Episodes 6.22 The Proton Resurgence (May 2)

[Lissie]

No, I don't think MJ is calling you an idiot. MJ is pointing out that married people would talk about having kids, at some time during the marriage. Especially, if one of them(in this case Howard) wants them and the other ( in this case, Bernadette) doesn't want them. Think of it as a stronger for of 'silly', and not directed at you personally, but at the situation itself that you are describing.

Thanks Tensor, but I think if someone tell you that people having your opinion is idiot then this person is telling you idiot Ok, but this is not a big thing. I only would like to receive critics about my opinions without using the words IDIOT -STUPID, etc. That is not necessary.

[Lissie]

Why not Lissie? Does it affect you personally? I think not.   Writers do what they like to do...whatever our wishes are.

They often pick up a plot line for one episode and soon after they drop it. Yes... Bernadette comes out a bit mean about money (i.e.the 3d printer) and often saying no off springs that's a thought that bothers Bernadette (remember also the magic show how she told off one of the kids . There must be a reason for the writers to make her that way. Don't you think?

Yeah, I know they are making fun with the situation that one of them wants Children and the other one doesn´t.  But this episode make me feel that soon they will say that Bernadette is pregnant, and they will search for fun in that situation. This is so boring for me   In the past I just stopped to watch some programs I liked because of the same: Children crying. Mothers in bad mood because she wants to work and it is difficult with the house jobs. Wife shouting to her husband making him to look after the baby. She will be going to work (because she makes more money) and she will make Howard to be in the house looking after the baby. It is like I can see the future episodes in front of my eyes!!! I can see Howard carrying the baby to the Institute Cafeteria and meeting the guys there with the baby holding on his chest, and some jokes about that and Sheldon upset with the situation, etc, etc!!  I know this is only my opinion but I feel all this sooooo boring in a TV program, and so predictable 

 

And this really affect me personaly because TBBT is my favourite program ever.

[Lissie]

I know what you mean. I don't know exactly where but about a month ago I mentioned in another thread that H&B are going to have a baby (announcement in Season 7 and birth in Season . To be honest, I don't mind anymore if they pull it off because Howard became boring and plain a long time ago. He's just too deep now in this whole marriage thing, there's no coming back for him I fear.

 

--------------

About the episode: I liked it! A solid "Good" from me.

+ Prof. Proton

+ Sheldon and Leonard talking about their childhood

+ interaction between Sheldon and Proton

+ Raj and his dog, how he cares about it lol

 

- Howard and Bernadette, meh.

- Penny being super dumb this time, come on...

This make me really sad because Howard was my second favourite character after Sheldon And Simon is my favourite actor after Jim  

Well, IMO that "babies situations" in a sitcom is the most boring they can do. Actually I said "the day came..." because me too was suspecting this baby topic/plans will come soon. And it came.

[Midru]

I agree that please no babies, at least anytime soon. The only fun will be a few jokes about Howard being a neutered parasite of his wife or emasculated househusband, and those won't be funny for long. 

 

Someone above was right on when they said Howard was kind of ruined when they put him with Bernadette. His Pepe LePew  thing was so damn funny, and we will never ever get to see it again, I fear- or any of that hilarious aspect of his character. 

[rachelshamyfan]

How much would a microbiologist get in salary anyway and how much would an engineer get?

[Tensor]

@koops, is there any chatter on the interwebs about ms rauch and children? Cos I'm trying to imagine her working in Scully's overcoat. I'm not so sure they could pull that off in a multi-camera sitcom.

I'd say they just played a riff off Raj's attachment parenting practice.

There's a couple of clips online of her comments regarding children. In one(I think it's on Conan)she says she "eventually" wants children(and says she thinks she wants two on Craig Ferguson) but the impression from her comments is it isn't going to be while she on TBBT.

[wannamaker]

I think it's normal for a married couple to talk about kids, after all this topic inevitably comes up whenever people are discussing "What's next?" for Howard and Bernadette. So it's not shocking to me at all the subject has come up, it came up last year too after all. Doesn't mean it's going to happen anytime soon, if at all. I honestly would be very surprised if the writers went there, they don't seem to run this show as a "family-oriented" show, so unless the characters start getting too old and the show is still on the air, I doubt they'll bring children on. But that doesn't mean the topic won't come up. 

 

Indeed I think so too and I personally I wish to end it here since we are a bit off topic.

The thread is about the encounter between Sheldon and Proton the old professor   unless someonelse think otherwise...

[SRAM]

How much would a microbiologist get in salary anyway and how much would an engineer get?

 

Really it depends who you work for.  If you work for the Govenment, about the same, but if you work for a drug company as a microbiologist, you could make a lot.  So Bernie could be making anywhere from twice to five times what Howard's making.

[rachelshamyfan]

I would of thought that Howard would be making a decent amount considering the things he's done, I didn't really like the scene where b was laying into him about him earning peanuts! Way to kick a man down!

[Superlovelexi]

Fun episode enjoyed it a lot.  Bob Newhart is comic genius.  Really hope we get to see Professor Proton again next season.  I wish amy was in this one and got to meet Sheldon's childhood hero too, but other than that I was happy with this episode. I had to watch it late because I went to see Iron Man 3 on Thursday, seeing as the guys are huge Marvel comic book fans I'm sure they would be proud of me for going Thursday opening night.  If characters were real thats where they would have been too I'm sure   Looking forward to next one.

Edited May 5, 2013 by Superlovelexi

[BangerMain]

I would of thought that Howard would be making a decent amount considering the things he's done, I didn't really like the scene where b was laying into him about him earning peanuts! Way to kick a man down!

 

This has been discussed several times before but in general you are correct, Howard would in real life be making a nice six figure salary.  An Aerospace Engineer is among the highest paid technical profession and given his accomplishments and Bernadette's relative job experience, he might be making more than her, at least for now. But that's real life.

 

The producers of TBBT decided to understate the earnings of the guys at the outset to allow them to better fit the stereotype most viewers have of guys who are into geek culture. So we have an engineer who designs important components for space crafts and who becomes an astronaut, living with his mother riding around on a motor scooter. Two noted physicists at one of the leading research institutions in the world are sharing an apartment in a building with a broken elevator that is affordable to a waitress.

 

The economics of the show have never made real world sense but it allows for the premise to work. Leonard's level of success would dictate that his salary would also be in the six figure range by now but that would mean he should not be living with Sheldon and therefore, not near Penny. The whole reason he is with Penny is proximity to her allowed her time to get to know and like him. The four guys are successful professional men and the chances are in real life they would have known Penny only as the hot waitress who served them sometimes at the Cheesecake factory. End of story.

 

So I have learned to ignore the absurdity of the finances because it allows the story to be told. 

Edited May 5, 2013 by BangerMain

[koops]

The thing is though, we found out in the Tenure episode that they're technically all post-docs. Which is absurd because we do know they've all been in their careers for a long time, especially Sheldon, getting his PhD at 15 and all, so it's very unlikely that someone this successful at their job isn't even Assistant Professor yet. Sheldon's meant to be 33, he would have been at this job for nearly 20 years now. As post-docs they wouldn't be making the amount of money a tenured scientist would. Some post-docs do make "peanuts", compared to a job in the industry. So in that sense the financial situation might not be that far off, but on the other hand their job situation doesn't make sense. 

 

Ironically though, it is Howard that should be making more money out of any of the guys, given that he isn't a post-doc and is seemingly a very sought-after Engineer. 

[BangerMain]

The thing is though, we found out in the Tenure episode that they're technically all post-docs. Which is absurd because we do know they've all been in their careers for a long time, especially Sheldon, getting his PhD at 15 and all, so it's very unlikely that someone this successful at their job isn't even Assistant Professor yet. Sheldon's meant to be 33, he would have been at this job for nearly 20 years now. As post-docs they wouldn't be making the amount of money a tenured scientist would. Some post-docs do make "peanuts", compared to a job in the industry. So in that sense the financial situation might not be that far off, but on the other hand their job situation doesn't make sense. 

 

Ironically though, it is Howard that should be making more money out of any of the guys, given that he isn't a post-doc and is seemingly a very sought-after Engineer. 

We have to believe that in TBBT world, these guy spent all this time, effort and money on their education and training and then took a vow of near poverty as if they were monks. All for the benefit and service of science at CalTech.

 

Sheldon and Raj are not in fields that will make them rich but by now they should be more than post-Docs, which are for PH. Ds at the beginning of their careers. Both of them have been shown to have earned prestigious honors. The only possible explanation is that neither of them teach or lead big grant research projects (Raj because of his mutisum and Sheldon because he's crazy). If that was the case they should have been long gone from CalTech.

 

Leonard and Howard are in professions that would pay big money in private industry. Both are considered as top flight and Howard is just flat out elite and Leonard will soon be shown to be the same. Both are also shown to be very concerned about the happiness of the woman in their lives. For one said to be making "peanuts" by his wife and the other to suffer under a tyrannical roommate who irritates the beautiful love of his life, requires a complete suspension of disbelief. Each would have left the university years ago unless they have some psychological damage that would keep them at the status quo.

Edited May 5, 2013 by BangerMain

[koops]

There are a lot of "quirky" people in academia, similar to Sheldon or Raj, that are nonetheless established, tenured Professor. Their "issues" wouldn't stop them from getting grants or tenure.

 

I think the issue with the show is that, at their age, had they followed the normal career-path of an academic, it would still be believable that they are post-docs on the verge of getting tenure (one is normally expected to do at least a couple of post-docs before being considered for tenure track). But the show has established both Sheldon and Leonard as people who finished grad school way before the time people normally do, especially Sheldon, so they would have been tenured a while ago. So, to me, it is absurd given that they started their careers way earlier than normal, but, if they hadn't, it wouldn't be so absurd to be 32-33 and just about to start being on tenure-track (and therefore not making big money yet). Which is probably the case with Raj and Amy.

 

Howard is another story entirely.

[queuetee]

Indeed I think so too and I personally I wish to end it here since we are a bit off topic.

The thread is about the encounter between Sheldon and Proton the old professor   unless someonelse think otherwise...

 

.

The topic is the show from May2. That would include everything that happened on that show including the discussion of children by H/B

Edited May 5, 2013 by queuetee

[mjc45]

great episode- with newhart, glad he would

be back for 2 more shows next season.

 

howie/bernie--will talk about kids, they are married

he and his mother want to have kids bad, he all

 most break up with her/deal breaker.

 

would have be nice for leonard to say some thing

to penny about proton's "what you 2 talk about"

 

we have "soft kitty"

[SD.]

i voted okay

because it wasnt that good at all

compared to the previous episodes

 

im starting to think the show is losing its touch lol

the last 2 episodes were kinda boring in my opinion

[Nogravitasatall]

last scene in hospital. Wireless oxygen saturation clip on prof proton? New tech or gotcha?

[goldenorb]

last scene in hospital. Wireless oxygen saturation clip on prof proton? New tech or gotcha?

 

There are wireless oxygen saturation sensors, using BlueTooth technology, but they don't look like that.  The one Arthur wore looked like the old-fashioned kind with the wires clipped.

 

(former hospital employee)

[Pomita]

My much belated take.. I thought it was a delightful little story, funny as well as touching.

 

Sheldon and Professor Proton together had me rolling in every scene - I had never seen Bob Newhart before, but I have to say his deadpan is simply brilliant. He and Jim are comedic gold together. Hark at the scene when Sheldon grins maniacally at him, sitting on the couch, and he tentatively smiles back.. I could swear there were sparks. :D I'm so glad to know he'll be back again next season.

 

Also, I thought the part where Sheldon and Leonard bolstered his self-esteem by expressing their admiration for him, telling him that all the scientific discoveries made by his fans are his discoveries, was deeply moving - it teared me up. So did the whole subtext of Sheldon feeling real goodwill and empathy for him, looking after him with so much concern, singing Soft Kitty, asking him if he wanted Jell-o - it fair melted my heart when he accepted him happily as a father figure and hugged him with such openness and emotion. I mean, Sheldon. It's moments like this when we get to see what his 'human side' is capable of.

 

I didn't think Penny was being stupid in this, in fact - she actually showed genuine interest in the experiments, which was great - it mattered that she really got into it, instead of pulling faces. How was she supposed to know all the details? Prof. Proton's comment to Leonard was just his own crankiness coming through, I think, and just meant to be a funny line.

 

The H/B storyline was more predictable, but still funny. They did a great job copying Raj's accent in the car. And I love dogs, and Yorkies, and especially Cinnamon. So I'm quite willing to see her any number of times on screen.

 

I'm hoping to goodness that the H/B discussion about children doesn't lead to a pregnancy storyline any time soon. While I'm okay with it in fan-fic, I'm not at all sure I'd be happy with things like that happening on the show.

 

I think the issue with the show is that, at their age, had they followed the normal career-path of an academic, it would still be believable that they are post-docs on the verge of getting tenure (one is normally expected to do at least a couple of post-docs before being considered for tenure track). But the show has established both Sheldon and Leonard as people who finished grad school way before the time people normally do, especially Sheldon, so they would have been tenured a while ago. So, to me, it is absurd given that they started their careers way earlier than normal, but, if they hadn't, it wouldn't be so absurd to be 32-33 and just about to start being on tenure-track (and therefore not making big money yet). Which is probably the case with Raj and Amy.

 

I agree. I'm older than them and I'm on my second post-doc now (hoping for tenure soon ) and that's the case with many of my colleagues, so with the usual time-line it would be quite believable. It just seems strange for Sheldon, with his child-prodigy status.

[djvang]

Yeah, I know they are making fun with the situation that one of them wants Children and the other one doesn´t.  But this episode make me feel that soon they will say that Bernadette is pregnant, and they will search for fun in that situation. This is so boring for me   In the past I just stopped to watch some programs I liked because of the same: Children crying. Mothers in bad mood because she wants to work and it is difficult with the house jobs. Wife shouting to her husband making him to look after the baby. She will be going to work (because she makes more money) and she will make Howard to be in the house looking after the baby. It is like I can see the future episodes in front of my eyes!!! I can see Howard carrying the baby to the Institute Cafeteria and meeting the guys there with the baby holding on his chest, and some jokes about that and Sheldon upset with the situation, etc, etc!!  I know this is only my opinion but I feel all this sooooo boring in a TV program, and so predictable 

 

And this really affect me personaly because TBBT is my favourite program ever.

I share your concerns about that happening. It's why many of us lament the show changing from geek based humor to a more standard romantic relationship based show. It's the loss of originality.  If Bernadette does get pregnant and have kids those future episodes you predict WILL happen.  In changing the show to a romcom the people who run the show not only tapped into the huge audience who loves that type of show, but they also tapped into the thousands of script ideas of the countless romcoms that have come before. Grab a script, insert TBBT cast, make a few adjustments and, BAM, they've got an episode.  We've already seen that in The Parking Lot Escalation. How many times has the childish-men-fighting-about-something-silly-and-drawing-the-normally-mature-women-into-the-battle story been done before? 

 

I know it must be incredibly difficult for the writers to keep coming up with fresh, new geek humor. The well was running dry so they had to branch out to other areas.

[Lissie]

Indeed I think so too and I personally I wish to end it here since we are a bit off topic.

The thread is about the encounter between Sheldon and Proton the old professor   unless someonelse think otherwise...

Is this thread about Sheldon and Proton only? Why? I think it is about the full episode.

And it is not compulsory that married couples should talk about having Children. Some are not.

[Lissie]

I share your concerns about that happening. It's why many of us lament the show changing from geek based humor to a more standard romantic relationship based show. It's the loss of originality.  If Bernadette does get pregnant and have kids those future episodes you predict WILL happen.  In changing the show to a romcom the people who run the show not only tapped into the huge audience who loves that type of show, but they also tapped into the thousands of script ideas of the countless romcoms that have come before. Grab a script, insert TBBT cast, make a few adjustments and, BAM, they've got an episode.  We've already seen that in The Parking Lot Escalation. How many times has the childish-men-fighting-about-something-silly-and-drawing-the-normally-mature-women-into-the-battle story been done before? 

 

I know it must be incredibly difficult for the writers to keep coming up with fresh, new geek humor. The well was running dry so they had to branch out to other areas.

My dear, I think the problem is not about the difficulty of coming up with fresh geek humor. I think they are capable of that....BUT they are not brave enough to keep a program in the way it was before. I mean, they created a different sitcom and it was amazing and lot of people was liking it BUT they felt fear in some point that this will not be enough and they started to come to the confortable/predictable/just tried so many times zone. They came to the easy way..so lazy people

 

And I hope that some will understand that this is MY OPINION and it doesn´t need to be the same as they have.

Edited May 6, 2013 by Lissie

[Nogravitasatall]

its got to be a commercial decision, maybe sadly. If its not popular it will wilt. Or they have another revenue stream like subscription. hbo might be a host for a longer run series like s1-3.

[Lissie]

And I don´t know from were some got the idea that married couples always talk about having Children in some point of life. Make me feel I am not in the time/century I am thinking I am. I went back in the time and I didn´t noticed? In which moment I was exposed to a time machine?? An old coffee machine count?