S08.E24: The Commitment Determination

[LADreamr]

Amy has been nothing but patient with Sheldon. She asks for basic respect and for him to follow the relationship agreement that he wrote. We see her wishing for more with him, but not pressuring him on it. Five years is a damn long time in a relationship to almost always have to defer to the other person's desires. She's completely reasonable with him, even when she has every right to be furious. I want Amy to stay in the show, but I want her to finally get what she wants, for a change.

[Starscream]

Sheldon voluntarily buying a ring with the intention to propose makes absolutely no sense given what we know of the character, but the above paragraph is the only way it might approach making sense. Sheldon is obsessed with social convention since it's the only way he knows how to relate to people, so MAYBE at some point he would want to fulfill the marriage convention. But to just abruptly buy a ring in secret? Not believable.

I think the only way it makes sense is if he bought the ring back when they first negotiated the relationship agreement, with the thought that he'd one day have to propose as part of any future renegotiation.  Now that Amy appears to be backing out, Sheldon has a ring with no purpose.

[andromeda331]

The ring feels so out of left field. It makes no sense that Sheldon bought it since he still doesn't see he does anything wrong. I'm glad Amy broke up with him. Their relationship has annoyed me for awhile Amy obviously isn't getting what she wants or needs from it and Sheldon doesn't think or feel he needs to do anything. I'd be happy if he decided he loved Amy and wanted more of a relationship with her but I'd be even more happy if he realized he doesn't want to be in one. Not everyone does and Sheldon doesn't really seem like he wants one. That's not a bad thing.

 

I'm tired of the flipflop on Penny and Leonard, last week they were happy this week their not. Are we suppose to root for them when one question sends them into a frenzy. They easily could have agreed they were happy to wait to get married or decided to race off and elope.

 

Sheldon's line about that show it so sums up my feelings about the Big Bang Theory. It used to be really funny and now its not. The characters used to be fun. Now they seem mostly to be jerks.

[LaChavalina]

How long ago was it that we found out Penny was secretly married to her ex and didn't mention it to anyone because she was drunk and didn't think it was a "real" wedding? If Leonard could forgive that in one episode, it's hard to believe she can't get over a drunken snog. I hate that the writers recycled that element with very little repackaging. A generally unsatisfying finale to a generally unsatisfying season.

[Packerbrewerbadger]

The sweet Raj of old has turned into a real jerk ! Bring back Evette the vet, the writers missed the boat there!

[UsernameFatigue]

Can anyone remind me why Howard & Bernardette are still at Howards's mom's house? What happened to their old apartment?

 

I would imagine Howard inherited it after his mom passed, since he is an only child. Bernadette mentioned wanting to redecorate (and who wouldn't) but Howard is likely stalling. But it makes sense to me that they would want to live in a house rather than an apartment, given the chance.

 

Actually the only thing that really bothered me in this episode was Raj talking to Howard about his girlfriend wanting to have sex in a cemetary. Given that Howard's mother has recently died, I thought it was tacky of the writers to go there.

 

I hope Raj breaks up with Emily - she is creepier than Lucy which is saying a lot.

 

I do not doubt that Amy and Sheldon will end up together in the end  I think Amy will decide that life without Sheldon is worse than putting up with not getting exactly everything she wants in a partner. Which is true of many relationships. As the saying goes, the heart wants what the heart wants.

 

I don't think Leonard and Penny will get married in Vegas. I think they will go through another rough patch before finally deciding to have the wedding they both want, when they want it.

[Helena Dax]

I don't think Sheldon's proposal came out of the blue. Penny and Leonard were talking about commitment and being married. And Sheldon, somehow, was talking about commitment too. I think it's  interesting that he said that starting a new show was a big deal  for him because once he started watching it, he had to keep going until the end,  even if the show got worse. 

 

Of course, I don't know what were his intentions behind that ring. Maybe he thought that would shut her up for a while. But his face when she told him she wanted a break (more on that later) makes me think it was an honest proposal. I believe he really loves her because he wouldn't  be in that relationship if he didn't. He doesn't need to be in a relationship in order to feel happy, fullfilled or not a failure, like Leonard, Howard or Raj. 

 

Leonard and Penny never were my  favourite couple ever, but now I'm starting to wonder if the show really wants us to ship them. Because every time I look at them I think "they'll be divorced in less than five years". Penny must be meeting lots of new men in her job and she's a funny, beautiful girl. I just don't understand what she sees in Leonard anymore. She could do way better.

 

Friends was  great and I still laugh every time I watch an episode. And I can't remember any season finale that left me feeling bad or depressed, quite the contrary. Yes, sometimes there was a sad storyline -when Monica broke up with Richard-, but the other two were usually funny  or shocking.

[theatremouse]

It's interesting because I totally saw the ring coming a mile away. That surprised me less than Amy breaking up with him. However, I did not get the impression he'd been sitting on the ring a long time (unlike Leonard with it in his wallet for years). I did get the impression it was a very recent thing. That possibly the Flash conversation may have been an intentional preparation/segue for what was to come. Or it might have come later. I like the theory someone mentioned above that he was asking Leonard and Penny about setting their date because he'd already decided to propose. Whether it was because Leonard would need to move out, or if he had heard of some social convention to not steal their thunder or maybe not even convention but just maybe he wanted the one engagement worked out and done before introducing another. Who knows.

I may be nuts, but I also thought that Sheldon's decision to propose at all, based on what we've seen so far and saw last night, was basically tantamount to him saying he was ready for sex. Even though we know he doesn't believe in religion as his mother does, there's still a lot about the way he was raised that clearly bleeds through to his thinking. So if he were going to have sex with Amy, I'd not be at all surprised if he felt he needed to be married to her first. So his decision to propose I imagine would entail a readiness for all of that. That's how it played to me. Which I realize might be a lot to read into from his being the one to try to re-initiate the kissing after the Flash question, but having seen the whole episode, that's the vibe I got.

Anyway, as soon as I saw Gollum on the desk, I thought "he has a ring". I think the whole purpose of the video chat was he was about to propose right then (after deciding relatively recently to do so) and she dumped him before he got the chance to do it.

Edited May 9, 2015 by theatremouse

[LoneHaranguer]

 

The Howard/Bernadette/Stuart story line was weak. I can't believe Stuart is that clueless that he doesn't realize Howard and Bernadette might want time alone, but then again, they retconned the character from being slightly nerdy, but a talented artist, to a pathetic loser.

I'm not sure it was a retcon; he could have been affected by his failing business.

 

 

The sweet Raj of old has turned into a real jerk !

Raj has  been a jerk since at least the beginning of S2, when he got a mention in People magazine.

 

 

I hope Raj breaks up with Emily - she is creepier than Lucy which is saying a lot.

I like Emily. She's creepy in a fun way, like the Addams Family without the element of danger.

[CherryAmes]

Raj has  been a jerk since at least the beginning of S2, when he got a mention in People magazine.

 

Yep.  Raj gives the illusion of sweetness in some episodes but the moment that epitomizes Raj for me is the episode where he first meets Lucy.  He's just given a touching little speech to the crowd at the Comic Book Store and then, as soon as it looks like he's connected with a woman, he turns on them all with a "see you later losers" comment.  Charming.

[ari333]

This eppy was a Debbie Downer for me.

I did not laugh once, and I'll laugh at almost anything.

[CleoCaesar]

I think Amy will decide that life without Sheldon is worse than putting up with not getting exactly everything she wants in a partner.

 

There's "not getting exactly everything one wants in a partner" and there's Sheldon. A guy who continuously insults you, ignores you, doesn't consider your feelings, treats you like a servant, and literally counts the minutes of your dates so he doesn't have to spend extra time with you.

[kili]

How long ago was it that we found out Penny was secretly married to her ex and didn't mention it to anyone because she was drunk and didn't think it was a "real" wedding? If Leonard could forgive that in one episode, it's hard to believe she can't get over a drunken snog.

 

Leonard has nothing to forgive Penny for.

 

Penny got married when she was not dating Leonard. She doesn't have to apologize for that. She doesn't have to apologize for any of her dating life when she was not dating Leonard.

 

She didn't realize it was a real marriage. That's idiotic, but there is no intent to decieve there.  As soon as she realized it was a real marriage, she resolved the issue that day Leonard wasn't upset that Penny had involved him in an adulterous affair (which many do not consider it to be if you are seperated from your spouse which Penny certainly was). He was upset because she'd married some other guy who wasn't him (even though he knows she thought it was a fake marriage).

 

Meanwhile, Leonard was kissing (as a prelude to other stuff which he did stop) another women while he was in a relationship with Penny (they were not on a break and he knew she was waiting for him at home). He sat on that information for years and only told her about it when they were on their way to a wedding. That's two major trust issues right there. Plus terrible timing.

[SmithW6079]

I'm not sure it was a retcon; [stuart] could have been affected by his failing business.

 

I think they turned Stuart into a pathetic loser way before his business started failing. He was intriguing enough that Penny went out with him.

[Tamariskie]

When the scenes were rotating through the various storylines toward the end of the episode, I was so sure that it was leading up to the Raj/Emily & Howard/Bernadette/Stuart conversations being interrupted with the news that Leonard and Penny were heading to Vegas to elope. And then Stuart's phone really did ring, and I thought "Why would they call him first?"

 

I agree with theatremouse's interpretation that Sheldon's readiness to propose equals his willingness to make their relationship sexual. He told Penny awhile back that it was possible his relationship with Amy could lead there someday. And TV Land is full of conversations where one person is about to say something but changes their mind at the last minute, so I also agree that he was probably about to propose on that video call.

[anna0852]

My theory on the ring is that Sheldon got it after the Flash incident. Amy walking out demonstrated that he has to work at their relationship if he wants to keep it. And I think his pushing Leonard and Penny about their engagement was his awkward way of both working up the nerve to ask and mental checking himself that he wanted to make that move. I think it would have been a genuine proposal, not something he saw as a social construct. We've seen Sheldon's special brand of bluntness when trying to obey society and this wasn't it. If it was, I think he would have argued with Amy instead of acceding gracefully when she stepped back.

 

Those are just my two cents and the return this fall could totally prove me wrong.

[Saylii]

I think he's had the ring for awhile. In the last episode, he mentioned helping Leonard find the diamond drill bit engagement ring website. I can't particularly see Sheldon being interested in going along with something like that unless he had an ulterior motive like buying his own diamond drill bit ring.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

She didn't realize it was a real marriage. That's idiotic, but there is no intent to decieve there.

I think that's not so much idiotic as ignorant; she didn't know you can have a real wedding, any more than Leonard didn't know you can have a fake one. And he may still not, so they may come back from Vegas only thinking they're married.

[CherryAmes]

Finally saw this episode.  I liked it.  The only thing I'd change would be Leonard's stupid, makes no sense at all, confession.  Although that said, I liked the way Penny handled it and I liked that it wasn't Penny who strayed (even if 'only' a kiss).

 

I'm in agreement with those who said that Amy and Sheldon aren't splitting up.  She needs a break, that's not the same as saying she's dumping him. 

[ZoqFotPik]

Raj has  been a jerk since at least the beginning of S2, when he got a mention in People magazine.

 

Yep.  Raj gives the illusion of sweetness in some episodes but the moment that epitomizes Raj for me is the episode where he first meets Lucy.  He's just given a touching little speech to the crowd at the Comic Book Store and then, as soon as it looks like he's connected with a woman, he turns on them all with a "see you later losers" comment.  Charming.

I think Howard summed up Raj the best in "The Zazzy Substitution":

              Penny: God, he’s an ass when he drinks.

              Howard: Oh, he’s an ass when he doesn’t. You just don’t hear it.

Edited May 8, 2015 by ZoqFotPik

[Oldernowiser]

If Sheldon was going to propose on Skype, he hasn't changed at all.

[theatremouse]

Half their relationship played out on Skype, and not in a way that Amy seemed perturbed about.

[Accidental Martyr]

I think that's not so much idiotic as ignorant; she didn't know you can have a real wedding, any more than Leonard didn't know you can have a fake one. And he may still not, so they may come back from Vegas only thinking they're married.

The whole Las Vegas wedding storyline that gets recycled in countless TV shows is pretty ridiculous. For a Vegas wedding to be legal, just like anywhere else, you have to first obtain a marriage license from the Clark County Marriage License Bureau. If anyone has gone through the steps to get a license, obviously the marriage is legal. If you don't have a marriage license then you aren't married. That's why all of the "I didn't know our Vegas marriage was real" plot devices are stupid.

If Penny and Leonard are going to get married in Vegas they will have to get a license before the ceremony will be a legal wedding.

http://www.702wedding.com/las-vegas-marriage-license.asp

[CleoCaesar]

I'm in agreement with those who said that Amy and Sheldon aren't splitting up.  She needs a break, that's not the same as saying she's dumping him.

 

WE WERE ON A BREAK!

[SmithW6079]

WE WERE ON A BREAK!

Maybe Amy can hook up with Penny's ex -- Zach? (Not d-bag Kurt) for a one-night stand.

[Sentient Meat]

The only reason I can see Sheldon buying a ring for Amy is that he went in to buy a replica ring for his Gollum figurine and discovered that the jewelers were having a 2 for 1 sale.

 

Leonard is possibly the most useless main character since Dawson after that series became the Joey and Pacey show.

 

If the show wants to remain a comedy it needs to shake things up bit... right now it feels a bit like Friends morphing into Parenthood.

Edited May 9, 2015 by Sentient Meat

[zxy556575]

I don't think Sheldon's proposal came out of the blue. Penny and Leonard were talking about commitment and being married. And Sheldon, somehow, was talking about commitment too. I think it's  interesting that he said that starting a new show was a big deal  for him because once he started watching it, he had to keep going until the end,  even if the show got worse.

 

I wasn't surprised but will admit to a small "aww" moment. I thought it was very sweet and brave of him. Sheldon told Amy he loved her and they kiss now. Despite his difficulty with social interactions and other "not crazy" personality traits, I think he intends to make a life with her and knows she's the lid to his crooked pot. I'm very much looking forward to next season to see this arc through. I wouldn't be surprised if he and Amy ended up in Las Vegas to get married while Leonard and Penny don't.

 

I sincerely hope the writers don't intend to draw out their break-up too long. I want to see Amy proposed to -- her tiara happiness would be nothing in comparison!

Edited May 10, 2015 by lordonia

[possibilities]

My guess about the ring is that his mom gave it to him when she was in town recently, and that it was Meemaw's engagement ring.

[DrSpaceman]

I thought Sheldon in the final scene with the ring, hearing what Amy said and speaking to Gollum was one of the best acted scenes on the show in a long time. Every once in awhile you see glimpses of this type of potential depth to him as a character and an actor, and decent writing, but then they fall back on cheap and easy jokes the next scene and don't stick with it for long. I didn't see it coming thats for sure

Raj is just ......pathetic. And I am not big on his girlfriend. He needs to end that. Its one thing to be into the macabre and have it as an interest in your life but it seems to be her WHOLE life. Part of its the writing. Lorre and his writers fail so often in writing decent female characters. Its hard telling what kind of even more weird stuff she is into though and Raj just is not into it at all. He needs to just tell her, but of course any of these guys can never turn down a girl having sex with them.

Once again Penny and Leonard I just stil don't buy as a couple. They weren't acting like two people excited to get married in the least bit. Plus they run off to Vegas to get married and don't invite any of their friends? Seems odd.

The Stuart storyline is actually decent, even if the story has been done a bunch before.

The whole Las Vegas wedding storyline that gets recycled in countless TV shows is pretty ridiculous. For a Vegas wedding to be legal, just like anywhere else, you have to first obtain a marriage license from the Clark County Marriage License Bureau. If anyone has gone through the steps to get a license, obviously the marriage is legal. If you don't have a marriage license then you aren't married. That's why all of the "I didn't know our Vegas marriage was real" plot devices are stupid.

If Penny and Leonard are going to get married in Vegas they will have to get a license before the ceremony will be a legal wedding.http://www.702wedding.com/las-vegas-marriage-license.asp

I had completely forgotten about Penny's prior Vegas marriage. Surprised they didn't bring it up in any way. And surprised jealous Leonard did not bring it up

[shapeshifter]

So if Penny and Leonard actually do get married, that means they will return from Vegas to live in her apartment with poor Sheldon alone with Gollum and his ring.

The only real reason IMO for Leonard to bring that up years later on the way to get married is if he was having cold feet about getting married.

...I may be nuts, but I also thought that Sheldon's decision to propose at all, based on what we've seen so far and saw last night, was basically tantamount to him saying he was ready for sex. Even though we know he doesn't believe in religion as his mother does, there's still a lot about the way he was raised that clearly bleeds through to his thinking...

That was my interpretation too.

I wondered if Stewart's phone call was really a bill collector, and it really wasn't his birthday, but he knew that "we have to talk" would mean they wanted him to move out.

Edited May 9, 2015 by shapeshifter

[Trichromatic]

I didn't see it as a sub-conscious attempt to sabotage the relationship either, but I am trying to find a reason why he waited so long to say something. I think that because of Penny's previous hesitation re: marriage, Leonard never really believed that they would actually get married - despite the engagement. It may partly be why they hadn't set a date. 

The scenes that Leonard and Penny had in the car reminded me of the last scene of "The Graduate" in the sense that there was some kind of realisation (for both of them) that dramatic gesture alone is not going to be enough for this to work. 

[shapeshifter]

I didn't think Leonard's confession was an attempt at sabotage at all. I honestly thought he was feeling closer to Penny than ever before and that his damaged self-esteem was saying, "She really does love me; she's really going to marry me, and our relationship can withstand this Bad Thing that I did, but before she marries me it's only fair that she know I cheated." Of course he should have told her right when he got off the boat, or much, much earlier. Or, obviously, not cheated at all. But I don't think it was a subconscious move...

If subconscious, given what we know of Leonard, I think it more likely he just couldn't believe she would really want to marry him, Leonard. So he blurted out something that might make her not want to marry him to prove his unworthiness true.

Otherwise, if the cheating thing was a one-off situation years ago when he was very drunk, why bring it up in the middle of their elopement?

Edited May 9, 2015 by shapeshifter

[WickedTuna]

My first thought when Sheldon pulled out the ring was that it wasn't for Amy. I guess that was because things were coming out of left field. I was thinking it was Penny's wedding band and Sheldon was suppose to give it to Amy. He was suppose to get Amy to go with him to Las Vegas and they would stand up with Leonard and Penny. Now he's not sure what social protocol dictates he do.

If P & L don't get married in Vegas the writers should just end it for good. I've never liked the relationship and it's just gotten worse. There's only 2 years left for the show so I'm sure they can find something else for them to do apart from each other. Just about anything would be funnier than what's been happening.

Edited May 9, 2015 by WickedTuna

[ari333]

Kaley is lovely imo, but that hair ...wth? It's like a dark grey with some ashy tips? OMG. [/shallow]

 

I was shocked by Sheldon's ring.

Edited May 9, 2015 by ari333

[SimoneS]

I thought that was a horrible episode. I will start with the worse.

 

Sheldon buying that ring for Amy was clearly the writers going for an "awww" moment, when it was absolutely unbelievable and cringeworthy. I know it will never happen, but Amy deserves a man who is willing to be more emotionally generous than Sheldon. She should take this break and run the hell away.

 

Leonard and Penny are such a sweet couple. They have chemistry and really get each other in a good way. They can be funny and adorable, but the writers are clearly determined to put the kibosh on them and it is understandable. With two more seasons to go and even more possible, they don't want Leonard and Penny to marry because it would mean Leonard moving out of the apartment with Sheldon and that is too radical a change in the show's dynamic.

 

Raj has got some damn nerve calling Emily too strange. He is obnoxious and unlikable. He should be striving to GGG (Dan Savage's Good, Giving, and Game) and be grateful that a woman of Emily's caliber gives him the time of day, much less dates him.

[DrSpaceman]

I will grant you Raj has his own issues, but Emily seems to be obsessed with violence and death and many dark things that Raj just is not into that much, even to the point of it now affecting their sex life. I wouldn't blame Raj for just telling her this, they just don't seem compatable.

[huahaha]

Well, now that Amy's available, maybe she and Stuart can give it a go. (Raj would be the worst idea ever -- please don't do it, writers.)

 

Once upon a time, I thought that the characters of Amy and Sheldon could work together, but the writers developed Amy into too neurotypical of a person. Back when the character was more similar to Leonard's mother, I could see them making a go of it, albeit with unusual relationship rules. In retrospect, that character just has the worst self-esteem ever to have spent five years with a person who can't connect the way she wants.

[One Tough Cookie]

think they turned Stuart into a pathetic loser way before his business started failing. He was intriguing enough that Penny went out with him.

 

 

 

He also dated Amy, which caused Sheldon to agree to become her boyfriend.

[Mom x 3]

I thought that maybe his mom had given him the ring as well, and I think possibilities had an excellent thought in thinking it was Meemaw's.  Emily and Raj are as bland as communion wafers, even with the stupid cemetery sex.  I really wish they would get a girlfriend for Stuart.  Lucy might make a good pairing for him.

I seriously hope that Amy dates Kripke.  She would get the other side of the sexual spectrum (horn dog with a PhD) and see if she is really wanted just sex vs sex with Sheldon.  Hell, Sheldon might start seriously courting Amy initially to compete with Kripke, then realize he wants to do it for Amy.  Surely that could be played for a season of laughs. 

[Oldernowiser]

My theory on the ring is that Sheldon got it after the Flash incident. Amy walking out demonstrated that he has to work at their relationship if he wants to keep it. And I think his pushing Leonard and Penny about their engagement was his awkward way of both working up the nerve to ask and mental checking himself that he wanted to make that move. I think it would have been a genuine proposal, not something he saw as a social construct. We've seen Sheldon's special brand of bluntness when trying to obey society and this wasn't it. If it was, I think he would have argued with Amy instead of acceding gracefully when she stepped back.

Those are just my two cents and the return this fall could totally prove me wrong.

If anything, I thought Sheldon was just trying to figure out how long he could stretch out an engagement before he would have to actually get married by getting a data point from Penny and Leonard.

But it's even more possible that his questioning them was nothing more than the writers setting up the Vegas trip. I become more convinced all the time that the writers put an episode together in a morning and then go out for a three-hour lunch and a mani/pedi.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Oldernowiser

[Miss Dee]

You know, it hadn't occurred to me until I started reading comments here, but now I'm wondering if that Flash answer to Amy's question wasn't a segue to the topic he was *really* thinking about. If Amy hadn't reacted in anger to that answer, maybe it would have gone something like this:

SHELDON: I was thinking about whether or not I should start watching The Flash.

AMY: Not the subject I'd hoped would be on your mind while necking on our five-year anniversary. But go on.

SHELDON: Well, you see, Amy, it's a big decision. This show could start well and end up like Batman: The Animated Series, or it could start well and end up like Smallville. But either way, once I've committed I've got to see it through to either a bitter end, or a wonderful and fulfilling one. Like the end of our Relationship Agreement. It's been five years, and I believe we've more than fulfilled the terms of the contract. (Takes out ring) I propose this as the basis for renegotiation.

[kbs]

Amy's and Sheldon's contradictory make-out session at the beginning squicked me. He seemed into it with his hand on her thigh and leaned in for more but thought about The Flash at the same time. Which one is it? You can't have it both ways. 

If only they could have left Sheldon alone and not turned him into somebody who seems to consider sex now. It doesn't make sense nor is it the result of some natural progression. It felt forced for the stupid ring revelation.

 

I really like the show and it usually makes me laugh a lot, but the Amy/Sheldon relationship has run its course. They should break them up permanently, pair her up with somebody else and turn them into the platonic friends they were when they met. They were so much more fun then together. Highly likely, I know.

[CherryAmes]

I think Amy and Sheldon could still be a viable couple.  They've both learned to compromise and Sheldon has made a lot of progress towards being able to be intimate with someone - just hugging and kissing is a major step for him.  I didn't find Sheldon's behavior out of the norm for Sheldon in this episode, it was Amy suddenly flaring up like that that came out of left field IMO.  Oh sure I could understand not being thrilled that Sheldon is thinking of other things when he's kissing her, but I think the writers were casting around for a reason to explain the "break" and decided on that - she's put up with far worse and hung in there.   I guess it was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back but it still seemed unlikely to me.

[kbs]

You know, it hadn't occurred to me until I started reading comments here, but now I'm wondering if that Flash answer to Amy's question wasn't a segue to the topic he was *really* thinking about.

 

I don't buy it. He usually can't hide it if he tries to be particularly clever.

Furthermore, it was a typical Sheldon textbook reaction like we have seen it many times before.

[shapeshifter]

Amy's and Sheldon's contradictory make-out session at the beginning squicked me. He seemed into it with his hand on her thigh and leaned in for more but thought about The Flash at the same time. Which one is it? You can't have it both ways...

For me, this explains it nicely:

You know, it hadn't occurred to me until I started reading comments here, but now I'm wondering if that Flash answer to Amy's question wasn't a segue to the topic he was *really* thinking about. If Amy hadn't reacted in anger to that answer, maybe it would have gone something like this:

SHELDON: I was thinking about whether or not I should start watching The Flash.

AMY: Not the subject I'd hoped would be on your mind while necking on our five-year anniversary. But go on.

SHELDON: Well, you see, Amy, it's a big decision. This show could start well and end up like Batman: The Animated Series, or it could start well and end up like Smallville. But either way, once I've committed I've got to see it through to either a bitter end, or a wonderful and fulfilling one. Like the end of our Relationship Agreement. It's been five years, and I believe we've more than fulfilled the terms of the contract. (Takes out ring) I propose this as the basis for renegotiation.

And since this was a season finale, I'm going with this being the case until I see otherwise. It fits with the melancholy at the end of the episode too.

[kbs]

Sheldon has made a lot of progress towards being able to be intimate with someone - just hugging and kissing is a major step for him.

 

He does these things now, that's true, but he does them because Amy makes him do them and not because he wants to, and that's getting harder and harder to watch.

I can already see where they are going with the storyline: Sheldon suddenly realises that he can't imagine  life without Amy and after a couple of left field revelations he's ready to have sex with her. Gross.

[CherryAmes]

I don't want them having sex either but I don't agree that Sheldon is doing the hugging and kissing only for Amy.  If that were true that would mean he's a much kinder and nicer person than I think he is.  Sheldon rarely does anything he doesn't want to do just because someone else wants him to! 

[Oldernowiser]

You know they're going to end up having sex, because it's been their primary (hell, only) plot point for too many seasons and because Lorre and Company really can't think about anything else for more than five minutes.

It makes me both sad and grumpy that they're "normalizing" everyone. I get that everyone has to grow up and get a job, but why can't they still have their passions for Syfy and costumes and science? Why does Sheldon have to be sexualized? Why do they even have to be married? We seem to be able to expand our ideas about love and connection and identity in our society...why does a television show always have to end in Cleaverville?

[kbs]

I don't agree that Sheldon is doing the hugging and kissing only for Amy

 

He doesn't do it as a favour to her but because he sees it as one of his *duties* within their relationship agreement. It's part of a compromise  I guess. If asked it he wanted to do these things, I'm sure he would decline.

 

It makes me both sad and grumpy that they're "normalizing" everyone. I get that everyone has to grow up and get a job, but why can't they still have their passions for Syfy and costumes and science? Why does Sheldon have to be sexualized? Why do they even have to be married? We seem to be able to expand our ideas about love and connection and identity in our society...why does a television show always have to end in Cleaverville?

 

Exactly.

Edited May 10, 2015 by kbs

[CherryAmes]

I saw a rerun last  night where he was upset about something and Amy hugged him.  He made some negative comment about the hug but when Amy stopped he begged her to keep hugging him.  He has grown to like, even need,  physical contact IMO.