-ee-ee-ny!

In the very first episode, “Girl Meets World,” Cory’s favorite teacher, Mr. Feeny (William Daniels), made a cameo appearance at the end of the episode, appearing on a poster in the subway urging kids to stay in school. Mr. Feeny has returned twice throughout the series to pay a visit to his favorite students, once in “Girl Meets Gravity” and again in “Girl Meets Pluto.”

Topanga’s roots

Topanga had an identity crisis in GMW after her law firm was tasked with shutting down a local bakery, where she needed some advice from her former self. More specifically, she needed a pep talk from the Topanga that first debuted in Boy Meets World, with her frizzy hair and white lace dress.

The Phillies hat

In the Season 2 episode “Girl Meets Cory and Topanga,” Riley worried that she wasn’t living up to her parents, but then she found out that Cory and Topanga weren’t always so put together. In a series of flashbacks, complete with clips to early Boy Meets World episodes, Riley and Maya saw Cory and Topanga working on their bizarre school project from the hilarious BMW episode, “Cory’s Alternative Friends.” Riley even recreated Topanga’s interpretive dance and wore the Phillies hat Cory gave Topanga way back when.

Shawn Hunter

Shawn Hunter (Rider Strong) made his first guest appearance on Girl Meets World in the holiday episode “Girl Meets Home for the Holidays.” The episode definitely paid homage to Cory and Shawn’s infamous BFF relationship, including featuring a few gags about how Cory might just love Shawn more than his wife. Shawn has since appeared in five more episodes, and will likely pop up again soon.

Shawn and Cory get in trouble with Mr. Feeny

“Girl Meets Pluto” is probably the most Boy Meets World-filled episode of Girl Meets World there’s ever been. When Cory and Shawn recruit Topanga, Riley and Maya to help them dig up an old time capsule they buried in Mr. Feeny’s yard, it’s a trip down BMW memory lane. The nostalgia-filled episode was full of fun callbacks to Boy Meets World moments, like the first time Cory and Topanga said “I love you,” and even the letter from Lauren that broke them up in high school. The show also featured an epic reunion with the group and Mr. Feeny, and, of course, the Feeny call.

Amy and Alan Matthews are still #RelationshipGoals

The Matthews family made their triumphant return to television when Amy (Betsy Randle) and Alan Matthews (William Russ) were invited to Cory and Topanga’s house for the holidays. Cory’s parents were a huge part of Boy Meets World, particularly in the first few seasons, so it was nice to let fans see them as grandparents. Also fun: seeing Cory’s baby brother Josh all grown up.

Mr. Squirrels returns

Eric Matthews (Will Friedle) made an epic comeback in “Girl Meets Mr. Squirrels” as his iconic character, Plays With Squirrels, who originated in the Season 7 episode of BMW, “Seven the Hard Way.” In that episode, Eric/Mr. Squirrels was able to bring peace to their group of friends after an epic prank war that nearly tore them apart, and now in GMW, Mr. Squirrels returns to help Maya and Riley solve their feud. He even said, with epic Mr. Squirrels wisdom, “Lose one friend, lose all friends, lose yourself.”

Eric has since appeared in a few more episodes, and was even reunited with his college BFF, Jack (Matthew Lawrence), on the show.

Angela helped Shawn move on

Angela (Trina McGee), Shawn’s ex, shook things up when she came into town in “Girl Meets Hurricane” and finally gave Shawn the closure he needed to move on. Shawn and Angela were probably one of the best BMW couples who weren’t Cory and Topanga or Amy and Alan.

The ghost of Shawn’s father, Chet (Blake Clark), appeared to give Shawn some much-needed advice. Fans of BMW will remember that Chet also appeared as a ghost in the series finale of Boy Meets World.

Stuart Minkus is all grown up

Stuart Minkus (Lee Norris), the original BMW nerd, made a guest appearance on Girl Meets World in the Season 1 episode, “Girl Meets Maya’s Mother.” Minkus, of course, was the class nerd who had a huge crush on Topanga in middle school. In GMW, Minkus proves that nerds will, in fact, inherit the earth: He’s a millionaire businessman and father to Farkle (Corey Fogelmanis), Riley’s classmate. He’s also still harboring a healthy crush on and academic rivalry with Topanga. 

Mr. Turner lives

Boy Meets World fans finally learned what happened to Mr. Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn) after his horrible motorcycle accident when he popped up in Girl Meets World’s “Girl Meets the New Teacher.” Don’t worry, everyone, Mr. Turner is still alive and well. After his accident, he married his nurse and got back to teaching. Turns out, he’s the one who got Cory his teaching job.

From bully to janitor

Harley Keiner (Danny McNulty), the bully who taunted Cory in his high school years, returned to the BMW universe as the school janitor in “Girl Meets the Forgotten.” I guess some people never really do leave high school. (No word on what happened to his hot sister, though.)

John Quincy Adams Middle School

Not all the BMW references in Girl Meets World come in cameo form. The show often throws in a few smaller Easter eggs, like the name of the middle school Riley and Maya attend in the first few seasons. Riley and Maya go to John Quincy Adams Middle School, which sounds curiously similar to Cory and Shawn’s school, John Adams High.