Eric Matthews was never the sharpest knife in the drawer. Throughout Boy Meets World’s 158 episode run, he’s portrayed as a little slow, but exactly how dumb he is has a lot to do with what season you’re watching. If it’s during the early years, he’s goofy and maybe a little dim-witted but still a functioning human being. If it’s during the later years, he’s barely capable of a rational thought. It’s something fans have noticed for years, and now, the cast is commenting on it too.
The trio from Pod Meets World, the popular Boy Meets World podcast featuring Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong and Will Friedle, recently sat for an interview with Parade, and during the conversation, the subject of stories they wished they pushed back on during the initial run came up. The actors brought up Topanga and Cory getting married so young and the Mr. Feeny marriage plotline that went nowhere, but it was Friedle’s observations about Eric that really got fans talking.
The actor who played the beloved older brother said he liked the level of dumb Eric was during the earlier seasons, but he thought he got too stupid during the later seasons. Here’s a portion of his quote…
I think I would push back on Eric getting so dumb towards the end. Like I would have kept him more Season 5-ish Eric. Tommy Eric was a good balance between the two. Towards the end, (it was like) something was up.
Both Fishel and Strong laughed but also implied they agreed with his comments, and they definitely weren’t the only ones. A clip of the conversation went viral on TikTok and picked up more than two hundred comments. An overwhelming majority of them are about how dumb Eric got and how frustrating it was to watch. A lot of them especially enjoyed the reference to Tommy, as that plot found a really good balance between Eric as an idiot but also a kind-hearted person who was capable of thoughtful moments. Here’s an example comment…
Tommy Eric was my absolute fave. What did they do to him??
For those of you who may not have a memory of every single Boy Meets World character, Tommy was an orphan who was introduced during a big brother/ little brother plotline with Eric. The two had a really fun bond that sometimes played into Eric’s lack of intelligence but also let Eric step up in moments and have thoughtful conversations. Eric ultimately decides not to adopt Tommy in a really emotional moment, and he ends up moving away with another family. Almost two decades later, he circles back and appears on Girl Meets World too.
Eric Matthews is far from the only character on television that waffles in intelligence throughout the show. During certain seasons of The Simpsons, Homer is a slightly dumber version of an average joe, and during other seasons, he struggles to read or do basic math. Kelso from That 70s Show is another example that jumps up or down 25 IQ points depending on what joke the writers feel like making.
Issues with Eric’s intelligence aside, Boy Meets World quite clearly occupies a special place in the hearts of many fans of a certain generation. It’s a joy to see the bond Fishel, Strong and Friedle have built with fans through their rewatch podcast, and it’s been nice to see most (though obviously not all) of the show’s stars drop by for appearances.
