Episodes 6.19 The Closet Reconfiguration (Mar. 14)

[Grasshopper]

WOW! I don't know how to start out in what to say. First of all i'll say that this was a well rounded  episode. It stuck to one main plot and it equally had the whole group involved. Just like Nina said a couple of post earlier,. It makes you both laugh and cry. I thought it was awesome how Sheldon actually did agree to straighten out the closet during the party, and also follows up saying great party.

Bernie and Howard have such a smooth relationship. When ever they start to have a little squabble that you think might develop into an argument, they both have a way of quickly putting out the fire. Speaking of fire at first I was hoping that Howard would extinguish the fire he set to the letter, but I momentarily forgot or didn't know that Sheldon read the whole letter.

The reciting of the probable content of the letter was brilliant! Sheldon's scientific method of exposing the contents blew me away. I have to re-watch to actually catch every scientific word he mentioned there. I'm sure I have to Google most of them terms also.

[koops]

It was indeed very nice to have one continuous plot throughout the episode, it was a nice change of pace and it made the ep feel longer for some reason. I was actually surprised at how serious and touching this episode was! I loved the bit where Howard sets off the fire alarm and they're like "Neither of us is tall enough to reach it" and then Bernadette helps him get up to the ceiling. LOL. Penny and Leonard wer VERY mature, I was really impressed with them. And Penny had some great lines. "Yeah, and I said, if it wasn't epistemic we might as well not do it!". Best line of the night, by far.

 

Sheldon annoyed the hell out of me throughout the episode except for the idea he had about how to tell Howard without telling Howard about the letter. That idea and the explanation were brilliant. Other than that, and I rarely say this, he was downright annoying. This was the classic example of an episode that's meant to be serious and the whole weight of the comedy is left on one characters' shoulders. Sheldon was the cartoonish character used to infuse humor into the situation and, imo, he came across very abrasive. I am also not a fan at all of the whole child-Sheldon thing, with Leonard acting like he's his father. I find it endearing when Penny and Leonard act like they're his parents in a more grown-up kind of way, but this was almost like the whole Disneyland Mickey Mouse ears thing. 

[Convict13]

Much better than last weeks.  I was surprised at how touching the scene of the letter content reveal was, well played all, especially Simon. I certainly can understand Sheldon's aversion to emptying the link filter, I would be exactly the same myself, his reaction certainly felt real to me.

 

Some of the delivery of the lines in this episode seemed a little "off" I'm not too sure what is was but it seemed staged, not as fluid as they normally are, and Kaley has recently started to do duck lips quite a bit and I wish she would stop,  I am finding it distracting whenever I watch her.  

 

It was a strange episode simply because there was not "b" story at all, but I did like it, I would rate it "good." 

[AndyRenee]

I want so bad to give your post Convict 13 a like because of the Kaley duck lips comment. Haha. I completely agree. But outta likes, so this is my like  

[vasu]

I enjoyed this a lot....

 

It was so nice to have a single plot and a story with an actual conclusion for once...and the conclusion was very innovative and appropriate...so kudos to the writers for such a brilliant idea...

 

It was just a simple story about Howard's father being absent from his life.............starting with Sheldon reading the letter..................spilling the beans to everyone..................Penny and Leonard planning a party(I liked the costume joke she made and her loud nooooo)..............Howard running off..........and then Sheldon using quantum superposition to explain how Howard can both know what was in the letter and remain in doubt forever............this scientific explanation fits the show perfectly ....and it also led to very sweet ending scene where the entire gang kind of protected Howard and also kind of apologized for interfering in his personal matters..........wonderful writing

 

The only negative thing about this episode was Sheldon's rude comment about Amy forcing him to hold hands...probably in an earlier episode it would have been ok.... now it looks mean and the relationship one-sided....his comment does not make him look a guy who wants to change ....but makes him look like he is being forced to change....

[BangerMain]

I enjoyed this a lot....

 

It was so nice to have a single plot and a story with an actual conclusion for once...and the conclusion was very innovative and appropriate...so kudos to the writers for such a brilliant idea...

 

The only negative thing about this episode was Sheldon's rude comment about Amy forcing him to hold hands...probably in an earlier episode it would have been ok.... now it looks mean and the relationship one-sided....his comment does not make him look a guy who wants to change ....but makes him look like he is being forced to change....

 

I'm with you. Loved the episode, except the Sheldon shots at Amy. TPTB seemed to be determined to show how much he disrespects her attention to him. They must be planning something.

[koops]

I hope Simon gets an Emmy nod. It's about time.

[AndyRenee]

I saw on Facebook someone said that Steve Molaro said the last scene with Penny/Sheldon to this episode meant a clue for the season finale? What the heck should I take from that? Is this even true?

[Kutra]

Terrible episode. Bernie comes out with no credit at all.While she could potentailly have some justification(even this is sketchy) as Howard's wife to get information from the Sheldon abt the letter, involving Penny and Amy in something personal like this was in very poor taste.Pity Howard was not more pissed off at her for that.

 

Kaley should stop wearing clothes which show a lot of leg,simply put she does not have the figure anymore to pull it off.Couple of years back she could do it,now she just cannot.

[Moonbase]

Oh boy… everyone liked this? I thought it was dull and completely unfunny. Most of the early episodes I am able to watch dozens of times, I watched this twice and that was enough. The second half of this season has been so mediocre IMHO.

Amy was the only thing worth watching in this episode. Her "used me as a human shield?" was the one line that still made me laugh on the second watch. Even Simon's skillful acting wasn't enough to save this one for me. Bernadette and Amy's versions of the letter were quite touching I suppose. I always hoped we'd see Howard's father one day and that he would be a crazy character. I hoped the whole thing would turn into a hilarious but not overly sentimental reunion. Not a chance! If he does show up it's not going to be funny, it will just be sentiment tosh. I just don't care.

[Kutra]

I saw on Facebook someone said that Steve Molaro said the last scene with Penny/Sheldon to this episode meant a clue for the season finale? What the heck should I take from that? Is this even true?

 

Only thing tht could turn to be is that Penny is not satisfied with her sex life or Leonard calls her out on the fact that she has a sex toy and that precipitates another break up. At this rate,they might as well rename the characters Ross and Rachael and be done with it.

[koops]

I saw on Facebook someone said that Steve Molaro said the last scene with Penny/Sheldon to this episode meant a clue for the season finale? What the heck should I take from that? Is this even true?

 

???

I doubt it. I really can't see what that could mean. I don't think they're going to break up L/P again over their sex lives. They seem to be doing great right now. I doubt that's an actual piece of information, I wonder where that person got that from. 

[AndyRenee]

koops They said it was in TV guide magazine. The person sounded like a Shenny shipper. She pointed out how Amy seems frustrated with Sheldon blah blah you know how it goes. I didn't read the article. Maybe this girl is just hoping or misinterpreting like those fans of this couple do. Not sure. I guess we'll have to see.

[idrive65]

I want so bad to give your post Convict 13 a like because of the Kaley duck lips comment. Haha. I completely agree. But outta likes, so this is my like

 

I didn't know there was a limit on likes!  Is it permanent, daily, or what?

[Kutra]

???

I doubt it. I really can't see what that could mean. I don't think they're going to break up L/P again over their sex lives. They seem to be doing great right now. I doubt that's an actual piece of information, I wonder where that person got that from. 

 

Easy break up,Leonard is neurotic and cannot let things go.Bugs Penny on why she needs a sex toy.Voila break up.

[Moonbase]

Easy break up,Leonard is neurotic and cannot let things go.Bugs Penny on why she needs a sex toy.Voila break up.

 

I don't see any break-ups myself. They have already said there will be nothing 'big' this finale. Just something relationship-centered.

[koops]

Easy break up,Leonard is neurotic and cannot let things go.Bugs Penny on why she needs a sex toy.Voila break up.

 

But the sex toy was found in the closet together with a dead goldfish, indicating to me that she probably hasn't used it in a long time. I still think we should verify the source of this info before jumping to conclusions.

[idrive65]

I agree that it probably hasn't been used in a while.  I find it hard to believe that Penny would let Sheldon loose on her closet knowing her vibrator was in there.

[hamerman55]

Also given how Beverly is about things, I'm sure something like this wouldn't surprise Leonard. Beverly has openly stated on several occasions that she has been responsible for her own orgasms for most of her marriage to Leonard's father. It wouldn't surprise me if she would stand up and home and declare "I have to go masterbate" just like she does about urination. She might even brandish the sex toy of choice that day.As an experimental physicist, Leonard may have purchased some to help him keep Penny satisfied. I would suggest that he would approach the task, however pleasureable, with the same focused and systematic approach as he does his science. He probably has notebooks of data and observations. He's in this game to win.

Edited March 15, 2013 by hamerman55

[Tripper]

The episode poll has now been added.

[netmouse]

Art imitating life tonight.

As a divorced father with an ex wife who doesn't allow me to see my 4 beautiful children, I could totally relate to last night's episode.

It sickens me on a day to day basis to think that maybe my kids hate me because of their mother's actions.

I truly hope my kids are as forgiving of me as Howard appears to be of his own father.

Beautiful episode. Once again, Simon Helberg worked his magic.

Edited March 15, 2013 by netmouse

[idrive65]

Looks like the building manager rearranged the laundry room a bit.  That dryer Sheldon is using is in the spot where Leonard used a washer to ruin his wool-fire-ant-blend pants.

[BillF63]

Very good episode. Touching and funny at the same timne, a nice mixture. Sometimes they can really whine and complain about one another and it is episodes like this that remind us why they are all friends.

[Chiara]

Can somebody just give Mr. Helberg at least an Emmy nomination ? He is so incredibly underrated. What he does day in-day out on TBBT is remarkable and this episode highlighted it. He can be moving, funny, silly and/or creepy completely effortlessly. He deserves some kind of acknowledgment for his talent and hopefully, this week's episode may help him get it. 

 

The episode itself was a joy. A bit light on jokes, sure, but all in all a success. It had a little bit of everything and displayed the incredible solidarity that exists between the members of this rather excentric group of friends. They may annoy the living crap out of one another, they may want to murder one another on occasion, they may be relieved when one of them goes missing for a while (Leonard jumping on the opportunity not to have to drive Sheldon home), they may mock each other; but when push comes to shove, the support and care they show for one another is sincere and deep. 

 

I for one was not too annoyed by Sheldon's behaviour, either towards Amy or anybody else. His attitude towards his girlfriend is pretty consistent : he most certainly does not want to hurt her or her feelings but he is still very much insensitive and self-centered. On occasion, he'll display a more caring side but he tends to revert back to his natural comfort zone rather quickly. It does not negate the progress made previously; it just puts it on the backburner for a while. It is frustrating but consistent. 

 

Bernadette and Howard were very sweet together. I liked that she was conflicted between her desire to know and her wanting to respect her husband's wished in re his father's letter. And it was good of her to be honest and confess about having asked Sheldon about it. 

Also, Bernie's "stepladder" : hilarious. 

 

Penny and Leonard were on their very best behaviour this week, which was lovely. Mature, confident, flirty, touchy... A real treat to watch.

I particularly enjoyed the way Penny interrupted Sheldon's explanation to make fun of it, him and herself. She introduced a bit of levity in a rather tense moment. Furthermore when she delivered her "epistemic" line (the line of the episode, in my opinion), you could see Leonard smiling at it and her. Whether it was a fantastic piece of background acting from Mr Galecki or just him laughing at the joke is irrelevant. It was perfectly in tune with the way the relationship between Leonard and Penny has been portrayed lately and extremely sweet...  He thinks his girlfriend is funny.

 

Yep, really good episode. 

Edited March 15, 2013 by Chiara

[phantagrae]

Can somebody just give Mr. Helberg at least an Emmy nomination ? He is so incredibly underrated. What he does day in-day out on TBBT is remarkable and this episode highlighted it. He can be moving, funny, silly and/or creepy completely effortlessly. He deserves some kind of acknowledgment for his talent and hopefully, this week's episode may help him get it. 

 

The episode itself was a joy. A bit light on jokes, sure, but all in all a success. It had a little bit of everything and displayed the incredible solidarity that exists between the members of this rather excentric group of friends. They may annoy the living crap out of one another, they may want to murder one another on occasion, they may be relieved when one of them goes missing for a while (Leonard jumping on the opportunity not to have to drive Sheldon home), they may mock each other; but when push comes to shove, the support and care they show for one another is sincere and deep. 

 

I for one was not annoyed by Sheldon's behaviour, either towards Amy or anybody else. His attitude towards his girlfriend is pretty consistent : he most certainly does not want to hurt her or her feelings but he is still very much insensitive and self-centered. On occasion, he'll display a more caring side of his but he tends to revert back to his natural comfort zone rather quickly. It does not negate the progress made previously; it just puts it on the backburner for a while. 

 

Bernadette and Howard were very sweet together. I liked that she was conflicted between her desire to know and her wanting to respect her husband's wished in re his father's letter. And it was good of her to be honest and confess about having asked Sheldon about it. 

 

Penny and Leonard were on their very best behaviour this week, which was nice. Mature, confident, flirty, touchy...

I particlarly enjoyed the way Penny interrupted Sheldon's explanation to make fun of it, him and herself. She introduced a bit of levity in a rather tense moment. 

 

Yep, good episode. 

 

I agree.

I think it's nice that the writers are confident enough with the show at this point to take a chance on doing an episode that isn't wall-to-wall laughs and can explore the characters a little more.

 

I think that one of the reasons the show has just increased more and more in popularity is that these characters are relatable.  It's always true in any kind of storytelling that if you care about the characters then you care about what happens to them, good, bad, funny, sad, etc.

And as Molaro, I think it was, said recently that at this point we know these characters pretty well and so things like the relationships, or in this case, Howard's past pain, resonate with the audience more than they would have back when we were perhaps not yet as invested in all of them.

 

And I do think that they used Sheldon and his behavior and comments as the primary comic relief.  I think everyone had a funny line or two, but all of Sheldon's comments and actions were on the funny side of the episode, and he's the only one who didn't really have a serious moment.  The closest thing he came was when he was kindly explaining the parameters of how they were going to tell him/not tell him about the contents of the letter.  Brilliant.

 

I agree that Sheldon's antics or comments with Amy were not intended to be indicative of some kind of resentment about his relationship with her.  As for the dinner party stuff, he's really not the dinner party type and doing something like organizing a closet is way more up his alley than sitting around making dinner conversation.  Though he's used to having the gang over at his apartment for dinner, in a situation like this, and even at the later party at his place, he's going to be uncomfortable and look for a way to get out of it.

And if Amy is okay with it (she loves his organizing quirk, aparrently), then I don't think there's anything to get worked up over.

 

I do love how touched Howard was with all the versions of what the letter could contain.  It was wonderfully sweet and heartbreaking.  I'm sure Steve Molaro was lying on the floor crying.

 

And I absolutely love that Sheldon found the dead goldfish and the battery operated "chew toy" in Penny's closet.

Hopefully he'll never find Amy's "little helper" Gerard...