S11.E14: The Separation Triangulation

[Bort]

Quote

Koothrappali finds himself in the middle of domestic drama when he learns the woman he's dating, has a very upset husband. Also, when Sheldon rents his old room back for a quiet place to work, he drives Leonard crazy by being a model tenant.

[Neiman]

Disappointed to see there will be an emphasis on Raj.

[headhoncho]

I enjoyed it - I love Walton Goggins!

[Neiman]

I think this was one of the worst episodes ever.  Perhaps, it's time to bring it to an end if this is the best they've got.

Wish Penny would get a new hairstylist.

[Frost]

This was not a good episode.  For one thing, I don't like the actress who played Raj's married love interest.  Two, I guess I'm old fashioned but marriage vows actually mean something to me and her blithely moving on to someone else 13 days after kicking out her husband bothered me.  Trying to play that for laughs fell flat.

The only part I liked was Leonard at the very end.  It's so twisted that he was actually happy Sheldon manipulated the rental agreement.

[Spartan Girl]

Never get involved with a separated couple.

Sheldon was actually being a reasonable and sensitive tenant, but Leonard prefers him being an ass? Whatever.

[chocolatine]

The Raj storyline felt like it belonged in a different - lesser - sitcom, not BBT.

I never understood why Penny and Leonard had to stay in the guys' apartment and Sheldon and Amy had to move into Penny's old apartment, since Sheldon has such a hard time with change. Now I know it was for this episode's b-plot. The writers don't have many new ideas left, do they?

Edited January 19, 2018 by chocolatine

[adhoc]

Jeez, just what we needed--another ridiculously contrived setup whereby Sheldon again invades Leonard's living space and hilarity of some sort ensues. Could we just stop this already? And also, I'm over Sheldon's stupid agreements. Can't these people just move on? Some of this stuff was funny when everyone was younger. But now, most of them seem pathetically trapped in a perpetual state of arrested development. 

I can't believe I made my dog "hold" it (I have to take him out on a leash) so I could watch the remaining 10 minutes of the show. Sorry, little buddy.

Edited January 19, 2018 by adhoc

[notcreative enough]

So I don't consistently watch this show I catch episodes here and there. Can someone explain to me why Penny and Lenard get the big apartment. I know that Sheldon and Amy we're using Penny's as a trial run to living together but when did it become permanent. I feel like if anything S&A would start a family before P&L if that's something that would ever happen.

[shapeshifter]

On January 18, 2018 at 8:22 PM, Spartan Girl said:

Never get involved with a separated couple

And just because you didn't find out until you had already hooked up, never think this is a fun plot point just because you (nameless writer who pitched it) were on the wrong end of this experience for your first time. It was a bummer and nobody wants to be reminded.

 

On January 18, 2018 at 8:22 PM, Spartan Girl said:

Sheldon was actually being a reasonable and sensitive tenant, but Leonard prefers him being an ass? Whatever

Even weirder, clearly Evil Mode Sheldor was setting Leonard up for a bad rental contract from the beginning when Sheldon was being a fake good renter, and yet Leonard is glad to find that out? Not to mention that neither Amy nor Penny thought Sheldon's considerate behavior was OOC? Maybe the writers need a vacation.

Edited January 21, 2018 by shapeshifter
grammar error

[Neiman]

I've also wondered why Sheldon and Amy don't have the other apartment.  In the beginning it was Sheldon's apartment with another roommate.  Since he was there first, I would think he'd have kept it.  Although, I'm sure Amy is thrilled having Penny's old place.

[shapeshifter]

3 minutes ago, Neiman said:

I've also wondered why Sheldon and Amy don't have the other apartment.  In the beginning it was Sheldon's apartment with another roommate.  Since he was there first, I would think he'd have kept it.  Although, I'm sure Amy is thrilled having Penny's old place.

True. Maybe Sheldon is going to get his apartment back. 

[Driad]

When Sheldon was planning to try living with Amy, he suggested moving to a place that had not been his or hers. 

Leonard and Penny still don’t sit in Sheldon’s spot on the couch.

[steelyis]

2 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Never get involved with a separated couple.

Sheldon was actually being a reasonable and sensitive tenant, but Leonard prefers him being an ass? Whatever.

 

Sometimes I think Leonard is bit of a masochist.

 

Raj is kind of a creep yet weirdly thoughtful.

[Cherokee2000]

2 hours ago, Frost said:

This was not a good episode.....I guess I'm old fashioned but marriage vows actually mean something to me....The only part I liked was Leonard at the very end.  

 

 You are right: this episode was NOT the excellent calibre of the first few seasons. But I did like the closing scene with Raj and the girlfriend’s husband. They had a sweet moment of agreement and bonding. It was a win for bromance and for marriage vows! 

[Neiman]

I watched Young Sheldon afterward and that's where the magic is. I wonder if all the good writers from TBBT are now working on that show.

[luna1122]

Boyd Crowder on Big Bang Theory. I never thought I'd see that. My love for Walton Goggins knows literally no bounds. I did love him and Raj bonding at the end.

[hoodooznoodooz]

I liked Raj's reaction to "two weeks." That two would be the minimum that would allow anyone to use the plural of week.

[Chit Chat]

Quote

Sheldon was actually being a reasonable and sensitive tenant, but Leonard prefers him being an ass? Whatever.

I think that Leonard is conditioned to how their relationship has always been.  Thoughtful and nice Sheldon is not what he's used to, so having Sheldon in his apartment but not being annoying was foreign to him.  He should've liked it, but it was just all wrong for Leonard.  That's just my armchair psychology view of it!

The funniest moment for me was when Leonard made a face when talking to Amy, and she said "that's the face Sheldon makes when he's constipated!"   Other than that, as I've said before, I think the show has run it's course.  It really is time to end it, IMO. 

[Chaos Theory]

When someone acts contrary to prior behavior or history it freaks you out.  

[MaryMitch]

I guess it's just me, folks, but I loved seeing Raj in a story of his own.  I liked the way he realized that this hot blonde was not a great person.

[iMonrey]

I rather liked this episode, primarily because it showed Raj in a much better light than usual. Granted, he's still tone-deaf when it comes to talking to women, telling his girlfriend she's lucky she'll "have a fella" either way, but he was surprisingly unselfish and considerate to the ex-husband. It was a rare instance where he didn't just come off looking like a total creep so that's a big improvement for him. 

It also tickled me to see Leonard so confounded by Sheldon's behavior. And I laughed at the Godzilla/Tokyo joke when he came back and Penny had Googled it and found out there was an Arby's in Japan. LOL.

[Winston Wolfe]

Odd that one of the worst episodes in a long time came right after last week's charmer.  By all appearances, looks like Leonard really has no problem with the fact that "the baby always wins," and should really, really stop complaining about Sheldon. Meanwhile, Sheldon would be an insufferable, barely tolerable friend in real life, IMO.  Only mystery remaining is to see if Raj will still be unlucky in love by the show's end, or if the writers will throw him (and the fans) a bone by finding him someone before the show wraps up.

ETA:  Nice to see Beth Behrs from 2 Broke Girls, but glad she won't be a regular.  Her style of comedy doesn't really gel with BBT.  Holding out hope that we'll see Yvette the Vet before it's all over.  Maybe we Raj/Yvette shippers should start an online petition?

Edited January 19, 2018 by Winston Wolfe
New Thought

[BlossomCulp]

With the caveat that I haven't seen this episode yet Leonard's behavior sounds pretty realistic to me - if I had a nickel for every time a friend of mine would go out with the same kind of loser jerk she'd broken her heart over already I'd have a lot of nickels!  Contrary to much of TV wisdom many of us do not learn from our mistakes!

[libgirl2]

15 hours ago, Frost said:

This was not a good episode.  For one thing, I don't like the actress who played Raj's married love interest.  Two, I guess I'm old fashioned but marriage vows actually mean something to me and her blithely moving on to someone else 13 days after kicking out her husband bothered me.  Trying to play that for laughs fell flat.

The only part I liked was Leonard at the very end.  It's so twisted that he was actually happy Sheldon manipulated the rental agreement.

That was my favorite part too. The other was kind of boring and it bothered me too. The bromance at the end was cute though. 

Edited January 19, 2018 by libgirl2

[CleoCaesar]

I hated last week but really enjoyed this one.

1) Holy hell Kunal looked good in the morning-after kitchen scene. The curly hair suits him so well that it makes me irritated it took 10+ years to get here. Secondly the red shirt was such an upgrade from his weird 1970s wardrobe.

2) Raj becoming bros with the distraught firefighter was amusing (if TV fantasy).

I just tuned out the Sheldon nonsense as I so frequently do.

[LoneHaranguer]

I was a little surprised that Sheldon used EST in the agreement rather than UTC (aka Greenwich Mean Time or GMT). The latter, being an international standard and used inside most computers and other similar tech, is logically justifiable and would have given him eight hours, as opposed to the more arbitrary pick that gave him three.

 

14 hours ago, notcreative enough said:

Can someone explain to me why Penny and Lenard get the big apartment. I know that Sheldon and Amy we're using Penny's as a trial run to living together but when did it become permanent.

I don't recall the circumstances, but Sheldon once told Penny he was glad she was still going to be a part of his life because he didn't want to go through the same kind of adjustment as when she first became a part of their group. So, having something go back to the the way it used to be counts as an objectionable change to him, and I expect that would include going back to his old apartment.

[illdoc]

Actually, I thought it was just a trial run (the apartment switch) for Sheldon living alone (which is why the married couple had the bigger place). Amy moved in later "temporarily" (6 weeks?) while something was going on at her apartment (renovations?). The work was done early, but Amy lied so she could keep living with Sheldon and eventually they just decided to live together.

[OtterMommy]

This was really the epitome of a filler episode.

[Gummo]

First bad episode of a surprisingly good season. 

I guess that was an attempt to "grow up" Raj -- he's been the most arrested of the main cast. While everyone's been allowed some character growth, he's stayed the same season after season. But he's still really creepy and it's not especially funny anymore. I'm glad they're allowing him some success again (and allowed him to finally get away from that old stupid haircut), but instead of sweet & pathetic, he's now that neighbor who you just can't put your finger on exactly why, but you know you shouldn't leave him alone with your kids.

The Sheldon story took his character a giant step backwards -- manipulative and sadistic ... for no particular reason. And the big climaxing joke was a wet firecracker -- I don't care what kind of fantasy world they live in, a legal document has to be signed by both parties, you can't just spring it on someone and say a previous agreement authorized this one. I'm not a lawyer but the complete lack of common sense took me right out of the story -- "oh, it's a contrived gimmick to put Sheldon back in Leonard's face all the time." 

These people really have no ideas left, have they?

[OtterMommy]

40 minutes ago, Gummo said:

The Sheldon story took his character a giant step backwards -- manipulative and sadistic ... for no particular reason. And the big climaxing joke was a wet firecracker -- I don't care what kind of fantasy world they live in, a legal document has to be signed by both parties, you can't just spring it on someone and say a previous agreement authorized this one. I'm not a lawyer but the complete lack of common sense took me right out of the story -- "oh, it's a contrived gimmick to put Sheldon back in Leonard's face all the time." 

You know, I was fine with the whole Sheldon renting his room thing...UNTIL he handed Leonard the new contract and it was clear that he hadn't changed at all.  Has anyone told the writers that characters are interesting when they grow and change, not when they regress?

[LoneHaranguer]

25 minutes ago, Gummo said:

I don't care what kind of fantasy world they live in, a legal document has to be signed by both parties, you can't just spring it on someone and say a previous agreement authorized this one.

The U.S. Congress routinely passes legislation saying that whatever someone comes up with in the future in a particular area (e.g. the Secretary of the Treasury on an Income Tax matter) will have effect without any of them having to sign off on it later. So, there's nothing legally wrong with Leonard signing a document giving Sheldon free rein to come up with whatever terms will apply after a specific time.

[greekmom]

I just didn't enjoy the Raj storyline.  Here he finds a really nice girl then loses nice girl.  

Writers just give the man some character growth already!

[anna0852]

1 hour ago, illdoc said:

Actually, I thought it was just a trial run (the apartment switch) for Sheldon living alone (which is why the married couple had the bigger place). Amy moved in later "temporarily" (6 weeks?) while something was going on at her apartment (renovations?). The work was done early, but Amy lied so she could keep living with Sheldon and eventually they just decided to live together.

Nope.

The whole thing came up when Amy's apartment sustained water damage. Penny offered to let her use the place and from there it became a springboard to her and Sheldon living together. There was never a plan for Sheldon to live alone in the one bedroom.

[CherryAmes]

46 minutes ago, greekmom said:

I just didn't enjoy the Raj storyline.  Here he finds a really nice girl then loses nice girl.  

Thank you.  This is exactly what bothered me about this episode.  The girl was separated from her husband, he had moved out, she was free to enter into a new relationship if she chose and the show made it seem like she was cheating on her husband and that somehow the guy was the injured party.  All to set things up so Raj and the husband connect?  I hate when this show veers into Two and a Half Men territory and this plot line stank of that.

Unlike many here I actually liked the Sheldon and Leonard story.  It played out pretty much as I expected it would.  The only thing I'm waiting for is to see if this is another dining room table episode.  A big plot point that never gets mentioned again.

[iMonrey]

Quote

The only part I liked was Leonard at the very end.  It's so twisted that he was actually happy Sheldon manipulated the rental agreement.

That was actually the part that didn't make much sense. Leonard wasn't so much bothered by the fact that Sheldon was behaving himself, but by the fact that it proved Sheldon could behave himself if he wanted to, and deliberately chose not to the whole time they were living together. He lived with the guy upwards of 10 years and accepted his bad behavior because he assumed Sheldon couldn't help it. To learn otherwise was what confounded him.

So at the end when it turned out Sheldon had played him, he should have been relieved it was all an act and Sheldon was the same old asshole he'd lived with. Not happy about it though. 

[CherryAmes]

33 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

So at the end when it turned out Sheldon had played him, he should have been relieved it was all an act and Sheldon was the same old asshole he'd lived with. Not happy about it though. 

I'll have to rewatch but my feeling was that Leonard really was happy about it, he seemed oddly satisfied about having to go out and get whatever the heck it was that Sheldon wanted.

[MissLucas]

I'm glad they're keeping the astronomy show and what its success did to Raj an ongoing thing. The plot itself didn't bug me since it went contrary to what I expected. It provided a good mixture of Raj being awkward and yet trying to be considerate. Also: Walter Goggins.

I wish they had revealed that Amy or Penny explained to Sheldon that Leonard was upset with his new behavior and so Sheldon switched back to being a jerk in order to make Leonard happy. Still twisted but at least with a bit of a new flavor.

On a side note: I really enjoyed the little scene with Leonard helping Penny to memorize the drugs she's shilling.

[UsernameFatigue]

5 hours ago, CleoCaesar said:

I hated last week but really enjoyed this one.

1) Holy hell Kunal looked good in the morning-after kitchen scene. The curly hair suits him so well that it makes me irritated it took 10+ years to get here. Secondly the red shirt was such an upgrade from his weird 1970s wardrobe.

2) Raj becoming bros with the distraught firefighter was amusing (if TV fantasy).

I just tuned out the Sheldon nonsense as I so frequently do.

I'm with you - I loved this week's episode and thought last week's was really dumb. I am amazed as well that it has taken so long for Kunal to be able to wear his hair naturally curly. Someone posted that it was because TPTB thought that it would be hard to keep continuity in scenes if he had curly hair, but as someone who has naturally curly hair, it can look different from one minute to the next, so it really should not have been an issue. 

I loved the whole scenario with Raj and the new girl, from his talk with Howard and Bernadette while lying on their bed, to the firefighter asking which one was Rajesh Koothrappali. I loved when Howard said "You have to ask" and the firefighter replied that he didn't want to look racist. Best line of the show. I also didn't mind the storyline with Sheldon, as I loved how it drove Leonard crazy that he was being so considerate. 

[roamyn]

7 hours ago, greekmom said:

I just didn't enjoy the Raj storyline.  Here he finds a really nice girl then loses nice girl.  

Writers just give the man some character growth already!

I wouldn’t call her a “nice girl”.  She’s barely separated and is sleeping around.  

[shapeshifter]

Was it supposed to be wildly amusing that the firefighter was the antithesis of a manly man?
Or…?
I just kept waiting for them to at least hang a lampshade on it with maybe a remark from Raj or the wife about how he'd never get picked out of a lineup if the suspect was a fireman.
Or something.
Maybe it got edited out for time.
Or maybe it was supposed to be aimed at all the nerds who wanted to be firefighters when they were little boys and all the women who thought their lives would be complete if they could just hook up with a fireman.
IDK.

[AnnaRose]

7 minutes ago, roamyn said:

I wouldn’t call her a “nice girl”.  She’s barely separated and is sleeping around.  

And she didn't even bother to tell the new guy she's sleeping with that she's married.  I thought she sucked.

Also, her husband said they were either trying to, or talking about trying to, start a family.  I hope she and Raj used some serious birth control... otherwise it could get very messy if she suddenly discovers she's pregnant after her two week fling.

[theatremouse]

On 1/18/2018 at 6:22 PM, Spartan Girl said:

Sheldon was actually being a reasonable and sensitive tenant, but Leonard prefers him being an ass? Whatever.

 

6 hours ago, iMonrey said:

That was actually the part that didn't make much sense. Leonard wasn't so much bothered by the fact that Sheldon was behaving himself, but by the fact that it proved Sheldon could behave himself if he wanted to, and deliberately chose not to the whole time they were living together. He lived with the guy upwards of 10 years and accepted his bad behavior because he assumed Sheldon couldn't help it. To learn otherwise was what confounded him.

So at the end when it turned out Sheldon had played him, he should have been relieved it was all an act and Sheldon was the same old asshole he'd lived with. Not happy about it though. 

See that's what I think did happen. He wasn't just happy Sheldon was being an ass. He was relieved because the reality he'd accepted for so long was true after all. Sheldon was always an ass. He wasn't a perfect tenant for a day and then went back to being an ass. The assery was there from the beginning. Leonard just hadn't realized it was happening, until the end with the reveal. The serene look on his face wasn't "oh goodie my friend is a jerk to me after all" it was "oh he wasn't capable after all; worldview restored." That's how it played to me anyway.

[anna0852]

I think that Sheldon reverting to his usual icky personality was in a way reassuring to Leonard. He knows this, he's familiar with this, and he can manage it to a certain extent. Not to mention very unsettling thought that if Sheldon is capable of behaving and showing empathy and acting like a human, but doesn't then it means he is choosing to be nasty. It's one thing when nasty is simply how he functions and it's another to know that he could be nice and just isn't.

[CleoCaesar]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Was it supposed to be wildly amusing that the firefighter was the antithesis of a manly man?
Or…?
I just kept waiting for them to at least hang a lampshade on it with maybe a remark from Raj or the wife about how he'd never get picked out of a lineup if the suspect was a fireman.
Or something.
Maybe it got edited out for time.
Or maybe it was supposed to be aimed at all the nerds who wanted to be firefighters when they were little boys and all the women who thought their lives would be complete if they could just hook up with a fireman.
IDK.

The joke was that firefighters are extremely fit and strong. Finding out that the guy whose recent ex-wife you're sleeping with has that level of fitness can be disconcerting, the implication being that he can kick your ass. Raj even pointed out that the guy happened to be someone handy with an ax.

[rmontro]

13 hours ago, MaryMitch said:

I guess it's just me, folks, but I loved seeing Raj in a story of his own.  I liked the way he realized that this hot blonde was not a great person.

It kind of amuses me to see this guy Raj, who is supposed to be a failure with females, but somehow is always dating these hot women.  Of course, most of the women on this show are far above average - not all, but most.  Again, kind of amusing for a bunch of nerds who aren't supposed to be successful at this sort of thing.

[shapeshifter]

32 minutes ago, CleoCaesar said:

The joke was that firefighters are extremely fit and strong. Finding out that the guy whose recent ex-wife you're sleeping with has that level of fitness can be disconcerting, the implication being that he can kick your ass. Raj even pointed out that the guy happened to be someone handy with an ax.

Yes, I get that. And There was even a joke about the large size sweatpants of his left in the apartment. But when he shows up as a wimpy guy, Raj doesn't even do a double take, nor does ha mention it to his friends. Just seemed odd.

[displayname]

On 1/18/2018 at 10:30 PM, shapeshifter said:

Evil Mode Sheldor

This was probably a typing-error, but seeing that it's his WoW (or something) alter ego, I'm laughing.

[wknt3]

On 1/19/2018 at 11:52 AM, iMonrey said:

I rather liked this episode, primarily because it showed Raj in a much better light than usual. Granted, he's still tone-deaf when it comes to talking to women, telling his girlfriend she's lucky she'll "have a fella" either way, but he was surprisingly unselfish and considerate to the ex-husband. It was a rare instance where he didn't just come off looking like a total creep so that's a big improvement for him.

I agree. The biggest surprise of this surprisingly good season has been the way they've been getting Raj out of the deep deep hole they've dug for him. And they've done it while staying true to the character as established from the beginning of the series. Of course I could be biased because I've been saying for a long time that the way to go was to make him into a Neil DeGrasse Tyson type and stop making him so pathetically needy. The only thing I haven't liked about the planetarium plot line so far is that they were making fun of his overly dramatic pauses and didn't make a William Shatner joke.

[axlmadonna]

On 1/19/2018 at 3:09 PM, CherryAmes said:

The girl was separated from her husband, he had moved out, she was free to enter into a new relationship if she chose and the show made it seem like she was cheating on her husband and that somehow the guy was the injured party.

...Not according to her vows. I agree wholeheartedly with those above who have stated their objections to the idea that being "seperated" from your spouse for two weeks and thinking that's a perfectly valid time to start up a sexual or romantic relationship with someone else is a) good comedy, or b) anything other than repulsive and morally bankrupt. If you and your spouse are that far gone, just get the divorce and then move on. And this show must agree with me on that, because it didn't take much to get the couple back together, so yeah... it was definitely cheating on her part, even though the husband had moved out. YMMV.

My favorite exchange of the episode was this:

Raj: "Am I like the good guy in my movie or the bad guy in their movie?"
Bernadette: "Pretty sure you're the weird friend in our movie."

Edited January 20, 2018 by axlmadonna