Boy Meets World's 7 Best And 7 Worst Episodes Ranked

The coming-of-age sitcom "Boy Meets World," which follows Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and his friends as they learn life lessons while growing up in Philadelphia, is in many ways the perfect comfort show. This '90s classic is full of enduring truths regarding the importance of family and friendship. Its wholesome messages about love, life, and loss still resonate with people years later. "Boy Meets World" is like "a warm blanket," The Guardian said after revisiting the show in 2021.

Of course, when a show runs for seven seasons, there are bound to be a few low points. There are many classic episodes of "Boy Meets World," but the show didn't always get it right. At its very best, it's an engaging, heartfelt, and occasionally poignant drama disguised as a cheeky, lighthearted sitcom. However, it falters when it leans too far into the melodramatic, the surreal, and the absurd. Here's our ranking of the best and worst episodes of "Boy Meets World."

With a rating of 7.3 on IMDb, "I Am Not a Crook" ranks as one of the show's weakest narratives. When Cory complains about having no extracurricular interests or skills, Shawn (Rider Strong), eager to give his best friend some purpose, nominates him for class president. Initially horrified, Cory quickly embraces the role, promising to do away with what he refers to as "an antiquated justice system that relies too much on detention." As Cory's self-appointed campaign manager, Shawn encourages him to make increasingly absurd declarations rather than plausible promises like improved lunches and updated textbooks — all under the misleading slogan of "Honest. Loyal. Decent." When Cory fires Shawn at the behest of other students over a sexist remark he made in third grade, it's not just the presidency at stake, it's also a friendship.

Though Redditor u/simonthedlgger believes this storyline "sums up modern politics pretty succinctly," others, like blogger thatsavvy, "don't even want to discuss this episode" due to a deep loathing for any kind of student election plotline. We suspect some viewers may appreciate the installment for its focus on the ever-enduring bond between Cory and Shawn, but similar episodes — like Season 4 entry "An Affair to Forget" — are more engaging and more successful because they offer a layer of emotional depth.

In "He Said, She Said," Shawn misinterprets the advice of new guidance counselor Devon Collins (Amy Leland) after his guardian, Mr. Turner (Anthony Tyler Quinn), demands that he starts thinking about his future. The trouble is, during the counseling meeting, Collins confides that, while she did eventually attend college, she needed to take some time to learn about herself first — so she traveled around Europe. Fixating on the idea of travel (with it not quite clicking that his counselor engaged in all this soul-searching after high school), Shawn decides to hit the road via a bus ticket to Paris, Texas the very next day. Meanwhile, Eric buys official Feeny stationery from Griff (Adam Scott of "Parks & Rec" fame), planning to forge a glowing college recommendation letter.

With a 7.3 on IMDb, this is one of the worst-rated episodes of "Boy Meets World," and the score is pretty accurate. "He Said, She Said" is a forgettable episode that aims high but misses the mark. As The Twizard notes, "It's not quite as eye-opening as it wants to be, due to the fact that it's only one of the more minor stunts Shawn tries to pull." Other bloggers, like thatsavvy, have expressed frustration over the episode. "The Harley-vs-Cory plotline never resolved itself, and Eric's college recommendation also never came to anything," they said. "And the 'Feeny as narrator' thing never really started or ended anywhere."

"You're Married, You're Dead" features an engaged Cory trying to prove he can still be one of the guys by going out to Club Cleavage (pronounced "cla-vahj"), a burger joint staffed by female waiters who engage in what's referred to as "The World Famous Tushy Dance." It's the "Boy Meets World" equivalent of Hooters, but for our innocent characters, it's one step above a strip club.

Heckled by the other young men over the fact that he wears an engagement ring while there, Cory displays an alarming lack of judgment by taking the ring off and leaving it on the table. Plagued with guilt-fueled dreams, Cory tries to keep Topanga from learning the truth about the ring as Rachel — who's examining a woman's potential impact on male bonding for a midterm paper — decides to join Jack and Eric over at Club Cleavage. Her goal is to observe how she affects them. The answer is clear: She makes them incredibly uncomfortable.

Though one Redditor thinks this episode deserved kudos for being among the most entertaining Cory/Topanga-focused storylines from Season 6, overall it's pretty poor and it doesn't live long in the memory. It has a telling score of just 7.2 on IMDb, making it one of the least-liked "Boy Meets World" episodes on the website.

In "Show Me the Love," an emotionally shattered Topanga — she has lost her faith in love in the aftermath of her parents' divorce — cancels the wedding and breaks up with a heartbroken Cory. Angela (Trina McGee-Davis), recognizing the logic in Topanga's depressing epiphany, decides she doesn't want to be in a relationship either and follows suit by officially cutting things off with Shawn. Rather than respect the girls' wishes, the boys decide to head to Pittsburgh and try to convince Topanga's parents to get back together. Jack and Rachel, who've also broken up, assume — without having any kind of real discussion about it — that the other person will be moving out of the apartment. As a result, Rachel invites Topanga and Angela to move in with her, while Jack invites Eric. This, of course, only introduces more conflict — this time over who actually gets to live there.

Commenting in a discussion thread that asks for everyone's least favorite episode, Redditor u/Redvelvet221 points to this entry. "Least favorite is Season 7's 'Show Me the Love,'" they wrote. "I don't really like any of the plot lines when Topanga is questioning her and Cory's relationship because her parents are getting divorced. Always thought it was kinda random." The "Boy Meets World" Reviewed blog doesn't have much praise for this episode either, viewing the narrative as an exhausting disaster. "So, what, is she just never gonna date again?" they say of Topanga's decision. "It's completely incomprehensible."

"And in Case I Don't See Ya" is essentially a parody of "The Truman Show," taking its title from an oft-repeated line in the Jim Carrey movie. It follows Eric as he decides to film his daily life — for unedited consumption by the public, no less! — in an ill-fated quest for popularity. Once he sets the cameras up in the apartment (notably without the consent of roommates Jack and Rachel), it's Rachel who becomes the star of the show.

The college-age viewers over at the Student Union love when Rachel walks into the living room wearing just a towel. Embracing this new development, Eric transforms into something of a Christof character. To keep Rachel in the apartment — objectified and on camera — he terrorizes his friend, exploiting her garbage disposal-related childhood trauma for the sake of cheap entertainment.

Elsewhere, Feeny grants Cory and Shawn an extension on their midterm papers, only to have them take advantage by expecting extensions on all their future assignments, too. It's a pretty dull B-plot, but at least it's not super creepy like the main story. One IMDb reviewer gave the episode a dismal 4 out of 10, criticizing the writing and questioning Cory's character development. "And in Case I Don't See Ya" earns its place among the worst "Boy Meets World" episodes thanks to its heavy melodrama and treatment of Rachel.

"Boy Meets World" is at its most absurd in the Season 5 episode "No Guts, No Cory." The episode is a direct follow-up to "The Witches of Pennbrook," which briefly features Melissa Joan Hart as Sabrina from fellow TGIF hit "Sabrina the Teenage Witch." As such, "No Guts, No Cory" opens with Salem — Sabrina's talkative black cat, technically a centuries-old witch who's been turned into a cat as punishment for trying to conquer Earth — strolling the halls of John Adams High after swallowing a time ball. From the get-go, the storyline promises to be just as strange and surreal as its predecessor.

When Feeny finishes a lesson about WWII, Topanga tells Cory about how the war spurred high school kids to get married because they just didn't know what the future would hold. Our protagonist then picks up Salem and strokes the cat while thinking about what living in those times would've been like. One magical time jump later, Cory, Shawn, Jack, and Alan are enlisting to fight in the war (the ticklish Eric gets rejected). Topanga vows to wait for Cory, and — as if things weren't weird enough — Shawn promises to marry his best friend's girl if Cory doesn't make it home.

According to Cleveland.com's Troy L. Smith, "No Guts, No Cory" is the worst installment of "Boy Meets World" ever. It's a "detour episode that goes nowhere," he said. Like us, Vox's Caroline Framke found the whole picking back-up partners thing to be very odd, saying, "It was supposed to be romantic, or something."

"For Love and Apartments" continues the storyline introduced in the Season 7 premiere. To recap, Topanga's parents have filed for divorce. In reaction, Topanga — now doubting that her and Cory's love for each other will last a lifetime — has ended their relationship. Determined to fix everything, Cory has dragged Shawn to Pittsburgh. The plan is to get Topanga's parents back together.

As the boys try — and fail — to convince the Lawrences to reconcile, Rachel, Angela, and Topanga challenge Jack and Eric to a wrestling match. WWE legend Mick Foley magically appears just in time to act as the group's official referee, breaking down the door of the apartment in the process. With a telling score of just 6.9 on IMDb, "For Love and Apartments" ranks dead last on the site's sorted list, and fans have been openly critical of the episode over the years.

"Just awful," Redditor u/Hermione-Weasley said of the episode. "I hated the girls taking over the apartment and literally beating up Eric and Jack. Then there was the main plot with Topanga calling off the engagement that ended up being a waste of a storyline. There's nothing entertaining about the episode." As Uproxx's Brandon Stroud points out, there's just not much to learn in this absurd and melodramatic installment, in which the main takeaways seem to be: "True love is dead. Pro-wrestling is fixed. If you don't like what your friends are doing, try to fight them."