I think Topanga wins in a landslide.

Wonder years no doub.t Not even a question.

Wasn't BMW filmed in front of a studio audience with a laugh track. It had the Save By The Bell charm to it and the scripts were rather silly. Yes, it had more serious moments than SBtB but it had a lot of difficulty pulling them off without seeming preachy or self-righteous.

Wonder Years was much more of a half hour family drama than a sitcom ... dramedy. It perfectly reflected my years growing up. The attitudes of the characters and settings matched the time perid.

I was born in '84 and watched both growing up while they were on the networks. I think Wonder Years is the better show and I got more out of it, but I found Boy Meets World more enjoyable. If they were both on TV at the same time, I would probably go for BMW because I would probably find more funny in it and less depressing.

Ditto.

True, but I wonder how much of that had to do with BMW riding on TGIF which was still pretty popular from 93-97.

I like both shows, but i would have to say that 'Boy meets world' is better, like i said i like both shows but BMW is much funnier then TWY. the only Bias* i have is that i watched BMW from start to finish in its original airing unlike TWY were i only cought the final season in its original airing and have only seen the rest of the series in syndication.
that plus the fact that Topanga was way better looking then Winny.

I think the two shows are so different that they shouldn't even really be compared. The Wonder Years was a classic coming of age heartfelt show, where as BMW was a lighthearted sitcom. They were both good at what they did, but if we are talking just about quality, the Wonder Years bitch slaps Boy Meets World up and down the block. BMW was supposed to get more laughs by its nature, and it did, but to me, even though I like it and used to watch the repeats every day, a lot of it was just silly throwaway stuff. The Wonder Years is a series that will be fondly remembered forever and that is something I really can't say about BMW. The Wonder Years also had plenty of really hilarious moments, even though it was a much more serious show.

I'll also take Topanga over Winnie Cooper.

"Wonder Years", by 10 thousand light years.

I never got in to it, but American Dreams looked good and I was interested - which is odd I think since WY has never stuck a cord with me. Looking back they seems to be the same show (give or take 10 years) with the same feel and goals. Perhaps the hour long format didn't work well for this type of show? Dreams more of a drama than comedy? WY dramadey?

For me, Wonder Years > BMW

Though, as noted, despite being coming-of-age shows starring a Savage kid, they were different kinds of shows with different levels of ambition. Wonder Years aimed high, while BMW never seemed to be trying to be anything other than another sitcom.

Though I didn't mind BMW. I did seem to go off track in its later years. The characters seemed to grow up waaaay too fast (getting married at age 18). And the writing got stupid: they weren't even trying anymore with the character of Eric, making him so stupid he was borderline retarded (but with the ability to be an idiot savant to serve the story). I guess sitcoms do that - kind of like how the Fonz started as a cool and somewhat-dangerous greaser, and ended up practically with magical powers.

I've never seen Boy Meets World, but did like Wonder Years at the time.

Hopefully we'll decide once and for all which one is better in two years when this thread is bumped again.

I agree.

Also, IMO, each and every time BMW had some sort of dramatic moment or episode (cult + motorcycle accident anyone?) it fell flat. Whereas The Wonder Years floated in and out of comedy and drama with great ease.

I will say that I liked BMW when they were in JH/High School. I wasn't keen on "the college years". The non-interesting characters (and actors) that were added weren't working for me. And I agree with the person who mentioned Eric getting dumb as a brick - that was more than over the top.

The Wonder Years was one of those rare dramedies, which had a perfect combination of drama and comedy in each episode. BMW was just another lightweight comedy that is probably fun to watch in syndication. When I was in highschool in the late 80's, I loved The Wonder Years.

Boy Meets World.

Too young to remember the Wonder Years, so I can't say.

Winnie or Topanga -- neither. I thought Shawn's girlfriend Angela was prettier.







And the writers finally make Shawn's miserable life complete as they always intended and had Angela (his first real girlfriend/long lasting relationship) unnecessarily leave to go to Europe with her military dad for a year.

I thought BMW was one of the few sitcoms that manages to incorporate drama and comedy simultaneously without coming off PSA like, although no where near as the way the Fresh Prince of Bel Air did it.

Also interesting to note that the main character, Corey Matthews, is a middle class young boy who's best friend Shawn Hunter comes from a trailer park and is a bit more forward than he is. I thought this was a great change of pace. For many seasons, Shawn is depicted as a player, who has had several girlfriends and does not date any girls more than 1 or 2 weeks as a rule (to avoid getting hurt). By the 5th season his true love, Angela Moore. This character happens to be black; however, this was never pointed out -- there was no 'special episode', she was treated like any other character, and for a mainstream 'white' family show, I thought this was refreshing and new, for such a mainstream 'white' show.

Definitely not a laugh track...unless they planned on having teenage girls swoon and holler when Cory and Shawn have a romantic gay moment (oh, there were a lot) or when Eric does something incredibly ridiculous, kissing/love scenes, etc.

And I'd argue that BMW was a dramedy as well. None of the more serious episodes of BMW came off preachy, self righteous or PSA like to me. To compare it to Saved By The Bell is quite the insult. Better characters, better acting, better chemistry, better storylines, etc.

The continuity between Cory and Topanga's relationship was ridiculous; especially when you consider we KNOW how they started because the show began when they were in 6th grade. But that's TV for you. From the cast, Ben Savage and Rider Strong had great chemistry. Rider Strong probably would be the strongest actor with versatility, Ben has great comedic timing and I noticed his acting style is very similar to his brother's,. Speaking of relatives, I thought it was fun to see Fred Savage make a guest appearance on the show. Too bad they couldn't get Joey Laurence (Blossom) to guest star, being that Matthew Laruence had joined the cast as Shawn's half brother, Jack.

Good call. Nearly two years to the day. Just missed it by a month.

Comparing a drama to a sitcom just because the teen stars are brothers is kind of silly. They're not the same genre.
HOWEVER, if they were both on at the same time, I would watch BMW.

Did you make a reminder to bump this thread two years ago?!

wonder years!

There is no comparison...Wonder years.

The Wonder Years is one of the finest achievements in television.

Wonder Years.

Wonder Years.




... and to echo Charlie Goose:

Boy Meets World for me. I like the Wonders Years as well but Boy Meets World had special charm + Topanga.

And let us not forget MR FEEEEENY. Feeeeney. F f f faaaa feeeeny.