Tag: Theory039

Categories
Health

'The Big Bang Theory' Season 12, Episode 15 Recap: Leonard Makes a Decision About Fatherhood


The Big Bang Theory finally concluded the most random storyline in the show’s 12 years. Spoiler alert: Leonard is not going to donate his sperm to Penny’s ex-boyfriend.

Hear that cheering? That’s me, thrilled that this arc has come and gone. But at the beginning of tonight’s episode—”The Donation Oscillation”—things certainly didn’t look good. Marissa and Zack begin by telling Leonard he shouldn’t have sex in the days leading up to his sperm donation. Oh, and they’re hoping for a boy so they want him to keep that in mind when he’s, you know, doing his thing. Somehow, Leonard remains committed to making Zack and Marissa parents.

Michael Yarish/Warner Bros. Entertainment

But then, for reasons I don’t quite understand, Sheldon wants Zack to choose him for the sperm donation instead of Leonard. Maybe that awful virus that infected Leonard in the last episode has now crept into Sheldon’s brain? I don’t know how else you explain this, because it came out of nowhere.

Around this time, Penny’s dad, Wyatt, comes to visit. Penny asks Leonard not to tell her father that she doesn’t want a baby, or that he’ll be donating sperm to Zack. Of course, per sitcom rules, both topics come up within a minute of Wyatt’s arrival. Wyatt makes a snide remark that Penny can drink all the beer she wants, because she’s not pregnant. It’s an awful comment, and Penny isn’t pleased. But Wyatt’s got more pressing matters to deal with: Leonard’s sperm donation.

Wyatt wants to know if Penny is really OK with Leonard donating his sperm; she says yes, she supports her husband. But then adds that if Wyatt is not OK with this, he should voice his opinion. Meanwhile, Leonard tries to explain why he’s doing it, but bottom line: I’m still not on board.

Penny then hopes that if she seduces Leonard in bed, it’ll change his mind (and break Marissa and Zack’s rule). When that plan doesn’t work, she disrobes to reveal a superhero meets cheerleader bikini/lingerie combo and starts whispering Batman phrases into his ear. Leonard does the unthinkable: He leaves to spend the rest of the night curled up on Sheldon and Amy’s couch. Wow. Never get in the way of a man and a sperm donation to his wife’s ex-boyfriend, I guess?

Amy and Leonard talk on the couch
Michael Yarish/Warner Bros. Entertainment

The next morning, Leonard has a heart-to-heart with Amy and Sheldon. Amy says maybe Penny isn’t on board with this idea as much as he thinks she is. Leonard—as clueless as ever—says, “But Penny says she is…although she also said I look dope.” He adds that if Penny has a problem with it, she should say something. “She tried to seduce you! If that’s not a cry for help, then I don’t know what is!”

Leonard says he respects Penny for not wanting to have kids, but donating his sperm to Zack and Marissa is a chance to leave a part of him behind. Amy reminds him that donating his sperm isn’t going to make him a dad. “It’s going to be their baby, not yours.” Suddenly it dawns on me: What if this whole storyline was just paving the way for a Big Bang Theory spin-off where Zack and Marissa’s kid is old enough to live on his/her own and moves into Leonard and Sheldon’s old apartment? And Leonard is the landlord? (My God, look at what this show has done to me.)

Anyway, back to “reality.” Penny comes home, and Wyatt asks if she’s avoiding him. He thinks Penny’s mad at herself for not wanting a baby, which is why Leonard’s about to go through with his sperm donation. Penny isn’t amused and says it’s really crappy to make her feel bad about not wanting kids. Wyatt insists he’s not trying to make her feel bad, but he still wants to know if she’s upset about everything. “Yes,” Penny says. “I feel like I’m letting everybody down. I hate disappointing Leonard, but I really hate disappointing you.”



Source link

Categories
Health

'The Big Bang Theory' Season 12, Episode 2 Recap: The Story Behind 'The Wedding Gift Wormhole'


Sheldon and Amy’s honeymoon kicked off The Big Bang Theory‘s final season, but it was the second episode of the week—titled “The Wedding Gift Wormhole”—that brought real fun for the couple.

Leonard and Penny give “the perfect wedding gift” to Sheldon and Amy. It’s a sweet gesture, but there’s one problem: The newly marrieds have no clue what it is. The gift, a crystal wand, looks expensive but has no obvious purpose. Naturally, Amy wonders if it’s a marital aid. (God, I’m going to miss this show next year.)

Of course, it’d be inappropriate to ask Leonard and Penny what the gift actually is…but Sheldon is the king of inappropriate questions. You’d think he could have solved this in minutes. Maybe married life has changed him after all? Instead, while Amy and Sheldon are in bed one night, they come to the conclusion that the gift is simply a clue about their actual gift, which they’ll find by going on a scavenger hunt.

Turns out, the idea for this episode was actually born out of the same exact gift that executive producer Steve Holland received from the show’s visual effects supervisor. “The gift we got is the same gift you see in the episode,” Holland says. “It is a wand. The joke was when we got it, we didn’t quite know what it was. We had it it the writers’ room for years and we’d joke about it, so we decided to turn that into an episode where Sheldon and Amy get the wedding gift that they don’t know what it is.”

To this day, Holland doesn’t even know if the wand is expensive or worth anything. “I just know it’s not a marital aid,” he jokes.

By the episode’s end, we learn the wand actually belonged to Raj, who gave it as a wedding gift to Bernadette and Howard, who then gave it to Penny and Leonard, who then gave it to Shamy. The moral of this story? They all need better friends. If Raj does get married this season, he better register for some expensive stuff—and hope he doesn’t get a random hand-me-down.

Related: Is There a Chance for a Big Bang Theory Spin-Off?



Source link

Categories
Health

'The Big Bang Theory' Season 12 Episode 1 Recap: The Conjugal Configuration Shows Sheldon and Amy's Honeymoon


The Big Bang Theory kicked off its final season Monday night, September 24, with Amy and Sheldon’s honeymoon to Legoland and New York City. From Lego-crafted eggs and bacon to Harry Potter robes and wands, the experience should have been a dream come true for the newlyweds. Instead, it was…not that.

It started off well, though. The episode—titled “The Conjugal Configuration”—immediately catered to Shamy fans by having Sheldon wake up his new bride and sweetly calling her his wife. (If it’s still oddly surreal to see Sheldon wear a wedding ring, join the club.) We find out the two have consummated their marriage in a hotel suite overlooking the Legoland entrance, and Sheldon has ordered room service made out of Legos. It’s beautiful—until it all goes south.

The next day, Sheldon and Amy check into a new hotel in New York City, where they’re seeing a stage production of Harry Potter and getting a tour of Nikola Tesla’s old stomping grounds. Sheldon tells the bellman they’ll be very busy exploring the city and having coitus, which rubs Amy the wrong way. Shockingly, Amy’s frustration has less to do with Sheldon being so public about their private life and more to do with the fact that he wants to have sex again. “Really, Sheldon, you want to do it again?!” she asks. “Don’t act surprised,” he replies. “It’s on the schedule!”

Later, Amy’s annoyed with Sheldon again after he makes a scene during the play by yelling safety measures from the audience. And when they return to the hotel, Sheldon suggests they engage in coitus. “It’s a bit late,” he says, “but I did block out the rest of the evening for conjugal relations.” Amy is tired and asks to reschedule, but that doesn’t fit with Sheldon’s itinerary. If they don’t have sex tonight, he says, he hasn’t scheduled it again until Thursday at 6. “And that will have to be no frills, because we have a 6:30 reservation at Benihana.”

Of course, Amy shouldn’t do anything physical she doesn’t want to do or be a puppet to her husband’s love-making schedule. But in the past, Sheldon’s been receptive to Amy when she voices her frustration. This time, though, instead of explaining why spontaneity is important to her, she quips, “Would it be so bad to mix it up?” Sheldon is floored by this. “Mix it up?! Who are you? Betty Crocker?” He leaves to take a shower, while Amy feels disappointed and defeated.

PHOTO: Michael Yarish

The next day, during the Testla tour, Amy’s still upset. Sheldon can tell she’s testy, but Amy claims she’s not. So, Sheldon deduces she must be sexually frustrated. “If you abided by my coital schedule, your brain would be floating on a cloud of oxytocin right now,” he says. This sends Amy over the edge. She tells him she’s walking away, while he’s got the look of a deer in headlights. “I’m only recently married,” he tells the group of Tesla fanatics. “Do I stay here or do I follow? Say something useful.”

When Sheldon eventually finds Amy, he’s able to do what the couple should have done 24 hours earlier: communicate how he’s feeling. “You realize I’m not a particularly physical person,” he says. “I want to be a good husband to you, and intimacy is a part of that. I’m just worried if I don’t schedule our bedroom endeavors, I may not think about them, and you will grow cold and distant and seek solace in the arms of a heavily muscled longshoreman.”

Amy tells Sheldon she could never be with anybody but him; it’s OK if he wants to make all the schedules in the world, but maybe he just shouldn’t tell her about them. Sheldon agrees and says he’ll create an algorithm that will generate a pseudo-random schedule. “Do you know why it won’t be a true random schedule?” Sheldon asks. “Because the generation of true random numbers remains an unsolved problem in computer science,” Amy replies.

Of course, it’s Amy’s mathematical/scientific brilliance that turns Sheldon on—and this makes him want to have spontaneous sex. “Where are we going?” she asks when he pulls her away from a park bench. “To the hotel room,” he responds. “And when we get there, I’m going to need you to say that to me again, except naked.”

Related: Could there be a Big Bang spin-off after the series ends?



Source link

Categories
Health

'The Big Bang Theory' Season 11, Episode 21 Recap: I Can’t Believe How Raj Treated Penny


I’d like to report a missing person, and his name is Rajesh Koothrappali. It seems some alien force targeted Pasadena and either replaced him with his evil twin or brainwashed him into thinking he’s an asshole. Because the real Raj was nowhere in sight on tonight’s Big Bang Theory, titled “The Comet Polarization.” Michael Wolowitz’s namesake (well, one of them anyway)—Neil Gaiman—may have made Stuart’s comic book store the hottest ticket in town, but it was the Raj and Penny storyline that lit a fire under me.

At the start of the episode, the gang gathers on the Friends old rooftop (OK, maybe not, but it looked awfully similar) to discuss Twitter followers and planets. You know, normal rooftop talk. Raj asks Penny if she wants to look through his telescope and instructs her to take a picture if she sees something. Seconds later, Penny says she does see something, but it’s fuzzy. Raj assumes it’s an eyelash. Penny says he’s crazy, so Raj suggests she take a picture. And after Raj takes a look, he admits that she might have seen something important after all: a comet.

PHOTO: Jordin Althaus/Warner Bros. Entertainment

The next day, he stops by Leonard and Penny’s to confirm that it was a previously undiscovered comet. Penny is more delighted than she was at her own wedding. “I discovered a comet!” she exclaims. But then something weird happens: Raj’s demeanor changes, and he condescendingly asks, “What do you mean you discovered it?”

“I’m the one that saw it,” Penny responds.

“In my telescope,” Raj counters. “That I positioned. All you did was look into it.”

What? Leonard suggests they both discovered it, so they can put both their names on the registration. But Raj says he can’t do that because he already put his name down and “that’s who I am and that’s what I did.” (Insert my livid reaction here.)

Penny is rightly beside herself and questions Raj’s sanity, but Raj isn’t having it. Instead, he offers this low blow: “Do you even know what a comet is?” Penny—with the best comeback ever—says, “Yeah! The thing I saw first!”

Raj still doesn’t think that qualifies as a discovery, but Penny reminds him she took the picture. Raj then to insults his friend with this childish statement: “If a monkey took a picture, did it discover the comet?” Penny is furious and orders Raj to get the hell out of her apartment, as she should.

Later, Penny (after apparently googling “who owns the discovery of a comet?”) tells Leonard that the Internet says because she took the picture, she discovered the comet. Leonard agrees with his wife, but questions why she cares. (Groan.) Penny explains that people doubt her all the time because they take one look at her and “assume I don’t know what I’m talking about.” Leonard says he’s sure that’s not true, which frustrates Penny even more because it’s a clear dismissal of her feelings. All Leonard wants to do is make his wife feel better, but what he doesn’t understand is that trying to put a band-aid over something that goes much deeper is never the solution.

In fact, Penny reveals she recently had a great idea at work, but no one paid attention to her until five minutes later when a guy made the same suggestion and the entire room rallied around him. The great idea was about where to eat for lunch, but still. Penny says it happens with all the doctors she encounters too, and she’s over their condescending attitude. “I’m sick of letting this stuff slide,” she tells Leonard. “I found that comet. Why should Raj say he found it?”

Leonard continues to completely dismiss his wife and offers up this gem: “I know you’re right, but Raj is our friend, and this could be good for his career.” Yikes.

the-big-bang-theory-leonard-penny-season-11.jpg

PHOTO: Michael Yarish/Warner Bros.

Penny says her husband is such a people-pleaser (truth) who can’t stand to make anyone angry (truth x2). Leonard professes that he’s on her side, but I (and Penny) don’t want to hear it. At the moment, I just want to send Leonard, Raj, and Sheldon off to a program to cure their toxic masculinity. In fact, while the Raj/Penny/Leonard situation is happening, Sheldon is at Stuart’s comic book store doubting an employee’s intelligence and capabilities—because she’s new and a woman. It’s only when she proves how well-versed she is in the comic book universe that Sheldon comes around. Spare me this tired trope.

Meanwhile, Leonard goes to Raj and tries to reason with him. Leonard asks Raj to add her name to the registration, but he says he already told everyone at work that he did it and his boss now calls him Captain Comet. Apparently it’s all he’s ever dreamed of. Raj needs new dreams.

Leonard suggests he just swallow his pride, but Raj says he can’t. (I also can’t with Raj.) Then, in a complete 180, Raj says he brought this on himself, he’s a bad scientist, and a selfish person. Of course, he just does that to make Leonard feel bad for him in the hopes that he’ll talk to his wife and try to make her see his POV. And Leonard falls for it hook, line, and sinker.

Penny—proving once again she’s smarter than everyone else—tells Leonard that Raj played him, and Leonard admits that Penny is strong enough to fight her own battles. “You’re a strong, independent woman that has her own voice, and to quote another strong woman—Katy Perry—it’s time to hear you roar.” It’s all a little much, but it’s kind of cute. Leonard’s like a puppy that can’t help himself. Unfortunately for Penny, he’s like a puppy that can’t help himself.

Penny visits Raj, who’s nervous just at the sound of her walking up the stairs to his apartment. As soon as he opens the door, he apologizes to Penny because in his mind anything is better than having Penny angry with him. Again, it’s beyond annoying that it takes Penny getting angry for Raj to come to his senses, but I don’t know why I’m expecting more. Raj says he’s going to put her name on the comet with his, even if it’s professionally embarrassing or it puts him on thin ice at work or makes him lose his funding. Again, it’s obvious Raj still doesn’t get it—he’s just trying reverse psychology on Penny—but Penny doesn’t fall for it. “Good!” she says in response to him saying he’ll put her name on the comet. “Bye!”

After she leaves, Raj tells himself that that worked better on Leonard than Penny, proving my point two-fold: Someone kidnapped Raj, and Penny’s the real genius on this show.



Source link

Categories
Health

'The Big Bang Theory' Season 11 Episode 20 Recap: Amy's Bachelorette Party Is a Season Highlight


After last week’s random pastrami sandwich episode, The Big Bang Theory returned to what it does best: letting the cast shine. Specifically, Mayim Bialik was given half the episode to prove why she’s an absolute comedic genius. The only thing better would have been if she had the entire episode, but, you know, one can dream.

The other storyline of the night—Sheldon visiting a creepy and reclusive scientist at his cabin in the woods—just didn’t hold a candle to what was happening back in Pasadena with Amy. She couldn’t go with Sheldon to said woods because it’s her bachelorette weekend and she’s, you know, getting married.

For her party, Amy imagines strippers and body shots involved—but that’s not what Bernadette and Penny have planned. Instead, they’ve organize a quilting bee—yes, that popular social event from the mid-19th century during which women gossiped over tea and quilting. Now,I love a good scrapbooking afternoon myself, but as a replacement for a bachelorette party? Uh, no. Of course, it doesn’t matter what event the girls have planned for Amy because the real prize for us viewers is Amy’s hilarious puzzled reaction. I expected a “just kidding!” from Penny and Bernadette throughout the quilting bee, but maybe I just know Amy better than they do.

That’s fine, though, because Amy’s pretend “I’m having fun face” is pure gold; not to mention Penny and Bernadette’s attempt at being 19th-century socialites enjoying tea time. It’s all too much for Amy to handle. When they clink their tea cups together, it’s the last straw. “Seriously, what the hell?!” she says. “This is my bachelorette party! Tea and quilts?!” The writing is perfection, but it’s Bialik’s spot-on delivery that makes it worth re-watching.

Amy says her bachelorette party is supposed to be fun and wild and full of bad decisions, to which Penny quips, “[Bernadette] had two kids back to back, and I thought you’d like this, so we’re off to a good start!” She’s on to something…this was definitely one of Penny’s more questionable decisions.

But it’s all good because Bernadette says they can still go somewhere to do body shots off shirtless bartenders. Amy counters that this might be a little too much, hoping that Penny and Bernadette see right through her. Once again, they do not. “What are you not getting about this?!” Amy shouts. The whole thing is so good, but no surprise there.

A bit later, Penny, Bernadette, and Amy walk into a rather upscale bar and, well, this happened:

I could have watched Amy make friends with the customers all night rather than hang with Penny and Bernadette. She’s so infectious and overjoyed at her upcoming nuptials that I don’t want this night to end. Amy’s the kind of women who infectiously claps for herself and couldn’t care less if her glasses are sliding off her face from smiling so much. She’s so unabashedly herself that I feel like I’m getting a lesson in confidence just from this episode alone.

Twelve minutes later though, she’s passed out at the bar while Penny and Bernadette continue downing shots. The only good thing about Sheldon’s parallel story at this point is that he realizes he no longer wants to be at the cabin because he misses Amy…and his phone. It’s a sweet moment that we’ve seen too little of this season.

But back to Amy: She’s passed out on Penny and Leonard’s couch until she’s jolted awake to find herself covered in a half-finished quilt and sporting raccoon eyes. Wanting their friend to think she had a wild night out, Penny and Bernadette hilariously work to cover up how tame Amy’s party really was. Penny asks Amy if she remembers river dancing for the shirtless fireman, and Mayim’s reaction is what Emmy wins are made of.

PHOTO: Bill Inoshita

Later, Sheldon comes home to a bleary-eyed Amy. She tells Sheldon about her night—or rather, the night according to Penny and Bernadette—and does it in such a straightforward manner that it makes the scene that much funnier. Then, when Sheldon asks if she would still love him if he wasn’t who she thought he was, she counters with, “Well, what if I’m a river dancing wild woman?” Mayim plays the scene with such a sincere subtleness that you’d fall for Amy even if she just admitted some horrifying truth.

Sheldon and Amy then share a kiss and exchange “I love you’s” before Sheldon asks if she really knows how to river dance. Amy gives him a seductive look and says, “You tell me” before launching into her over-confident, if not slightly hungover, version of river dancing. Sheldon is so stimulated by her talent (something I never thought I’d write) that he hilariously looks over his shoulder before softly telling her, “I’m the only man you do that for.”

And there you have it: The first time since this season’s premiere that I’m genuinely excited for this wedding to get here. Bring on May 10!



Source link

Categories
Health

'The Big Bang Theory' Season 11 Episode 15 Recap: Sheldon Finally Realizes How Selfish He's Been


It only took 15 episodes into season 11 of The Big Bang Theory, but the Sheldon Cooper redemption tour is finally underway. This season Sheldon has been remarkably different from seasons 9 and 10 in terms of tone, behavior, and growth. For a character that’s already extreme in his ways, it’s been a bit jarring. That bewilderment has extended to his fiancé Amy Farrah Fowler as well, who has seemingly compromised any self respect by putting up with Sheldon’s insensitive and, frankly, sexist behavior this season.

Of course, these were never two characters known for their tact, so to expect them to parade around Pasadena (or their apartment) with the social graces of Prince William and Duchess Kate was never going to happen. But after all the growth that took place the last few seasons, I thought at the start of this season that Shamy was more than ready to enter into marriage and a life together…until that all fell apart.

But in tonight’s episode, “The Novelization Correlation,” Sheldon was forced to look hard at his behavior when Wil Wheaton’s version of the Professor Proton show debuts. For context, this was Sheldon’s favorite show growing up, and Professor Proton was his idol. When the series was rebooted, Sheldon wanted nothing more than to get the gig—but it went to Wheaton instead. Cue feelings of anger, disappointment, and disbelief. In Sheldon’s defense, who wouldn’t feel that way?

When Sheldon actually watches (OK, hate watches) the new version of Wheaton’s Proton, he surprisingly likes it—until Howard shows up on the show. When Sheldon asks Amy why Howard didn’t tell him he’d be making a guest appearance, Amy guesses that Howard was probably worried Sheldon would be a big baby about it. (Truth.) Later, Howard tells Sheldon he’s going to have to apologize to Wil if he wants to be on the show, and Sheldon obliges.

In a moment of actual sincerity, Sheldon—with a reluctant Howard in tow—shows up at Wheaton’s to say he’s sorry. Just when it seems his apology worked, Wil says he’d like Amy to come on the show because he’d like to feature more female scientists. Preach.

Of course, Sheldon is taken aback and tries to negotiate himself as part of a package deal with Amy, telling Wheaton that “wouldn’t it be nice to have us both on to show that female scientists can land a man?” (This is still Sheldon we’re talking about, after all.) Howard’s dumbfounded reaction perfectly summed up the correct response to such nonsense. And if Sheldon had any hope of getting on Wheaton’s show following his “apology,” this certainly drove the nail right through that coffin.

When Sheldon returns home and asks Amy if she wants to be on the new Professor Proton, Amy tells him she’s not really interested. “I’m all for promoting women in science,” she says, “But…I know you have strong feelings about Professor Proton, and I don’t want to get in the middle of that.”

There’s so much wrong with that statement—namely, the fact that Amy is going to bypass touting her own achievements (again!)—to spare Sheldon’s feelings. Not only would this be a great showcase for her, but, as Wheaton pointed out, it would draw attention to more female scientists. Season 9 or 10 Amy would never have thought twice. But just as I was about to give up with Sheldon and Amy, we had a breakthrough:

Sheldon: “So, you’re not going to do something because you think it might upset me?”

Amy: “It’s tricky, because answering that question honestly is one of the things I tend not to do because it upsets you.”

Sheldon: “Well, that’s very upsetting.”

Amy: “Like I said.”

Sheldon: “What other things don’t you do because of me?”

Amy: “Remember last week when we went to that dueling piano bar I was so excited about?”

Sheldon: “No.”

Amy: “Well, now you’re getting it.”

Later, Sheldon tells Howard and Raj that he’s upset Amy often doesn’t do things because she’s afraid of his reaction. Howard points out that it’s not sometimes, it’s “always.” Raj says it’s not just Amy that doesn’t do things because of Sheldon, it’s “everybody.” Howard adds that this is nothing new—everyone feels this way. Sheldon is shocked and questions if everyone walks on egg shells around him to spare his feelings. For the first time all season, it seems as though Sheldon finally has begun to understand the magnitude—and consequences—of his ways. “I don’t want my relationship with Amy to be like that. I can change,” he says. The guys doubt it, but Sheldon is determined to prove them otherwise.

PHOTO: Michael Yarish/Warner Bros. TV

After a childish game of chess at home that night (Sheldon’s doing, of course), he finally tells Amy he’s sorry. “I’m trying to show you I can change,” he says. “I don’t want you to miss out on things because of me. Maybe somewhere out there, there’s a little girl who will see you on Wil’s show and realize that she too can grow up to be a brilliant, amazing, successful scientist.” (Where has this Sheldon been hiding?!)

It’s not the most perfect apology—Sheldon naturally throws in some jabs about Amy’s chess game, because, well, he’s Sheldon—but it’s the most sincere words to come out of his mouth all season. It’s also proof that he doesn’t have to be a jackass to create story. I’d much rather watch this Sheldon than whoever was spoon-fed to us lately.

When Sheldon and Amy gather around their laptop to watch Amy’s appearance on Proton (apparently she did it after all), Sheldon tells Amy that she’s glowing and he’s so proud of her. Amy’s proud of him as well, and in classic Big Bang fashion, Sheldon asks if it’s because she can’t tell how jealous he is. “No, no, I can,” she says. “But I can tell how hard you’re trying to keep it in.” Really hard, Sheldon replies. She then gives him a kiss, says she’s going to bed, and Sheldon tells her he’s going to scream on the roof. It’s fine, Amy’s fine, and I’m fine with it, because he’s honest, sincere, and it’s still in line with who he is.



Source link