Aww, hell. Did we get the wrong guy?

In 1989 was there really a difference between Alex Winters and Keanu Reeves? I mean other than hair color and height? Was there any sentence you could string together then where the two weren't entirely interchangeable, as in, "That guy from Bill and Ted just got the part in Point Break."

Would anyone have been able to tell the difference at that point? If you took Reeves and Winters, switched their IMDB.com profiles and showed them to your 1989 self and explained that yes, Winters (real-life Reeves) did go on to have a successful career, would you have been surprised? Yeah, I don't think so, either. They both had blank stares, stilted deliveries and only a tentative grasp on the concept of what an actor was supposed to do. I'm thinking more along the lines of third grade pageants, where just learning the lines is enough of an accomplishment.

In all honesty, the one thing that kept me awake Saturday night (not for hours and hours, but maybe two or three minutes) was wondering what place in history Deacon (Ted's little brother who ditches Napoleon after getting ice cream) would occupy.

Seriously, what is his historical counterpart at this point of someone who facilitated a great event without being all that irreplaceable. There are plenty in history who did the job, like Paul Revere, but who put the saddle on Revere's horse. This seems to be the level where one would find Deacon.

Also, would people in the future vilify him for ditching Napoleon? Even is he was a dick as Deacon contended? In much the same way that our historians look at Gen. George McClellan as being too timid and are somewhat shocked that the Union army was able to win at all, and at times, in spite of him, would Deacon be seen as a roadblock to history?

Conversely, as he was one of the only players in that crazy day in San Dimas, would he and Missy have separate parades in the future? I'm sure Missy would be looked upon as favorably as anyone in history for her part in driving Bill and Ted around and helping them out as best she could, but what at what level? Parades? Monuments? Picture on currency?

I think we need a third movie to tie some of these loose ends up.

Also, Missy is not as hot in retrospect. Like, not much at all. Even Joan of Arc (played by Go-Gos bassist, Jane Wiedlin, who knew?) is looking better in the movie. Just worth noting that Missy has not held up after a decade and a half.

Ox, however and his assertation that San Dimas football rules, has. I even found an online Q&A with him, go figure. I see his cult status approaching that of Boba Fett's someday, perhaps with a spinoff movie of his own. The question arises as to who rules above all else - San Dimas or Knibb High. Maybe the two of them can get a movie together with the guys from Varsity Blues.

Finally, explain this. Despite advanced technology that makes time travel and other wonders possible, the antennae on the phone booth is made from what appears to be coat hangers and a stripped umbrella. So, instead of a smaller antennae like a walkie talkie that is made of compact rubber and more durable, they have to deal with the other design?

It didn't appear that the original design had any sort of antennae on top, but it's obviously needed to make the phone booth go. What gives? Were product engineers done away with in the future? I mean, there's a reason why engines are surrounded by metal in cars, why wasn't this carried through in the future?

Why would they leave such a vital component so unprotected? Stupid future dwellers. Apparently wireless connectivity remains a problem in the future as well. Damn.

(Photos from billandted.org)