S09.E17: The Celebration Experimentation

[TheOtherOne]

"The Celebration Experimentation" - After more than nine years together, the gang finally celebrates Sheldon's birthday, surprising him with a special guest, on the 200th episode of THE BIG BANG THEORY, Thursday, Feb. 25 (8:00-8:31 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Christine Baranski, John Ross Bowie, Sara Gilbert and Wil Wheaton return, joined by special guest star Adam West.

[Pepper the Cat]

God, Sara Gilbert looks old!!

Nice episode. Not great, but OK.

[Spartan Girl]

Wow, Leslie Winkle! It's been a while!

Glad this episode explored Sheldon's neuroses without painting him as a complete asshole this time. I can't blame him for not wanting a birthday party after what his twin put him through.

Adam West OWNED this episode. Loved the Keaton/Bale/Kilmer/Clooney debate. "I didn't need to say I was Batman...whenever I walked into a room, people KNEW I was Batman!"

[Accidental Martyr]

I think they've overdone the bit with Leonard and his mother. It seems more cruel and sad than funny to me.

[anna0852]

Barry hitting on Beverly was new.

[dustylil]

I can't blame him for not wanting a birthday party after what his twin put him through.

 

With respect, given how obnoxious and self-centred Sheldon is as a adult, I can well imagine what he put his twin through when they were small children.

[CleoCaesar]

My only reaction to all the praise Sheldon was receiving: Why on Earth do they all like this asshole so much?

[Rhetorica]

OK episode. Adam West was cute until they nearly turned him into another Professor Proton begging for gigs. Seeing the other past actors made this episode seem even more of a let down. It was good to see Leslie Winkle, and Bawry Kwipke. My, he got gray! I have always thought Leonard's mom was mean. Sheldon and Penny were great together, as usual. I do hope Stuart has success in his personal and professional life sometime.

[tenativelyyours]

I don't know why this show thinks Leonard's mom being a raving bitch is funny.  The first two times she was on I found her character amusing.  She was pedantic and cold and lacked any empathy and had a certain focused appreciation for things.  It made sense.  But after that she just got downright pathological in her scorn and desire to hurt Leonard.  Disgusting to watch but also simply at odds with the character they introduced.  They seem to have gotten her character wrapped up in the change when Sheldon was such a determinedly honest character with his own set of rigid rules of life and instead became just an immature dick.

 

I will say that this felt like an actual episode for once compared to the last couple of shows.  It wasn't bad.  Not that the show hasn't lowered the bar on seventeen minutes significantly in terms of how much it can manage to suck.

[Artsda]

I liked they used a party to celebrate the milestone.

 

So Sheldon  went to Leonard's mom's birthday party and celebrated with Leonard's siblings and Leonard had no idea or was invited. I don't think that's funny. Cruel and mean.

Edited February 26, 2016 by Artsda

[AshleyLyn]

Damn, the actor for Kripke has gotten gray. I don't like Kripke but the actor is actually handsome.

Adam West and the discussion of Batman's was funny.

Loved the Penny/Sheldon bathroom chat. It was simply done and very good.

[TheOtherOne]

I have to give the show credit--the episode where Penny learned Sheldon's birthday was that day did air exactly a year ago (this week, if not to the day). Makes me wonder if they planted that seed to coincide with their 200th episode exactly a year later--which would be incredible planning--or if it was just a lucky coincidence they decided to take advantage of.

[PinkRibbons]

Kevin Conroy is the greatest Batman of all time and no one will ever convince me otherwise.

[anna0852]

I'm over Leonard's mom being so cold to him. But it was nice to see that he apparently no longer cares. He has a wife who loves him and a family of his choosing. He's come a long way since the first time we met Beverly back in season 2.

[andromeda331]

Adam West and the discussion of Batman's was funny.

That was my favorite part. Hearing him rating all of the Batmans and how he never needed to tell anyone he was Batman.

[wendyg]

theotherone: TBBT's last renewal was for three years, so they knew a year ago they'd be doing a 200th episode. Could well have been planned as a celebration, although I have to say my first reaction to this episode is, "Boy, they're really running out of ideas - last week half karaoke, this week half birthday speeches." Still, the guest stars were fun. But you know, compare it to the 100th episode and...meh.

[ZuluQueenOfDwarves]

I don't know why this show thinks Leonard's mom being a raving bitch is funny. The first two times she was on I found her character amusing. She was pedantic and cold and lacked any empathy and had a certain focused appreciation for things. It made sense. But after that she just got downright pathological in her scorn and desire to hurt Leonard. Disgusting to watch but also simply at odds with the character they introduced. They seem to have gotten her character wrapped up in the change when Sheldon was such a determinedly honest character with his own set of rigid rules of life and instead became just an immature dick.

Thank you! Leonard's mom was funny when she was clinical and dispassionate. Now she's actively cruel to her son and I don't know why the writers think it's good (probably because they have another year guaranteed in their contract and just don't give a damn anymore). Just like Stuart being a pathetic sad sack isn't funny, but he was great as the sweet, witty, somewhat successful artist who charmed Penny into going out with him despite being well outside her (at the time) usual repertoire of beefcakes. Maybe he'll decorate Howard and Bernadette's nursery and we can be reminded he's got qualities other than being pathetic. Plus the gang treating him like a piece of ugly furniture is almost as bad as Beverly cutting down her son.

This episode felt very anticlimactic. What was the point of Sara Gilbert returning? Leslie hated Sheldon, wasn't close to the group, and had 4 lines for the episode. Pointless.

[theatremouse]

I found this entirely underwhelming.

Also, while I enjoy Sara Gilbert in general, boy oh boy did she feel shoehorned in. I don't understand why Leslie Winkle would agree to come to a birthday party for Sheldon, or why they'd think to invite her, especially since it was presented as she hadn't seen them in ages. I mean, I understand the practical reason for the milestone episode, but geez writers, kinda pretend to give me a character driven reason whydoncha?

Clearly they're beyond bothering with that sort of thing.

[Demented Daisy]

With respect, given how obnoxious and self-centred Sheldon is as a adult, I can well imagine what he put his twin through when they were small children.

 

Isn't it possible the way they treated him as a child contributed to the way he is as an adult?  

Edited February 26, 2016 by Demented Daisy

[TheOtherOne]

theotherone: TBBT's last renewal was for three years, so they knew a year ago they'd be doing a 200th episode. Could well have been planned as a celebration, 

 

Yes, I get that they knew they would have a 200th episode based on the 3-year renewal and would have wanted to do something special for it (as they used the 100th to put Leonard and Penny back together.) But if they really planned it over a year ago, as in counted out the number of episodes well over a year in advance to determine when the 200th episode would fall to place the Sheldon birthday reveal exactly a year before the 200th would be (trusting that nothing would ever be rescheduled, etc.), I think that's pretty impressive, and doesn't sound at all like writers who are lazy or phoning it in or not bothering anymore, as is so often claimed.

 

On the other hand, if it was a happy accident that the 200th aired exactly a year later and they realized, "Hey, we should take advantage of that," well, that is pretty smart. (Much like how Friends had Phoebe give birth in their 100th, when they wanted to do something big and just decided to take advantage of the timing to have it happen then.)

Edited February 26, 2016 by TheOtherOne

[theatremouse]

Yes, I get that they knew they would have a 200th episode based on the 3-year renewal and would have wanted to do something special for it (as they used the 100th to put Leonard and Penny back together.) But if they really planned it over a year ago, as in counted out the number of episodes well over a year in advance to determine when the 200th episode would fall to place the Sheldon birthday reveal exactly a year before the 200th would be (trusting that nothing would ever be rescheduled, etc.), I think that's pretty impressive, and doesn't sound at all like writers who are lazy or phoning it in or not bothering anymore, as is so often claimed.

It was frankly sort of a bottle episode? The only plot points it depended on were: P&L are already married and S&A aren't virgins. Other than that, you could really have plunked the birthday episode almost anywhere without disruption, and even then, that's basically two lines that might need tweaking. Which is to say: it didn't have to be that well planned out. They could've forced it to fall in the "right" week. I'm not saying it wasn't planned in advance, just that if it weren't a happy accident "oh hey look it fits", they didn't have to have been on top of it for a year for it to work out. Edited February 26, 2016 by theatremouse

[tenativelyyours]

theotherone: TBBT's last renewal was for three years, so they knew a year ago they'd be doing a 200th episode. Could well have been planned as a celebration, although I have to say my first reaction to this episode is, "Boy, they're really running out of ideas - last week half karaoke, this week half birthday speeches." Still, the guest stars were fun. But you know, compare it to the 100th episode and...meh.

 

It reminded me in some ways of how Friends used to pretend they had a new episode when it was really just a clip show with five minutes of new material wrapped around a flashback from a previous episode.  What really sticks out for me is how the last three episodes have all relied on the viewers to do the heavy lifting.  We as viewers essentially fill in the blanks with what we know.  Leonard's mom throws out a derisive aside meant to underscore Leonard is marginalized to an extreme and with no real reason she dismisses him from his own family but has time to jaunt out at a moment's notice for Sheldon's birthday.  Even though her original character would, even for Sheldon, find that a useless moment to observe.  If she appreciated Sheldon's existence, she would have sent a 'thank you' on his birthday to his mother (even though they don't like each).  But instead of any exposition as to why his mother would throw her own party or never invite Leonard it is just thrown out there as a grab it for no reason laugh based on what, by now, viewers know of the characters.

 

Same with just having Leslie Winkle and Will Wheaton there.  Both rely much more on their past character development than any real interaction for me.  Sara could have just lifted her glass and said 'dumbass' and it would have been the same effect since there was nothing to indicate why she was there as already noted.  Is she even still at the University?  If so, considering the same academic circles, Leonard being married would have circulated by now. 

 

Instead of some cloying sentimentality that for the most part made no sense, it could have tapped into the show's history and not been so lazy.

 

But again, for me, this was much better than the last two episodes because it did feel like there was a story arc, thin as it was.  And the scene with Sheldon and Penny in the bathroom did play to their relationship as it has grown and evolved as well as the short but still effective speech by Leonard which the show keeps telling us is also the evolved relationship between Sheldon and Leonard but refuse to actually show us -- Sheldon's evolution in terms of Leonard with the married of Leonard and Penny and Sheldon dealing with death and his realization how important Leonard is to him should have seen a shift in the dynamic.  Sheldon is incredibly protective and possessive of what he cares for and what he cares about.  He might still be patronizing in regards to Leonard, but by know he knows bullying when he sees it.  And the cold distant and yet virulently active need to diminish Leonard in a cruelly abusive manner by Leonard's mother should have already rung a few alarm bells in Sheldon when the two mothers met.  He might have certain filters slightly off and he might find certain social clues unfathomable, but this has just gotten ridiculous.  As much as I like Christine Baranski, I hope this was her swan song.  The only way I want her to return is if Penny decides she has had enough and rips her to shreds.  And I am really really hoping the show does not bring her back in the last season for some sort of redemption arc.  They missed their best shot when they had both mothers on and Sheldon's mother by nature and by opportunity should have torn Leonard's to shreds.  And instead they almost gave Baranki's character a redemption arc by making it seem Leonard deserved to be abused.

 

For a show that is meant to reveal the person of worth that lies within; that is aimed at taking a segment long bullied and held at less, they sure do go out of their way to justify some really heinous behavior.  And I mean really heinous.  And it gets justified with her character over and over again.  It is not like some Karen Walker character who is mean rich out of touch druggie who is portrayed as severely flawed.  Baranski's character is held up was odd and disaffected but also as the coldly logical voice of reason that mocks her son and we are supposed to find that funny.

 

I guess i just find emotional abuse to be a touching point for so many of the things wrong in our society to give it such a huge pass simply for laughs and never strike a balance.  The shit as a mean shit being funny is a meme that has taken off. I see it over on Black-ish where the mother-in-law Ruby acts in such a way towards the mother of her grandchildren.  And there is no balance.  One character simply absorbs it and it is still suppose to be funny.  Mike & Molly had it but they got it right and let it evolve so that Molly started coming back at Peggy and getting some of her own shots in.  I hate the human punching bag as a trope.  And in this case, they have gone to such an extreme in regards to Leonard's mother.  Just because she is not hitting him and he is now an adult does not mean she isn't abusing him.  Severely.  That is not comedy if you don't allow Leonard some sort of strength and pushback on the matter.  A history of abuse can actually be used to draw humor but only if there is not a continual and perpetual victim that everyone else can clearly see and either shrug off or actually engage in the abuse as a means of fun entertainment. 

 

Sorry, I just have witnessed too many people simply be nasty to raise themselves up to see this type of parent-child relationship be held up as humor in a show meant to illustrate how everyone is interesting and worthwhile in their own way.  They made Stuart a creep again and again to mitigate how he is treated by the rest of the characters outside Sheldon.  But I'm still waiting for the show to try and even 'justify ' why Leonard gets the treatment he does. 

[MaryMitch]

I loved the episode - loved seeing all the guests. Their presence emphasized how Sheldon has changed over the years. Sheldon hugging Penny - not just letting her hug him, but hugging her back - was a real awww moment for me.

[DrLar]

Who wouldn't like to be hugged by Penny? specially with that dress...

 

So Emily officially gone from the show right? not taking back Raj I guess,  she should be invited instead of Winkle..

Edited February 26, 2016 by DrLar

[needschocolate]

Leslie Winkle seemed out of place - why would she even be invited?  

 

As soon as Sheldon ran off, I hoped that there would be a Sheldon/Penny moment, but I couldn't figure out how they could get Penny to have a one on one conversation with him when he has a girlfriend.  I thought they did a good job of making it happen in a believable way.  

 

A lot of the comedy in sitcoms comes from the flaws of characters.  Unfortunately, this usually means that the flaws get more and more exaggerated the longer the show is on.  Eventually, characters start becoming caricatures, or parodies of themselves.  This is what happened to Sheldon's mom.  It was happening to Sheldon too, but they seem to have done a bit to reverse it by having Sheldon become more human again after Amy broke up with him.

[zxy556575]

So Sheldon went to Leonard's mom's birthday party and celebrated with Leonard's siblings and Leonard had no idea or was invited. I don't think that's funny. Cruel and mean.

 

Oh, show. There is no possible circumstance that would convince me that Sheldon left town without Leonard and Penny noticing, or that Sheldon himself wouldn't have brought it up in conversation. The packing and clothing labeling! The ride to the airport! The worrying! I can't just assume that P/L were themselves out of town or otherwise hand wave it away. There's also Amy to consider -- she knows everything Sheldon does and discusses most of it with Penny and Bernadette. As others have mentioned, Beverly doesn't celebrate birthdays. There are hundreds of other ways that Beverly's presence in Pasadena could have been explained. It's exasperating when the writers can't get out of their own way. I also agree that what was once an exclusionary, single-minded dedication to science on Beverly's part has now morphed into raging assitude.

 

Even though Sheldon doesn't really like Kripke or Leslie, they are still familiar entities and therefore comfortable, and maybe even comforting, to him. Having them at the party didn't seem out of place to me. I only wish Cousin Leo had been there! Would have given Toby more scope for his acting.

Edited February 26, 2016 by lordonia

[Big Mother]

whoa, John Ross Bowie is gray! I had to look up his age on wikipedia. Don't most actors color their hair? Is he allowing himself to go gray on purpose, for acting reasons?

[MaryMitch]

It's too bad they couldn't get Sheldon's mother to come to the party; I suppose the actress was busy, but I don't think they even mentioned her, did they?

[stillhere1900]

Kevin Conroy is the greatest Batman of all time and no one will ever convince me otherwise.

 

Who ?

[wendyg]

I think it's pretty clear that this episode was for the cast and show crew - an "our family" show. From an interview I saw, Sara Gilbert's presence meant a lot to Johnny Galecki because it was the second time they appeared together in a 200th episode, the first being Roseanne. That's such a rare thing in TV that I can see why they wrote her in even though it didn't make a whole lot of sense. Baranski worked with Lorre on CYBILL (and isn't being used enough on THE GOOD WIFE), Will Wheaton and Stephen Hawking have been two of the show's recurring special guest stars, and Kripke and Stuart have been regular presences.

[zxy556575]

I didn't even notice that Laurie Metcalf was missing! Sheldon actually loves his mother, so that was odd not to have her there. They could at least have spared one line in the script explaining that she was on another cruise for Jesus or something.

[Big Mother]

When the cast sang Happy Birthday, you can clearly see them all come out of character. It was almost like a private cast party.

[Homily]

Isn't it possible the way they treated him as a child contributed to the way he is as an adult?

 

They reference on more than one occasion that Sheldon was bullied as a child, by other children and by his older brother and even upon occasion by his sister.  The show she is on makes it abundantly clear that when she was displeased with Sheldon she didn't hesitate to kick him where it counts.  Sheldon was a pain in the ass as a kid but he has never been presented as being the kid who "ruled the school".  Far from it.

[PinkRibbons]

Who ?

 

 

Only the magnificent voice of the greatest incarnation of Batman ever, in Batman: The Animated Series, Justice League and Batman Beyond.

 

(Similarly Mark Hamill will to me always be the greatest Joker of all time.)

[Bobbin]

I have a different take on Leslie Winkle's appearance at Sheldon's party. I think it was significant that Sheldon asked her to call him "dumbass". It was more than his knowing she was dying to say it. Like his hero Spock, he does have feelings. At least once each season, he steps out of character to remind us that he's human. I think he apreciated her being there. For all of his frustration and exasperation with Sheldon, Leonard called him his brother. For all of their verbal sparring, Leslie and Sheldon probably do respect each other. Besides, like her or not, Leslie has been a part of Sheldon's life, as have all of the other guests, and one thing Sheldon craves is constancy.

[ari333]

I agree, as mentioned, I thought that Leonard's mom doesn't believe in celebrating birthdays because what's to celebrate about being expelled from a birth canal.

Also agree that no way did Sheldon go somewhere and no one knew about it.

Edited February 26, 2016 by ari333

[ari333]

Best line for me was, "Happy birthday, Sherman!"

[highway61]

Was it me, or was Leonard surprised to see Leslie at the snacks? She was already in the room when they spoke -- she had to have knocked on the door and been let in. At a party with 10 people, that would have been noticed. Minor point - just weird.

 

Oh, another minor story - I drove Adam West to lunch when he was appearing at a sci-fi convention many years ago. He really is as friendly and down-to-earth as he seems. Great to see him.

Edited February 26, 2016 by highway61

[Ouisch]

Did Sara Gilbert look a bit frail? I don't know if she's recently lost a lot of weight, or if she's been ill....   She just looked a lot different. Even more different than grey-haired Kripke.

[DarkRaichu]

whoa, John Ross Bowie is gray! I had to look up his age on wikipedia. Don't most actors color their hair? Is he allowing himself to go gray on purpose, for acting reasons?

Not sure why so many were surprised by this.  I noticed it was gray in the fencing episode.

 

Adam West was great, but I could not help but thought that Leonard Nimoy would have been the perfect guess star for the episode.  Live long and prosper, Mr. Spock

[shapeshifter]

Barry hitting on Beverly was new.

I wondered if the grey hair was to make it more believable that they would hook up.--not that CB doesn't look fabulous enough for a younger man to want her.

 

theotherone: TBBT's last renewal was for three years, so they knew a year ago they'd be doing a 200th episode. Could well have been planned as a celebration, although I have to say my first reaction to this episode is, "Boy, they're really running out of ideas - last week half karaoke, this week half birthday speeches." Still, the guest stars were fun. But you know, compare it to the 100th episode and...meh.

Yeah. It seems they got as far as getting big names and past characters for the 200th and then didn't know what to do with them. The bits between the regulars were actually pretty good. I loved Penny and Stewart's cake frosting dialog. Actually all of Penny's scenes were pretty well written.

 

My favorite 200th episode of a series was SG1's: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/200_(Stargate_SG-1)

 

Did Sara Gilbert look a bit frail? I don't know if she's recently lost a lot of weight, or if she's been ill.... She just looked a lot different. Even more different than grey-haired Kripke.

She looks pretty good on her regular talk show. I think someone overly botoxed her for this episode. For that matter, Penny's face was a little stiff at times.

Edited February 26, 2016 by shapeshifter

[iMonrey]

 

I don't know why this show thinks Leonard's mom being a raving bitch is funny.

 

One thing Chuck Lorre is consistent with is his belief that it's funny when nerds are picked on. Lord knows Alan Harper became the most degraded, humiliated and pathetic character on television the longer 2.5 Men was on the air. It makes me think Lorre was a bully in school, and gets off on watching geeks suffer. This is the guy who thinks Porkys is the best movie ever made.

 

It feels like the last two episodes just let the clock run out in the last ten minutes. Last week it was the karaoke and this week it was the endless toasts. Talk about phoning it in - it just felt like the writers wrote 2/3 of a script and left it up to the cast to improvise the rest.

[Chit Chat]

Was it me, or was Leonard surprised to see Leslie at the snacks? She was already in the room when they spoke -- she had to have knocked on the door and been let in. At a party with 10 people, that would have been noticed. Minor point - just weird

 

I was thinking the same thing, highway61!  FWIW, I thought that Sara looked good.  It was odd not to even mention Sheldon's Mom.  I would've loved to have seen her or even heard her voice on the phone.   I was a little disappointed that they didn't do more with Adam West too.   The car ride with the guys was funny, but once he was at the apartment, it just kind of fizzled out, IMO.   I wanted Sheldon to show more excitement that he was there.  All in all I liked the episode,  but the tributes to Sheldon by the other characters went on too long.  Stephen Hawking's cameo was icing on the cake though. "I was crushing it!"   

Edited February 26, 2016 by ChitChat

[CherryAmes]

There is no possible circumstance that would convince me that Sheldon left town without Leonard and Penny noticing, or that Sheldon himself wouldn't have brought it up in conversation.

 

I don't know why, and it's not like they said anything, but for some reason I just assumed Sheldon skyped his presence at Beverly's party.  Also I find it hard to believe she's only 60 - Leonard has to be 35 and he's the youngest in his family which means the older siblings have to be 40ish,  I don't see Beverly as being the type of person to have her children before she's even finished her undergrad work.  Just does not jibe with everything else we've been told about her and her marriage.

 

With regard to Sheldon leaving and telling no one though I would put that in the same "oh really" category that I put them all knowing about Penny's topless scene in a movie minutes after meeting her and it never coming up until years later.  And with the idea that Leonard had a fling with Priya and that never coming up until Priya shows up again years later.  (on a side note that scene with Sheldon and the picture of the snarky cat going "oh really" killed me for some reason).

Edited February 26, 2016 by CherryAmes

[shura]

Besides, like her or not, Leslie has been a part of Sheldon's life, as have all of the other guests, and one thing Sheldon craves is constancy.

 

I'm not so sure this works as a serious explanation (not that I'm looking for one). If Sheldon is like us and hasn't seen her in years, then seeing her actually breaks his routine. And if we are supposed to think that they've been hanging out constantly off-screen, then the show might as well have brought absolutely any random person. Why not Raj's father or the HR lady from Caltech? 

[CherryAmes]

I kinda assumed Kripke and Leslie Winkle were there because outside his immediate circle Sheldon has no friends (except Wil Wheaton of course).  It seemed logical to me that in casting around for people to invite they'd end up choosing from his enemies list just to make up the numbers!

[Ouisch]

....not to mention that Adam West did the "pure West" non-muscled costume schtik years ago on The Simpsons....  

[joanne3482]

I didn't realize it was a 200th episode. I thought that would have been a fitting series ending. It seemed to wrap things up in an odd way. 

[Bobbin]

Leslie, Barry and Sheldon are senior research scientists at the same university. Just because they don't appear together regularly in episodes doesn't mean they don't run into each other often at work or at lunch. Barry frequently stopped in at Sheldon's office, if only to bug him. Who's to say Leslie didn't, too?

LOL, drawing on Sheldon's enemy list to fill out the guest list isn't so far-fetched. For my stepdaughter's surprise birthday party, my wife invited everyone in her daughter's address book, many of whom turned out to be mere acquaintances she once worked on school projects with -- nearly all of whom showed up!

[LoneHaranguer]

 

I thought that Leonard's mom doesn't believe in celebrating birthdays because what's to celebrate about being expelled from a birth canal.

Maybe she's figured out that you're actually celebrating surviving another year, or more for the milestone numbers. She does put up with social custom when necessary, as when she thanked Sheldon for sending flowers after her surgery, then agreed with him about not really caring for the custom. Maybe her daughter-in-law, the judge and bronze medalist, insisted on having something; she respects accomplished people.

 

 

It seemed logical to me that in casting around for people to invite they'd end up choosing from his enemies list just to make up the numbers!

Seems like he'd sooner want his assistant, Alex.