The Big Bang Theory

To be honest, I feel the end of days are upon ‘The Big Bang Theory.’ Don’t get me wrong, it is not the cast or even the writing; I just think that after 10 seasons, it is just getting harder and harder to come up with anything all that fresh or new to do with the characters, and the whole thing just feels weighed down and stale. After last week’s disappointing opener I was really hoping to be pleasantly surprised by this week’s outing, and while there were one or two humorous moments, it just does not feel like watching ‘The Big Bang Theory’ of old, not even like watching episodes from a season or two ago, which many fans feel were already starting to suffer from sitcom fatigue.

This week was all about Sheldon trying to plan the perfect wedding and stressing out about every little detail, especially trying to pick the perfect date, which for him means not close to a birthday, a celebrity death, or Flag Day. Amy meanwhile has noticed that Sheldon has begun talking in his sleep, and sleeping Sheldon seems much more chill and laid back. After she points this out to her fiance (and of course, after he talks it over with Penny in the laundry room like always), Sheldon decides to try to be more relaxed in real life. Inevitably it all goes horribly wrong for Sheldon when he buys a pair of sandals to demonstrates his new relaxed lifestyle, and ends up losing one and touching a dirty toupee (aka a rat) while trying to retrieve it, making a make-shift shoe out of one of his shirts to replace it and stepping in warm apple juice (aka urine), and losing the other sandal when he steps in a melted candy bar (aka, well… you know). He returns home, dejected, to Amy, and decides to give all of the wedding planning to her to de-stress, and retires to the bathroom to bathe himself in Purell, muttering to himself about her plans to have a cliffside wedding, which sounds miserable to him. But, at least she agreed he could wear his ‘Star Trek’ uniform under his tuxedo.

As for the B story of the night, Bernadette decides to go out drinking at a bar with a new co-worker to prove she is not mean (after Howard reminds her she is both pregnant and married), and against her wishes, Howard sends Raj and Stuart along once he finds out the co-worker is a single woman. Of course, we all know where this is going (because we’ve seen the desperate and competitive Raj and Stuart storyline dozens of times over the years), and of course, Raj and Stuart fight over the woman. In the end, she tells them she is not interested in dating either of them, though she does agree to be friends with Stuart, which may lead to something in the future.

In the final scene of the night, the “Council of Sheldons” (including Germophobe, Texas, Humorous, Fanboy, and Scientist Sheldon) meets within the mind of Sheldon to decide whether or not to let Laid-back Sheldon have a seat at the Council, ultimately deciding he does not deserve a seat, and then turning their attention to whether or not Humorous Sheldon still deserves a seat.

QUOTES OF THE NIGHT:

LEONARD: Oh! You could get married at Comic Con!
PENNY, AMY, BERNADETTE: NOOOOO!

HOWARD: Is she single?
BERNADETTE: I’m not setting her up with Raj.
HOWARD: What about Stuart?
BERNADETTE: Are you listening? I want her to think I’m not mean!

LEONARD: (to Amy) If you want me to object at your wedding just give me one of these (he touches his nose).

SHELDON (mumbling after Amy reveals her dream of a clifftop wedding): Outdoor wedding… I know what I’ll be using that cliff for…

Again, it had a few humorous moments, but it all felt a little strained, a little too familiar. Maybe 4 or 5 seasons again Sheldon’s story about what happened to him while wearing sandals would have been great, but now, it just seems like the same kind of situation he always finds himself in. I definitely think it is time to start considering the end of the series before it gets worse, or else bring in some fresh blood to liven things up, because things with these characters seem to have gone as far as they can go.