Original Desmond

Best coming of age show by a mile and Julie Condra as Madeline Adams on the show was the cutest thing ever

Norm de Plume

^No question, but I disagree with you about Condra. She was the unattainable, beautiful girl with the "come hither" twinkle in her eye, but there were other cuter girls, I thought, such as, for instance, Maia Brewton, who played Kevin's unwanted science-class partner in an episode. But old dudes like us probably shouldn't be discussing cute little girls, even if our crushes are decades-old childhood ones.
I have it, but it's one of those rare irresistible things one can't help but tune in to anyway, no matter how many times one has seen it (e.g., every time I happen to flip past Road House when it plays, I must watch it).

Paff

Pretty sure any crushes you had on Maia Brewton, at any age, would go unrequited...

Norm de Plume

^Yes, I'm aware. I never had a serious crush on her, but she just had a really appealing sparkle and approachability that Kevin completely failed to appreciate (in the episode, he was infatuated with another girl).

On another note, in retrospect I think one of the show's nominal weak points in terms of casting was Danica MacKellar. She was just not a very good actress (nor was her sister). Certainly she paled in comparison with Savage, who, during his best years as an actor, in the middle seasons, was able to express a world of emotion without uttering a word, and acted the expressionless MacKellar off the screen whenever they were together. Almost everyone else, at least of the main players, was pitch-perfect, especially Alley Mills and Dan Lauria. Lauria's dad character was really quite off-putting at times, but even at his most crotchety and stubborn and conservative, one never lost the sense that he was a family man with a good heart. I also thought the guy who played the unforgiving Mr. Diperna was a hoot with his scowl and sneer, but I never understood the acclaim for the actor who played the gym teacher. He won an Emmy or two for the show, didn't he? I never liked or "got" that character.
Also, an actor who didn't get his due was the kid who played Craig Hobson. The character was hilarious and required a certain amount of sophistication, which that guy pulled off with acerbic ease.

Michael Corvin

I had a huge crush on McKeller as a youth (and she's still quite gorgeous) but 3.5 seasons in I'd have to agree about the acting on all counts. I think part of the problem with Winnie is what you said, everyone else is so good in their roles it just makes McKeller's portrayal of Winnie stick out. Even Wayne's one trick schtick comes across as effortless and natural.

I like the gym coach. Perfect portrayal of a any given gym coach in Anytown, USA. Hobson is indeed portrayed well, but the character just doesn't do anything for me.

Norm de Plume

MacKellar was and is quite attractive, no question, and I guess she had some good moments here and there.
Yeah, you're right about Wayne. He's mostly a one-note character (the archetypal asshole big brother), but Hervey's portrayal is terrific, as you noted. I also think Olivia d'Abo is greatly underappreciated as Karen, though, as her boyfriends go, I thought the early one, the womanizing, ideological hippie played by John Corbett, was far better and more interesting in his brief time on the show (his effective anti-war speech countering Lauria's jingoistic blather was one of the show's more memorable early scenes) than the mealy-mouthed dweeb annoyingly played by David Schwimmer.

Michael Corvin

I haven't gotten to Schwimmer yet. I had no idea he was in it. Corbett was excellent though.

Nope. SD only.

Norm de Plume

The channel up here just aired "The Accident", which is, needless to say, one of the series high points, even though Winnie's motivation is a bit murky and the script relies on handy contrivances a little too often (e.g., Winnie just happens to be walking past her old house, which is several miles from her new one).
I think this episode contains some of the very best examples of Savage's heartfelt acting. Early in the show's run he was too inexperienced an actor, while during the last season or two he became self-conscious and the look of earnest wonderment receded from his face. At this stage his performances were pure and fully natural, and the scene between Kevin and Winnie as he looks in her bedroom window and mouths, "I love you", is one of the show's most moving moments, due in large part to Savage's evident sincerity.

I'm looking forward to "Graduation", which is coming soon. It is, if anything, an even better episode, though the slapstick "driving pregnant Mrs. Heimer to the hospital" subplot is pretty stupid. The scene at the playground, which transitions through the fence from Kevin's present-day doldrums to when Kevin, Winnie, and Paul jubilantly played there as children (to the strains of Randy Newman's achingly beautiful "I Think It's Going to Rain Today"), is profoundly melancholy and relatable, and I also have a great fondness for Paul's poignant valedictory speech at the end, which brings the two friends together again.
The episode also showcases one of the series's best-ever fade-outs, with Kevin, Winnie, and Paul, newly reunited as friends, standing on the sidewalk chatting about the summer and what's to come for them, and as the camera cranes up and away, and the narrator intones "I never wanted it to end", the theme song cranks in at full volume.