S09.E15: The Valentino Submergence

[mojoween]

I also loved Penny's dress regardless of how old anyone might be who wore it. It was very cute and Valentine-y. I loved that she paired it with red shoes.

[DrLar]

Mmm, so if Leonard and Penny are getting "old", and when they find out Bernie is preggers, maybe they want to do the same? unless they want to have a child until they are 40 or have no children at all..

 

Man I wanted to be Penny's last name the "big surprise", maybe her last name is Valentino and they named the rabbit after her? LOL

[anna0852]

I don't think it's that Penny is getting old. It's that she is getting *older*. And that can be a hard realization. Kaley is 30, so Penny is actually a year or 2 older than her actress. I think that first "ma'am" can throw you. Like the first time a mom told her child to 'thank the nice lady' in reference to me. Sometimes it can be very hard to reconcile your mental age (how you view yourself) with you physical age.

 

I'm 33 and convinced that at any moment the *real* adults will catch on that I've been faking and send me back to high school. Because most of the time I feel like I'm still in my late teens. 

[joanne3482]

It's possible they were trying to have a baby. I know several couples where the father is the primary caretaker, and Bernie and Howard discussed this. This is going to be good.

This will be good only if the show will go there and keep Bernie at work and Howie at home with the kid. They've made it clear that Bernie earns more money than Howard (IIRC by a lot). Bernie & Howie discussed that plan so if the writers do it I'll love it. There's a lot of possibilities there with all the boys dealing with the baby.  If the writers suddenly decide that after all that build up Bernie WANTS to be the SAHM and now they have to live on Howard's smaller salary I will be less happy because while it does happen, it isn't like that happens to ALL women. 

[kat165]

I also liked Penny's dress. Red is my favorite color and this dress was nicely tailored. Kaley has a

rocking body & the dress was form fitting so I thought she looked great.

 

I'm thinking/hoping that next yr is the last yr for BB & Bernie can spend most of it being

pregnant & they can do the birth for the last ep. Oh, and Penny & Leonard find a new

apt or house.

 

I will miss the show, but mostly I will miss it for the first 6 or 7 seasons.

 

We don't know that Emily is history yet. Raj dumped her because of the new girl, but

the new girl gave no indication that she was interested in seeing Raj as a date/boyfriend.

Edited February 12, 2016 by kat165

[TV Diva Queen]

Did Bernie put the rabbit in the hot tub to do the "Rabbit died" thing?  

[theatremouse]

I doubt it. She seemed squicked when she thought it was a rat and surprised when it wasn't. I'm guessing it was potentially an intentional joke from the writers, but I don't think they meant to imply it was a plant.

[PinkRibbons]

I'd like to point out that not all women use hormonal birth control when they don't want to get pregnant. Even if it was infallible, which it is not, it's not a one-size-fits-all thing. One friend of mine went off the pill because it was aggravating her blood pressure. Another friend (who has always been very sensitive to chemicals of all kinds) tried literally every different hormonal product on the market and each one gave her a different ugly side effect -- including one that killed her sex drive and another that made her nauseated all the time. Her gyno finally told her to rely on condoms and spermicide for basically the same protection. There's any number of reasons Bernie wouldn't be on the pill and while condoms are very effective if used properly, we all know someone who got caught up in the heat of the moment without using birth control, then didn't freak out because they figured they probably weren't ovulating. This happens to smart people too.

 

On a completely different note, I loved the line about the anti-Semitic rabbit because that is literally the exact thing I say when an animal is pissed off at me. I swear the dog a block over was hungry for Jew Meat the way it tried to attack me through the fence as I passed by on my bike. Never seen an animal so aggressive in my life.

[SmithW6079]

Is Melissa Rauch pregnant in real life? The writers might have been painted into a corner.

 

Not to mention, the 'I don't want kids' conversation was several years ago and hasn't really come up again since. Things can change. Bernie and Howard are in a house now, they've been solidly married for several years and Howard is slowly but surely outgrowing the man-child mentality. And as cold as it sounds, there is no longer a very opinionated and interfering paternal grandmother hanging over the picture.

Just because an actress is pregnant in real life doesn't mean it has to be written into the show. I think writers do that now out of laziness, because of the lengths they have to go to to hide a pregnancy. It's obvious to the audience and becomes a joke. (Over the course of "The Exes," the actress who played the secretary got pregnant twice -- for the first, she became the "surrogate" for one of the law partners and his wife, and for the second, they just hid her in front of giant handbags, desks, cushions, etc.)

 

I thought Emily was made a regular? And did he go from talking to Penny and Leonard, break up with Emily, call whatsherface, go to Emily's and then back to Penny and Leonard? Because they were all wearing the same clothes.

Yes, Raj the sleaze broke up with Emily; called the new girl to say he had broken up with his girlfriend so they could date; when she told him she got back with her boyfriend, he ran back to Emily to try and get back together.

 

This wouldn't be the first time they made someone a regular and then got rid of them. Sara Gilbert was made a regular a few seasons back, but appeared in only a handful of episodes before disappearing.

[ari333]

If Penny is old, then I have one foot on a banana peel. :-)

Edited February 12, 2016 by ari333

[K-9]

I never heard of "rabbit died" thing so I looked it up

 

From wikipedia: "The rabbit test consisted of injecting the tested woman's urine into a female rabbit, then examining the rabbit's ovaries a few days later, which would change in response to a hormone only secreted by pregnant women."

 

Apparently the way to check the rabbits' ovaries was to surgically open up the injected rabbits, which meant each tested rabbit would die.  The wikipedia article has an uncited claim that they could've opened up the rabbits without killing them, but people back then usually felt it wasn't worth the trouble or expense.

[MissLucas]

Well, I loved the whole thing. I don't mind the pregnancy story-line since the writers placed several hints that sooner or later a baby was coming along throughout the whole season. And it amused me to think that Bernadette had placed the rabbit in the tub to set-up the whole little family scenario. It would be in character and would also explain her lack of concern about a possible rabies infection.

 

I loved Amy and Sheldon's first ever live show - it was fun and poignant.

 

And I never thought I would ever covet anything worn by Raj - but damn, forget about Penny's red dress, I want that glorious Pashmina!

Edited February 12, 2016 by MissLucas

[Shermie]

Yeah, just because Bernadette hasn't told Howard yet, doesn't mean she got pregnant "behind his back". Unless a couple is checking the stick together, the woman will know she's pregnant first and plan a cute or special way to tell the guy. Kinda like how a guy plans an elaborate proposal; this is the woman's opportunity to plan a special milestone.

And while I like the idea of Howard being a SAHD, I don't see why either of them have to give up their jobs. I actually prefer the notion of Stuart as their nanny.

As for the rabies - it's not an emergency. You have a couple days after an animal bite to get shots started. And the shots are no big deal, just like any needles in the arm. It's not like days of yore, when rabies shots were huge needles in the stomach! Besides, rabbits rarely have rabies, it's practically unheard of.

And I agree with those who said that babies are a natural life step at this point for these characters. I'm sure a few viewers would prefer that the same four guys just did nerd stuff together over all the years, but frankly, 30-something men who still spend all their time with movies, video games, comic books and costumes and never progress in life is kind of pathetic. Sure, have those interests and never lose them, but almost all people want a relationship and eventually a family. People grow and change, that's human nature. I don't know anyone who is the same at 40 that they were at 20.

I think the show has done a great job of melding the two - the guys still have all their nerd interests, but also moved on with relationships, marriage, and now children.

Edited February 12, 2016 by Shermie

[MMLEsq]

Apparently the way to check the rabbits' ovaries was to surgically open up the injected rabbits, which meant each tested rabbit would die.  The wikipedia article has an uncited claim that they could've opened up the rabbits without killing them, but people back then usually felt it wasn't worth the trouble or expense.

This was an entire episode on M*A*S*H (again showing my age!).  Hot Lips was worried she was pregnant, so Radar was pressured to volunteer his pet rabbit to confirm it.  The doctors were able to operate on the rabbit so that he didn't die.  

[whatsatool]

No wabbits for me. Fun with Flags is awesome.

[Ms Lark]

Actually, when the rabbit showed up and Bernadette wanted to call the vet, I was hoping it would lead to them visiting Raj's lady vet and somehow getting him together with her. She's my fav of all his potential love interests. Dang. Well, I hope they keep the rabbit for a pet!

[Browncoat]

I can sympathize with Penny -- turning 30 about did me in. It was much easier for me to turn 40 (and even 50!) than it was to turn 30.

[peacheslatour]

 

As for the rabies - it's not an emergency. You have a couple days after an animal bite to get shots started. And the shots are no big deal, just like any needles in the arm. It's not like days of yore, when rabies shots were huge needles in the stomach! Besides, rabbits rarely have rabies, it's practically unheard of.

This is correct.  Anything that would attack a rabbit, would kill it.  The odds are astronomically against the rabbit just being bitten and then hopping off on it's merry way to spread rabies.

[shura]

The confetti-throwing at the end was a nice goofy solution.

 

"Did you know that the singular of 'confetti' is 'confetto'?"

"When would one use the singular?"

"You have a confetto in your nose."

 

That was brilliant and pitch-perfect.

[Gulftastic]

Good ep. I laughed a lot of times. They even gave Penny and Leonard an actual plot to themselves this week.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

I don't think it's that Penny is getting old. It's that she is getting *older*. And that can be a hard realization. Kaley is 30, so Penny is actually a year or 2 older than her actress. I think that first "ma'am" can throw you.

Just wait until she gets her first unasked-for senior discount. The minimum age for some is only 50, but if you don't know that it can really throw you when you're only in your 40's.

 

 

But if it were Howard's responsibility [for birth control], they would both know if they weren't using it.

Not if he had a reversible vasectomy. He could turn the valve back on without her knowing.

[anna0852]

I think Bernadette would notice if A) Howard had a vasectomy in the first place and B) he had it reversed. It might not be major surgery but the guy is still going to be uncomfortable for a few days.

[joanne3482]

I feel like there was an episode of a show I watched recently where the married couple didn't have condoms and they waited a beat and then decided to go for it anyway. I can't remember if it was this one or something else though. 

 

And while I like the idea of Howard being a SAHD, I don't see why either of them have to give up their jobs. I actually prefer the notion of Stuart as their nanny.

 

I'm cool with that outcome. The only thing that would make me ragey is if Bernadette gives up her job to be a SAHM. They've spent seasons making it abundantly clear that's not in the cards for her and I feel like it would be a 180 on her. 

[Inigo Montoya]

Hi all. Occasional lurker, first time poster ...

 

I don't know that the writers care enough about continuity to be aware that Bernadette said she doesn't want kids.  In last night's episode, they said Leonard never broke up with anybody (they forgot Sara Rue from Season 2) and Raj hadn't gone thru a breakup (Emily the Deaf Chick from Season 5 - sorry, I don't think I've ever seen her referred to as anything other than "Emily the Deaf Chick").

 

Supposedly the writers wrote the episode with no intention of Bernadette being pregnant and then threw it in at the end for shock value and because it seemed to kinda fit.  Chuck Lorre okayed it so they left it in.  At this point, I don't think they have much of a plan.

 

If done well, it can work but other than the Shamy ONS, the writers haven't handled much well the last few seasons.  I hope we don't have constant "look how stupid daddy is" plots.  It reminds me when the writers on the old Bob Newhart show wrote a script where Emily got pregnant.  Bob Newhart read the script and said "That...that's great.  Who...who are you going to get to play Bob?"

[anna0852]

I feel like there was an episode of a show I watched recently where the married couple didn't have condoms and they waited a beat and then decided to go for it anyway. I can't remember if it was this one or something else though. 

I feel like I've seen that show too. And I can't remember what it was. Aside from my own life, because my parents were pretty clear that was how they ended up with me.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

I think Bernadette would notice if A) Howard had a vasectomy in the first place and B) he had it reversed. It might not be major surgery but the guy is still going to be uncomfortable for a few days.

With modern methods, not unless there's some scarring or other issue interfering with a routine reversal.

 

 

Kaley is 30, so Penny is actually a year or 2 older than her actress.

Until this episode, Penny was slightly younger than Kaley - same year of birth, Kaley on November 30, and Penny on December 2nd. They just added a year to Penny's age, making her just two days short of a year older than Kaley.

[Spartan Girl]

That little bunny was sooooo cute.

Sheldon and Amy were the best couple of the night. Sheldon was insensitive to Raj at first, but the advice he gave at the end referring to his own breakup shows that he really is trying to better.

[Demented Daisy]

"Did you know that the singular of 'confetti' is 'confetto'?"

"When would one use the singular?"

"You have a confetto in your nose."

 

That was brilliant and pitch-perfect.

 

Especially Sheldon's blink-and-you-miss-it wink at the end.  That might have been just a little Jim Parsons peeking through.  Doesn't seem like a Sheldon thing to do, but it was adorable.

[toomuchtv47]

This was an entire episode on M*A*S*H (again showing my age!).  Hot Lips was worried she was pregnant, so Radar was pressured to volunteer his pet rabbit to confirm it.  The doctors were able to operate on the rabbit so that he didn't die.  

 

I remember that episode.  I believe that Radar said they could use his rabbit but then found out she would be killed so they came up with the idea of removing the rabbit's ovaries and doing the test that way.

 

I feel like I've seen that show too. And I can't remember what it was. Aside from my own life, because my parents were pretty clear that was how they ended up with me.

 

There was the scene from Grease Live with Rizo and Kinickey in the back seat of the car.  It was pretty recent but obviously, they weren't married.

[The Kings Foot]

Hi all. Occasional lurker, first time poster ...

 

I don't know that the writers care enough about continuity to be aware that Bernadette said she doesn't want kids.  In last night's episode, they said Leonard never broke up with anybody (they forgot Sara Rue from Season 2) and Raj hadn't gone thru a breakup (Emily the Deaf Chick from Season 5 - sorry, I don't think I've ever seen her referred to as anything other than "Emily the Deaf Chick").

 

 

To be fair we never saw  Leonard break up with Sara Rue. She just stopped appearing one day.

 

Also Emily number one leaving him becuase he had no more money  is a little different than him leaving Emily number 2.

[indeed]

Didn't Leonard break it off with Priya after finding out she cheated (the woman he said he was thinking of marrying one day). Not that it wasn't pretty much over by that point anyway...

They could've just kept Penny at @30 now and going through that on top of her first "ma'am". Throw in a don't need to be carded anymore moment and ouch. ;) Usually, I don't care for Penny/Leonard storylines, but this wasn't bad--especially the end with crashing the live show.

Kripke appearance was a nice touch.

Maybe I don't know my rabbits very well, but that one must've been quite a leaper to get all the way into a hot tub. Don't think it was planted there, though.

Edited February 13, 2016 by indeed

[DrSpaceman73]

Didn't really like this episode

Cliche baby storyline. It doesn't bother me about Bernadette saying she didn't want kids, people change their minds. It's just kids in a sitcom like this never goes well. HIMYM went downhill over the same issues and ended poorly, a dragged on last season.

Emily they never showed anyway, the writing for her was poor, didn't care about her one way or another, so don't care they broke up. The other girl I find more interesting if nothing else.

They do seem to be struggling to find things to do with several characters.

There were a few good lines, but mostly the writers seem to be phoning it on on ideas for stories lately for most all the characters.

[chitowngirl]

Wouldn't vacuuming the confetti be easier than sweeping it?

[Isabella15]

About Baby Wolowitz,  and the trusim that where 30-something couples go, babies follow, here's my problem:  That's in Real Life!  And we're in a sitcom!  Since when does a sitcom have to accurately represent real life? 

 

Besides, the premise of this show is that the characters are brilliant nerds who cook rocket fuel in the kitchen, use Norad satellites to spy on super-models, and buy The Original Time Machine on eBay. 

 

Sadly, it's clear that the baby story is there because the current writers can't come up with anything as fresh, original and funny as, say, the time when Howard was in his bedroom and just accidentally happened to fall on the Space Shuttle's robotic hand. Penis first.  

 

 

Sheldon:  Speaking of ending relationships, when British Honduras became Belize, they designed a new flag with a tree on it.  And, I would like to hang myself from that tree. 

 

Preach, Brother!  I know just how you feel. 

Edited February 13, 2016 by Isabella15

[vibeology]

If Amy and Sheldon had made plans for Valentine's Day and Sheldon had derailed it by talking for hours with someone else, people would be begging Amy to ditch him. In fact, that has happened. But when Amy does it, we're supposed to think it's hilarious. Nope. Sorry. Amy continues to be an awful girlfriend.

Sheldon shared a big thing by adding Amy's name to the show and she proceeded to ignore him and talk to Raj and Kripke all night.

[Homily]

I missed the first part of the show, was anyone actually calling in to talk about flags?  And in fairness to Amy in the parts I saw she was trying to get Kripke off the phone.  Pretty desperately!

[jewel21]

This is correct.  Anything that would attack a rabbit, would kill it.  The odds are astronomically against the rabbit just being bitten and then hopping off on it's merry way to spread rabies.

 Yup, working at an exotic animal hospital for 7 months taught me that rabbits are prey animals, and prey animals don't get vaccinated against things like rabies (or any vaccines, really) because if they were to be bit by an infected animal, they would most likely be killed and not likely to spread the infection.

[SongbirdHollow]

Maybe I don't know my rabbits very well, but that one must've been quite a leaper to get all the way into a hot tub. Don't think it was planted there, though.

 

Yeah, I've had a pool and a hot tub (and pet rabbits) for years and rabbits are gonna avoid them. Possums, voles, lizards, baby raccoons, yeah, I've seen them in there. Only plausible explanation for a rabbit in a body of water is that a cat picked it up and got interrupted. Not that sitcoms have to make sense - I too was waiting for "the rabbit died" joke.

 

First time I was called ma'am I was 25 and had just moved to the south. Did. Not. Like. Then again, I got carded at age 48 when I ordered a beer. Bless his heart, I think he was angling for a good tip. 

[indeed]

Yes, it's not like they had any other callers apparently. Amy would be a bad friend (*ahem* Sheldon) if she ignored Raj completely. Although she could've told him she'd talk to him offline...but where would be the fun in that? The humor was (supposedly) in Sheldon's reactions and valiant/desperate attempts at keeping things flag-related.

Sheldon's still in bad boyfriend territory for telling Amy he would NEVER let her sit in his spot, IMO. Too bad he didn't give her that and a name credit for Valentine's Day...even if it probably only would've been for a few seconds and before the show went live.

[Zahdii]

The baby thing could be a disaster or a great story line.  We could watch Bernadette go through morning sickness, mood swings, and doctor visits.  We can watch Howard go back and forth over if this is the greatest thing that ever happened and being scared to death.  But the writers need to remember that while a pregnancy is a huge thing for the parents, the rest of us only want a small dose of it at a time.  First time parents often tell the world the second the pee stick is dry, and will tell any one anything going on with the pregnancy.  By the time the baby is born the parents are often shocked that most other people have been tired of hearing about it for a long time.  Even close friends can get tired of Pregnancy Overload.  The viewing audience is even less invested.

 

That doesn't mean that we want Hidden Baby Syndrome after the birth, and I truly hope the writers don't have Bernedette have to give birth at a comicon while screaming at Howard to lay off the Star Wars stuff and come meet his new baby.  Just let Howard call the gang from the hospital to tell them that the baby is on the way and he's going to be doing his best to help Bernie with the labor and delivery so he'll be out of touch for a while.  Let the gang hang out at the apartment and do something else while waiting for the birth announcement.  Only give us a few quick scenes of Bernedette and Howard navigating the whole birth process and then show them cuddling the new baby.  Then Howard Skypes from the hospital to show off the baby real quick and everyone says that they'll visit as soon as the new parents are ready.

 

The pregnancy story line can be done well, if some care is taken.

 

Regarding the MASH episode where Radar's bunny was used for a pregnancy test.  They did save Fluffy the bunny, Major Houlihan turned out to not be pregnant, and then the best part of the story ensues.  Major H goes to talk to Radar, who is happy that now Fluffy can stay with his other rabbit, Bongo.  She thanks him for letting them use Fluffy for her pregnancy test and Radar replies, "That's OK, I know you would have done the same thing for her."

Edited February 14, 2016 by Zahdii

[Homily]

Just let Howard call the gang from the hospital to tell them that the baby is on the way and he's going to be doing his best to help Bernie with the labor and delivery so he'll be out of touch for a while.

 

I hope they do that but I bet they won't.  The entire gang had to go to the hospital when they thought Howard's mother was having a heart attack.  Unless my friend needed me to drive and would be alone at the hospital I certainly wouldn't have assumed that I needed to be there while their mother was getting tests done.  But then I don't live in a sitcom!  They could handle it lots of different ways of course but I'm willing to bet if there is a protracted labour and delivery it's going to be done with everyone including Kripke and Stuart! in attendance.

[anna0852]

I hope they do that but I bet they won't.  The entire gang had to go to the hospital when they thought Howard's mother was having a heart attack.  Unless my friend needed me to drive and would be alone at the hospital I certainly wouldn't have assumed that I needed to be there while their mother was getting tests done.  But then I don't live in a sitcom!  They could handle it lots of different ways of course but I'm willing to bet if there is a protracted labour and delivery it's going to be done with everyone including Kripke and Stuart! in attendance.

I think the difference is that during the suspected heart attack, they didn't know what was going to happen. This was not a happy event and had a lot of unknowns. Therefore, I can see why Howard's friends showed up, for emotional support. Admittedly they probably all didn't need to be there but the pay-off was getting to see Leonard's face when Penny said she and Priya were comparing notes on his bedroom skills. So I'm okay with it it. I did something similar when a friends grandmother was taken to the ER. I didn't know the grandmother but I did know my friend and she needed some support.

 

For a baby though, I don't think they need to show up. I'm sure they will, cause it's sitcom land but the 'something bad is going on and we don't know what' impetus won't be there. This isn't something potentially life threatening, just life-changing. And if they do it right, it won't be that bad. Labor can take for freaking ever and I can see Howard or Bernie just wanting some company that isn't the other person. Especially if she has an epidural. Cause then you aren't in pain but you are stuck in bed for potentially hours. Just kick everyone back to the waiting room when it's time to push.

[Big Mother]

I thought the episode would end with the Howard and Bernie deciding to get a pet, and talking about how they'll be great parents at some point in the future.

 

Didn't expect that pregnancy announcement. Totally shocked me.

[Big Mother]

Oh, ETA: I'm pushing 40, married for 20 years, mom of 3 kids, but everyone still calls me Ms. and I don't look like a Miss. It's weird. I guess it's cultural; you don't want to offend anyone in new York...

[kat165]

I dread the thought of us being treated to Bernie's "mood swings." I'm sure no one at her job

wants to see that either. Remember the ep of the party at work? Her private bathroom and

the coffee which she never chipped in for? Or her screetching while she and Howie were

cleaing out the garage?

Edited February 14, 2016 by kat165

[shapeshifter]

As others have said, if you have a group of friends in their 30's, including two married couples and one committed couple, there will be babies.  I am curious to see how the writers deal with the pregnancy storyline.

They've made it clear that Bernie earns more money than Howard (IIRC by a lot). Bernie & Howie discussed that plan so if the writers do it I'll love it. There's a lot of possibilities there with all the boys dealing with the baby

Simon Helberg is still IMO the best actor and the most underrated comedian of the ensemble, so I hope this story line gives him a chance to shine. They could end the season with Bernie still pg, and then begin the new one with Howard and the baby at home. But I could also see this scenario succeeding:

And while I like the idea of Howard being a SAHD, I don't see why either of them have to give up their jobs. I actually prefer the notion of Stuart as their nanny.

About being called "Mam": Kids raised in the south or with southern values do it out of respect and/or habit, but the host at the restaurant was not southern bred. He wasn't very host-like (polite) either, which was supposed to be funny because most viewers could relate to service people who don't act like they need or want a tip or even the job.

The first time I *recall* being called "Mam" was by my husband's fianceé when I was 37. It was definitely an expression of hostility not unlike the restaurant host towards Penney.

[SmithW6079]

We could watch Bernadette go through morning sickness, mood swings, and doctor visits.

I dread the thought of us being treated to Bernie's "mood swings." I'm sure no one at her job wants to see that either. Remember the ep of the party at work? Her private bathroom and the coffee which she never chipped in for? Or her screetching while she and Howie were cleaing out the garage?

Right, because this show needs another reason to make Bernadette an even bigger bitch to everyone else.

[RoxieBear73]

Right, because this show needs another reason to make Bernadette an even bigger bitch to everyone else.

I thought it was just me that noticed Bernadette being grumpy to everyone. I used to like her but her attitude sucks

[PhysNerd]

Most of my friends became pregnant multiple times while taking birth control pills, so I don't find it difficult to believe that Bernadette would become unexpectedly pregnant.  

 

I'm not sure what the big deal is with being called "ma'am."  I'm 30 and at work I call all customers "ma'am" or "sir" except if they are a child. It doesn't matter to me whether they are 20 or 60. Penny looked quite a bit older than 30.  I think it was her short hair (it usually makes people look older in my opinion), her dress and her makeup.  Her makeup was way too heavy, which can age you.  

 

 

[LoneHaranguer]

 

The first time I *recall* being called "Mam" was by my husband's fianceé when I was 37. It was definitely an expression of hostility not unlike the restaurant host towards Penney.

The hostility showed when he called her "lady". She may not have liked being called "Mam", but she was there with her husband and the host knew that, so "Miss" wasn't appropriate. In a classy restaurant, what else was there besides "Mrs Hofstadter", which the host was likely to avoid rather than risk mispronouncing it?