S10.E08: The Brain Bowl Incubation

[TheOtherOne]

Quote

 

SHELDON TELLS AMY HE WANTS TO MAKE A BABY WITH HER, ON "THE BIG BANG THEORY," THURSDAY, NOV. 10

"The Brain Bowl Incubation" - After a successful experiment combining their genes, Sheldon will stop at nothing to convince Amy they should procreate. Also, Koothrappali is embarrassed to tell the gang what the new woman he's dating does for a living, on THE BIG BANG THEORY, Thursday, Nov. 10 (8:00-8:31 PM, ET/PT), on the CBS Television Network.

 

[Spartan Girl]

The "uh oh" title card was perfect in light of...well, you know.

LOL at Sheldon's attempts at seduction. I wonder if him and Amy are ever going to have sex again this season.

Edited November 11, 2016 by Spartan Girl

[ExplainItAgain]

The stuff with Sheldon and Amy was funny, but the Raj storyline was a bust. I wonder how long Isabella will be staying around...

[buffynut]

19 minutes ago, ExplainItAgain said:

The stuff with Sheldon and Amy was funny, but the Raj storyline was a bust. I wonder how long Isabella will be staying around...

I had the opposite reaction, in that I liked Isabella and Raj, but hated Sheldon's attempt at seducing Amy.

Edited November 11, 2016 by buffynut

[SmithW6079]

I hated them both. 

[Eri]

The first thoughts that came to mind for this episode:

-I like Isabella more now for giving Raj a taste of his own medicine with that BURN at the end of the episode

- Why is Pee-Wee Herman in the apartment trying to seduce Amy?

Edited November 11, 2016 by Eri

[dungeonwriter]

That was painful to watch. Isabella having about 50 times the class of Raj, and the wit to match. 

Sheldon and Amy were going to have a baby a few seasons ago, no? 

[SmithW6079]

13 minutes ago, dungeonwriter said:

That was painful to watch. Isabella having about 50 times the class of Raj, and the wit to match. 

Sheldon and Amy were going to have a baby a few seasons ago, no? 

I think there was one episode where they thought they should they produce a child, but quashed the idea when Penny told them they would have to have sex. The other time was the rumor they started to test the group's dynamics or something like that. 

It's time to get rid of Raj. He just doesn't fit anymore. The others are maturing and changing; he's still a sleaze.

I felt sorry for the actress playing Isabella. She used to be the mom on "Wizards of Waverly Place." Now she's playing a one-off as a "love interest" to the most disgusting character on the show.

[chocolatine]

Not a bad episode. Sheldon dancing the bolero was hilarious, and I loved that Amy was working on such a cool project (I didn't know about synthesizing neurons from skin cells, but apparently it's a real thing).

I didn't like the Raj/Isabella storyline because a) Raj is a creep, and b) I have a feeling it's going to turn out that Isabella is not "just" a cleaning lady, that she was a teacher or doctor back in Cuba but can't work in her field in the US, so she's working as a cleaning lady, but at least it's at CalTech so she can get free tuition for her son, or something like that that will make dating a cleaning lady "acceptable" for Raj.

3 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

I think there was one episode where they thought they should they produce a child, but quashed the idea when Penny told them they would have to have sex.

Surely all three of them must know that it's possible to have a child via artificial insemination or IVF (i.e., without sex)?

[TheOtherOne]

5 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

I think there was one episode where they thought they should they produce a child, but quashed the idea when Penny told them they would have to have sex.

 

2 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Surely all three of them must know that it's possible to have a child via artificial insemination or IVF (i.e., without sex)?

It wasn't that they'd have to have sex (which they weren't considering--it was going to be artificial insemination). Penny said if Sheldon went through with it, she'd tell his super-religious mother that he was planning on having a child out of wedlock, so he dropped it.

[mansonlamps]

11 hours ago, Eri said:

 

-I like Isabella more now for giving Raj a taste of his own medicine with that BURN at the end of the episode

I hated her for the exact same reason.  The idea that she knew he was Indian vs. Pakistani just by sight and conversation is kind of far-fetched.   Ethnic backgrounds are often hard to distinguish and he made a mistake. It wasn't an insult.

[EVS]

I didn't like the Raj/Isabella storyline because she seemed too mature for him and it wasn't just because of the age difference. I wouldn't be surprised if her 19 year old was more mature than Raj. Isabella seemed to good for him, imo. 

Also, the whole thing came across as Raj is lonely and an attractive woman walked into the room late at night and the mood was kind of romantic so he latched on to her. I don't see them having much in common to sustain a relationship, even if she turns out to be educated. 

[MaryMitch]

I feel sorry for Raj - and I don't think he's a creep. I actually like his character; he's a bundle of contradictions, and he can be very sweet and romantic. It seems that since Howard got married he's desperate for someone he can be close to.

I wonder if we'll see Issabella again. (I looked up the actress on IMDB.COM, and they had the name spelled "Issabella", which is a variant I've never seen before; I wonder if it's a typo.) It's hard to believe, but she's 50 years old!

[bad things are bad]

The Raj bit reminded me of Costanza having sex with the cleaning lady. Glad they didn't go that way, at least for now. 

Why is Amy resisting Sheldon's seduction? No birth control? 

[shapeshifter]

For me, the thing that creeps me out about Raj is his unwillingness to accept "no" from women. Although one could argue that Leonard did the same with Penney, they gave Penny a stronger backbone. Plus in an earlier episode, Leonard turned Penny down when he determined she was too drunk to consent.

 

 

24 minutes ago, bad things are bad said:

...Why is Amy resisting Sheldon's seduction? No birth control? 

Good question. Speaking from experience and chats with adult daughters: If a woman is only having sex once a year, condoms should be sufficient. That said, Amy must also not want to use a morning after pill, so she's ambivalent. I think her reason for not wanting to get pregnant right now is more Sheldon's immaturity than her career.

Edited November 11, 2016 by shapeshifter
clarity

[Gulftastic]

27 minutes ago, Gulftastic said:

Well, I liked it! I laughed out loud a few times, especially at Sheldon's attempts at deduction. Amy line about 'Rat pack Pee Wee Herman' was gold. I think Jim Parsons might be in line for another Emmy.

And I had no problem with Raj chasing the cleaning lady. He wasn't overly creepy about it, and cleaning the whole floor so she could enjoy a nice dinner was quite sweet, I thought. Perhaps dating a more mature woman might be the making of Rajesh.

Edited November 11, 2016 by Gulftastic

[mmecorday]

Quote

The Raj bit reminded me of Costanza having sex with the cleaning lady. Glad they didn't go that way, at least for now. 

Ha! I was sitting there thinking, "Is he going to give her a discounted cashmere sweater now?"

I long for the days when this show actually made me laugh.

[wknt3]

10 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

It's time to get rid of Raj. He just doesn't fit anymore. The others are maturing and changing; he's still a sleaze.

I would say it's time to let Raj mature and change, not let him go. How much more interesting would it be if they stopped focusing on his personal life and let him have some more professional success? I think it would be really interesting if he became a popular professor and science commentator. It would allow him to grow without changing too much of the character.

6 hours ago, icemiser69 said:

I watch television shows as an escape from the real world.  Lorre isn't exactly living from paycheck to paycheck.  I wish he would keep his political crap to himself.  I am not picking sides.  I just don't want to read or hear about this shit anymore at the end of every damn episode.

So don't read it. He uses the vanity cards to express his personal opinions. This isn't like those who complain about him changing characters to use his favorite jokes and write for sad sack types or using his shows to work out his issues with women. You almost have to seek it out and you can ignore it pretty easily and still enjoy the show.

[wknt3]

2 hours ago, bad things are bad said:

 Why is Amy resisting Sheldon's seduction? No birth control? 

Because inverting the established paradigm is a dependable source of humor? Or because Sheldon's seduction is intended for the express purpose of reproduction, which Amy is not ready for and believes with loads of evidence to support her would not be a good idea for them at this time and as such Sheldon would not be amenable to the use of birth control and Amy believes it would be unethical to consent for own pleasure while taking actions without Sheldon's knowledge to contravene his express desires and lie to him about it? Take your pick.

Edited November 11, 2016 by wknt3

[anna0852]

Well Sheldon did say he was tracking Amy's cycle and that she was currently fertile. If Amy isn't ready for kids right now then I completely understand forgoing sex when there is a high risk of pregnancy. She and Sheldon are not um, active, on a regular basis and she may not have birth control easily accessible at the moment. 

I figured out why Raj's story bothers me. He's in a position of power over Isabela and won't take no for an answer. No he's not her directly boss and while we viewers know he's not going to lodge a complaint if she refuses him, Isabela doesn't know that. She said no and he kept persisting. Doing her cleaning wasn't sweet, it was presumptuous. What if he did a poor job? She'll get blamed. And now she can't gracefully decline dinner without looking like a mean person. Raj really put her in a tough spot.

[iMonrey]

Quote

It's time to get rid of Raj. He just doesn't fit anymore. The others are maturing and changing; he's still a sleaze.

This looked like a serious attempt to give Raj a "real" relationship and a chance to mature. Whether or not it works is another matter. He had a fairly stable relationship with his last girlfriend and blew that apart for no particular reason, he was just an idiot who got his head turned by the girl writing the Sci Fi movie. But I agree it's time to do something about him.

I'm still not on board with Sheldon's sudden comfort with sex but I did get a kick out of his Flamenco dance - and I knew it was going to turn out that Amy was in fact turned on by it.

[LoneHaranguer]

6 hours ago, TheOtherOne said:

Penny said if Sheldon went through with it, she'd tell his super-religious mother that he was planning on having a child out of wedlock, so he dropped it.

I think that issue pretty much went out the window with The Mommy Observation in season 7.

[tenativelyyours]

Not the worst episode of the season so far.  But that is not saying much I suppose.  The characters in the two main stories felt forced into situations rather than responding in character to them.  But that is hardly new by now.  Still lots of places I thought the show could have done better.  Though I actually think having Raj involved with an older woman with a nineteen year old could be fun if they actually took the time and effort to do it right.  Raj always came off as self-centered and yet oddly the most perceptive so for me that kind of makes sense that after finally breaking free of his speech dysfunction he would gravitate more towards someone with more life experience.  Plus, ironically as wingman to perpetual horndog Howard, Raj was always able to find beauty in women of all kinds even when he was an ass and long before the writers just went with creepy and sad.

[HurricaneVal]

Is anyone else curious about the rest of Sheldon's scale of pain?  One is a pebble in your shoe, two is eating a whole Altoid, and ten is a monkey you thought was a pet biting your face off.  What could possibly be three through nine?

Edited November 11, 2016 by HurricaneVal
typo

[movingtargetgal]

10 hours ago, TheOtherOne said:

It wasn't that they'd have to have sex (which they weren't considering--it was going to be artificial insemination). Penny said if Sheldon went through with it, she'd tell his super-religious mother that he was planning on having a child out of wedlock, so he dropped it.

In the "Panty Pinata Polarization" episode Leonard gave Penny Sheldon's mother's phone number so she could win her fight with Sheldon.  Leonard said that Sheldon's mother was his Kryptonite.  When Penny told Sheldon that she would call his mother if he and Amy had a baby thru artificial insemination, Penny was making wise use of the Kryptonite because he would not listen to reason.  

[MissLucas]

I wonder if we'll get back to Raj's discovery on the monitor before Isabella walked in. Like others I would like to see him get some academic success. I also thought the story-line with Isabella had potential and if it's just to give him some character growth while dating a mature woman.

The two actors do have an easy-going chemistry. What I liked best were the moments the writing for Raj took an unexpected turn. When I saw his surprise dinner for her I thought that in typical Raj manner he had not considered that she has to work (but he did) and then I thought he had hired someone to clean the surrounding rooms in order to give her time but he did it by himself which I thought quite sweet. All in all - much to my surprise - that was my favorite plot of the episode ot maybe I was just happy to not get him all pregnancy creepy again.

Speaking of pregnancy creepy: Sheldon wanting all of a sudden a baby was OOC but it produced some great comedy moments - so why not? I loved Penny and Leonard's exchange about his Earth and alien parents.

[DrSpaceman73]

I thought Sheldon was pretty funny with his unexpected attempts at seduction. 

I guess I like the Raj storyline OK, but kept wondering how much older she is than him.  Really she may not be that much older, probably early/mid 40s.  It was hard to tell. 

However my mind kept going back to the Seinfeld story where George sleeps with the cleaning lady. 

I don't read his vanity cards.  I imagine they said similar things to all the other outrage over the results of the election.  Nothing new. 

[CherryAmes]

50 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

I guess I like the Raj storyline OK, but kept wondering how much older she is than him.  Really she may not be that much older, probably early/mid 40s.  It was hard to tell.

The actress who plays her is Maria Canals-Barrera, as someone upthread mentioned she played the mom on the Wizards of Waverly Place.  Anyway I checked her out in IMDB and she recently turned 50 which means she's 15 yrs older than the actor who plays Raj and I'm pretty sure he's playing a character pretty much his own age, unlike Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons.  It's a biggish age difference, especially when it's older woman/younger man but it's not stupidly hah hah lets laugh at the old lady and the young guy different.

Edited November 12, 2016 by CherryAmes

[mojoween]

The DVR cuts out right before the vanity card because I am recording the next show so I miss it now (it's so stupid.  In the time when BBT ends at 8:31 and The Great Indoors starts at 8:31 the recording misses the vanity card).  Did it say anything else besides uh-oh?

I am so glad I didn't miss Amy getting turned on because I was getting SO pissed at how bitchy she was to Sheldon.  Like you don't want to have a baby, that's fine, but perhaps you could talk to him like a rational human being instead of barking at him every time he opens his mouth.

I personally am glad Isabella made the Pakistani joke.  You don't just assume someone is Mexican because they appear Hispanic, Raj.  Jesus.

[shapeshifter]

19 minutes ago, CherryAmes said:

The actress who plays her is Maria Canals-Barrera, as someone upthread mentioned she played the mom on the Wizards of Waverly Place.  Anyway I checked her out in IMDB and she recently turned 50 which means she's 15 yrs older than the actor who plays Raj and I'm pretty sure he's playing a character pretty much his own age, unlike Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons.  It's a biggish age difference, especially when it's older woman/younger man but it's not stupidly hah hah lets laugh at the old lady and the young guy different.

On Rosewood 56-year old Lorraine Toussaint plays the mother of 47-year old Morris Chestnut's character. I have no idea how old the characters are supposed to be. So if Isabella had a 19-year old kid when she was 21, she could be 40, or maybe just five years older than Raj. I think there's an unwritten rule somewhere that actors can play characters who are within 10 years of their age.

[CherryAmes]

Speaking of older women I wish they'd explored Raj and the HR lady a bit more.  First because I like the actress who played her but second because I think that there could have been some good stuff between them if they'd pursued that as a relationship option.

[MaggieG]

I had completely forgotten that Raj and Emily had broken up. For some reason I thought they were still together, we just hadn't seen her. I liked Isabella, I think this might go in a good direction. 

Sheldon doing his flamenco dance cracked me up, as did Leonard stuffing his face with Chinese food, saying "I'm married, I don't need to be attractive."

[Snarklepuss]

13 hours ago, bad things are bad said:

Why is Amy resisting Sheldon's seduction? No birth control? 

I took it as a kind of "be careful what you wish for" thing.  You want something so bad but then when it happens it's not how you imagined it, in fact it's kind of creepy and weird.  Also because it's like Sheldon just wants to do it to have a baby for his own reasons, which isn't when or why Amy might want to have sex (or a baby).

[Meushell]

I kind of liked Raj and Isabella, but I wished they hadn't made him so pushy. 

I sort of love how mature Howard was over finding out Isabella's real job. 

Sheldon was disturbing, and I can't picture him being a good father. I can easily picture him being like Leonard's mother. What is he going to do if the baby doesn't live up to his expectations? Blame the baby? Blame Amy? Leave the baby at a safe haven when she's busy/asleep/etc.? On the other hand, I can also picture him getting jealous if his child started doing better than him. He's grown up a lot lately, but I don't think he is ready for fatherhood.

[mojoween]

And until he kept pursuing it, and said he wanted to take their underwear down a little, I seriously thought he meant make a baby like "make" a baby in the same way they were doing whatever it was with the skin cells.

[kili]

Quote

Why is Amy resisting Sheldon's seduction? No birth control? 

Because his stated reason for wanting to have sex with her is to continue the experiment. He doesn't want to have sex with her because he loves her or desires her - he just wants to use her. He wants her to make a baby for him. He doesn't want the baby because he wants to love the child or raise the child. He just wants another mirror to admire himself with. He thinks that because his skin cells are smart, his child will be too which re-affirms him and makes him more remarkable.

Amy doesn't want to have sex in such a clinical way. She doesn't want to be used as an incubator. She doesn't want her child to be experimented on. She doesn't want her child to feel like Leonard if Sheldon doesn't feel the child is remarkable enough. In this instance, Sheldon's reasons for wanting to have sex and a baby are all completely selfish with no love for his partner or his potential child. Compare it to the time when he first had sex with her which was all about his love and connection with her.

Even if she secretly was on birth control, Amy has more self-respect for herself than that. She has more respect for Sheldon than that. She wouldn't trick him that way.

[needschocolate]

17 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

Is anyone else curious about the rest of Sheldon's scale of pain?  One is a pebble in your shoe, two is eating a whole Altoid, and ten is a monkey you thought was a pet biting your face off.  What could possibly be three through nine?

3 - paper cut on the index finger of you dominant hand

4 - ???

[Chit Chat]

Quote

Did it say anything else besides uh-oh?

Nope, that was it!

Quote

3 - paper cut on the index finger of you dominant hand

4 - ???

4 - Making a mathematical mistake in front of Stephen Hawking.  Does mental anguish count?  He did faint when that happened!

[peacheslatour]

11 hours ago, kili said:

Because his stated reason for wanting to have sex with her is to continue the experiment. He doesn't want to have sex with her because he loves her or desires her - he just wants to use her. He wants her to make a baby for him. He doesn't want the baby because he wants to love the child or raise the child. He just wants another mirror to admire himself with. He thinks that because his skin cells are smart, his child will be too which re-affirms him and makes him more remarkable.

Amy doesn't want to have sex in such a clinical way. She doesn't want to be used as an incubator. She doesn't want her child to be experimented on. She doesn't want her child to feel like Leonard if Sheldon doesn't feel the child is remarkable enough. In this instance, Sheldon's reasons for wanting to have sex and a baby are all completely selfish with no love for his partner or his potential child. Compare it to the time when he first had sex with her which was all about his love and connection with her.

Even if she secretly was on birth control, Amy has more self-respect for herself than that. She has more respect for Sheldon than that. She wouldn't trick him that way.

QFT.

[jbrecken]

The other guys would be so jealous if they knew Raj was flirting with the voice of Hawkgirl.

[aemom]

For whatever reason,  my PVR only taped 30 minutes this week instead of 31, so I missed the end teaser. All I saw was Amy, Leonard,  and Penny by the kitchen counter and it cut out.

What did I miss, please?  Thanks in advance. 

[Chit Chat]

Amy left Sheldon over in Penny's apartment, then he followed her to his apartment where he tried to seduce her by dancing the Flamenco.  Exhausted from his antics, she walked out.  Sheldon looked at Penny & Leonard and said, "you're both aroused, aren't you?"  Then it cut to Amy just outside the door saying something like "whew! That was close."  She was clearly turned on by his dance.   Penny & Leonard, not so much! 

[needschocolate]

15 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

QFT.

Quoted For Truth - or - Quantum Field Theory?

[green]

I loved this show in the early days but it is becoming almost impossible to watch.  Well for some time but this year takes it to the exponential level of horrible.  They reduced Sheldon from an awkwardly funny, eccentric genius character to Mr Average Guy with a slight eccentric twist.

Also leaving aside the horrible storyline this season why is Sheldon living in Penny's apt and Penny living in Sheldon's apt?  Even in fictionland this makes no sense.  Sheldon leases his place and would never give it up from beloved couch spot or pristine (not occupied over the years by Penny and her partners) bed or desk/work area he needs.  Really?  Using his laptop while sitting on Penny's couch which he never could stand.  Leonard has been living at Penny's place on and off like forever.  Why does he get the good, two bedroom apt all of a sudden?

Never thought I'd say it but this whole role reversal regards two fictional apt sets is the final nail in the coffin.  Who knew such a weird, out of place decision would be that final nail.  But it is.  It is enough to make me just throw up my hands and give up on this show. 

That and the lousy, stupid "romantic comedy" they turned the show into a long long time ago of course.  They had a pretty unique show going and now it is run of the mill crap.  Jim Parsons can do way better at this point.  He is wasted in this rubbish as they slowly kill off anything of interest about what once was one of the coolest and funniest characters on a TV show.

Goodbye, show.  I'll catch the first 2 or 3 years in re-runs when I want to see top notch comedy.

[theatremouse]

@green I can't tell from your post if your questions regarding the living arrangements are rhetorical because you find their answers so preposterous, or if you're genuinely asking and missed the plot-based reasons presented in previous episodes.

[CherryAmes]

I actually bought the reason for the move.  It made sense to me and showed me how far Sheldon has gone in the past few years.  That isn't to say I don't prefer early seasons Sheldon, I do, but I can also appreciate that pushing 40 Sheldon still behaving the way he did back then just wouldn't be funny anymore.  I haven't seen this episode yet but so far I've been liking this season a lot more than I liked last season and part of the reason for that is that they've let the "boys" grow up.  

[kat165]

We don't have a fancy tv or decent cable so the vanity cards flash
by too fast and we have no way to slow them down. If I want to read
the vanity I either have to look it up online or wait for it to come on
demand and freeze the pic and sometimes it's not even readible then.

So it's very easy to avoid reading the vanity card.

[Sile]

I would love it if the four of them decided to buy a duplex.  I think Sheldon would go for it if you appealed to the practical side of it being an investment.  That way each couple has their own space and they are still across a virtual hall from each other.  Or a real hall if you made it like an old house that was divided into two with a front entrance/foyer and the apartments on either side.  It would be interesting to see the differences in two like places according to their individual aesthetics.

Even better, they buy/make an investment in an old place like that and decide to remodel it Mr. Blandings style.  They missed out on some humor with Howard and Bernadette's place just getting magically upgraded.

[Driad]

Amy is more practical than Sheldon.  I think she realizes that having a baby with him has many potential pitfalls.  If they really wanted to do this, they should write a formal agreement (because Sheldon understands them) covering division of diaper changes*, what Sheldon may and may not say about Amy and the baby, financial responsibilities, and many other aspects of parenthood.  With any luck, writing the agreement would take until the show is off the air.

*Sheldon is sufficiently fascinated with his own bowel movements that he keeps a chart on the refrigerator.  Amy might be able to interest him in a research project involving the baby’s diaper contents.

[Squirrely]

Amy still has a lot of work to do if she ever plans on letting Sheldon father a baby! Whoever compared him to Leonard's mom hit the nail on the head. He would be an awful dad.

I've literally never read any of Lorre's vanity cards. It takes a lot more effort to read them than it does to ignore them.