Episodes 6.24 The Bon Voyage Reaction (May 16)

[Nogravitasatall]

That's so funny Loops, when i see your user name.

not taking the Mickey. Just noting the congruousness.

[eirwinrommel]

I enjoy the nerds but the writers made Lucy more of a mental case than nerd. Maybe that is why I don't care for Raj either. Reading Comic Books and Looking at stars are what nerds do. Not being able to talk in the same room with a women in it, is a Mental case.

 

.

While I agree that a shared problem can cause two people to bond (like Howard and Bernie over their overbearing mothers), when it gets in the way there's nothing else to keep them together. I hope Raj can put Lucy behind him and meet someone he can actually have a relationship with (I'm tired of 'boo-hoo' Raj).

[koops]

I think the point of these characters is that they're all, with the exception of Penny and Bernadette, socially awkward, for different reasons. And there are often psychological conditions underlying the social awkwardness. They're not just nerds, they are also highly gifted people, and it's actually fairly realistic in that respect. Not that all academics are social awkward, but it's definitely more common than in other work-settings.

 

Raj's was just more evident. I didn't mind that, it just got very old by this stage and it was about time they did something about it. I still think they can save Lucy later on if they wish, but I do agree that having psychologica issues as the only thing in common is probably not the best foundation for a relationship. But Lucy hasn't been fleshed out at all, they could still add layers to her personality to make her more suited to Raj. The one thing I actually struggled with is why he was so into her, because if it is only for her social anxiety making him feel more in control, then it's a weak reason to have a relationship with someone.

[Berliner]

To put it short: If we are being honest, since the beginning there were actually only two nerds: Sheldon and Howard. Now, since Howard got domesticated, plain and boring (imo), we only got Sheldon. And even he is not safe anymore (the writers did an outstanding job this season messing around with the Sheldon character).

[Berliner]

I really hope they bring in more science next season. I totally felt alienated watching season six. It would interesting if sheldon would be able to definitely prove one his theories.

 

Yeah, it's a pity. Sheldon was everything this season but a scientist.

[koops]

We can nitpick from here until the end of days about what constitutes a "true" nerd and who doesn't, the definition varies depending on who you ask. There are different kinds of nerds/geeks/socially awkward. It's all relative. Everyone on the show except for Penny is meant to be nerdy/geeky, just to different degrees and about different stuff.

Edited May 23, 2013 by koops

[vasu]

To put it short: If we are being honest, since the beginning there were actually only two nerds: Sheldon and Howard. Now, since Howard got domesticated, plain and boring (imo), we only got Sheldon. And even he is not safe anymore (the writers did an outstanding job this season messing around with the Sheldon character).

 

So Howard in the earlier seasons was like a King of the Jungle where he used to go after every lioness, but now his Jungle has become his Zoo where is forced to mate with the same lioness again and again making the present him a docile house cat ......  "Meow"  ..... how sad   

 

:D :D

Edited May 23, 2013 by vasu

[Nogravitasatall]

We can nitpick from here until the end of days about what constitutes a "true" nerd and who doesn't, the definition varies depending on who you ask. There are different kinds of nerds/geeks/socially awkward. It's all relative. Everyone on the show except for Penny is meant to be nerdy/geeky, just to different degrees and about different stuff.

@koops, do you think Penny is getting her geek on, or will she always be an "ally". And if that's the case can she keep her geek off? What would it take? (Icon:rhetorical) maybe.

Post 900. Aargghh.

[koops]

@koops, do you think Penny is getting her geek on, or will she always be an "ally". And if that's the case can she keep her geek off? What would it take? (Icon:rhetorical) maybe.

Post 900. Aargghh.

 

 

 

I think they're probably always going to keep her as an "ally". It's one of the core elements of the show that she's meant to provide the "average person" perspective on all things nerd. I think there will be occasions where she will get her geek on, like with the online game and the comic books (how can she not really, when she's surrounded by geeks 24/7), but from there to become a nerd it's a long road, and I doubt they will go there. They need her in moments like 6x23 to be the one going "No it's not!!!". The other question is whether one can become a nerd that late in life or it's a personality thing you only really develop much younger. But we're getting into philosophical/psychological/sociological debate here

[tmp]

So Howard in the earlier seasons was like a King of the Jungle where he used to go after every lioness, but now his Jungle has become his Zoo where is forced to mate with the same lioness again and again making the present him a docile house cat ......  "Meow"  ..... how sad   

 

:D :D

 

Wow, vasu, that's quite an interesting view of marriage you got going on there.  The right lioness can make the King of the Jungle never want to leave the zoo, though.

[Guest DroneInTheSun]

I enjoy the nerds but the writers made Lucy more of a mental case than nerd. Maybe that is why I don't care for Raj either. Reading Comic Books and Looking at stars are what nerds do. Not being able to talk in the same room with a women in it, is a Mental case.

 

This is so offensive on so many levels, like woah.

[phantagrae]

The Raj character was based on a guy that Bill Prady knew in real life who was unable to talk to women--whether you call it "pathological shyness" or whatever, it was that man's reality.  He was eventually able to get married and have a family, but I don't think Prady knew if he had had therapy or medication or what.  Maybe he just met the right woman.

 

And I don't think that Howard was any kind of "king"--he was obviously pathetic and a legend only in his own mind.  Howard was always coming up with crazy schemes to pick up women, but he never really succeeded beyond the occasional pathetic one-night stand.  He was always talking about how the more drunk women at a bar might get, the better his chances for scoring, and even with that approach, he never really seemed to make it other than with strippers and/or prostitutes (who get paid to be with guys.)

 

He was LUCKY to have found Bernadette, who was able to see past all of his playboy bravado to see the real guy underneath.  As much as he loved to talk about being a playboy, he was only ever really looking for love--hence his inability to shrug off being dumped by Leslie Winkle, even though he pretended it was nothing more than a "friends with benefits" relationship.  He's happy to have found someone that he loves and who loves him back.

If people complain about Raj's mutism getting old, why wasn't it getting old that Howard was just a loser time and again?  Whatever pathetic schemes he came up with (eye-patches, magic tricks, tattoo sleeves) always ended up backfiring on him because he could never just be REAL with anyone.  With Bernie he learned how to be his real self (remember the conversation he and Penny had, where she said it was the first time she felt like she was talking to a real person?) and found that he didn't need to be scamming and scheming.  He still had his "fancy patter" and his "tight hootchie pants", but that's more of his real character than the other schemes he was always using.

 

I love that Howard is able to be happy and still be nerdy without having to constantly be a sleazebag.  He's still very interested in sex, it's just that it's now sex with his wife.  There's nothing wrong with that.

[eirwinrommel]

So Howard in the earlier seasons was like a King of the Jungle where he used to go after every lioness, but now his Jungle has become his Zoo where is forced to mate with the same lioness again and again making the present him a docile house cat ......  "Meow"  ..... how sad   

 

:D :D

I think Howard is happier being a 'house cat' than 'King of the Jungle'.

[vasu]

Wow, vasu, that's quite an interesting view of marriage you got going on there.  The right lioness can make the King of the Jungle never want to leave the zoo, though.

 

I think Howard is happier being a 'house cat' than 'King of the Jungle

 

Something about Berliner's "Domesticated" comment made me think like that .... my train of thought after reading that comment went to lions and cats(often referred as domesticated lions )  

 

I found it funny and tried my own version of it with a creative(really??) metaphor....

Edited May 24, 2013 by vasu

[hamerman55]

I would definitely like to see more science in season seven, especially since we have three of the four guys in basically stable relationships. The most fun episodes were the ones where they were scheming and plotting, like in "The 43 Peculiarity" or "The Parking Space Escalation". Amy and Sheldon running psychological experiments in "The Herb Garden Dissemination" was fun too. Relationship secondary plots would be good, as we want to see everyone advance, but it would be fine if most of the boy-girl angst was focused on Raj. I'm sure they can have fun with the relationships, but they could easily be secondary plots to more science-focused ones.

[Nogravitasatall]

Does anyone, of any preference, have anything good to say about the back seat of a Golf convertible, or a recent performance there from. I'm looking for an upside and am open to being persuaded. Thanking you in advance.

[eirwinrommel]

Does anyone, of any preference, have anything good to say about the back seat of a Golf convertible, or a recent performance there from. I'm looking for an upside and am open to being persuaded. Thanking you in advance.

No to both.

[Guitars1964]

No to both.

 

I guess you refer to the Sheldon tantrum at the airport.  Based on comments in the forum, seems most didn't love his behavior, but as I have said before, it was, I think, the writers' attempt to keep some levity in a scene that otherwise could have been more tilted toward drama/romance than the basic premise of the show would normally permit.  Let's face it, the season finale was heavily weighted toward the emotional and the writers probably didn't want the season to end that way.  I still love Sheldon's "Monkeys went to space" comment at Leonard's going away party.  I don't always like Sheldon's caustic comments, but Howard sort of had it coming.

[eirwinrommel]

I guess you refer to the Sheldon tantrum at the airport.  Based on comments in the forum, seems most didn't love his behavior, but as I have said before, it was, I think, the writers' attempt to keep some levity in a scene that otherwise could have been more tilted toward drama/romance than the basic premise of the show would normally permit.  Let's face it, the season finale was heavily weighted toward the emotional and the writers probably didn't want the season to end that way.  I still love Sheldon's "Monkeys went to space" comment at Leonard's going away party.  I don't always like Sheldon's caustic comments, but Howard sort of had it coming.

Specifically the back seat of a VW Golf (or any small car) is to small for comfort. As for Sheldon, he wasn't needed at the Airport, the scene would have been better without him. If they needed comedy they could have had Leonard or Penny say something funny (Oh what a cute locket!, I got it at the mall... on sale, As long as it doesn't turn my neck green. It wasn't that cheap) something along those lines with them trying to lighten the mood. Sheldon's presence was just annoying and detracted from the scene. Of course if Penny had hit Sheldon or kicked him out of the car it would have been worth it. If Sheldon had been kicked out of the car then Penny could have driven off, and Leonard could have checked in, leaving Sheldon standing there stranded at the airport (god forbid he take a bus or cab back to the Apt.) wondering how to get home.

Edited May 24, 2013 by eirwinrommel

[Moonbase]

Specifically the back seat of a VW Golf (or any small car) is to small for comfort. As for Sheldon, he wasn't needed at the Airport, the scene would have been better without him. If they needed comedy they could have had Leonard or Penny say something funny (Oh what a cute locket!, I got it at the mall... on sale, As long as it doesn't turn my neck green. It wasn't that cheap) something along those lines with them trying to lighten the mood. Sheldon's presence was just annoying and detracted from the scene.

 

I think we can all imagine that scene without Sheldon and it would have made for a much better finale. It's a shame, I don't get why they made that decision because he wasn't even funny.

[Guitars1964]

Specifically the back seat of a VW Golf (or any small car) is to small for comfort. As for Sheldon, he wasn't needed at the Airport, the scene would have been better without him. If they needed comedy they could have had Leonard or Penny say something funny (Oh what a cute locket!, I got it at the mall... on sale, As long as it doesn't turn my neck green. It wasn't that cheap) something along those lines with them trying to lighten the mood. Sheldon's presence was just annoying and detracted from the scene.

 

OK, and I'd go along with jokes between L&P as long as they weren't at Leonard's sole expense. You will recall 2 of Penny's comments when Leonard told her about his trip:  1)Leonard could only screw up the relationship if he were there, not away - of course that's not what Leonard was worried about, and 2) sending Penny to get rid of the spiders in the bathroom.  It seems like it's always at his expense.  I'd prefer what we got in the car to an exchange that involved Penny making jokes about Leonard...again.

[eirwinrommel]

Leaving Sheldon at he airport could have lead into Season 7. Amy comes to get Sheldon, and Sheldon complains about Penny leaving him at the airport.  In response Amy offers to take Sheldon wherever he needs to go (replacing Leonard). Flash forward present day, Leonard returns and Amy screams, gives him a big hug and kiss, saying 'Thank God you're back!! Never leave Again!!'.

[eirwinrommel]

OK, and I'd go along with jokes between L&P as long as they weren't at Leonard's sole expense. You will recall 2 of Penny's comments when Leonard told her about his trip:  1)Leonard could only screw up the relationship if he were there, not away - of course that's not what Leonard was worried about, and 2) sending Penny to get rid of the spiders in the bathroom.  It seems like it's always at his expense.  I'd prefer what we got in the car to an exchange that involved Penny making jokes about Leonard...again.

I don't think the 'Leonard could only screw up the relationship if he were there' comment was meant as a joke against Leonard. The last time they broke up was after Leonard first said ILY (season 3 episode 19), The big upset in their reboot was after he proposed (season 5 episode 23), even the first time they broke up (after their first date) (season 2 episode 1) was because of something he said. Specifically the problem has been a combination of what he said and how Penny reacted to it. That's what she meant and from Leonard's reaction, that's how he took it. As for the spiders Leonard and Sheldon do have Penny kill the spiders in their bathroom.

 

(season 2 episode 19)

 

Penny: Okay, it’s done. Look, guys, for the future, I don’t mind killing the big spiders, but you have to at least try with the little ones.

Edited May 24, 2013 by eirwinrommel

[phantagrae]

Does anyone, of any preference, have anything good to say about the back seat of a Golf convertible, or a recent performance there from. I'm looking for an upside and am open to being persuaded. Thanking you in advance.

I didn't have a problem with it. I'm sure Penny and Leonard took Sheldon along because Leonard is Sheldon's best friend. Sheldon fixating on the loading zone rules would be par for the course for him (and ignoring them par for the course for Penny), but it was a way for him to avoid a) thinking about the reality of his best friend and roommate leaving for the next 3 or 4 months and b ) dealing with "mushy" L/P in the front seat (note the way he rolls his eyes when they finally do start to kiss).

And, yes, it serves to lighten the goodbye scene, keep Sheldon true to his mostly-self-focused personality, and show that L/P can ignore him and still have their moment. And Sheldon freely acknowledging (to a total stranger, no less) than he knows that Leonard and Penny love each other.

Edited May 27, 2013 by phantagrae

[Midru]

Something I've noticed before about the show, and it sometimes bugs me but I now accept it, is that it always seems to cut the emotional scenes with humor- as Sheldon in the car during the goodbye.

 

It really seems like TPTB are afraid to let the emotions or the sweetness out unless they can tightly control it with laughs. Which I guess is how they keep it light.