S10.E07: The Veracity Elasticity

[TheOtherOne]

Quote

"The Veracity Elasticity" - In order to continue living with Sheldon, Amy lies to him about repairs being made to her apartment and they host an "on location" episode of "Fun With Flags" in Penny's apartment. Also, Leonard lets Penny decorate Sheldon's old room after he learns that she has been secretly moving Leonard's collectibles into storage, on THE BIG BANG THEORY, Thursday, Nov. 3 (8:00-8:31 PM, ET/PT), on the CBS Television Network.

[Spartan Girl]

Nice to see Sheldon continue to increase his maturity in his relationship. He was surprisingly understanding when he found out Amy was lying, and was even open to moving in with her. I won't hold it against him that he was struggling with indecision; it's a big step for anyone.

LMAO at nightmare of Amy and Leonard turning his old room into a sex room.

I don't think it's cool of Penny to get rid of Leonard's things without telling him. The things they let that woman get away with...

Edited November 4, 2016 by Spartan Girl

[Nordly Beaumont]

Loved the Klingon and Ubbi Dubbi speak! Very clever. And "Where's Waldo" jokes always make me laugh more than they probably should!

[Browncoat]

The Klingon and Ubbi Dubbi were hilarious!  I probably laughed too hard at the Where's Waldo joke, too.

Penny sucked, surreptitiously getting rid of Leonard's stuff like that. 

Yay, Fun With Flags!  Love that Simon occasionally gets to play the piano -- he was fabulous in Florence Foster Jenkins.

[PinkRibbons]

I feel I have to state something that makes me think that the writers behind this episode were either avoiding it deliberately for whatever nonsense's sake, or possibly they are on drugs and/or forgot. I'm not accusing but...

The obvious and best solution is to have Amy and Sheldon move into the big apartment, and Leonard and Penny move into the small. Penny and Leonard were always planning to move back to her apartment, which, incidentally, is really jarring as a permanent residence for Amy and Sheldon already since it's still stamped all over with Penny's style. Sheldon was the one who originally had the larger apartment, and he's the one least comfortable with change. It would be conflict enough to acknowledge Amy having permanent residence in his room with him. Plus? I sincerely doubt he would have any problem letting Leonard use his old room as a collectibles museum. There, all problems solved. And frankly the solution is so simple that this episode's logic just collapsed on itself. It's hard to focus on a scene where a bunch of (supposedly extremely smart) people are confused about something that has such an obvious solution.

That being said, the Klingon and Ubbi Dubbi parts were gold.

Edited November 4, 2016 by PinkRibbons

[greekmom]

Penny's attitude of Leonard's stuff was horrible.

The bedroom in the end looked like pepto-bismol threw up in the room.

[ExplainItAgain]

This was one of the funniest episodes in awhile. I love how Amy just kept Sheldon talking at the end and he just walked right into the apartment.

[shura]

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

I don't think it's cool of Penny to get rid of Leonard's things without telling him. The things they let that woman get away with...

Nah, he didn't let her get away with it. He learned quickly and started getting rid of her things little by little, too.  I bet she won't notice either that there is a pink Power Ranger on her night stand now. Compromise!

[kat165]

Their fun with flags eppy was so colorful! It seemed weird to see those 2 in Penny's colorful apt. Loved the Klingon and Ubbi Dubbi. Also, Waldo. Modern Family did an excellent riff on Waldo a few seasons ago. Funniest I've seen.

Like the rest of you hated that Penny got rid of Leonard's stuff. I can never understand/relate to women getting rid of their men's stuff. Like Bernie and the Tardis. Pissed me off. And loved seeing Simon play and him and Raj singing. I really enjoyed their Footprints on the Moon song which I just saw recently. Very catchy. A good ep. My mom, a huge fan, hated it though. I told her she'll enjoy it more when it comes out on DVD and she can watch it without the commercials.

[anna0852]

I really liked this episode. Sheldon is just growing by leaps and bounds. I think he's finally realizing that it's okay to loosen up a bit, when you find the person worth loosening up for. I don't think he'd do this for anyone but Amy. And I love how Amy makes adjustments for him but keeps some boundaries as well, something Leonard very rarely achieved.

I love how Sheldon and Leonard switched to Klingon to talk in front of the girls.

[willco]

I can understand, I suppose, the swapping of apartments, although as has been noted the way they are doin it isn't very smart. But what I don't get, and I could be wrong, but that looks like Penny's bedspread on what is now S & A 's bed ! Why wouldn't you at least change that ? Unclean bed linens are a pet peeve of mine, so maybe I'm the only guy who noticed.

Edited November 4, 2016 by willco
I'm not a great typer

[kat165]

Willco, you're not the only one. What surprises me is that ALL of Penny's crap is still there and Amy and Sheldon seem perfectly comfortable living there with it. I'm surprised Sheldon is dealing so well with it. It's so not like him.

[TheOtherOne]

I've said it before, but I'm loving this season! It's been so good so far.

Plus, they corrected one of my personal pet peeves--this episode was longer than they've been for a while! Not counting the closing credits, this one clocked in at 20 1/2 minutes instead of the usual 18 (last week was 18:09). Yes, give us more show, please.

[possibilities]

I used to speak Ubbi Dubbi with my friends when we were in elementary school. Don't know Klingon, though.

I think they left Penny's stuff around because they only expected to be there a short time. It's like they were housesitting. I agree about the bedding, though. And if they make it permanent, surely she should pack her stuff up and they can give us an episode of Sheldon and Amy figuring out how to decorate the place to their mutual satisfaction. 

I find I'm looking forward to the vanity cards as much and sometimes more than the show itself these days. The gloves came off this week.

[P3pp3rb1rd]

The Fun with Flags show was teh boring. Seems to me that the show would attract trolls on the internet, and they would make Sheldon miserable. The world is a cruel place, but Sheldon is always being sheltered by his friends and family. That's not likely at all. I think we ought to see how Sheldon would handle bullies.

[Gulftastic]

Another good episode. They are on a bit of a roll at the moment. 

I'm loving how Sheldon is changing. When it was first mentioned that Amy's apartment was secretly fit to be lived in, I feared the worse, but Sheldon actually dealt with it in a reasonably mature manner. I really liked the lobby talk between him and Amy, and when she held him whilst singing the 2001 theme. It's becoming believable that they are a genuine couple now.

And, just to be shallow, Penny in the sex-dungeon fantasy.....that girl is in shape! Leonard was sucking it in for all he was worth.

[wknt3]

I liked this one a lot. Like everyone else it seems I thought the Klingon/Ubbi Dubbi scenes were the funniest, but my favorite scene was actually Amy and Sheldon's discussion of philosophy. One of the things I'm really enjoying about this season is the bits like this or the retinal scanner where we are going back to the humor coming from the characters being brainy and nerdy, but in an affectionate way. As opposed to the Penny hides Leonard's stuff plot which is the kind of mean spirited thing they were doing last season.

As far as the apartment swapping plot is concerned there are the meta reasons for most of what we find illogical like wanting it to be quickly clear where they are (hence not redecorating as much as Sheldon probably would insist on) and keeping the main characters in the main set, but much like the complaining about the way the characters handle money in real life people aren't always completely logical or consistent about the way they handle living arrangements.

[Badsamaritan]

I get why they haven't changed anything at Penny's, since this was just supposed to be an experiment. Why would they get rid of her stuff when originally there was a finite date to end it? And I guess I'm in the minority regarding Penny getting rid of Leonard's stuff because honestly, they've been married for a while now so she SHOULD be allowed to put her own stamp on their place. Leonard is a little bit like Sheldon when it comes to all his sci-fi collectibles, and Bernie certainly had a say when they moved into Howard's house after his mom died and they remodeled. Just because they don't have all their stuff on display anymore doesn't make them less of a fan. I was glad to see Leonard's room looked like a married adult's bedroom. He is pushing 40 after all. If they ever have kids, he's got plenty of toys to share with them. Yes, yes, 'collectibles'.

I screamed in laughter that Penny actually did learn Ubbi Dubbi lol! Great callback. I do prefer Sheldon and Amy living at Penny's instead of them switching apartments. It puts them both on even footing as far as living arrangements. I think if they switched, it would take away from Sheldon's growth regarding change and he would revert back to his 'Mine, mine!' mentality. This way, they're both finding their way, and Sheldon is still close enough to 'his spot' that it's not too much for him to handle.

Absolutely loved the way Amy dealt with him at the end. Like dangling a carrot in front of a skittish horse, heh. She gave him the carrot then walked away. She really is his perfect match, and I am loving the evolution of their relationship.

Raj needs to call that vet that Penny and Leonard took Cinnamon to see when Cinnamon ate the chocolate. She was my favorite potential for him. And I think her attitude would mesh well with the rest of the group. Bring her back, Lorre!

[buffynut]

I'm enjoying this season too. I would never, ever have thought that Sheldon and Amy having sex would make the show better, but it seems that's when the turning point happened and no longer are we getting the tiring Mr & Mrs Roper type jokes.  And also, sad as it is that the actress died in real life, we aren't getting fat jokes anymore, which had also gotten old and a bit too mean.

[BlossomCulp]

13 hours ago, greekmom said:

 

Penny's attitude of Leonard's stuff was horrible.

 

I disagree, she put his crap in storage she didn't throw it away.  If he didn't notice what difference does it make that it's not right under his nose where he didn't notice?  Frankly this shows up one of the weaknesses of the living arrangements, and one that is similar to what happened on Everybody Loves Raymond where they kept living someplace that made them unhappy even when could have afforded to move away.   Penny and Leonard are pulling in at least $200k a year why are they still in a small apartment when they could certainly afford a house where Leonard could have a "man cave" with all his stuff around him but not intruding on Penny's space.  She's entitled to be able to put her own stamp on her living arrangements and while she and Leonard should have discussed that a lot earlier it made for a damn funny episode!!

Edited November 4, 2016 by BlossomCulp

[vibeology]

13 hours ago, greekmom said:

Penny's attitude of Leonard's stuff was horrible.

Yes and No. For me, I think Penny secreting things out of the apartment and into storage is one of the most immature ways of dealing with the situation. She should have talked to Leonard about how she was feeling and they should have found a way to make her feel welcome. But I do get her emotions. This is a place where she isn't represented. And that sucks because they're not boyfriend/girlfriend. They are spouses. Penny went too far the other way in redecorating the room and it would be nice if they could work together to find something they both like, but I also get if she was frustrated for a while about the situation overreacting. It's understandable but not right.

[CherryAmes]

3 hours ago, Badsamaritan said:

And I guess I'm in the minority regarding Penny getting rid of Leonard's stuff because honestly, they've been married for a while now so she SHOULD be allowed to put her own stamp on their place. Leonard is a little bit like Sheldon when it comes to all his sci-fi collectibles, and Bernie certainly had a say when they moved into Howard's house after his mom died and they remodeled. Just because they don't have all their stuff on display anymore doesn't make them less of a fan. I was glad to see Leonard's room looked like a married adult's bedroom. He is pushing 40 after all. If they ever have kids, he's got plenty of toys to share with them. Yes, yes, 'collectibles'.

Absolutely agree, Penny has been way more restrained then I would have been in the same circumstances - and way more restrained than Dr Stephanie was who moved in without telling Leonard and then  had family pictures, throw pillows and a duvet strewn about after dating Leonard for all of two minutes.  Penny probably didn't make too big a deal about it at first because she still had her own apartment but now that they're living together in one place it's perfectly understandable that she wants that place to reflect her own taste.   And yeah as others note she didn't have a garage sale she put his stuff in storage.  Not a bad compromise IMO, but of course they should have talked about it first.

Lots of funny stuff but I think the funniest line was the Where's Waldo reference!

Edited November 4, 2016 by CherryAmes

[ari333]

I  loved this one. I actually laughed.

[azathoth]

I loved when Raj pointed out all chaps are ass-less because I was thinking the exact same thing.

Amy lies to Sheldon to make him spend more time with her, like the time she was sick and got better without telling him. Surprised she didn't try to finagle another spanking out of him.

[iMonrey]

Quote

The obvious and best solution is to have Amy and Sheldon move into the big apartment, and Leonard and Penny move into the small. Penny and Leonard were always planning to move back to her apartment, which, incidentally, is really jarring as a permanent residence for Amy and Sheldon already since it's still stamped all over with Penny's style. Sheldon was the one who originally had the larger apartment, and he's the one least comfortable with change. It would be conflict enough to acknowledge Amy having permanent residence in his room with him.

I agree that makes more sense but they did address that when Sheldon agreed to the "experiment" of living with Amy. They discussed her moving into his apartment and for whatever reason (which I cannot recall at the moment) it was decided that a "neutral" territory would be required, hence the decision for both of them to move into a "new" place. Now that they are considering making the arrangement permanent, yes, I think they should take over Sheldon's own apartment, but since they didn't come to that conclusion until the end of the episode, maybe they'll raise the issue again.

Quote

I screamed in laughter that Penny actually did learn Ubbi Dubbi lol! Great callback.

Is that actually a thing? I remember when Amy said she was going to teach Penny "her secret language" but I could swear she said it was something she invented herself.

[ari333]

If Amy and Sheldon move into his apt, imo he'll be on his turf and insufferable... more so than usual. Plus, if there are two bedrooms, there's a good chance he'll be sleeping in the second one

[LoneHaranguer]

5 hours ago, Gulftastic said:

And, just to be shallow, Penny in the sex-dungeon fantasy.....that girl is in shape!

It's good to be shown once in a while that she's supposed to be the "hot girl" in this series, although I don't think anything can top her purple outfit in The Raiders Minimization. Not sure what it says about Sheldon that his subconscious chose that outfit over the more modest black leather you usually see in something for general audiences, especially since that would be more akin to what Catwoman wore before Halle Berry got the part.

4 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Is that actually a thing? I remember when Amy said she was going to teach Penny "her secret language" but I could swear she said it was something she invented herself.

Amy's secret language was called "Op", and I'm glad they chose to go with something real instead (it's from a children's program on PBS). When Amy and Penny switched languages, I think it was the first solid LOL moment the show has given me all season.

[tenativelyyours]

Let's see. 

A singular plot that includes all the main characters and runs strong throughout the entire episode?  Nothing about the baby?  No shrill over the top nastiness by Bernadette? 

Works for me.

The subplot of Penny and Leonard was annoying touching once again on Penny refusing to really see or treat him as her equal.  I also found it typical of the show's overwrite that her bedroom is nothing like the style we see in her apartment let alone the bedroom there.  Penny always had a nice quirky style and she never seemed that frou frou in regard so the makeover kind of lost it.  It would have been funnier if it was a completely modern adult bedroom and Leonard was torn between having his stuff gone and actually being impressed with it.  But then we would not have the joke at the end.

I was actually glad how the plot turned out because it had a strong sense of the Friends episode at first; the one where Rachel and Phoebe find out about Monica and Chandler and the two pairs try to play mind games with each.  At first I thought Sheldon cracking so soon was a bit flat, but it ended up working and working in character.  Despite the writers having Sheldon act out of character with no growth or even impetus, it was nice to see them stay true to the fact that Sheldon has a hard time lying or keeping secrets.

Oh and Raj wasn't creepy that I recall.  So there was that in this episode's favor as well.  In fact I liked the potential meta line of him saying how the dispute over the spilling of secrets didn't involve him so he was digging in to the food.  Too bad the writers haven't taken that tack a lot of other times this season. 

Considering how flat this season has been for me, this was a huge huge huge improvement.  

[vibeology]

1 hour ago, LoneHaranguer said:

Amy's secret language was called "Op", and I'm glad they chose to go with something real instead (it's from a children's program on PBS). When Amy and Penny switched languages, I think it was the first solid LOL moment the show has given me all season.

I loved that and then was completely won over when Howard, entering the apartment and sensing that something was wrong, immediately switched into Klingon too so he could talk secretly with Leonard and Sheldon.

[BlossomCulp]

3 hours ago, CherryAmes said:

Not a bad compromise IMO, but of course they should have talked about it first.

Heh.  At a rough estimate this is the plot point of about 80% of most sitcom episodes.  Hilarity ensues because there is a misunderstanding  that could have been prevented if the protagonists had talked about it first!

[LucyEth]

Best episode in a long time.  I really enjoyed it!

[TheOtherOne]

5 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Is that actually a thing? I remember when Amy said she was going to teach Penny "her secret language" but I could swear she said it was something she invented herself.

 

5 hours ago, LoneHaranguer said:

Amy's secret language was called "Op", and I'm glad they chose to go with something real instead (it's from a children's program on PBS). When Amy and Penny switched languages, I think it was the first solid LOL moment the show has given me all season.

Technically they're both real, and the same thing, just with a different syllable:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibberish_(language_game)#Gibberish_family

[LoneHaranguer]

2 hours ago, TheOtherOne said:

Technically they're both real, and the same thing, just with a different syllable:

Op wasn't the same. Amy's language spelled out the words, calling out the vowels as they were and adding "op" to the consonants ("great" was "gop rop e a top" and "bag" was "bop a gop").

[theatremouse]

Same premise mostly: add extra repeated syllables somewhere. In my experience basically all the variants are common among middle schoolers. So the guys broke into a very nerdy form of speech and the girls broke into a very adolescent form of speech.

[Sile]

On 11/3/2016 at 6:52 PM, Browncoat said:

Yay, Fun With Flags!  Love that Simon occasionally gets to play the piano -- he was fabulous in Florence Foster Jenkins.

Thank you for reminding me of that!  I meant to go see this movie when it came out and then didn't get to it and forgot about it.  I was interested to see how he did in the role, so your endorsement is encouraging.

[Ottis]

Was that actually Penny in the dungeon scene? It didn't sound like her and barely looked like her. I wondered if it was a stand in. Which would be weird, but this show would do it. 

[possibilities]

17 hours ago, Gulftastic said:

And, just to be shallow, Penny in the sex-dungeon fantasy.....that girl is in shape!

Did you see her on Lip Sync Battle? If anything, Big Bang Theory is underplaying her body.

17 hours ago, wknt3 said:

One of the things I'm really enjoying about this season is the bits like this or the retinal scanner where we are going back to the humor coming from the characters being brainy and nerdy, but in an affectionate way. As opposed to the Penny hides Leonard's stuff plot which is the kind of mean spirited thing they were doing last season.

I agree with this wholeheartedly.

I think Penny should have talked with Leonard about altering the decor to reflect her tastes more, and it seems like he was totally understanding about it once he realized what she wanted. If he had been secretly moving her stuff out of her apartment and putting it in storage, it would have been incredibly obnoxious and disrespectful, and I think Penny doing that to Leonard was also way out of line. Also, the desire to add some things of her own is fine, but why does that mean taking his stuff away, especially from places like his desk, not only their shared bedroom.

Amy deceiving Sheldon was terrible, also, but Sheldon is not usually as willing to consider her feelings as Leonard is with Penny's, so I was actually impressed that when he understood what was happening, he actually handled it fairly maturely. I think both Sheldon and Amy have been growing, both separately and in their relationship.

[Ouisch]

On 11/4/2016 at 5:23 AM, icemiser69 said:

I just have to ask.  Is Leonard bald?  Is he wearing a tribble on his head?  The guys were sitting at the cafeteria table and Leonard moved his forehead in such a way where it appeared that all of the hair on his head moved in all one motion.

It kind of reminded me of the old Murder She Wrote show when they brought on Sheriff Metzger as a  major character.  Every time he wrinkled his forehead, it looked like all the hair on the top of his head shifted as if it were one solid piece, a toupee.  Very distracting. 

Some of the guys (Leonard, perhaps Sheldon) look like they are dying their hair.  It doesn't look natural at all. 

Edited November 5, 2016 by Ouisch

[BlossomCulp]

I don't know about hairpieces but of course some of the guys are dying their hair!  Unless you're incredibly lucky (like my Mom who didn't have a gray hair on her head until she was 60) most of us are getting gray by the time we hit 40 and Leonard and Sheldon are both over 40 now at least in real life.  Anyway I'm ok with them dying their hair even if it's to make the characters seem younger than they actually are because they've made some effort to let the guys grow up.  Realizing that they are both in their 40s makes me glad they aren't the same guys they were when this show started.  That would be just pathetic.

[mansonlamps]

12 hours ago, Sile said:

Thank you for reminding me of that!  I meant to go see this movie when it came out and then didn't get to it and forgot about it.  I was interested to see how he did in the role, so your endorsement is encouraging.

I went into that movie with kind of low expectations, but  adored it.  And, if you can believe it, Simon kind of stole the show from Streep and Grant.  Or at the very least totally held his own.

[dungeonwriter]

When Sheldon talked about moving anywhere, I felt like the writers were signaling the train is coming into the station. Yes, it was a flight of fantasy, but it was also a realization that his life has changed, and now will be centered around Amy. 

Penny slowing reducing his toys collectables  is a sitcom joke, but would be seen as rather mean in real life. But yeah, I feel like now that Sheldon isn't around so much, Leonard and Penny finally have time to work on their marriage. 

[kat165]

About Leonard's hair, I rewatched today & saw that movement, Ice. It was when they were in the cafeteria at the table right? (and wow, how much older & bigger did they all look there? Unless they're using a smaller table on set) I think his hairline is receding and maybe he's combing his hair to hide that, but no, I don't think he's wearing a hairpiece. I think he uses so much product (he always has - I wouldn't run my fingers through his hair unless given a huge sum of $ and maybe a house and a car) that his hair, when/if it can move, moves all in one big clump.

Edited November 5, 2016 by kat165
clarity

[theatremouse]

I'm confused so many people keep saying Penny got rid of his stuff. She didn't get rid of his collectibles. I thought Bernadette said she'd been moving them to storage. She didn't toss his stuff, just removed it from the apartment, to see how long it would take him to notice. I'm not saying that's a nice or respectful thing to do, but it's different than if she'd thrown the stuff away or sold it. If she'd moved one item and he immediately noticed, they'd have had the conversation a lot sooner. Even though I disagree with what she did, it's a bit telling he didn't notice without someone else pointing it out.

[Mom x 3]

I thought Penny was totally reasonable, because clearly I am a horrible person.  My husband is a bit of a hoarder, and I have slyly gotten rid of a few choice items of his myself.  Example:  He still has jeans from high school (about 10 pair) to add to his already hefty 40 pair collection, and no way in hades will he ever fit into a size 29 jeans again.  So they get hidden for six months, and if they are not asked for in that time, they get donated.  Same goes for the kids.  To be fair, I never get rid of his stuff without getting rid of some of mine, but I think what Penny did was fine.  She was just moving them to storage.  

[BlossomCulp]

Totally agree, if the stuff meant that much to Leonard you'd think he'd have noticed they were missing.  Since he didn't and they were in storage somewhere I don't see a problem.  And since Leonard didn't really get that upset about it and seemed to understand that Penny needed to feel like she was living in her own apartment not sleeping over at the boyfriend's she didn't cross a line that they, as a couple, would have had a problem with.

[Nordly Beaumont]

1 hour ago, HospiceDoc said:

So they get hidden for six months, and if they are not asked for in that time, they get donated.  Same goes for the kids.

I'm awfully tired today - for a split second I thought you hid and donated your kids! I should go to bed now.

[mammaM]

16 minutes ago, Nordly Beaumont said:

I'm awfully tired today - for a split second I thought you hid and donated your kids! I should go to bed now.

I thought the same thing and I'm a horrible person because I was ok with it ? (I'll see myself out now)

[Mom x 3]

Hahahaha!  Well, some days I'd like to donate them, but it helps that they're awfully cute.  

[CherryAmes]

On 11/5/2016 at 10:08 AM, BlossomCulp said:

Realizing that they are both in their 40s makes me glad they aren't the same guys they were when this show started.  That would be just pathetic.

I knew Jim Parsons was over 40 but I hadn't realized Johnny Galecki was up there too.  To be honest they both look good but they definitely aren't looking late 20s anymore so I'm with you I'm glad they're letting the characters grow up.

[ari333]

23 minutes ago, CherryAmes said:

I knew Jim Parsons was over 40 but I hadn't realized Johnny Galecki was up there too.  To be honest they both look good but they definitely aren't looking late 20s anymore so I'm with you I'm glad they're letting the characters grow up.

What ages (range) are the characters supposed to be on the show? TIA