TGI - Episode 110 ("Santa's Little Helper")

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Speaker 1: Yeah, there you go. Happy belated birthday. Will I mean, now, by the time this episode air, is your birthday is like a month old. But exactly I'm forty seven by the time, so that'll be great. But thank you. That's very very sweet, and I'm gonna say it very quickly. Here's a here's a very quick side note of the restaurant I went to on the night of my birthday was in the North End of Boston and his restaurant called lemon Cello. And I know it because I had been there before with Daniel Fisherlan writer, strong and writer somehow, and we still don't know how this is even possible. He spilled so much food on himself. Well, it's because I eat like a crazy person. We've already talked about that everywhere. It was if that was one of the his meals. By the way, we had so much fun that meal here in Boston for a convention, and we just it was such a delightful evening. But yeah, I had a white shirt on. It's here. Here's here's possible. I think what happened Now that I have children and I see the way they eat, I think maybe what happened is something fell off his fork, down his shirt, down his pant leg, down onto the floor. It was impressive. We we saw that he had a lot of sauce. Then you got last to your room and you texted us and you said, guys, they're sauce in my undershirt. It was like, somehow the sauce goot. You had too much shirts on. You had at least two at least and it was on the shirt under sauce. It was impressive. It was absolutely impressive. It really was. That's what I had had to go back. That was where I spent. You get a chance to eat with right or Strong, to do it. Take it. It's like going to a Gallagher concert. If you're in the first three rows, you will get wet. It's absolutely worth it. Yeah, it's like, hey, welcome to Shamu Here, take your your complimentary you know, splash man, never et again, salad dressing man. Well, welcome to Pod meets World. I'm Danielle fish All, I'm right or Strong. I am a very dry Wilford ll thank you. Uh So. In our last episode, we had the opportunity to talk to Betsy Randall, who is absolutely one of the stars of this Episode's just amazing um. Speaking of this episode, we are talking about episode number ten one ten as it's called Santa's Little Helper. It originally aired on December. The synopsis is that Sean's dad gets laid off near Christmas, creating a dilemma for both Corey and Sean, and Santa Claus has a heart attack when Morgan sits on his lap, possibly traumatizing her forever. It was directed by David Trayner. It was written by Susan Estelle Jansen, and the guest cast is Tom Lagrua as the elf. He was a Yeah, he's a big sitcom actor playing He usually plays like an Italian mobster type. He was on Golden Girls, Growing Pain Seinfeld, and he did five episodes of Home Improvement. Apparently everybody was on Home Improvement. I was Improvement. I thought, I thought you were Daniel, No, I are you going? Jonathan Taylor Thomas right, and then Zachary Tye Brian wanted me to play his girlfriend on the show. Uh, And Michael told my mom know that that was a bad idea. It was a writer. Yeah, it was around the time that I had started on boy Meat's World, like it was in I think towards the end of the cot what he said to my mom was he said, you know, that's a bad look for her. You don't want her to seem like an actress for hire. And my mom was like, but she, but she she actor is at what you don't want to look like. She wants to work. If he wanted you to be a regular, he could have put that ultimate. That is ultimately what it What it ended up being about, is that he didn't want He wanted me to be kind of exclusive to boy, didn't want me to do home improvements, so I ended up not doing it. But anyway, and then also to peanca Is, back to peana Is in this episode she is finally okay. So this is a very This was a very weird experience for me because this is the first episode I literally do not remember at I saw the title and I was like Santa's Little Helper. I was like, al moust be a Christmas episode. No recollection of this, which is astounding considering how big of a part is about. I know, why don't I remember this? I thought, I honestly thought that Sean being poor, Sean being you know, a sort of like you know, coming from a family that doesn't have money and and isn't always together was something that developed way later. But here it is in the first season, the episode the whole characters there, they've written, I did not remember this. I didn't remember this at all. It's so you know, what I did not remember is that, um, this is the first time we established that you and Corey are friends for like years, kind of the same way, kind of the same way. There was revisionist history about how Corey into Penga met. There seems to be a little hint of revision revision history between Sewan and Corey where he says, you know, well, this year we're best friends, and you're like, but what about last year? And it's like, oh, you guys have this longgoing best friendship for years, the one you don't remember. Because I was watching this going like, oh, this is it. This is like the this is the genesis of Corey Sewnis would be like this huge oman as an actor or as a character, and no recollection. I remember Corey's alternative friends more vividly. So yeah, I guess for whatever reason, I and I think this might happen as we as we go on, you know, I think when boy beats world was new in our lives, or new in my life. I'll speak for myself. It was like my brain was sort of absorbed in every experience and every script so much more intently um and and by this time it's sort of became wrote or just became part of the job. I honestly, the next episode that I really remember as the Fugitive where I blew up blow up the mailbox, and I think that was because that was also the episode that the earthquake happens, so I remember. But I also be at that point was friends with Jeff Sherman, who wrote the Fugitive episode, and it was like his first big episode, and I was, you know, it was a big Sean episode obviously, but I completely forgot that we had already established the Sean I mean not. I guess this episode doesn't really establish he's a troublemaker, but it certainly establishes his home life and that he's less privileged and no recollection of this, and even watching it, I was like, yeah, I don't, I don't remember doing it's crazy to make I think this episode is far more important than even you know, And when we get to the scene, I'll tell you why, because I was privy to something that happened behind the scenes that might have changed kind of the direction of boy Me tworld in a way. And we'll get we will, we will absolutely get to I can't wait, because I can't wait. I this will not surprise anybody. But I also had zero recollection of this episode. I don't I didn't remember one aspect of it. But I have a significantly smaller part um, so that shouldn't be too shocking. But I also was like, I don't, I don't remember anything about this, not even I remember this entire episode. I remember for a number of different reasons. But I remember this whole episode. I wonder if it was partly, you know, partly because it was I don't know, but maybe it just went smoothly, do you know what I mean? Like we end up remembering that episodes where people were fired, where things were rewritten last minute, and maybe this was an episode that just from start to finish, was not as tumultuous behind the scenes or something. We're finding rhythm, he said, sort of comfortable. We were all sort of in our roles, we knew our parts, and it just went And therefore I don't remember it, but it was it was shocking to me to realize that. I was like, oh, this is about Sean and yeah, yeah. The episode starts in Mr Finie's classroom. Mr Finie is reading the class a Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, and the camera is doing this nice little you know, push in on Bill and you get to see Benn. Yes, clearly a moment where he is trying to make me laugh. All Ben and I would do and seems like this where they would be like, you guys are supposed to be talking to each other. He would be saying ridiculous things or mouthing ridiculous things, or doing inside jokes to that. Like ever, whatever Ben and I are in the background of anything, or before we're about to enter a scene, we would be trying to make each other laugh. And this I watched that. I was like, oh, yeah, that also is the best representation of what my memory of twelve year old Ben was like. Twelve year old Ben was absolutely just full of energy and in your face and and just like always moving. And I was like, oh my gosh, that's that's been, that's been ready exactly. Um So I see my crim tear front and Center. So I was like, I'm back, I'm in this episode. Uh. Corey and Sean asked where the grinches in the book and why is there no one named Carol. Phene asks to Panga to trade places with Corey and she tries to like telepathically trade places with him. Any joke, funny joke? I thought it was very funny. She says, okay, I'm a hyperactive, unto achieving eleven year old boy. And he says no, he means physically trade places like seats, and she says, oh, that takes much less of a psychic toll. Very like advanced joke for twelve year olds, you know, like I don't know how many people were really under that. That feels like a joke for the adults to grab onto. I don't necessarily know that any kid caught onto that joke, but it's very funny. So Phoeny asks Corey what Charles Dickens was trying to express in his book, and Corey says that if you're a real butt head, then neat ghosts will take you to cool places. Uh. And Phoeny does not approve um and the pencil falling off of the desk, no no. Oh yeah, when when Phoenie gets up and moves around the desk, a pencil like very loudly falls off of his desk, and I was like, wait, they just left that in, but you know, it was the live show, so stuff like that happened. And I went back and watch it again. I was like, oh, yeah, yeah, something there's a pencil that falls off Pheny's desk when he gets up and BOMs around. I was like, oh cool, I didn't see that, but I did notice that Dusty is very prominently feature Dusty. Where are we? Where are you? Dusty? Are? Is Dusty in the wind? And we just need to find you? Dusty, Dusty, We want to talk to you. Where are you? If anybody knows Dusty, please send him. Send him Pod meets World Show at gmail dot com. Please get in touch with us. We'd love to talk to you. Are Dusty. Don't just start sending us a bunch of people named Dusty. We're trying to find a specific Dusty, very specific Dusty corrects. Yeah. So then we get into the opening credits and we land in the cafeteria. Corey and Sean are at lunch and Seawan's mom has packed him a PEB and J and Corey is eating fish sticks. Now, I'd like to talk about your clothes again. Writer's a good closed episode shirt. It looks very much like a bed sheet. It's so large, so large, and has no structure at all. Um, yeah, I'm not so. I watched this episode with India and actually my wife might and uh, they could not get over how tall I was, how much bigger I am, And so I'm wondering if a part of the giant clothing not only was it nineties style, I think it was also trying to make me look smaller, like I'm sort of you know, it's a way to make me look younger, because I think if I had been wearing fitted clothes, I would have looked right, but as instead, I sort of end up looking like a kid drowning and hand me down clothes or something. And I think that that's a better look because I really am towering, especially to the episode to Go, where it was like you go and you confront him in another episode, you were like a foot taller than then at this point. But it's very smart if you notice in in a later scene when when Lee is An and I are confront they had me sit sitting down and Lee standing because you couldn't have me standing face to face with Leave at the end. But they have you staggered. Yep, you're not. You're not. They have you staggered. So there's that kind of forced perspective because I think the clothing thing was it was in part to try and make me seem small. That makes so tall. That does make sense because yeah, you're right, if you were in fitted clothes, you would have looked significantly older. And like, what's he doing in school? A lot of hair, A lot of hair, hands through the hair in this episode two, God, a lot of hands through the hair in this episode two. I didn't notice it at So Mincas into Panga a nerd swarm, which I thought is a very off your geek magnet. I thought it was very funny. Oh no, it's a nerd swarm. Um. So Corey and I mean Mincas and to Panca come over and they talk about Christmas and that they say that it's not all about gifts. Uh. Corey focuses on wool to Pankas as people often lose sight of the meaning of Chris miss and in the midst of the frenzy of commercialism and basically, then you guys push us off to the side, you send us away, and Corey then tell Sean he thinks he got a real leather NBA regulation basketball and he wants to get a nylon net with the five dollars he's been saving for a month. I'm sorry, I have to ask where has he been playing basketball to where he has no ball and no net? I guess it's cooled so the school doesn't provide balls or nets. They just give you the hoop and hope you can you can figure out the rest. He was played probably right, but at home? I mean again if he plays, because again, what do you need a net for? Do they have a no, like they have no at their house? Well? Does their house have a garage in the backyard in the side. Well, again, he obviously has a hoop, so there's the hoop with no Net's all going through my head is it's like, why does he just need the ball? It's like going, you know what I can't wait to get for Christmas my left sneaker where it's like, what, wait, You've got some of the stuff you need, but not also again getting a new ball. Totally understand. It's like I need a new net. Okay, I get that, but like, hey, man, I really need a ball in a net. I found that very It's like I need one pin and I can bowl. Well. They later come in, Korey and Sean come in from playing and and he says, you're the only guy in the neighborhood with a net. So I feel like, yeah, because you give it to him. So I feel like maybe there's like a neighborhood spot to play. Okay, okay, and you put the net up if you have it, and then you take the net down because I know that's that's the thing. So people sometimes I think, here's what's really happening. The nineties was an explosion in basketball. Do you guys remember this? It was basically Chicago Bulls, And yet I believe for our writing staff that was like basketball made no sense. Like I think our writing staff with baseball people, do you know what I mean? Like they were in football, football, maybe, but I don't think they understood basketball. And I think that there was this weird like need to sort of right to the kids of today without understanding the game or like how it's like. So I think what we're seeing is a bunch of older writers trying to connect with the NIS generation. That is I found I found it on just it's like you have a hoop but no, Net, I don't know. It was weird. So this scene has the introduction of the do you guys remember that? And I would look at each other and go, I don't know if this is the first time we did it. I think it is. I know, but I don't know if we recorded and filmed it out of order or whatever. But yeah, the second I saw that that I did remember. I didn't remember anything else about this episode, but I was like, oh, yeah, Ben and I did that, So let's keep track of the haws over the first scenes. This is also the second synchronized thing you guys already did in this episode, because in the first scene you both dow the thumbs down you go yeah. So so it's like they're trying and now, I mean they really went from like we need three friends, we need three friends, to all of a sudden, no, it's Korey and Sean and they've been like this forever. Let's everything we did. Yes, they're now doing everything. It's such a cool thing to do though, like it it's it's such a great writing television trope. Right to have two characters who automatically do the same thing at the same time. It really bonds them together and it makes very good dynamic. But this is where I witnessed something that I think changed the course of the Sean character in my opinion. So you're shooting the scene and I, at this time, you know, started to hang around the writers and producers around the monitor watching the show being shot. So for and you're on a stage and there's like, you know, down from you they're shooting the scene. And then there's this little enclave where there's Televiso, video Villagers television set up, and the writers and producers have their chairs set up there and they're watching like you can watch one screen that has just how you'd see it on TV, and then there's all these broken up other screens where it's like every angle from the from every camera there where you can see what the what each camera is shooting is shooting. So I'm sitting there and I wasn't interacting with them, but I was hanging around Video Village and I was standing maybe three ft behind Michael Jacobs, and they're all sitting there watching and they get to the part of the scene where Sean is talking about everything he's going to get for Christmas, and so Corey says, I'm getting this awesome basketball blah blah blah blah blah, and Sean then says, oh man, I'm man, it's like the I'm getting so much stuff from check And you made this look, and Michael Jacobs turned to I don't know who it was, I forget who it was, turned to somebody and went, my god, he is so good because you sold right there in that moment that obviously you were lying, obviously you were covering something up, but you did it in such a way where Corey didn't pick it up. But I'll never I would never forget it for as long as I live. Michael turned to whoever was on his right and went, my god, he is so good. And everyone started taking notes and writing and writing, and at that moment, I think they knew the Fugitive was gonna come like Shawn's gonna become a much bigger thing. And I remember sitting there as an actor going, God, I'm so jealous. I was so jealous, because that's what actors do. They make it about themselves, especially when you're seventeen. I was like, I know they weren't sitting there watching me, going, man, he's so good. I buy he wanted to go to that concert. You know what's funny about that moment, like hearing you say that, is it wasn't a joke. It was a drama moment, you know what I mean? And I think that that's probably where what they started to realize is that I'm much better at that. I'm not. I don't know. I thought it was pretty into. I thought it was great. It was great. I'll never forget that moment. I'll never forget that. That's funny. No, I think that that's what they picked up on, is that, like, clearly, as an actor, I gravitated towards those kinds of beats you know, like the jokey, jokey stuff I did, I think, but I wasn't as committed. I clearly committed to this to like, oh there's a lot more going on. It's it's it's brooding, Seawan is beginning right like, So, I'll never forget that moment. It was so it's ingrained in my mind that that moment forever. Yea, I remember thinking they're like God, damn it, he's good. Yeah, yeah, hell he was. But will also you saying no one was sitting back there saying like, man, he not even still. I bet I bet they were when you even though that you had to stick around late to throw that bag or whatever, and you did that grunting sound. I guarantee you. Michael was back there and saying, what what a find. Maybe I'll give myself that one, but it was, it was, it was. I'll never forget seeing that where Michael was just you can tell they were enthralled by you at that point. And I think that was the moment where they were like, we don't ever need anybody out, Like, what are we doing. We've got the guy, Let's go, Let's write more to this. There are perfect foils for each other. Let's figure this out, right, which means writing more to drama, right, okay. And that ends up in the course of the show, is that Sean is there for this sort of pull your heart strings, feel sorry pity moments that continued for seven seasons, right, like I was always messed up and always in trouble and always sad. You were the hard luck kid, and and that set up the vibe for your character for the rest of the series. And you did. You did do it very well. So yeah, Sean says his dad really came through this year. He's got like a truckload of gifts in Incaz comes up and asks Shan for five dollars for Phoene's class gift, and he says, he just spent his last five dollars on lunch and we'll give it to him tomorrow. And Mincas then picks up the paper bag and says, what did his chart mom charge him a packing fee? And I did think that maybe I felt like Mincus was really hard on Shan. Yes, I agree this whole episode he was a jerk. Yeah, I didn't. It was the first time I ever remember feeling like Mincus was like wrong, like really like whoa dude? But I guess, you know, Mincas probably didn't have financial worries and so he probably wasn't thinking that anyone else had financial worries. And we know from previous episodes that mincas is number one concern is Phoene. That's who he protects, So I don't think he was thinking about protecting Sean and what his potential financial situation is. And he very clearly. Later on in the episode, A d percent buys the story that Corey sells him about loaning, So I just don't think he was thinking about it, of course, like how can you beefs? I mean, I guess they were just playing on Mincas as a you know, sort of officious uh, you know, kiss up, And I think it's kind of cute in that way, but it's also ridiculous that he wouldn't be sensitive to what is happening, unless I think this is how I think this is how they would justify it is what they is they're saying. Mincus is really smart and not at all wise, so it's like, you know, he he knows all the facts, but when it comes to just normal everyday kind of like relationships, he doesn't really understand what's going on. That's kind of how I thought they would justify. Now, whether that was the case or not, who knows, but that's how I what I saw it as. It's like he, you know, give them numbers or facts, he's fine, give them relationships between people, and he's woefully ignorant. Yeah, I wonder now too. I don't think anybody, when giving a gift would individually name students whose or would not able to know that would never happen. I'm going to write eighteen names down, but not yours, like telling you about it. I know, it really broke my heart. Honestly, it was really pheny would wrote it outside like, oh, I noticed you didn't sign this, Mr Hunter, like what it would never happen. But it is a good it is it is. We had to raise the stakes. They had to gat there had to be steaks that were raised for for sewn in the situation and for him to feel pressure with this. So they set it up. But boy, my heartbroke. Okay. So then we are in the Matthews living room. Alan is putting up Christmas lights. It's not going very well, so stereotypical every stereotypical sitcom. Here the lights that aren't working. And this night goes on and went chasing Christmas vacation everything, a Christmas stortory and everything. Why did it lights not working? I don't get it. Electricity, It's like yeah, it's like, yeah, that's I saw that. I was like a man, they're doing the light thing. I know I thought it too, but they still do that. Yes, of course, of course it's ridiculous. Yeah, yeah, it's still everywhere, but it's it's still cute. I like, I like Christmas tropes. It doesn't bother me. I saw it and I was like, oh, they're doing the light thing. But I was like, it really sets it up. I don't know, there's something about Christmas lights. And I think also back then, I mean I remember thinking like, oh gosh, it's time to decorate for Christmas, and it's so romanticized in your mind, and then when you're actually doing it, every you know, your dad's over there yelling about the sideways tree, and you know it ends up being kind of like a gosh down and we're going to do this because it's Christmas and we love each other. But exactly so very quickly, my dad one year, he always wanted to buy the biggest tree he could find, and one year didn't fit into the house, so he caught off the top. So it was just a cylinder from from Florida ceiling sailor. We all walked in like what the hell did you do? When he's like, I cut the wrong end of We used to We used to not have Christmas. What we what we would do is we would go take redwood tree branches, so like rather, I guess my dad was so cheap he didn't want to have to buy Christmas trees. We were surrounded in northern California. It's you have done every every everywhere was Christmas tree farms. People would leave San Francisco to come to our town to buy Christmas trees, like it's known for Christmas tree land. But we would never buy a Christmas tree. We would build our own Christmas tree by chopping down because redwood tree branches would be like. So we had and we have this huge kitchen area in the front of our house. My dad built the house I grew up in. It has this huge dining room area with like a thirty foot ceiling. So we would get like twenty ft redwood branches, take wires and wrap them together. These like in retrospects, the big thing was that how tall they were. But in retrospect must have been so ugly. These like wire wrapped giant square redwood. You please provide us a picture of these. They were huge. I mean every time people would come to our house and be like, what is going on because they would just be tall these And then we had a platform with a train. My dad had a train from I think it was from his child was like not like now you can get like nice cute h and O trans This was like I forget the gauge. Like they're in the train community. There's a whole Like these were like giant metal trains, Like they each each car was like a foot long smoke and like we would always start fires or shock ourselves trying to set this thing up. Oh my god. I mean, by the way, listener, when when writer tells you his dad built the house he grew up in, you mean he actually built it with his own two hands. It's a log cabin, right, No, I mean not a cabin. It's not. No, it's it's it's it's it's actually it's a full house. It's he just taught himself how to do it at the age of like third. That's always yeah, that's always the way your dad was. He'd like roll up in a car and be like, oh where'd you get that? Be like made it? Like can't built it? Like okay, well, you know, you know it's funny. I finally asked him, like years later, I was like, how did you learn to do all the stuffs? Like I read a book, so I could just read books and figure you know, it's time. That's kind of like a YouTube people do that, but back in his generation, it was like, you know, he he was kind of exceptional in the sense that he would just teach himself how to do crap and figure it out. Man's unbelievable. Still can't hang that shelf I have leaning up against my wall. I'll send my wife to go do that for you. Okay, great, thank you. So um so, Amy and Morgan come back from the mall. Morgan is in a killer Philadelphia Eagles starter jacket. It looks really cool. It doesn't noticed it? Yeah, man, it was cool. I was like, what where did they get that? I want it? Now? Um? When Alan mentioned Santa, Morgan runs away screaming and so and behind her, Betsy is doing the x X you know with the hand motion do not do not mention. Uh. And then she tells the story about how when Morgan climbed up on Santa's lap, she told him that she wanted a Susie Homemaker oven for Christmas, and then he grabbed his chest, yelled Rudolph, and fell over. Now Morgan thinks that she killed Santa Claus, but a hit man looking elf gave him CPR and he survived. I loved the setup for the hit man. I was like, why did they? Just was like, because he's gonna show up and he's gonna look like a hit man. Uh. This storyline killed for Indie. He just thought this was the funniest thing. I mean, once again, like the Morgan storylines work so well for kids, and this one just like that. He could not stop laughing. Like the second she ran away screaming, he was like what what? And then when he heard about Santa killing over, Oh my god, and he just could not stop laughing. He thought it was the funniest thing ever. Were holding it too much shirts this episode? Oh yeah, too much? Okay? Okay, also show you a little bit about how the producers knew so much more about what they were doing. And then we oh, like, it's like why what the parents thing? They didn't need that the little kid? Why did they? And then you watch it with people and you're like, oh god, they knew exactly what they're doing. They knew exactly what they were doing. I mean, that's that's you know, nuts to think about that, because we wouldn't care again we're not looking at the Morgan storyline, and then all of a sudden you're watching it with somebody who's like, that's all they loved. It's a genuinely funny storyline. It is. It's great, great, it's great. So then Will comes down the stairs in a glorious red and green clandy cane Christmas sweater. I'm sorry, canevest. It is just glorious, and he announces himself by calling Morgan the weasel. Yep, I think this might be the last time. It doesn't happen much anymore. But yes, I was. Also I'm hoping it was so this is when my weight started a little bit, but because I could see it a little in my face. But this this sweater vest did not help. I was oddly shaped through most of this episode. But again I don't think it was me. I think it was just the shape of the clothes. Very It was very strange the clothes that they had us. I mean, do you think you had we had no input on our clothing, right? I mean I didn't at all, and you probably should have. Part of being an actor is like understanding that, like your clothes are at the end of But we didn't that's like part of being a kid is just like what am I wearing? And it works in this case because it helps create this like cozy Christmas atmosphere that like doesn't make any sense. Actually, why is Eric wearing this ugly Christmas Chris? It's very strange. You don't know how close we are to Christmas. That's the other thing. And I'd also like to point out, and again you know that I've talked about this several times, and I watched it with Sue this time, who she pointed out to Alan does not look even at Eric's in Eric's direction the entire episode it like he doesn't know his oldest son. And then Corey comes in and he's like, there he is apple of my eye. And she was like, oh my god. They're an alternative reading a boy beats World where Eric doesn't actually exist. That's what it is. He's just like a figment of someone's imaginations. Corey's all, it's so straight. It's now bordering on weird to me, where it's like, dude, you've got another kid. It's just bizarre. But yes, um, so Eric comes down. He says the weasel has been singing that she murdered Santa Claus and uh um. Corey comes home to check all the gifts under the tree. He talks more about which gifts are going to be wool, that wool is super itchy um. And this was a little unclear to me, but I think what I gathered is that he checks the packages under the tree that we're just put there from Amy. Amy came in with a bag and he checks them and sees that there are three gifts and those three gifts are not all for Corey. Maybe there's one for Eric, one for Morgan, and one for Corey. And Corey picks it up and says, okay, three three new packages and only one of them is wool. And then he says he's going to run and go tell Sean. And it was a little confusing to me because Rusty says, you know, wait, where are you going. Who are you going to call? And he says, I'm gonna go. I'm gonna go call Sean. And Alan says, I don't think you should go call and exaggerate about your gifts. And I was like, wait, what why is he saying he's going to exaggerate about his gifts? But I think what we were supposed to get was that Corey is going to exaggerate and say that there were three new presents under the tree just for him. Doesn't he say that? Doesn't he then say, I'm not going to tell him I got one gift. I gotta tell him I got four or something. Actually, Okay, Yeah, they mentioned the word exaggerate. Is in these between the two of them mentioned like three or four times. He says he shouldn't exaggerate to Sean, and then he says, well, of course I have to exaggerate because Sean's got a whole truckload of things there. And then he says, well, I think Sean may have been exaggerating about his gifts. And we learned through Alan that Sean's dad has been laid off from his job. And even though Corey um knows Sean very well, Sean has not shared that with him, So Corey was not aware of that. And he also says, but that's that cow? Can that be? Sean says he's getting a whole bunch of gifts, So Corey asks if it would be okay for him to give Sean one of his gifts or not actually one of his gifts. If he could give Sean a gift from under their tree, and Alan says that that would be totally fine. He runs to the tree and he decides, I'm going to try to give him one of Eric's gifts. Very funny. Alan says, who's Eric. That's how we know you do exist? Because he doesn't say that, so he gives him a look, So you exist? You exist? Um. Then very cute scene we Morgan is locked herself in the bathroom. It's in Corey and Eric's bedroom. Morgan is singing Christmas songs at the top of her lungs. She's clearly traumatized. She will not come out because she thinks that she killed Santa. And Eric says that Santa just called him, and he tells Morgan that Santa said Ho ho ho, and then he pretends that Santa had a heart attack. Will You were so funny in this, So I was very happy. This was This is the other thing I remember, this was the biggest laugh I'd ever gotten at a table read to that point. Was that ho ho was the biggest laugh I'd gotten at that point, and it felt so good. I was like, oh, I'm going to get a big, loud joke. And it was Yeah, that was a fun one. Do you also notice calling myself out? I mouthed the words along with Betsy, No do I do? It's it's on the cameras on Betsy. But I am clearly saying her dialogue like like it's not even like kind of doing it, like I am clearly mouthing along with Betsy. Yeah, I even rewound it. I'm like, yep, I'm oh man, I'm full on saying her lines. Yeah, so absolutely with Betsy. Yep. I did not notice it. But you, I love the I love you too in the scene, the way she laughs at you doing that, even though you know clearly she's worried that Morgan is traumatized, but she laughs along at how funny you are and what you're doing. Um, you two together in the scene are such a joy to watch, Like it's very cute, very fun. Eric eventually says that Santa said Morgan had been such a good girl this year and that he should give Morgan a gift, and she's like, what is it? And he says, how about this new flannel shirt that you love? And she opens the bathroom door, grabs it from you, and then has to slam the door. Three times she's trying to fit the shirt into the bathroom. Funny joke that nineties flannel. Man, Oh man, I miss a good flannel over an open flannel over a T shirt. Man, it's still one of my favorite looks. Still do it? Yeah, it's pretty great. Then we're in the Matthew's backyard. Corey hands Shawn a gift and it is his leather NBA regulation basketball. Sean asks why Corey is giving him this gift because they never never give each other Christmas presents, and Corey says that this year is different, and so this is where we established for the first time kind of that Corey and Sean have been best friends. Yeah, the way back. And apparently I've spent many weeks having an origin story for Shaun and Corey. I don't remember. I know the Topanga origin story ends up being that, like me in the Sandbox, we actually recreated it right with young actors, But I don't Is that also the moment that Shawn and Corey became friends or were we already friends before the Sandbox? I'm sure they ever talked about it. I never talked about it. I don't think they did. You're just always have been best friends. I guess just through just the two of you, there was never a third person you even attempted to be friends. Yeah, I know, no such thing as the best chair. Um, okay, can we talk about because I'm I'm very curious how our listeners feel about or what the knowledge base of our listeners is. When the basketball in the beginning of this scene rolls towards upstage, I had this fear that it was going to hit the scrim right in the back, and I realized, Oh, maybe people don't know what a scrim is or what's happening, because I've had new explained this to Indie that all UH sitcoms are shot indoors, so if there's an outside scene, it's completely fake that it's outside and you can actually see the line where So what what The way that these sets are built is that there's a giant photograph. They take photographs of like woods and trees, blow it up to huge proportions, so it's like thirty ft tall and eight ft long or whatever, and they hang that and light it from behind, so it creates the sense of depth. But actually the set ends right there, like basically at the end of the fence where feeding the fence that divides the yards ends that is the end of the set, and that's a giant photograph scrim that's hanging from the ceiling, and you can see the line where the ground meets the scrim, and I was terrified that the basketball was going to hit it, which would have, you know, shaken it. Oh my god. And then I just thought we should mention, like, those are all fake backgrounds. We we do shoot outside I think second season and a couple of couple of seasons we ended up going on look Aitian, but for the most part, everything's indoors. I just thought we should point that out. I also think there's something interesting about the fact that it is supposed to be like December twenty one in Philadelphia and you can't see anybody's breath, that nobody's really that cold. I mean, you've got Phoenie kind of covering later the roses, but it's not like it's certainly, you know, growing growing up back east, it certainly doesn't look like late December on the East coast. Um So that was the other thing where I was kind of like, man, it doesn't even look like it's cold. Nobody's wearing coats, no, or they are, but it's they're like vesty coats and it's yeah, it's like, what is what is going on? Vest coats? They were fest coats? Hashtag fest coats. Uh. So. Corey says that this year is different and that he got him the gift because he didn't think Sean would be getting many gifts this year. Sean tries to cover up again, saying he's getting a ton of gifts, but Corey says he knows about Shawn's dad getting laid off and best friends don't lie to each other. Sean gets upset think that Corey is telling everyone about his dad, and they get into an argument about the gift. Sean doesn't want the stinking basketball A drama writer. You are, no, I mean you really do. This is That's why I'm amazed you don't remember this episode because this is like your episode. I know this is the one. I mean you because my wheelhouse. Maybe this is just what it's drawn to histrionics and brooding, but it worked, it worked great, and this is like the Orange, this is your genesis. I mean, man, I know, I know it's so funny that no recollection amazing. So Sean walks off and Corey says, Christmas is about charity. You should be thanking me. Phoene is back there in his backyard or sideyard or whatever you want to come every yard, it is covering his flowers with yes. Yeah, you cut your roses and then you cover them back east and then all that kind of stuff. Yeah, I was explained, I was, I don't understand this thing. I'm a California guy. Exactly. Back see there's things called weather and sea not on television, not apparent, yes, exactly. So he's covering his roses with potato sacks and Corey and Sean. Corey says that Sean was not paying attention to a Christmas carol, and Phoene says it was actually Corey who wasn't paying attention to the book. Because a true gift is given with no expectation, and friendship is the real gift. And now this is social studies. Thank you. I was just about to say, he's this is history. Why, yeah, I love it. I was like, what is he teaching now? All of a sudden, what huh? Yeah, this is a real stereotypical no continuity in history class. Today we'll be reading Charles Dickens I mean, the should have made him an English teacher, because I feel we end up doing mostly references to sure. I mean, even Man Frank could have been read in an English class, right, like And I think it's patently obvious to me now that like Michael Jacobs is a is a lover of literature, he's a lover of books, and so all the references that are. And of course I think writers in general more in date towards fiction and storyteller. So I I'm surprised I just didn't make Phoene and English. Yeah, why do you think they made him a social studies teacher? I don't know. I think it maybe it was just broad enough that you could include some books and then also I don't know, but I mean, I guess it doesn't really matter, right, It's not like people at home care in general. I thought this was a nice weaving of a life lesson with this, so I thought so too, Yeah, this is another another good Phoenie momentum, all that kind of stuff that was great. So, uh, we're in the Matthews living room. Morgan finally comes down. She's now wearing a bunch of necklaces Eric's flannel. She's got jewelry from mom. She's got cool sunglasses on. Morgan tells Alan that the elf from the mall called her a demon child after Santa almost died, and Amy explains that she never has to worry about that mean elf ever again. And the elf who was basically in the mafia knocks on the door and gives Amy her money back from the picture because they didn't end up getting to a cigar. What is going on? I guess it's not lit so but you would never see that a television. We don't show anybody smoking. But back then, the idea that this elf sitting there with the smoke. I'm here to return your money. He's like, I've I've driven thirty two miles to give you nine dollars back, lady. It was like, okay, it boom. At least it's not a stereotype. Uh. But then we're back in the school cafeteria. Mincus approaches Shawn again asking for the five dollars. He's very aggressive about it. Uh, Sean and dead beat a deadbeat for five bucks. It was so harsh to me, Like, it's so harsh. I can't believe that. Yeah, it was really painful for me when watching this and him saying like, I'm going to not add your name. Your your name is not going to be on the card, and then the whole school is going to know you're a deadbeat. It was like, Wow, it's like a brilliant I know it was. It was really hard. I have to say though, this was the scene where I actually watching it kind of got a little emotional because I was watching myself, you know, in a moment with a confrontation, and there's like this pause that I took that's like very long and uncomfortable, and I looking at myself, I was like, I don't know what I'm gonna say, Like I didn't and I was like, oh God, like what do you say? I was suddenly very hurt for sure. Oh oh, that's it felt very real that that moment, you know, as opposed to like throw in the basketball at Cory or whatever, like this moment of just Sean absorbing macas anchor or Mikus is calling him a deadbeat. I don't know. I was like, oh, that's that's kind of emotional. It's kind of usually emotional, but it was also it was just so vicious where it's like, not only are am I not going to put your name on the card, so everyone, but I'm gonna make sure everybody knows that you're a deadbeat. Like it was harsh to me, it was super marsh. Yeah, I agree with you, writer. This was this was a kind of the emotional moment when you're really feeling for Sean, like just putting yourself in the shoes of a child who is in those circumstances. And the pause you took it was very meaningful and impactful. So yeah, it was. It was an emotional moment. Um. And Sean walks away and Corey comes up and tells Macus to leave him alone. He comes up in his beautiful dinosaur shirt. This is just like dinosaurs after the age. Son is already too old to like dinosaurs besides Jurassic Park. He's like, you know, he would never wear a T shirt with dinosaurs Ona, and he's seven dinosaur aop. It's an all overprint. It's just a dinosaur everywhere, big grand You're going to rocket Rannosaurus rex rocket absolutely um. And so Corey says that Sean doesn't have the money, and uh, Corey covers for Sean. He gives him the five dollars because He says he borrowed five dollars from Sean last week and then never paid him back. But he has the five dollars that he owes to Sean now, so instead of just giving it to Sean, he's going to give it direct directly to Mincus and that it's actually morality of charity. And lyone is okay, yeah, of course, Like outright, why couldn't he just say I'm going to take care of this for sure, you know, because he's trying to you know, he's trying to protect Sean's the feelings and he does. Sean obviously doesn't want people to know, and you know, so he's being He's a good I am okay, hold on second, I am really opposed to lying. I am a terrible liar. I am awful at lying. All three of us we've talked about it a million times. We're like, listen, we are we cannot stand it. It's just terrible because people assume actors would be great, which is such a weird equivalency that I've never understood. Like, I'm horrible at line. For the reason I think I'm better at acting than Line is because I have to be honest. It's like I have to express the emotion. I'm good at lying. That's why. That's why I don't do it. It's honestly why I don't do it because I'm really really good at it. So that's why I don't do it. I'm scrible. I do like all the stereotypical like I'm the guy who gets nervous going through security at the airport for no reason, like I'm just already guilty, like I've done something wrong. Oh yeah, no I can. I can have a half a pound of heroin key Stard and get right through, not a problem. Did you just verb Keystard got a key STARp, Babe? I'm sorry. I watched too much Locked Up Abroad and all these other shows about people that are hiding hiding drugs on him. Don't do drug kid, and so writer, I am a hundred percent okay with this. Lie me too, Okay, what I want to talk about it, I'm not because I I was just throwing it out there. Is kind of funny, But I think more ridiculous to me is that that Macus doesn't pick up on it. It's like he's supposed to be this, but I think, like Will said, the joke is that he's he's book smart. He's not street smart, right, so Corey, who is more street smart, is able to manipulate the situation for the good of the you know, the friendship and everything and and chair Yeah, yeah, I think that we'd have to we'd get into a much longer discussion, which would be one of our Boy meets World onset discussions of what constitutes a lie. Is a lie simply just not telling the truth, no matter what the background of the story you're telling is, Even if it's to save a friend the way he did, is that still a lie? Is that? Is that then if you're getting semantic into its semantic argument, is that more of a fib that a lie? Well, you know it's like because that would be the question is what cons I don't think what whether or not it fits into the definition of a lie is as important as whether or not the greater good for the reason of the lie. To me is whether or not your lie is justified. If it's just to save yourself, like you know, oh, I I'm going to get in trouble, so I'm not going to be honest about it. That is a different situation than if I'm honest in this situation, I may be further embarrassing someone, and I'm I would like to protect this person from something he's already seen with his own two eyes is embarrassing for him. It wasn't even an assumption that it's hard for him. He Corey has a hundred percent all the evidence he needs to know that this situation is very emotional for Sean, and so to protect his friend, he is gonna lie to Mancus about something that's totally inconsequential. And so I think, I mean, I really think this is a beautiful act of friendship and I think he Corey does exactly the right thing. Right. The ethics panel has ruled have a world that's fine, and thank you, we allow it exactly. Thank god Phoenie, as an art teacher, has taught them all these moralities to very important, very important. Okay, can we UM, can we try uh something new for our podcast? I have something to uh so. In in the course of UH one of our recent episodes airing where we uh met meat Poenie, UM, I sort of threw out there, like how how how were we doing meat loaf? Meat Loaf wasn't a thing, you know, It was like turns out I Will Do Anything for Love was the number two songs on the Billboard charts at the time of that episodes. Eric, So, I want to ask you guys some questions about popular songs, popular movies, and popular TV shows the time that this episode aired. This episode on December ten, the day before I can't wait to fail this December ten. I'm going to keep view three songs and you have to tell me which one was on was the number one song on the Billboard charts on December tenth. I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston again by Janet Jackson, or on Ben did Knee by Boys to Man. I'm going with Whitney Houston. I will Love You by Whitney Houston was from the movie she did with Kevin Costner, which The Bodyguard, which was later than ninety three, wasn't it. I could so be wrong. Well, I know I'm going to fail this. I just went with my gut. I'm gonna, I'm gonna I'm gonna take Boys to Men on Ben Didney, I'm gonna take on Ben Didee by Boys Men and Danielle You're going with Whitney. I'm going with Whitney both completely. It was again by Janet Jackson. I Will Always Love You was the top song in ninety two that same week, and on Ben Didney was the next year at December, so it was again by Janet Jackson, and like I said, I Will Always I Would Do Anything for Love by Meat Love was the number two songs that very week, which I was obsessed with that album when it came out. So this first season, I was actually listening to me, which is so funny that I completely misremember. Okay, movies, Todd movies at the box office, number one film at the box office that week in was it Wayne's World two? Oh geeze, Disclosure or Home Alone Too? Lost in New York. Wow, I'll take three movies. I'd never want to watch Alex for five really Home Alone Too? And and Wayne's World Too. I mean Waynes World two was okay, I guess, but I mean a completely weird out of time movie. It's like, first it's Michael Douglas and Demi Moore and she sexually harassed sex. It was based on Michael crist so like we remember that and then it's on tape and it's caught on tape. It was like one of those like nineties backlash to feminist movies, like kind of nobody wants to remember all right, anyway, any ideas gosh, I mean, with absolutely no reason at all, I'm just gonna go with Wayne's World two. You know what, I'm going to jump on that bad that bandwagon. I'm gonna say Wayne's World two and and for no reason at all with Danielle, I'm gonna say were correct too. Was the number one movie Mrs Doubtfire was also in the theaters and was the top box office, which started Matthew Lawrence join our show. But I know, like I would have thought Wayne's World was later, because I remember voting Wayne's World and being really into it, But which means I was WAYNS World one was to come out like a year or two earlier, so I was pretty young to be into Wayne's World. It seems like a very teenage thing. I have to say, I don't remember the storyline of Wayne's World two at all. I never saw it. Now, television ratings are very hard to get. Um you can't get weekly ratings, so all I have are the season, this entire season of television. They have been Home Improvement, So rather than asking you about the top shows, which I think would be a little easier, I'm gonna ask I'm gonna give you four shows. I'm going to tell you this Boy Meets World was in the top forty Nielsen ratings. Okay, we're forty or higher. Okay. Now I'm going to list four shows and you have to tell me if they are in the top thirty for the top fifty the category of Boy Meets World. So listener, when he says forty or above, he means anywhere from one to forty, and then yeah, so and so. Then so basically you have to decide is it above or below Boy Meets World? In well More? Yeah, better rated or worse rated? Okay? Walker Texas Ranger, Oh my gosh, Sir Charles Television, we call him Sir Charles. We were obsessed with w never watched it, but we I mean, let's be honest, we thought it was a horrible show. Yeah, it was so much fun of it. That was like a backstage right, So, okay, should I list all four and then you guys put them? Okay, go ahead? The Simpsons okay, mad about you? Okay, Family matters. Ah, I'm gonna okay, I would say they were all more popular than us. But Walker Texas Ranger, right, I mean better than us? Right. Wasn't Walker Texas Ranger a syndicated like TB show. It wasn't on the one of the major networks. Is the thing that is correct? Yeah, so I'm gonna say Walker Texas Ranger was rated worse than we are. I'm gonna say Family Matters, Well, the Simpsons was definitely better than us. Family Matters because they were our lead in I'm going to say is better than us. And I thought Mad About You was like top ten. I thought they were like six or seven. So that's my the I'll let Daniel answer. That's gonna be my answer. Walker Texas Ranger worse, the other three better, that's my answer. I'm gonna say they were all better than Boy Meets World in the ratings. Okay, will you are close? Okay, believe it or not, the Simpsons was worse rated than World. Oh because it was on Fox. Because it was on Fox. It was Fox. Yes, foxhold not really even a network. Yes, of course that's my bad. Of course, Mad About You and Family Matters were in the top thirty, so they were well ahead of us. Not not well. I mean like Mad About You was not top ten. It was in the top thirty, not top ten. And Walker Texas Ranger and the Simpsons were lower rated than us. In fact, I believe Walker Texas Ranger was higher rated than the Simpsons. That's why, of course, because Fox had was like just a fledgling net was like three guys in advance. Yes, what was in the top thirty though, m X files. I watched that show religiously, that which was a Fox show. Evening Shade was doing better than thunder Alley. Yeah, oh you know what. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. X files was not x files was in the bottom it was it was. It was less than a tenant a half share. I totally because because the reponse, Yeah, thunder Alley and Evening Shade were top thirty show. How can thunder Alden? Did that go like two seasons and then Thunder wasn't what's his name was on Thunder ally Andrew Kegan? Andrew Kegan. Yeah, we should also Andrew Kegan on the show when we get to remember that. Like at the time, networks were about distributing audiences, right, So like if a show like you know, Boy Meets World. Even though we were top forty, we maintained a certain audience for ABC that they didn't want to let go of, so they just kept renewing us, as opposed to other shows that had higher expectations like maybe Evening Shade with a Burt Reynolds, you know, that would get canceled after it was only in the top thirty or top forty, because you know, they wanted it to be a huge hit show. If you've got if you're paying for Burt Reynolds and your rank twin eight, that's a fail. That's a fail. You know what I mean. It's like, that's not a good thing. Wow, I'm so curious how our listeners did at home, So please write in. Yeah, let us know how you did. Let us know whether you passed or failed or next episode I call it writer to where Now you are going to be asked the same questions, So don't look it up next time. I'll look it up next time, and so next time we when we do this, I'll have those same questions ready for everybody else. So I know I'm going to flail. Yeah, I'm terrible at this. I got I only got Wayne's World two I got one out of three and we both guessed on that. We both totally guest done that. Yeah, yeah, okay, I'll take care of so. That was really fun. Writer, thank you for bringing up into so in Phoenie's classroom, Mincus in yet another festive sweater vest prevents Mr Peenie with the sixth grades Christmas gift to him, and it is a dictionary and writer, you have a very cool outfit on here. You have the long sleeve yellow like you know, crew neck sweater or shirt under a purple short eave t shirt. And then you have what I believe is a purple flannel that had the sleeves cut. It has very jagged edges, so the sleeves were cut off of it. And then of course, um, I thought it was going to have a hood, but it is well, his father was his father was laid off, so he couldn't afford the sleeves of the hood exactly. He had to he had to cut it off in order for him from to get it. Um. So, Phoene reads the card and you can tell that Sean is uncomfortable. This is a moment he's not been looking forward to and constantly looking around and you're looking around, you're covering your face. But it's absurd that Mincus on that tiny card has written names or whatever. It's like, come on, it's so ridiculous. And Phoeny says that the card has everyone's name from Mincus, who was first because he paid first, all the way to Hunter at the end, and Sean perks up, like, what my name's on the card? Uh? And everybody? Then the bell rings and that's it. It's it's Christmas break. Everybody runs out and in the hallway. Sean thanks Mancus for putting his name on the card, but Manca says, we get to the hallway, did anybody else notice the boom big microphone right in the shot as everybody everybody's running out of the classroom, there's Jesse. See the microphone just right there trailing and following everyone, like a big old boom right in the shot. I must have been writing a note. I looked down. Oh that's funny. No, I didn't notice it. Nice catch, Thank you. So Sean thanks Mancus for putting his name on the card. But Minca says, the hallway right, I know, yeah, they that's like built this little extra set. It's cool. Yeah, they built this little thing just for you guys to have this moment. Uh And and Minca says, thank your deadbeat friend Corey for giving him the five dollars back that he owed him. And Sean realizes that Corey has his back, and in a very nice moment, he then wishes Mancus a Merry Christmas. Very sweet hey Mancas dot dot dot Merry Chris, Mary, Chris. Yes so good. Well hearing you do it now, one prisoner in the fifties, like fifties movie in jail, like cooking to the other prison Merry Christmas. I guess it was like Merry Christmas, Mink. It was so sweet. And then Minka says really, and he wishes Sean and merry Christmas too. And then we're in the Matthews backyard. Sean walks up to Corey and gives him an old basketball net he found in his garage. Sean says he figured Corey now has the net and Sean has the basketball and kind of alludes to the idea that he would accept the gift. Uh, And Corey and Sean steal the ball from each other. There at this point in my heart is racing because I realized I'm probably gonna play basketball. I was. I literally said the best driveler I know. I looked great. Oh, I really don't do it, writer, don't do it. Oh my god, I'm I did a movie between I don't know if it's between first and second season or second and third season. I did an ABC movie of the Week called Summertime Switch where I had to play basketball, and it was the worst experience they had. You know, they had a professional, like professional, like a teenager who could be my body double to play basketball actually dribble? Yes, who could actually dribble the ball. Oh, I didn't know basic rules, Like I didn't know anything. And I remember I had to play basketball. The whole movie ininges on like the big game. Oh my god, it's so embarrassing. And so when I saw this, I was like, oh god, I'm gonna start dribbling. This is gonna be bad, going through the legs and looking at my hand the entire time because I'm terrified, and I'm like bending down to be closer to the ground. I thought it looked pretty natural, I thought. I thought I thought it was good. Uh, And so, yeah, you guys dribble the ball back and forth. It ends on a very plateful, playful note um, and then we are back in the Matthews living room. The family is wrapping up gifts and Korey and Sean come in playing basketball. Amy offers Sean to stay for dinner, but he decides to go home to see his dad, um, and Amy sends him off with Christmas cookies and as he walks out, he says, he has friends, so Christmas is going to be okay. And the audience did I think it's first on this shows, which I did in the room with my family before the all started. I went, and then it happened and we're all like, oh, I kind of hate those moments, I have to say, like not not that, you know, I hate the obligatory, like when an audience woos for kisses or clause like I don't know, man, Like the laughter is one thing, but those sort of like it just it just makes I don't know, it makes me uncomfortable. I mean maybe it's natural, but it just it feels forced to me right, like, well, it takes away from the moment, like I would rather the moment just kind of live and we move on. But when an audience lets you know, the home viewer how to feel. It's just like it, like, I like that because I like that our audience was like interactive with us, are liked to me, I know it. It was so strange. It was two different things. To me. I never thought about the home audience. I always just played to the three people that were there. So it was that like those people that interactive, like I was looking for that response. So when they're invested to like And it got better because, especially when we hadn't aired yet, it was forced. You could tell when the laughter was like you heard the audience when they're faking their laughter, or when they were faking the clapping or the like, you knew it. You could feel it. So it was this was we had started to air, so we were starting to get some fans. I mean later in the seasons you could tell when they were fully interactive with us. It was great. Um, so that I never minded that if it was natural, if it was real, then I didn't want it. By the fourth take, you could tell people were faking it. That's exactly That's what I was going to say, is that I think most of the time it happened. It happened because enough people in the audience actually had that verbal reaction that it's that. Then it made everyone kind of say it out loud. And then the feeling you're tapping into, I think is take two. Now they've done it the first time, so now they feel like it's their line, and now that's how they're participating in it. And what you're feeding off of is that feeling of like, guys, you don't have to give me that. It's okay. But I do think that most of the time it happened, it happened after the first one was very natural. And then the adjecta you're feeling is the repetition of doing it. Now we have to do it five more times exactly. So yeah, because I remember, like remember the episode when Corey and when to Panka moves to Pittsburgh and then she comes back in the rain and verbally yeah, and they were yeah, And it really was like that reaction, And I know that that first all was I guarantee you the first very touching moment between Corey and Seawan that was filmed in front of the live studio audience, and I guarantee you it was a natural I know we're jumping way ahead, but that episode where you come back. Was a long walk to Pittsburgh. That this and that might be the most real natural reaction we ever got in seven years from an audience. Was that moment right? That gasp was so natural? It was just such a cold Yeah, that was awesome. That was very cool. Yeah, we'll talk about that when we get to eleven years. We'll get to that. Should we do a little too much shirts, Yes, yes, this is a very short one. It was pretty remarkable that. Indeed, I didn't notice me in the episode. Yeah, I was like, because when we've watched the show before, he was always like, Dad, you were so good, and this one is like all about me. He didn't. You could tell like I'm trying to get it to talk about it. He doesn't, doesn't even notice. He just loved the mortgage storyline. And then turns out this is the first episode of Boy because world my wife has ever seen. Really wow, wait, did you not know she had never seen an episode? We should do a podcast where we start over and watch it with her. May think we should do a podcast where we talk about the fact that you guys have never talked about this before. You've literally never said have you ever seen an episode? It just never came up. No, I mean, I know she had never watched it, like she you know, she said like, oh I didn't watch your show. I was too old, like she she was a generation she's four years older than me, so she missed it in that regard um and and yeah, listen it's quick. That was my favorite episode really? Yeah? Why so far? Well there were some sad parts too. What happened with my character? You didn't get any presence when you were? Said? Yeah, why didn't I get any presents? As you understand that, it's because my dad got laid off. Do you know what that means? It means my dad lost his job. Anything else? Favorite joke from the episode? I like whenever did the sand Apart? Yeah, that was a pretty funny storylines. Oh when Will pretended that he was Santa dying? Yeah, it was pretty good. Did you like the episode? Mom? Is this the first time you've seen Boimi's World? Mom? It is? What? Yeah, that's pretty crazy. You've never seen a single episode on help me? Like now, that's crazy. It does seem kind of crazy, Like it never occurred to her to sit down and watch her husband's childhood TV show. It's creepy watching your husband when they're twelve. It now, no friends, dad better looking as a twelve year old. Yeah, yeah, so that that was indistinct. Yeah, which I didn't quite I never thought about. But yeah, I guess it weirds her out to say. But yeah, no, I you know, we we started dating on a TV show together, um, and we've you know, had various experiences watching each other's work, but not I guess she just never went back. It's probably one of those things that's so ubiquitous, like in our lives. It's like one of those things that you know, it's obviously a huge part of my public life, but it's just never been a part of our private life. And so yeah, I didn't realize when we sat down to watch it, um, that that she had never seen. Oh that's so funny. Even with all the discussion about the we're doing a rewatch podcast, it's never come up. Hey maybe I should watch one. I mean, when Tony Quinn came up with the idea for this podcast, how did you not say, Alex watch an episode? Yeah, I don't know. It's it's you know, I think I think it probably makes her uncomfortable, like she makes the joke about like seeing me as creepy. But I think it's also just I don't know, you know, Like I think it's a huge it's it's such a huge part of my it's a it's a huge part of my public identity. But I very much Downplayboy and The's world in my private life for obviously, Like and I think, especially when we first met when I was twenty six, it was very important for me to downplay you know, like if people, if somebody recognized me or was a fan of the show, it would be very hard for me to get over, Like, it would be very hard for me to to to become friends with that person or to like bridge that gap. Now I don't care, you know, now I'm old enough and passed it enough that but I think when we first started dating, it was probably part of our you know, coupling, for her to not care and to not just to completely disregard this huge part of my life. And so I think now to be confronted with it is just bizarre. And I couldn't. I couldn't go on a date with a woman unless she'd seen every single episode only dated I was like, hey, let's let's talk about me on this show and then we'll talk about that. Do you remember my ho ho because killed about that? Yes, you can order the dessert that was that was that was dating for me. Oh man, wow, that was great. Thank you writer, and thank you Indee, thank you Alex. So. Then there is a knock at the back door, Alan yelle, somebody's at the back door. And then this is one of those moments I can't believe I did remember Bill, Santa, did you remember this, Danielle about this? Should have remembered that, Santa, Oh my god, it's so funny. No, and it's it's absolutely hilarious. Morgan eventually opens the back door. Mr Feenie is there, addressed to Santa Claus. She yells, look everyone, he's alive. Poenie is a very stiff Santa Claus. He's actually just Mr Feenie Bury Foster in a red suit writes itself, it's so good, so good. Once whoever the whichever writer came up with the idea, and then well have Phoenie come and posted. Santa is just yes, like that's a funny scene. There's a ten different ways to write it doesn't matter. All of them are funny, exactly and by the way, this entire scene would have been just as funny even if nobody spoke, if Bill just people, nobody even needed to say anything. The scene was just so great. But watching also Betsy laugh at him like it's it's just such a like I felt like I was wrapped in a warm hug watching this family interact with Mr Feinie in this way. It was also very nice. You know, we've only had little glimpses of feeling like Mr Feinie is a member of their family, you know, like a part of like a part of the Matthews story, like when he came over to borrow he wanted some Halloween candy in that episode where he was like, oh, you know, these aren't and it was like, oh, they're they're they're friendly. He could go and talk to them as neighbors and kind of um and so having him agreed to participate in this made it feel like they're a close they're close, which I really liked. Um the father the family gathers around for a picture and Morgan asks why Sannah looks like Mr Feenie, And then we go into the credits and we're in the Matthews living room. We we we never we should have really touched upon this with the Grandma as a rolling stone, the freeze frame ending, and with the grammall as a rolling stone. Not only get at freeze frame on the high five. Then Kukar Racha played like this is the most dated transition, Like I'm assuming TV shows, Daniel, you're still directing kids shows right now, so they don't do the freeze frame ending. It's like there's there's a couple of classic endings right like everybody dancing it's always like or the like everybody laughing everybody or the freeze frame. Oh my god. That's why one of the one of the greatest shows of all time was from the Files of Police Squad that they ended up making. All of the Police Squad movies from would always end where the actors would freeze, but they were they were just so they were like they'd be pouring coffee and then the coffee would like spill over their hands and they're trying to hold that as the cup is falling out and they're just trying to hold the thing. Was great, it was. That's funny. Also, I have to say Alex's reaction to the opening credits is one of the funniest things I've ever seen. She was like, what is happening? No, no, no, no, no, a band aid what is And like I kept trying to shush her because it's like India's favorite thing. He loves the opening credits. He never lets me skip them. But Alex could not believe. She's like, was this real? Is this? Is this really what the opening credits from? Like? Yes, but she she it struck her is the most dated, ridiculous, over the top thig. I was like, yeah, I'm I'm with you, Alex, and I know Danielle's with you about the song. Yeah, Andy loves it. So what do we know? What do we know? So funny? I know, and you know we get sent things on Instagram all the time of um children, even babies reacting to the theme song. So we yeah, we just recently had when somebody sent me and I think I think I re instagrammed it. It was um a mom saying watch his reaction, and she's just videotaping her babysitting in his high chair and then this the show comes on in the back and the baby goes and turns around and then cannot take his eyes off the TV. He's like the shows on So it definitely it has its it has its hooks and people. Uh So, in this case, the freeze frame ending at least does make a little bit of sense because they were taking a picture, So at least I agree with you. It is a big trope and not the best transition, but at least in this case, I thought it was cute that you get the opportunity to see what their picture turned out like. Um and so in the tag, Amy and Morgan are singing jingle bells at the piano, but Morgan is singing the jingle bells Batman smells version a different version by the way. Yeah, the commissioner breaks his leg. I'd never heard that version before. I have heard it, but it's not coming. I didn't hear that line happened. I was like, oh, I guess I just never knew the full song, but I thought it was and joker got away. The joker got away. Yeah, that's what it is. That's always how i'd heard it. I've never heard then the commissioner broke his leg. It's like, what I bring Commissioner Gordon into this. I'm sorry, that's a whole other thing. Okay, who knows what that one was from, but she says that Corey taught her that and uh then Betsy sings the real version of it. Um and so the big lesson of this episode is that Christmas is not all about gifts and it's about real friendships. Also, nobody ever let Santa die is apparently what this is about. So a really fun episode. I love it. UM. Next week we are going to be sitting down and talking with Angela herself, Miss Trina McGee. I can't wait. We are recapping season one, episode eleven, the Father Son Game. Uh. It's the first UM script and only script of Boy Meets World, written by Bill Lawrence, who is the executive producer and creator of Scrubs and Ted Lasso, so and Lawrence millions done everything, but also one of the people in the running for potentially being the person who named to Panga Pangas to Panga Lawrence. Everybody claims that they named every four or five people. Right now, we have at least four UM and I think one of those people I have I have put on myself as being I thought Susan is stell Jansen told me that she named to Panga. But maybe maybe my memory of that is incorrect and I shouldn't put that on her. But I think we have Michael claiming he named her, Jeff Sherman claims he named to Panga. Bill Lawrence claims he named to Panga and Susan and Susan. So anyway, I am very excited for next week. I know we all are. We're really excited to have Trina here and it's going to be a great episode. So make sure you stick with us. You can follow us on pod Meats World Show on Instagram, continue to send us your emails at pod Meats World Show at gmail dot com. And uh yeah, thanks for being here with us, guys. This has been really fun. We're just plugging away. We're now almost halfway through the season. Wow. Yeah, I writer, Yeah, I was just praising my hand to be the one to say love you all. Pod dismissed. But I think think it's your turn, writer. I think I mean the way you guys ended the last one was so good and so no I was. It was so good and Will got to take it. So this one's your. We love you all, pod dismissed. Pod Meets World is an I heart podcast produced and hosted by Daniel Fishel Wilfred L and Ryder Strong executive producers Jensen Carp and Amy Sugarman, Executive in charge of production, Danielle Romo, producer and editor, Tara sued Bosch, producer Lorraine Vierez, Engineering boy meets World super fan Easton Allen. Our theme song is by Kyle Morton of Typhoon. Follow us on Instagram at pod Meats World Show or email us at pod Meats World Show at gmail dot com