S08.E17: The Colonization Application

[Zahdii]

"The Colonization Application"  New episode

 

Amy discovers that Sheldon has requested a one-way trip to colonize Mars, which leads to a dispute when they visit a pet shop; Leonard surprises Penny with an "adult" item; Raj is caught prowling around Emily's apartment.

[sinkwriter]

That acknowledgement for Leonard Nimoy should have been put right after the final scene ended, before the "next week on Big Bang Theory" and before the end credits. The way it showed up after the WB logo, I almost missed it entirely. It felt like such an afterthought, and it shouldn't have been.

[MaryMitch]

When I saw the card for Leonard Nimoy, for some reason it really hit me that he's gone, and I started to cry.

 

As to the episode - I actually liked Sheldon's application video. When he hit Leonard in the face with that pie, I laughed out loud.

[sinkwriter]

I'm so relieved that the Leonard/Penny plot wasn't what I thought it would be (seeing the episode's description, I worried that Leonard got something that would offend Penny and it would be really annoying and stupid). It was much more in character the way they did it -- that she was totally into it, and he was embarrassed (the way he said he drove to an entirely different city, parked two blocks away and wore a disguise cracked me up). It actually turned out to be fairly tame (understandable, given the hour this show is on) and fun but really messy. *GRIN*

 

I also thought it was funny that Sheldon came much closer to considering the act of procreation in this episode. If the idea of creating the first "martian" child didn't sway him, I don't know what would. LOL.

 

I actually liked Sheldon's application video. When he hit Leonard in the face with that pie, I laughed out loud.

 

I did, too!

[shapeshifter]

I adored the part of the episode from when Sheldon invited Amy to go to Mars with him until the end.

I hope we get to see a flash forward (maybe in the series finale) of Amy and Sheldon waving into a video camera from Mars.

[The Kings Foot]

I like it but Sheldon should at least have made a "John Carter of Mars" reference instead of "Mars Attacks". Loved the the Surprise Pie.

 

Emily's teasing is really enjoyable. She'll have Raj  house trained in no time. 

 

Howie and Bernie havent returned to fighting thank god. 

 

And well.........we know now  why  sex with Leonard was just "fine"  in previous episodes.

[Jediknight]

Sheldon getting a PHD and not an STD like his brother, hitting Leonard with the pie, Howard and Bernie's tax fraud, Leonard and Penny as the old couple, and Emily teasing Raj, there was so much to love in this episode.

[Driad]

 

Giuseppe, I think you dodged a bullet there.  Those humans would have inflicted all sorts of puzzles and psychological tests on you, although you know how to defend yourself.  If those humans had kept you for a while and then gone away, you might have gotten to time travel a couple of hours to a new home with a tortoise named Clyde who is a snappy dresser.

[peeayebee]

The pie in the face was hilarious. I also loved Sheldon's line, "Afterwards, Leonard blew his nose and pie came out."

 

I always enjoy Amy. She's funny but also touching in a very real way. Mayim really does a tremendous job. And I love when she and Sheldon reconciled, with him suggesting she join him on Mars.

 

I should have been amused by Emily's teasing, but there's just something about the actress that I don't like. I think a different actress delivering the same lines would be funnier for me.

[Lovecat]

Giuseppe, I think you dodged a bullet there.  Those humans would have inflicted all sorts of puzzles and psychological tests on you, although you know how to defend yourself.  If those humans had kept you for a while and then gone away, you might have gotten to time travel a couple of hours to a new home with a tortoise named Clyde who is a snappy dresser.

Oh how I am desperate for a BBT/Sherlock cross-over, though I've no idea how the set-up would go. D'you think there's any fan fiction in that vein??

[Beach Party]

When Amy saw Sheldon's video she should've had no doubts that his Mars application would get rejected!

[sinkwriter]

I didn't realize Sheldon had a brother. I just knew about his twin sister. Has this been talked about before and I'm not remembering? Or was it just a joke Sheldon was making in order to highlight his PhD?

[Jediknight]

I didn't realize Sheldon had a brother. I just knew about his twin sister. Has this been talked about before and I'm not remembering? Or was it just a joke Sheldon was making in order to highlight his PhD?

Looking it up, apparently they've mentioned him a few times.

Edited March 6, 2015 by Jediknight

[chocolatine]

As soon as Sheldon suggested that Amy apply for the Mars mission as well, I thought "she's going to bring up procreation in one, two, three ..." and sure enough, she did. I think the prospect of populating another planet is just about the only thing that would motivate Sheldon to have sex. Though if he could find a way to artificially inseminate Amy on Mars, he probably would.

 

The Penny and Leonard plot fell flat for me. It went into "trying too hard" territory, which is never a good thing in a relationship.

 

Emily creeps me out. I really believed her for a second when she said she'd killed her roommate. The snooping plot was very trite, but I liked Howard suggesting that Raj fix the drawer with pillows and wine glasses.

 

My DVR cut off before the Leonard Nimoy tribute. :(

Edited March 6, 2015 by chocolatine

[Driad]

 

Sheldon has mentioned an older brother as well as a twin sister; they both picked on him.  Also his mother mentioned that in contrast to Sheldon, she was blessed to have two other children who were "dumb as soup" IIRC.

[HappyDancex2]

My dvr cut off before the Nimoy tribute too. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

[shapeshifter]

My DVR cut off before the Leonard Nimoy tribute.:(

My dvr cut off before the Nimoy tribute too. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

chucklorre.com/index.php?p=493 Edited March 6, 2015 by shapeshifter

[chocolatine]

chucklorre.com/index.php?p=493

 

Thank you!!! I had no idea there even was a vanity card archive.

[AnnaRose]

Emily creeps me out. I really believed her for a second when she said she'd killed her roommate. The snooping plot was very trite, but I liked Howard suggesting that Raj fix the drawer with pillows and wine glasses.

 

My DVR cut off before the Leonard Nimoy tribute. :(

 

Same here.  They have Emily say a lot of creepy, dark stuff, and I don't think the actress really pulls it off.   Or maybe I just tend to find that kind of thing off-putting in general... especially on a show like this.  It just comes across as kind of weird and out of place to me.

 

Thanks for the link Shapeshifter.  I missed it too.

Edited March 6, 2015 by AnnaRose

[kat165]

I'm not crazy about the Emily actress either, but she's a hell of a lot better that Lucy who made my skin crawl.

 

Emily reminds me of the redhaired woman who does the Wendy's commercials, who I don't like either. They both come off as very smug. The Emily actress is also an intern on Bones, different character but even more obnoxious and unlikeable.

Edited March 6, 2015 by kat165

[Gulftastic]

What a good episode. Lots of funny stuff. The pie in Leonard's face was laugh out loud funny.

 

I like Emily. Her messing with Raj was good, and nice revenge for his snooping. Speaking of which, Howard's line when Raj asked what he would need to hammer in the nails was another laugh out loud moment for me.

[DrSpaceman]

My wish now for the series finale is Sheldon and Amy being accepted to the Mars program and flying off in a spaceship to live there. 

 

That whole Mars program is completely real and a bit creepy in itself.  You fly off the a foreign planet never to return, hoping you live long enough to sustain the population there and colonize it.

 

I am not sure about Emily.  I go back and forth.  I like her OK.  In general I just don't see her and Raj as that great of a couple. 

 

Also if I left someone alone in my apartment/house, even a close friend, first of all I would expect them to snoop around a bit, just out of curiousity and/or necessity and second, I wouldn't care.  And kill me for saying it, but in Raj's situation I would probably snoop around.  I probably would have just come up with some excuse though about why I was looking in her drawer, just come up with something.  "Needed some scissors", something, its not hard to do. 

[mstar1125]

They have Emily say a lot of creepy, dark stuff, and I don't think the actress really pulls it off.   Or maybe I just tend to find that kind of thing off-putting in general... especially on a show like this.  It just comes across as kind of weird and out of place to me.

I normally enjoy this type of humor, so I think it really is the actress who doesn't know how to pull off the lines. There's a certain lighthearted or sarcastic/snarky tone that seems to be missing from the delivery. Unless the show is setting her up to be an actual creep with literal skeletons in the closet. Poor Raj. Why can't he just be with a normal girl?

 

The surprise pie was definitely a laugh out loud moment for me. As was the reveal of the first "painting".

 

But I am really sick of the Bernadette/Howard stories that have Howard acting like a child. I realize it's in character for him to need to have a mother figure to take care of all the "adult" things for him (and he's currently mourning his actual mother), but geez, at least sit at the table and watch Bernie do the taxes, offer to fix her a beverage, something! 

Edited March 6, 2015 by mstar1125

[terrymct]

I adored the part of the episode from when Sheldon invited Amy to go to Mars with him until the end.

I hope we get to see a flash forward (maybe in the series finale) of Amy and Sheldon waving into a video camera from Mars.

 

 

I'm hoping she gets accepted and he doesn't.

 

On another subject, it's nice seeing Penny with confidence and not consistently drunk.

[peeayebee]

Speaking of which, Howard's line when Raj asked what he would need to hammer in the nails was another laugh out loud moment for me.

I liked Howard suggesting that Raj fix the drawer with pillows and wine glasses.

Yes, those were two great lines from Howard.

 

Looking at Laura Spencer's (Emily) IMDB page, I don't think I've seen her in anything else, and yet she looks familiar. Maybe she's done a commercial or two. *shrug*  

[Zahdii]

My wish now for the series finale is Sheldon and Amy being accepted to the Mars program and flying off in a spaceship to live there. 

 

That whole Mars program is completely real and a bit creepy in itself.  You fly off the a foreign planet never to return, hoping you live long enough to sustain the population there and colonize it.

 

I am not sure about Emily.  I go back and forth.  I like her OK.  In general I just don't see her and Raj as that great of a couple. 

 

Also if I left someone alone in my apartment/house, even a close friend, first of all I would expect them to snoop around a bit, just out of curiousity and/or necessity and second, I wouldn't care.  And kill me for saying it, but in Raj's situation I would probably snoop around.  I probably would have just come up with some excuse though about why I was looking in her drawer, just come up with something.  "Needed some scissors", something, its not hard to do. 

 

Regarding Sheldon and Amy both flying off to Mars:  That won't happen, neither of them are good enough at social skills to live in close quarters with strangers until the end of time without getting shoved out of the ship or habitat sans spacesuit.  Really, what cop is going to go to Mars to arrest them?  Although Sheldon and Amy are both improving, Amy especially, neither would be a good fit for the Mars colonization project.  But this is comedy, so dream on...  Hmmm, now I'm seeing a sci-fy comedy with this exact same scenario.  Could be fun!

 

About the real life Mars Program:  I think the first people are just supposed to build the habitat and get it working, then the 'breeders' would show up after that.  I wonder what company will be tasked with developing space suits for infants and children of various sizes.  Field trips at school could be interesting.

About Emily:  I'm not thrilled with Emily, with her weird obsession with all things slasher movies.  I don't think she's destined to be his wife, and I don't really want to see too much of her.  But she could definitely teach him a few things, and not only in bed.  Things like: don't be snooping in people's places.  Don't treat women like they're some kind of pet.  And if she could pass the "my parents have cut me off so I'm no longer rich" test, I'd applaud her.

 

You "expect" people to go through your things when you're not around?  I'm different.  While I know that people can snoop, I hope they won't, and I won't leave a person alone in my home if I think they might do so.

 

Reminds me of a clip I saw many years ago on a TV show, probably Funniest Home Videos.  This couple was pretty sure that a friend of theirs was going through their medicine cabinet when he used their bathroom, so they put a hidden camera in there and filled the cabinet with BB's.  Sure enough, he opened the cabinet door and all the BB's fell out.  He knew he was caught, and was so embarrassed.

[Valerie]

Strong episode. Loved the Shamy, loved Penny & Leonard. Howard and Bernie are still just ehhhh but I do love the friendship between Raj and Howard. 

 

I know Laura Spencer from the Lizzie Bennett Diaries, which I didn't really enjoy. I actually prefer her TBBT character.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

As soon as Sheldon suggested that Amy apply for the Mars mission as well, I thought "she's going to bring up procreation in one, two, three ..." and sure enough, she did.

Coincidentally, a local newspaper printed an article about the Mars program yesterday; they're only sending a few people at a time and they have to agree to be "chaste". Because of that rule, doing a joint application probably guarantees rejection.

 

 

It was much more in character the way they did it -- that she was totally into it, and he was embarrassed (the way he said he drove to an entirely different city, parked two blocks away and wore a disguise cracked me up). It actually turned out to be fairly tame (understandable, given the hour this show is on) and fun but really messy.

Leonard could have saved himself some trouble and embarrassment by checking the novelty gift stores. I know Spencer's carries things like that and Google tells me there's one in the Glendale Galleria.

 

 

I probably would have just come up with some excuse though about why I was looking in her drawer, just come up with something.  "Needed some scissors", something, its not hard to do.

Raj has trouble lying. I hope he's planning on buying her something to replace what he broke. Putting nails through the front of the drawer was dumb

 

 

I normally enjoy this type of humor, so I think it really is the actress who doesn't know how to pull off the lines. There's a certain lighthearted or sarcastic/snarky tone that seems to be missing from the delivery. Unless the show is setting her up to be an actual creep with literal skeletons in the closet.

Emily s messing with Raj. I wouldn't doubt that there's something unusual in her closet, but we'll never see it because it's better left to the imagination, a concept she clearly understood.

[SmithW6079]

Emily creeps me out. I really believed her for a second when she said she'd killed her roommate.

 

Maybe we'll luck out and she'll snuff Raj during sexy funtime and we'll be rid of him.

 

You "expect" people to go through your things when you're not around?  I'm different.  While I know that people can snoop, I hope they won't, and I won't leave a person alone in my home if I think they might do so.

 

I don't expect people to snoop through my things either (then again, I hate to "entertain," so no strangers in my house. I also don't snoop in other people's homes; it's an invasion of privacy (especially if you're trying to build a relationship with someone).

 

If I could, I would totally go on a one-way mission to Mars. To paraphrase Dr. Stephanie, "they told me I could drive a car on Mars."

 

I liked how Leonard and Penny held hands for Sheldon and Amy's big announcement, as if they needed each other's strength because they were afraid Sheldon and Amy were going to say they were ready to have sex. 

[shapeshifter]

...You "expect" people to go through your things when you're not around?  I'm different.  While I know that people can snoop, I hope they won't, and I won't leave a person alone in my home if I think they might do so....

And I would assume that Emily would either know by now that Raj is a snoopy type, or, if she doesn't know him that well yet, she shouldn't be surprised if he is. But since she was surprised, leading him to guess that the body of her roommate (who she murdered) is in the closet is the height of passive aggressiveness in dealing with her anger at him being himself, a snoopy guy. But if Raj is okay with it, that's his choice. Most married people I know are very difficult to get along with in general--or at least half of them.

[DrSpaceman]

Regarding Sheldon and Amy both flying off to Mars:  That won't happen, neither of them are good enough at social skills to live in close quarters with strangers until the end of time without getting shoved out of the ship or habitat sans spacesuit.  Really, what cop is going to go to Mars to arrest them?  Although Sheldon and Amy are both improving, Amy especially, neither would be a good fit for the Mars colonization project.  But this is comedy, so dream on...  Hmmm, now I'm seeing a sci-fy comedy with this exact same scenario.  Could be fun!

 

About the real life Mars Program:  I think the first people are just supposed to build the habitat and get it working, then the 'breeders' would show up after that.  I wonder what company will be tasked with developing space suits for infants and children of various sizes.  Field trips at school could be interesting.

About Emily:  I'm not thrilled with Emily, with her weird obsession with all things slasher movies.  I don't think she's destined to be his wife, and I don't really want to see too much of her.  But she could definitely teach him a few things, and not only in bed.  Things like: don't be snooping in people's places.  Don't treat women like they're some kind of pet.  And if she could pass the "my parents have cut me off so I'm no longer rich" test, I'd applaud her.

 

You "expect" people to go through your things when you're not around?  I'm different.  While I know that people can snoop, I hope they won't, and I won't leave a person alone in my home if I think they might do so.

 

Reminds me of a clip I saw many years ago on a TV show, probably Funniest Home Videos.  This couple was pretty sure that a friend of theirs was going through their medicine cabinet when he used their bathroom, so they put a hidden camera in there and filled the cabinet with BB's.  Sure enough, he opened the cabinet door and all the BB's fell out.  He knew he was caught, and was so embarrassed.

 

 

I should clarify I don't "expect" people to snoop around my house, thats the wrong word

 

But I also know its the chance you take when you leave someone alone in your house.  If there wasn't something vitally important or bad or something I didn't want them finding and didn't want them knowing about, I wouldn't leave them alone in my place to begin with.  I don't want them searching out bank codes and socially security numbers to steal from me, but happening to look in some draws or closets or somewhere in my house if they happen to be left there when I am not home, its the risk you take, and I wouldn't really care if they did look.  If I felt otherwise, like I said, I wouldn't leave them alone there in the first place. 

 

And I have definetly done what Raj did, I will admit it, and it was a girlfriend's place, because I suspected she was cheating on me.  And why did I suspect she was cheating?  Because it was true, and things I saw pretty much confirmed it. 

[TV Anonymous]

That whole Mars program is completely real and a bit creepy in itself.  You fly off the a foreign planet never to return, hoping you live long enough to sustain the population there and colonize it. 

 

And how is it that much different with early European colonization of the New World?

[sinkwriter]

At least on Earth, we know we can breathe the air and survive the elements unscathed (for the most part). And they could go back; it just would take a long time.   :)

 

Going to a whole other planet, these new settlers may not have any of those luxuries. 

[DrLar]

What if Emily is really a psycho? muahaha, that'll be interesting..

[Quof]

You "expect" people to go through your things when you're not around?  I'm different.

 

I do not go the bathroom when my mother is in my house, because I know she's a snoop. Good thing she never stays overnight.

[MrWhyt]

As to the episode - I actually liked Sheldon's application video. When he hit Leonard in the face with that pie, I laughed out loud.

And we saw the 4th wall of the apartment!

[theatremouse]

The Penny and Leonard plot fell flat for me. It went into "trying too hard" territory, which is never a good thing in a relationship.

I can't explain why but it bothered me a lot that in the reveal of the first painting, it was just two colors, when clearly they had all sorts of paint all over them. Also I don't understand why more of it didn't just smudge together and turn brown.

 

Leonard could have saved himself some trouble and embarrassment by checking the novelty gift stores. I know Spencer's carries things like that and Google tells me there's one in the Glendale Galleria.

I don't get the impression from Leonard that even buying it in a "novelty store" known for gag gifts, that he wouldn't still be embarassed if anyone saw him there buying it. He went all the way to San Diego to substantially decrease the likelihood he might be seen by anyone who might recognize him. Those are serious lengths. I don't think it was just about not being seen in a specialty store in LA.

[CherryAmes]

At least on Earth, we know we can breathe the air and survive the elements unscathed (for the most part). And they could go back; it just would take a long time.   :)

 

Not to mention many if not most people going to the New World were going with their family or there was every possibility that family members would eventually join them.  Anyone taking that one way trip to Mars would be essentially giving up any chance of ever seeing their family and friends again ( at least in person anyway). 

[Chit Chat]

That acknowledgement for Leonard Nimoy should have been put right after the final scene ended, before the "next week on Big Bang Theory" and before the end credits. The way it showed up after the WB logo, I almost missed it entirely. It felt like such an afterthought, and it shouldn't have been.

It was in place of the vanity card.  They tend to put stuff like this in that spot.  I always watch for the vanity card, or some other message if there's been a death, as in this case. 

[DrSpaceman]

There are some valid comparison to going to Mars vs going to the new world way back in the 1500s or 1600s.

Some differences have been pointed out. In addition, many of those leaving Europe likely had little oppurtunity where they were with dismaal prospects of that improving over their lives. And life expectancy at the time, life in general was harsh. It wasn't like living in pre 1700s Europe was a cakewalk. For the settlers is was highly risky but a chance at a better life. Sheldon and Amy are accomplished scientists with much to look forward to in their lives currently, a whole lot more to risk, and still relatively young. I can't see life on Mars, in their lifetime, being better in any way than their current lives. The one oppurtunity it affords is a chance at a literal adventure of a lifetime and the oppurtunity to be one of the most famous people in history. Its a chance at fame and having a lasting impact on humanity.

But then most of the early settlers also died pretty quickly, and that was on the same planet, with air, food, water at least theoretically plentiful.

[BooksRule]

The episode was pretty funny, but the 'We're going to buy a turtle!' line would have been funnier if I hadn't already seen it about ten times in the promos.  If the promos had just cut off before the announcement, it would been more effective, IMO. 

 

I did like the pie in the face, it was unexpected and funny.  I expected Sheldon to say that the joke was that there was actual brittle in the can instead of fake snakes ('Bazinga!')

[Latverian Diplomat]

Didn't Sheldon just fail to last more than a half hour or so in a steam tunnel earlier this season? And now he wants to go to Mars?

[SmithW6079]

I'm so sick of seeing Amy be so pathetic again, begging for a scrap of affection from Sheldon. Sheldon acting like a selfish dick to her for an entire episode is not redeemed by a half-hearted "You know I care about you, Amy. Come to Mars with me" at the end of the episode.

It's the same every single time. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

[CleoCaesar]

I'll be the lone dissenter and say that I thought the pie in the face was idiotic. I've never found that Three Stooges-type humor funny. Is hitting an unsuspecting person in the face with a pie plate even considered funny? If someone did that to me, the last thing I would do is laugh.

[needschocolate]

Not a fan of Emily.  People that "never" give a straight answer annoy me ("never" is in quotes because everyone gives a straight answer sometimes, they just go for the joke so often that it seems like never).  "Where is your roommate?" "Palm Springs" - is that so difficult?  Plus, with Emily, it is always the same joke.  

 

I wonder what company will be tasked with developing space suits for infants and children of various sizes.  

 

Instead of Garanimals, it could be Garaliens.

[peeayebee]

I'll be the lone dissenter and say that I thought the pie in the face was idiotic. I've never found that Three Stooges-type humor funny. Is hitting an unsuspecting person in the face with a pie plate even considered funny? If someone did that to me, the last thing I would do is laugh.

For me the humor wasn't because a pie in the face is funny, but because it was so unexpected and also combining two completely different jokes.

[CherryAmes]

Is hitting an unsuspecting person in the face with a pie plate even considered funny? If someone did that to me, the last thing I would do is laugh.

 

I doubt the recipient of the pie in the face is ever supposed to laugh (some may though I guess).  Whether you or I find it funny it's been a comedy staple for generations so someone is laughing :).

[Chit Chat]

The best part about the pie in the face was Leonard's reaction: "Please go to Mars!" 

[DrSpaceman]

Not a fan of Emily.  People that "never" give a straight answer annoy me ("never" is in quotes because everyone gives a straight answer sometimes, they just go for the joke so often that it seems like never).  "Where is your roommate?" "Palm Springs" - is that so difficult?  Plus, with Emily, it is always the same joke.  

 

 

Instead of Garanimals, it could be Garaliens.

 

 

You're right, I hadn't thought of that.  She does just kind of the same joke over and over again, different variations. 

 

I blame that mostly on the writers though.  But it does point out some more depth to her character would be nice.  So far he has been dating her almost a whole season and what we know is 1.  She is a dermatologist  2.  She likes grotestque things and dark humor.    Would be nice if they gave her a chance to expand on that, but then they would actually need her to be one the show more than a few minutes at a time every several episodes. 

Edited March 7, 2015 by DrSpaceman

[okerry]

I think the pie in the face wasn't so much meant to be funny on its own (even though I busted out laughing.) I think it was meant to show, as was the whole video, that there was no way Sheldon would EVER be part of a mission to colonize Mars and therefore Amy had nothing to worry about!