First, as penance for my Cancun spring break getting in the way of bringing you your weekly dose of Feeny last week, I provide you additional wisdom from the 1990s: What Saved by the Bell Taught Us About Sports from Outkickthecoverage.com. Enjoy! Then keep reading for what wisdom Feeny has for us this week.

Father Knows Less – October 8, 1993

Episode Summary: Alan wakes Cory up late at night to watch the end of a baseball game. Cory fails a test the next day and Mr. Feeny won’t let him re-take it. The father and son relationship is a special thing. It’s a model everything after your dad when you’re a little kid kind of thing.  It’s a put a whole stack of baloney on your sandwich like your dad kind of thing. It’s a taking your model of what a man is from your dad kind of thing.

It’s a wake your son up late at night in the 7th inning of a Phillies possible no-hitter kind of thing.  Which is exactly what Alan does in this episode. More ginormous baloney sandwiches.  More Pepsi.  More potato chips. More guy secrets.  More father-son bonding.

Feeny enters the episode at the 6 minute mark, collecting tests, pulling the test out from under a sleeping Cory who only answered one question.  Cory expresses that the no-hitter kept him up past midnight.

Feeny then insults baseball as if it’s something frivolous because it’s not academic. Hmmm… Feeny… watch yourself! But there must be a greater purpose. Feeny always has his pedagogical tricks up his sleeve.

When Alan comes home that day, Cory explains what happened, spilling the secret to Amy as well.  Alan’s in the doghouse, we have a subtle sexual allusion that I didn’t understand when I was little and originally watched the episode, and it’s up to Alan to go talk to Feeny.  Alan and Cory go see Feeny at the fence.

Alan explains that he had made plans to hang out with Cory, that something else came up (Damn you, Leonard Spinelli!), and so he woke Cory up from the no-hitter to make it up for him. He asks if Cory can make up the test. Read more