[Spoilers] Discussion: Season 10

[spidergirl]

6 minutes ago, RJ1013 said:

I enjoyed meeting you too, @BigBangEnthusiast! As soon as the episode contained talk of scientific collaboration, I knew I was going to write a longer TR than I had originally intended, and long as it is, I can still think of lots of little details I didn’t include.

Speaking of stuff I didn’t include, I forgot to mention a few behind the scenes things from Tuesday. When Kaley and Johnny spoke to the audience, Kaley said that she ‘thinks it’s safe to say’ there will be two more seasons, so presumably Mayim and Melissa’s negotiations are still ongoing. Johnny had some nice things to say to the 20+ Big Bang UCLA scholars who were in the audience for the taping. I didn’t know that it was a scholarship endowment designed to last in perpetuity, or that it had contributions from the crew as well as the execs and cast.

The audience host always asks attendees if they want to come up and say anything about the show’s effect on their lives or what it means to them. It was nice to see Chuck Lorre happily listening along to what the fans had to say during that. I know people here don't always like the guy, but he does seem to care about the show.

.The host kept referring to 4A as Leonard and Sheldon's apartment and 4B as Penny’s apartment. I’m sure it’s a habit after 10 years, but I found the inaccuracy of it kinda annoying

Thank so much for these details, I love so much to know bts!

About the bold part, I so agree with you! But I guess that lack of accurancy matches with the lack of coherence about some old facts of the show, hehe!

Kudos to you for all these posts about your taping experience! <3

[Capt. Hilts]

One of the themes of this show - aside from being funny about science types - is 'acceptance'.  Penny is vital to that theme.  Penny worried about being 'accepted' by these smart guys.  She, in turn, accepted Sheldon for what he was [and, later, Amy], as did Leonard.  As condescending as Sheldon is, can you imagine how he'd react if she had threatened to move?  After all those years of pushing Sheldon's comfort envelope, he came to trust her.  No mean feat.  Penny's character is key to the fabric of the show.  It could not go on without her, or Leonard.

[JohnPhD]

6 minutes ago, bfm said:

The writers could "sell" them a seperation telling them it will bring more stories and screem time for them individually and perhaps together at the beginning of s11 and end of s12 if they get back together then...I think it will be a disaster but they will get headlines and the critics will praise them for "the courage" disregarding how bad it is for the story and the characters. That's a lot of temptation for lazy/dried up writers (in respect to Lenny, they seem to be different writers when they write for Shamy) and combined with the money they might tempt J&K. 

I would guess that a selling point might be that a separation scene gives KC an opportunity to show more of her acting range. During the Priya period she did self-controlled unhappiness beautifully, and that would obviously be more intense if they were breaking up after being married.  I would not be entirely unhappy with that if the following unlikely conditions were all met:

(1) Penny leaves in the last ep of S10 and the last scene of the last ep is something like Sheldon comes into 4a and finds Leonard alone and devastated. After L tells him what has happened, S looks calmly at L for a long time then just says something to the effect "so how are you going to get her back?" or "What are you waiting for - go after her". End.

(2) The main story arc of S11 is Leonard's  attempt to get Penny back, which succeeds by the mid-season hiatus. This must be the first priority for screentime, which means putting Shamy back in a properly secondary position.

(3) After the reunion Penny and Leonard have a new lifestyle more appropriate to a grown-up married couple. The other characters, particularly Amy and Raj, can't just barge into 4a whenever they feel like it.

No, I don't suppose it will be like that at all. But there's no point in being pre-disappointed.

[BigBang15]

19 minutes ago, JE7 said:

They may well do so and then be oh so suprised when the show tanks and is cancelled after season 11, I can here it now "I don't ubderstand it was genius writing, really pushing the boundaries of sitcom art, a bold reimagining of the genre. I guess the plebeian masses just couldn't ubderstand it as is the fate of much true art". - Chuck Lorrie april 2018

That will NEVER happen. What makes anyone think that the opinions of ANYONE on this board are the same as the general viewing public? If they get contracted for seasons 11 & 12, there will be seasons 11 & 12. The show would have to loose a LOT of casual fans for anything to change. (And even then, season 12 could be moved to CW or All Access to finish out the 12th season, though unlikely).

[bfm]

10 minutes ago, JohnPhD said:

I would guess that a selling point might be that a separation scene gives KC an opportunity to show more of her acting range. During the Priya period she did self-controlled unhappiness beautifully, and that would obviously be more intense if they were breaking up after being married.  I would not be entirely unhappy with that if the following unlikely conditions were all met:

(1) Penny leaves in the last ep of S10 and the last scene of the last ep is something like Sheldon comes into 4a and finds Leonard alone and devastated. After L tells him what has happened, S looks calmly at L for a long time then just says something to the effect "so how are you going to get her back?" or "What are you waiting for - go after her". End.

(2) The main story arc of S11 is Leonard's  attempt to get Penny back, which succeeds by the mid-season hiatus. This must be the first priority for screentime, which means putting Shamy back in a properly secondary position.

(3) After the reunion Penny and Leonard have a new lifestyle more appropriate to a grown-up married couple. The other characters, particularly Amy and Raj, can't just barge into 4a whenever they feel like it.

No, I don't suppose it will be like that at all. But there's no point in being pre-disappointed.

If they do make the disasterous decision of breaking them up I prefer seeing Penny being the one to try to get Leonard back this time and to prove him that she truely loves him even though it doesn't always seem that way. We have seen Leonard chasing her for so much time, personally if he chases her again I think it will make me much more upset than if it is the other way around. Of course, I don't believe I would enjoy any of these options.  

[JE7]

49 minutes ago, Capt. Hilts said:

One of the themes of this show - aside from being funny about science types - is 'acceptance'.  Penny is vital to that theme.  Penny worried about being 'accepted' by these smart guys.  She, in turn, accepted Sheldon for what he was [and, later, Amy], as did Leonard.  As condescending as Sheldon is, can you imagine how he'd react if she had threatened to move?  After all those years of pushing Sheldon's comfort envelope, he came to trust her.  No mean feat.  Penny's character is key to the fabric of the show.  It could not go on without her, or Leonard.

Ok I take it back and apologize, your obviously not chuck, unless you forced Molero to write that for you 

31 minutes ago, BigBang15 said:

That will NEVER happen. What makes anyone think that the opinions of ANYONE on this board are the same as the general viewing public? If they get contracted for seasons 11 & 12, there will be seasons 11 & 12. The show would have to loose a LOT of casual fans for anything to change. (And even then, season 12 could be moved to CW or All Access to finish out the 12th season, though unlikely).

Really my sin and dau in law have this entire seasin on tivo they watched the first 5 or 6 eoisides then stoped but never bithered to remove it from the programing so it keeps recording, that counts as watching, I am not as convuncef as you that the ratings actually reflect the casual audience investment in the show nor it's commitment to further viewing.

All we KNOW for a fact is how many monitored households have it on screen the rest is (with apologies to Tensor and the mathematicians) basically extrapolation or in laymens terms fancy guess work no better than polls and the last few elections have shown how flawed those are

I personally have doubts as to the "casuals" enjoymeny of and commitment to watching the show no matter what that so many seem to take for granted, all it takes is one mistake in todays oh so sensitive society for a rising star to become a falling meteorite 

Edited March 11, 2017 by JE7
Is a TBBTxit in the future only time will tell

[Cloud Strife]

15 minutes ago, BigBang15 said:

That will NEVER happen. What makes anyone think that the opinions of ANYONE on this board are the same as the general viewing public?

Right? I'm a member of various other TBBT fansites and I can assure you that this is not true. Not in the slightest.

[hokie3457]

1 hour ago, RJ1013 said:

I enjoyed meeting you too, @BigBangEnthusiast! As soon as the episode contained talk of scientific collaboration, I knew I was going to write a longer TR than I had originally intended, and long as it is, I can still think of lots of little details I didn’t include.

Speaking of stuff I didn’t include, I forgot to mention a few behind the scenes things from Tuesday. When Kaley and Johnny spoke to the audience, Kaley said that she ‘thinks it’s safe to say’ there will be two more seasons, so presumably Mayim and Melissa’s negotiations are still ongoing. Johnny had some nice things to say to the 20+ Big Bang UCLA scholars who were in the audience for the taping. I didn’t know that it was a scholarship endowment designed to last in perpetuity, or that it had contributions from the crew as well as the execs and cast.

The audience host always asks attendees if they want to come up and say anything about the show’s effect on their lives or what it means to them. It was nice to see Chuck Lorre happily listening along to what the fans had to say during that. I know people here don't always like the guy, but he does seem to care about the show.

The host kept referring to 4A as Leonard and Sheldon's apartment and 4B as Penny’s apartment. I’m sure it’s a habit after 10 years, but I found the inaccuracy of it kinda annoying.

Thanks again @RJ1013!  I so love bts items. You dear folks who attend tapings and share your experience give us all a peek over your shoulder. You all are the best. Thanks again @RJ1013!!

[Mario D.]

20 hours ago, 2L344 said:

I got to thinking about the whole Raj roommate thing. It could be possible that (intrusiveness aside) Raj could be the one to help Lenny through some issues. Love him or hate him, Raj is the kind of guy that can be that sympathetic ear for the gang when he wants to be.

When he and Sheldon spent time in the CalTech basement it was Raj who talked to a scared Sheldon facing a career change, and tried to comfort him and bring perspective to the change Sheldon was facing. Raj has given advice to Howardette that was spot on when he stayed briefly with them (and it was probably too close to home since in the end Howardette turned on Raj lol). And despite his one time and short lived drunken bedroom romp with Penny, Raj DID insist to Penny once that she should tell Leonard she loved him when leonard confessed to Raj that she never had. I think Raj wants them happy.

Raj has often times been the one that went out of his way to keep the gang together with his love for themed events, scavenger hunts, boys gaming nights, and involvement in girls nights too (jewelry making).

I know he is written to also be a tool bag too, and he has screwed up a lot over the years. But this latest TR shows he can be a friend to both Leonard and Penny. So just maybe Raj at some point can be the one that helps Lenny recognize some things that may elude them, and in the end he could become a surrogate therapist of some sort. He can be a sensitive and deep thinking guy on the show.

Just something to consider.

 

I have to agree to some extent, but I can also see how this might be an uncomfortable situation for Leonard. We still do not know how much Leonard knows about their night together. It could become a sensitive situation where he has to confront both of them.  Just my opinion 

[hokie3457]

24 minutes ago, Cloud Strife said:

Right? I'm a member of various other TBBT fansites and I can assure you that this is not true. Not in the slightest.

Hi @Cloud Strife.  What is the mood/feeling on some of the other fan sites? Just being curious....

[JE7]

8 minutes ago, hokie3457 said:

Hi @Cloud Strife.  What is the mood/feeling on some of the other fan sites? Just being curious....

HQ hasn't had a new post in nearly a week most of the rest are just shamys gushing (no offense i am glad someone is enjoying the show) from what i see.

Being the loudest group dosent necciserly make one the biggest group, what i find interesting. Are the comments on the TBBT facebook page and under reviews of the show, these point to a lot of discontent with the current plots anf characterizations

Edited March 11, 2017 by JE7

[BigBang15]

45 minutes ago, Cloud Strife said:

Right? I'm a member of various other TBBT fansites and I can assure you that this is not true. Not in the slightest.

And about how many people on on each of these other sites? Minus the same people on multiple sites. A fraction of the viewing audience. They (we) are called "fans" for a reason. It's short for "fanatic".

[hokie3457]

11 minutes ago, JE7 said:

HQ hasn't had a new post in nearly a week most of the rest are just shamys gushing (no offense i am glad someone is enjoying the show) from what i see.

Being the loudest group dosent necciserly make one the biggest group, what i find interesting. Are the comments on the TBBT facebook page and under reviews of the show, these point to a lot of discontent with the current plots anf characterizations

Interesting.  Other than a lovely group of like-minded TBBT fans on Twitter and peeks into the Instagram & Tumblr world,  this forum is my only consistent view of TBBT world.

[Tensor]

Yet, ratings have gone down.  This week is the lowest, non-Daylight Savings Time number of viewers since season 4, and the last three weeks have been under a 3.0 demo.  Also the number of household watching has gone down.  Four episodes ago, households had just dropped below a 10 rating, this past week it was below 9. While it is still, compared to other shows, near the top, there have been sign, this year, that viewers are leaving. 

[hokie3457]

2 minutes ago, Tensor said:

Yet, ratings have gone down.  This week is the lowest, non-Daylight Savings Time number of viewers since season 4, and the last three weeks have been under a 3.0 demo.  Also the number of household watching has gone down.  Four episodes ago, households had just dropped below a 10 rating, this past week it was below 9. While it is still, compared to other shows, near the top, there have been sign, this year, that viewers are leaving. 

This is sort of a "wow"...

[BigBang15]

3 minutes ago, hokie3457 said:

This is sort of a "wow"...

Yes and no. It really doesn't matter. If they had 50 people watching and the second highest show had 45 people watching, they're still number 1 in the ratings and will go on. It's all relative.

 

Edited March 11, 2017 by BigBang15

[Jonny]

2 minutes ago, hokie3457 said:

This is sort of a "wow"...

At the end of the day figures don't lie, but we can only merely speculate as to any possible reasons why. There is zero chance we will find out, but I strongly suspect the network itself has ways.

[Tensor]

2 minutes ago, hokie3457 said:

This is sort of a "wow"...

Here another wow, The last three weeks have been at 2.8 in demo, that ties the lowest demo, which happened once, back in season one.   Any drop in the demo, in the remaining six new episodes will set a new low for the show. As I said, it is still a high rated show relatively. (After all, Modern Family is at 1.9), but there are other shows have a higher demo now.  This is Us has beaten TBBT the last two weeks in live + Same Day and the last four in DVR viewing. 

[JE7]

11 minutes ago, Jonny said:

At the end of the day figures don't lie, but we can only merely speculate as to any possible reasons why. There is zero chance we will find out, but I strongly suspect the network itself has ways.

Thats a gross over simplification, a show or even a network lives or dies by ad revenue once the number of viewers drops so does the amount that can be charged and with a show as expensive to produce as TBBT that number will be reached sooner than a less costly show.

Not to mention demographics not only how many people are watching but are enough of the advertisers targeted group watching They could have 30 million viewers per episode but if they arent in the desired demo the money dries up and the show dies number of viewers or awards or critical praise wont save a show that dosent perform financially 

Edited March 11, 2017 by JE7

[Tensor]

9 minutes ago, BigBang15 said:

Yes and no. It really doesn't matter. If they had 50 people watching and the second highest show had 45 people watching, they're still number 1 in the ratings and will go on. It's all relative.

 

Yes and no.  Remember, this is a business. With lower ratings, even relatively, ad revenue drops.  If the cost of the show increases, as longer running show's tend to do, it quickly becomes too expensive. TBBT is at that point now.  Interesting how the drop increased after the reached a deal with the first five. 

[No Regrets]

6 minutes ago, Tensor said:

This is Us has beaten TBBT the last two weeks in live + Same Day and the last four in DVR viewing. 

To be fair, This Is Us is in its first season and acting + writing is exceptional.

[JE7]

11 minutes ago, Tensor said:

Yes and no.  Remember, this is a business. With lower ratings, even relatively, ad revenue drops.  If the cost of the show increases, as longer running show's tend to do, it quickly becomes too expensive. TBBT is at that point now.  Interesting how the drop increased after the reached a deal with the first five. 

That DEAL is as of now still a rumor, remember the season 11 option in the last deal which was widely accepted as fact but never actually existed? That should have taught us to not accept statements on contracts at face value. For all we know they have agreed to nothing and are just making happy noise's to calm the masses and advertising companys.

Untill they officially announce a signed deal i will take it with a large portion of salt

Edited March 11, 2017 by JE7

[Jonny]

7 minutes ago, JE7 said:

Thats a gross over simplification, a show or even a network lives or dies by ad revenue once the number of viewers drops so does the amount that can be charged and with a show as expensive to produce as TBBT that number will be reached sooner than a less costly show.

Not to mention demographics not only how many people are watching but are enough of the advertisers targeted group watching They could have 30 million viewers per episode but if they arent in the desired demo the money dries up and the show dies number of viewers or awards or critical praise wont save a show that dosent perform financially 

The figures don't lie, if they are down they are down if they are up they are up and of course certain demographics are more important.

What I am saying is presumably a whole discussion is about to start with pages and pages of reasons why viewing figures are down. But unless there is actual proof that this the actual reason why less people are watching it's just speculation and not gospel.

For the record I have no clue why they are down, I could speculate but that is what it is at the end of the day 'speculation.'

[Tensor]

1 minute ago, No Regrets said:

To be fair, This Is Us is in its first season and acting + writing is exceptional.

But that demonstrates the point.  If you write it, they will come. This is us, is bucking the trend of viewers leaving broadcast Television. OTOH, TBBT is dropping faster than the general decline for the first time in its run(excepting season four, which was a move to a completely different night)

[Cloud Strife]

19 minutes ago, BigBang15 said:

And about how many people on on each of these other sites? Minus the same people on multiple sites. A fraction of the viewing audience. They (we) are called "fans" for a reason. It's short for "fanatic".

I'm not saying all the fansites combined are representing the general audience, but it's a start. Besides, not all fansites are cramped with "fanatics". There are lots of places for fans and casual viewers and I'm gonna tell you that opinions vary a lot there.

You're right, what we represent is just a tiny fraction of the whole thing, but that just strenghtens my point that even in this tiny fraction, lots of different views and opinions exist. It's not just this board.