MovieChat Forums > Growing Pains (1985) Discussion > Teen Ben...

Teen Ben...

posted 10 years ago by ItsEddieHaskellBeyotch
4 replies | jump to latest

I actually started watching this show in reruns during the later years, I really don't get why fans didnt like older Ben. He got some pretty funny episodes. I especially like the one where they got all meta and he dreams he's actually an actor on a sitcom(Boy Meets World did an episode like this too). If written right, they could've gotten rid of the pain in the ass Kirk Cameron and tailored the show around Jeremy (and then Leo) in those later seasons.

When theres no more room in Hollywood, remakes shall walk the Earth.

[–] TMC-4 10 years ago

I think people didn't care much for Ben during the later years is because he became a humungous and extremely awkward dweeb (even though I don't entirely now if that was intentional). Also Jeremy Miller's acting skills arguably deteriorated as he got older and was no longer considered a "cute" little kid. It seemed like the producers didn't entirely know what do do w/ Ben by this point.

[–] Davejohnson316 10 years ago

I kinda agree. Maybe season 6 when he was still awkward, but season 7 I think he got better. I don't know if the show could really be centered around him in the same way it was for Cameron. Cameron was a teen icon and Jeremy Miller never reached that. If they could have kept Dicaprio and put them together in a precursor to Cory and Shawn, then maybe.

[–] coreycitn63 10 years ago

Ben started out as the cute but annoying kid but when he got older he was no longer cute but annoying. Ublike the people behind Family Matters and Step By Step they didn't have the heart to fire Jeremy Miller but replace him with Ashley Johnson and then Leonardo DiCaprio.

[–] Growingpainsfan 9 years ago

Ben was at his peak seasons 1-4 even though there was a noticable quality difference in the show after the third season and then again in season 7. But even though show was at it's worst in season 7 the Ben episodes were good and I put his performance in that season above seasons 5 and 6.