S12.E01: The Conjugal Configuration

[EtheltoTillie]

Penny is actually the mother hen. She is a sweet person, and I enjoy watching her. 

[BlossomCulp]

8 minutes ago, GussieK said:

Penny is actually the mother hen. She is a sweet person, and I enjoy watching her. 

Penny and Amy have always been my favourite characters and it drives me crazy the way they mess with Penny.  It's like they don't know what to do with her so they've decided to turn her into almost every other successful woman Lorre has every portrayed (bitchy).  And yet that's not entirely true - Penny in the Shamy wedding was the Penny we are all used to seeing - sweet, caring, happy for her friends and willing to do anything for them.  I totally do not get what they're doing.  At all.

Anyway I will reserve judgement on this episode as I haven't seen it yet and I've learned that my opinion ends up rarely being majority rule!  So I am cautiously optimistic that it's not going to be as bad as I'm expecting!

Edited September 25, 2018 by BlossomCulp

[TV Diva Queen]

After Teller spoke in the season finale - I thought I read somewhere that he does speak on screen, just not in the Penn and Teller act.  He's playing a character in their act, and that guy doesn't speak. 

FULL DISCLOSURE:  I probably made this up....but I seem to think I read it.  

[anna0852]

You did not make that up. There was a whole thing about Teller not speaking when he and Penn both appeared in an episode of The West Wing and at least appeared to burn a flag in the White House. Even Josh Lyman at full speed could not get him to speak.

[Katy M]

4 hours ago, ams1001 said:

We know from a Young Sheldon voiceover last season that Sheldon does have kids (plural) but I'm fine with them keeping that off screen (or maybe a flash forward to some point in the future at the end of the series just to see what they're like could be interesting). I don't need to see a 'husband freaking out over a pregnant wife/labor/delivery/newborn' cliche + Sheldon.

Perhaps the last episode could contain pregnancy announcements from both Amy and Penny.

[Quark]

I enjoyed this episode, but it could be for nostalgic reasons it being the first episode of the final season.

[Pepper the Cat]

I see that the babies are invisible again.

or at home with Stuart.

i am not survwhuch one is more disturbing!

[chitowngirl]

The babies will always be invisible, just like Debbie Wolowicz.

[rmontro]

10 hours ago, CherryAmes said:

I mean they've always screwed with Penny's character but they never made her mean and they certainly never EVER gave us any reason to believe Leonard was afraid of her. 

They did say she was a bully in school, and had treated some weaker students pretty badly.  But it appears that she has grown out of it. 

I don't think Leonard is scared of her so much, I think the suggestion was that he is easily startled.  It's been shown several times that he is on the wimpy side. 

[BlossomCulp]

8 minutes ago, rmontro said:

They did say she was a bully in school, and had treated some weaker students pretty badly.  But it appears that she has grown out of it. 

I can accept, reluctantly, that they can say whatever they want as a back story for Penny or any of the characters for that matter but what kills me is when they seem to be trying to retcon the character as we've seen her over the course of almost 12 years.  They've shown that Leonard defers to Penny a lot (especially before they married) because he wants sex.  And in Chuck Lorre land that's just hilarious.  But it was never because he was being bullied by her!  I hope they don't go down this particular road again.  

[EtheltoTillie]

That's happy wife happy life. Not bullying. 

[LaChavalina]

7 hours ago, CherryAmes said:

I wonder, based on what we know happened with the finale from last season, if a lot more gets filmed that ends up getting cut.  Gotta make room for all those commercials after all!  

Last night they were making room for the previews of new seasons and new shows that I will never watch.

6 hours ago, CherryAmes said:

I totally do not get where they are even coming from if they are trying to make out that Penny is mean.  She's self assertive, yes, but that is not mean.  I remember the instances a few seasons back where we see Penny witnessing Bernadette's behavior at work and how appalled she was by that.  Now they want us to believe Penny is mean and Leonard is afraid of her?  The powers that be do realize that this show is on in endless reruns and there is no way we're not noticing and remembering past seasons I hope! 

The writers don't know what to do with Penny or Raj at this point. Particularly in Penny's case, I think the default story arc for female characters on shows like this is "love --> marriage --> baby." They're trying to resist that with Leonard and Penny, which is admirable to some extent, but they don't have much of a plan B for her. I hope I'm wrong, but I think that the end of the series will probably be something cheesy like Amy and Penny getting pregnant at the same time, then Sheldon getting competitive about who's kid will be smartest, true to form.

[chaifan]

Like others, I felt that the story line with Amy's parents was mostly a waste of screen time that could have gone to other characters.  I have a (slim) hope that they will use that to have Penny & Leonard take a deeper look at their relationship and become a good couple that is fun to watch.  In any case, I don't need Amy's parents to be recurring characters in this final season.  I also agree with a comment above that Leonard isn't actually afraid of Penny, per se, but the comment was more about sudden movements in general make him flinch.  (Which is also weird, because that makes him sound like his parents beat him, which would be going down a whole other retcon path.)

I liked Raj's story line.  I'm ok with Raj being Raj, which is a pretty self centered bordering on asshole character.  I liked that he was oblivious to blowing the TV appearance (and I also thought he was going to hit on the woman on screen with him), and I thought the twitter fight was funny.  I liked that he got schooled by Tyson in the end, and loved the end call to Bill Nye.  I really don't want Raj going through some self discovery epiphany just because the show is ending, and I sort of hope they keep him single.

As to speculation as to another pregnancy this season, oh TPTB, please don't do that to us.  Penny, Amy, Bernadette (again), or heaven forbid, some random girlfriend/fling of Raj's (or Stuart's!).  No, no, and no no no.  If anything, have it be the last words spoken in the very last episode, and leave it at that. 

[Lady J]

9 hours ago, msrachelj said:

yes, another man portrayed as inferior and pussy whipped by his wife. my husband refuses to watch some of these shows for that reason. emasculating. you can be a man and be tender and be an equal without being a cowering fool to your dominant wife. (raymond, king of queens, list goes on) their relationship looks very unhealthy, true. 

Good point, but Raymond was an ass !

[SpiritSong]

22 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

I agree. Something felt off, but I can't say exactly what it was. 

Well, there's the fact that this was probably the least funny episode of BBT ever. I didn't laugh, chuckle or even crack a smile. This show can get it right-the season finale of the wedding showed that-but then they go right back to the same lazy tropes and irritating characters as soon as they can. It's pretty bad when even Simon Helberg, who is usually brilliant, is just dull, dull, dull.

[hnygrl]

2 hours ago, chaifan said:

Like others, I felt that the story line with Amy's parents was mostly a waste of screen time that could have gone to other characters.  I have a (slim) hope that they will use that to have Penny & Leonard take a deeper look at their relationship and become a good couple that is fun to watch.  In any case, I don't need Amy's parents to be recurring characters in this final season.  I also agree with a comment above that Leonard isn't actually afraid of Penny, per se, but the comment was more about sudden movements in general make him flinch.  (Which is also weird, because that makes him sound like his parents beat him, which would be going down a whole other retcon path.)

I liked Raj's story line.  I'm ok with Raj being Raj, which is a pretty self centered bordering on asshole character.  I liked that he was oblivious to blowing the TV appearance (and I also thought he was going to hit on the woman on screen with him), and I thought the twitter fight was funny.  I liked that he got schooled by Tyson in the end, and loved the end call to Bill Nye.  I really don't want Raj going through some self discovery epiphany just because the show is ending, and I sort of hope they keep him single.

As to speculation as to another pregnancy this season, oh TPTB, please don't do that to us.  Penny, Amy, Bernadette (again), or heaven forbid, some random girlfriend/fling of Raj's (or Stuart's!).  No, no, and no no no.  If anything, have it be the last words spoken in the very last episode, and leave it at that. 

 Now y’all know. If there’s a finale baby? It’s gonna be a SHAMY baby. 

[biakbiak]

10 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

Everyone seemed so out of character.  Amy knows how Sheldon is, why is she suddenly acting so disappointed in him?  His behavior and lack of social filters are nothing new. 

I know my partner of 15 years extremely well and accept his behavior and love him. That doesn’t mean I can’t get annoyed at those behaviors that I know are part of his personality from time to time.

[Tosia]

12 hours ago, LaChavalina said:

Last night they were making room for the previews of new seasons and new shows that I will never watch.

The writers don't know what to do with Penny or Raj at this point. Particularly in Penny's case, I think the default story arc for female characters on shows like this is "love --> marriage --> baby." They're trying to resist that with Leonard and Penny, which is admirable to some extent, but they don't have much of a plan B for her. I hope I'm wrong, but I think that the end of the series will probably be something cheesy like Amy and Penny getting pregnant at the same time, then Sheldon getting competitive about who's kid will be smartest, true to form.

How about this to bust Sheldon's chops: On the  last episode,  Amy and Sheldon announce they're expecting a baby, and Penny and Leonard walk in with an Asian baby they adopted.

 I truly apologize if this seems stereotypical racist, but Sheldon is miffed because of the " Asians are sooooo smart" meme.  

(We hosted many college students from Japan over the years and they were wonderful). 

[Katy M]

7 minutes ago, Tosia said:

How about this to bust Sheldon's chops: On the  last episode,  Amy and Sheldon announce they're expecting a baby, and Penny and Leonard walk in with an Asian baby they adopted.

 I truly apologize if this seems stereotypical racist, but Sheldon is miffed because of the " Asians are sooooo smart" meme.  

(We hosted many college students from Japan over the years and they were wonderful). 

But, not as smart as Sheldon:)  It would be kind of neat to have  fast forward to the future and everyone else's kids are smarter than Sheldon's, though.  Maybe.  Sheldon's son becomes an engineer. 

[BlossomCulp]

9 hours ago, biakbiak said:

I know my partner of 15 years extremely well and accept his behavior and love him. That doesn’t mean I can’t get annoyed at those behaviors that I know are part of his personality from time to t

I think this expresses Amy with Sheldon perfectly.  Just because you know someone typically behaves in a certain way doesn't mean you have to accept it and like it in every circumstance.  I know my husband is one of those people who is always going to be late.  I love him but I hate this about him and I will spend the rest of our lives together either craftily trying to trick him into being on time (or early!) or accept with my usual sweet good grace that he is late again or blowing up and saying something I may regret later but certainly enjoyed expressing at the time!

This is what Amy will have to do with Sheldon.  She loves him and she will do it. Loving him does not have to mean not caring when he's an ass!!

[biakbiak]

13 minutes ago, BlossomCulp said:

This is what Amy will have to do with Sheldon.  She loves him and she will do it. Loving him does not have to mean not caring when he's an ass!!

I agree and should have specified that my partner isn’t like Sheldon! He also takes in when I am annoyed with him and he works on that and works on that behavior. To be fair Sheldon holding street dogs indicates he was trying to be better but that doesn’t mean she shouldn’t call him out when his behavior hurts her because she “knows” it’s what he is like.

Edited September 26, 2018 by biakbiak

[LoneHaranguer]

15 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

The babies will always be invisible, just like Debbie Wolowicz.

I hope so. There's no time for the typical "aww, look at the cute kid" pause that shows always do.

1 hour ago, Katy M said:

It would be kind of neat to have  fast forward to the future and everyone else's kids are smarter than Sheldon's, though.  Maybe.  Sheldon's son becomes an engineer.

On a train or like Howard?  I could see Sheldon having a nightmare about his kid not being as smart (maybe he's wearing a dunce cap in school while Leonard & Penny's is wearing a graduation outfit, if they want to go old-timey).

[Katy M]

Just now, LoneHaranguer said:

I hope so. There's no time for the typical "aww, look at the cute kid" pause that shows always do.

On a train or like Howard?  I could see Sheldon having a nightmare about his kid not being as smart (maybe he's wearing a dunce cap in school while Leonard & Penny's is wearing a graduation outfit, if they want to go old-timey).

I hadn't thought about on a train. I meant like Howard.  But, that's interesting.  Sheldon would be torn between his desire for his son to be a supersmart scientist and his love of trains.

[Bort]

Let's please keep the discussion about the episode. Speculation about how the series ends needs to go in the  The gnaB giB -- How should BBT End? topic.

[Sarah 103]

17 hours ago, rmontro said:

They did say she was a bully in school, and had treated some weaker students pretty badly.  But it appears that she has grown out of it. 

I get the sense that Penny and Zack bullied nerds/less popular kids, but that they were doing it to fit in and just go along with the crowd. Both have matured and I think to some extent at least, regret what they did. 

[Ouisch]

On 9/25/2018 at 12:36 AM, Yeah No said:

I went to high school with Neil.  Back then I liked him but now I agree, he's a tremendous asshole.  I liked that Raj made mention of how big Neil's head and ego are (or something to that effect).  And then re: the show making him a bully - Is Neil going along with the gag knowing that people think this of him anyway?  Or is his ego so big he doesn't even care?

I thought this was a weird episode.  It almost felt like it was written differently than the entire series, but I can't put my finger on why.

I had a friend who worked for this particular magazine at the time, and I remember how upset he was over the Neil Twitter kerfuffle over (basically) a non-event. From my understanding (keep in mind I'm the one who always fell asleep in the planetarium), they were trying to make some sort of supernova halo effect in order to emphasize Tyson's whole astrophysicist legendary-ness. But the art director or whomever was responsible for the cover apparently didn't make that intent clear enough. 

 

The one Laugh Out Loud moment I had during this episode was when Sheldon was correcting the tour director and then, when Amy was upset over it, replied "But how else will they know that I'm the smartest boy here?" (or something like that). Mr. Ouisch rolled his eyes and announced "That would SO be you!! Except for the 'boy' part..." Apparently I've had similar Sheldon-esque moments in public (which I still think my husband misinterprets....I'm just trying to be helpful, not a show-off....)

[BlossomCulp]

39 minutes ago, Sarah 103 said:

I get the sense that Penny and Zack bullied nerds/less popular kids, but that they were doing it to fit in and just go along with the crowd. Both have matured and I think to some extent at least, regret what they did. 

It really depends on the episode but generally this was the impression I formed as well.  I think, at least initially, it was not meant to be a "Penny was a bully" thing so much as it was a "Oh god here's another example of how stupid Penny is she doesn't even get that what she once did was bullying".  Pause for laughter.  Ugh.  

[Ottis]

On 9/24/2018 at 7:32 PM, Frost said:

I too was confused about a lot of Amy's reactions during their honeymoon.  Sheldon scheduling every minute is perfectly predictable.  How could it be any other way? 

I thought perhaps the show was going to take a big step into the unknown, with Amy confronting Sheldon that the scheduling thing, or maybe the way he treats other people, is different for her now that they are married and viewed universally as a couple. But it didn't. Too bad.

On 9/25/2018 at 10:49 AM, Pop Tart said:

I was okay with the idea of them looking at Amy's parents and wondering if that's what they were like or would become. I think it's not unusual for married couples to look at other couples and compare and contrast and perhaps re-examine their own relationships in the process. My issue with it was the plot just went nowhere. They had a brief discussion about "are we like that" and then Penny made Amy's dad leave. There was no follow-through at all and basically the whole thing fell completely flat because of that.

ITA. Given what we already know about the parents of the other characters, there was a chance here for the main cast to, together, examine their current couples relationships in light of their parents and discuss possible futures. But that didn't happen, either. Too bad.

I really only watch now to see it all end. The show is, and has been mostly for a few years, running in circles.

[Katy M]

2 hours ago, Ottis said:

I thought perhaps the show was going to take a big step into the unknown, with Amy confronting Sheldon that the scheduling thing, or maybe the way he treats other people, is different for her now that they are married and viewed universally as a couple. But it didn't. Too bad.

I would have had to have punched her.  This is not brand new information to her.  If she was going to require Sheldon to do a 180 in his personality once they were married, she should have let him in on that. and then they should not have gotten married because that would never work out.

[rmontro]

2 hours ago, BlossomCulp said:

I think, at least initially, it was not meant to be a "Penny was a bully" thing so much as it was a "Oh god here's another example of how stupid Penny is she doesn't even get that what she once did was bullying". 

I can agree with that, but I want to note that it probably doesn't make any difference to the person being bullied. 

[BlossomCulp]

5 minutes ago, rmontro said:

I can agree with that, but I want to note that it probably doesn't make any difference to the person being bullied. 

Yep.  Agreed.  Which is why this whole thing is just so, so stupid.  Never, not once, ever to that point did we ever see any example of bullying behavior on Penny's part.  Bullies, even oblivious go along with the crowd bullies don't usually grow up as nice as Penny appeared to be.  Sigh.  Clearly we all have given this way more thought than the writers ever did.

[rmontro]

20 minutes ago, BlossomCulp said:

Bullies, even oblivious go along with the crowd bullies don't usually grow up as nice as Penny appeared to be.

I don't know if that is true, but I agree Penny grew up to be a nice person, she has a very sweet disposition (except when crossed lol).

[LoneHaranguer]

1 hour ago, BlossomCulp said:

Bullies, even oblivious go along with the crowd bullies don't usually grow up as nice as Penny appeared to be.

Penny was involved in pranks that she considered no-harm-done all-in-fun stuff, and it can be if that's the spirit and you're not doing it to the same people all of the time. It wasn't in the same class as what we've heard Leonard went through.

[Winston Wolfe]

On 9/25/2018 at 1:04 AM, Sarah 103 said:

I agree. Something felt off, but I can't say exactly what it was. 

I think it's called "Season 12."  This show has been beyond good for most of its run, not surprised that a bit of the old "zip" is gone.

I recall in an old TWoP thread where someone posted that there was a "tiredness" about the final season of Marlo Thomas' "That Girl."  That could happen with BBT too, but I prefer to believe the Showrunners are going  to give this show the proper send-off it deserves.

Edited September 26, 2018 by Winston Wolfe

[Bort]

2 hours ago, BlossomCulp said:

Never, not once, ever to that point did we ever see any example of bullying behavior on Penny's part. 

This is the thing that I eyeroll any time they trot out this "Penny was a Mean Girl bully" plot. We've never seen that in Penny. Even all the way back to the pilot, a Mean Girl wouldn't have given that group of guys the time of day when she moved into the building. 

[BlossomCulp]

1 hour ago, kariyaki said:

Even all the way back to the pilot, a Mean Girl wouldn't have given that group of guys the time of day when she moved into the building. 

I always think of the "whore from Omaha" episode where the girl comes and stays at Penny's until she latches onto Howard.  Penny was nothing but nice to that girl and there was absolutely nothing in it for her.  A Mean Girl would not have had any difficulty at all throwing that girl out or not giving her house room in the first place.  Not to mention the episode where Sheldon is sick and Penny loses a days pay taking him home and looking after him.  Mean Girls don't do things like that.

[Ottis]

4 hours ago, Katy M said:

I would have had to have punched her.  This is not brand new information to her.  If she was going to require Sheldon to do a 180 in his personality once they were married, she should have let him in on that. and then they should not have gotten married because that would never work out.

Sadly, that’s how many relationships are. I don’t mean she would simply demand he change. She would have to come to grips with how she felt, which would surprise her, but it is what it is. So it wouldn’t be unusual, in my experience. 

[Chit Chat]

6 hours ago, Ottis said:

I thought perhaps the show was going to take a big step into the unknown, with Amy confronting Sheldon that the scheduling thing, or maybe the way he treats other people, is different for her now that they are married and viewed universally as a couple. But it didn't. Too bad.

IIRC, the only part of the scheduling Amy had a problem with was the lack of spontaneity for sex.  First she was surprised that he seemed to want sex more often, and all she was asking for was that their intimate time not be on a schedule.  I saw nothing wrong with that request.  YMMV.  

Amy is well aware of Sheldon's need for a schedule, but I don't think she wanted to end up feeling like she was just another item on the to-do list. 

Edited September 27, 2018 by ChitChat

[rmontro]

7 hours ago, Winston Wolfe said:

I recall in an old TWoP thread where someone posted that there was a "tiredness" about the final season of Marlo Thomas' "That Girl."  That could happen with BBT too, but I prefer to believe the Showrunners are going  to give this show the proper send-off it deserves.

IMO there's been a feeling of tiredness about Big Bang Theory for several years now.  It still has it's moments and it's been good enough to keep me watching, but hasn't felt fresh for quite a while.

4 hours ago, ChitChat said:

IIRC, the only part of the scheduling Amy had a problem with was the lack of spontaneity for sex. 

Seems like there was a time when Amy would have jumped at the chance for sex with Sheldon, whether it was spontaneous or not.

[wendyg]

They're all professionals, but nonetheless, as soon as the announcement was made that this is the last year, the writers started looking for their next job. Some will have burned out already and been replaced anyway, I would think. A shift in tone seems to me a strong indication of changes in the writers' room. 

[BlossomCulp]

6 hours ago, rmontro said:

IMO there's been a feeling of tiredness about Big Bang Theory for several years now.  It still has it's moments and it's been good enough to keep me watching, but hasn't felt fresh for quite a while.

Last year was a good, strong year IMO.  For the most part well handled and with episodes I know I will happily watch again (and with eternal reruns again and again).  Some have commented that perhaps this episode couldn't help but be a letdown after the perfection of last season's finale and I'm sure that could be part of it.  For me though it's also a letdown after the whole of last season where I felt things had really clicked again.  I am going to give the show another chance  -probably more than one chance- but I admit I'm very disappointed.

[axlmadonna]

On ‎9‎/‎24‎/‎2018 at 7:42 PM, LaChavalina said:

Big meh. The "Sheldon-coercing-Amy-into-sex" story seemed particularly tone-deaf. At this point, I feel like I'm only tuning in to see if they finally manage to give Kunal Nayyar a decent story arc before the end of the series.

Sheldon did not coerce Amy into sex. The two of them are in a new stage of their relationship, and are going to have to navigate and negotiate issues like when and how often they have sex. This is true of all couples, and there was nothing coercive about his planning for it, hoping for it, or discussing it with her. When she said no, it didn't happen. When he was turned on at the end and led her to the hotel room for it, she came willingly.

Edited September 27, 2018 by axlmadonna
Edited because "thier" and "their" are not interchangeable.

[taanja]

On 9/25/2018 at 8:22 AM, CherryAmes said:

For the first time since coming here I've read the comments before seeing and episode and now feel that I won't watch it at all.  This is just totally depressing.  I mean they've always screwed with Penny's character but they never made her mean and they certainly never EVER gave us any reason to believe Leonard was afraid of her.  Until that episode last season with Sheldon's brother.  And now.  After the absolute perfection of the season finale last year I am very tempted to just stop watching "my" show and leave the characters where they were then.  

I have always hated the way Lorre has to have bullying women on his shows.  I thought he'd leave it with Bernadette and Beverly.  Guess I was wrong.

My advice--- never ever go by the comments here or anywhere else when deciding to watch a show or not.

I have done that before and let the negative comments influence me-- then I watch the show -- and I'm like-- that didn't come across to me the way it did to others. That wasn't as bad as people opinions made it out to be.

Watch it and make your own decision whether it was good or not.

Personally I enjoyed it and laughed out loud several times. It's a comedy. Don't overthink it! Just go wit the flow!

[CherryAmes]

7 hours ago, taanja said:

Personally I enjoyed it and laughed out loud several times. It's a comedy. Don't overthink it! Just go wit the flow!

Excellent advice that I took and am glad I did.  I really enjoyed this episode a lot more than I expected to.  With regard to Penny and Leonard I like Leonard acknowledging that a lot of his "fear" of Penny had more to do with his own natural timidity and the way he was raised than anything else.   So I am much happier about this aspect of the storyline than I was before!

Edited September 27, 2018 by CherryAmes

[wknt3]

17 hours ago, rmontro said:

IMO there's been a feeling of tiredness about Big Bang Theory for several years now.  It still has it's moments and it's been good enough to keep me watching, but hasn't felt fresh for quite a while.

I think that's true of all long running shows. It's extremely rare that a show will fresh and new after a decade on the air, and when a series tries too hard to shake things up in the name of freshness is usually when they make the worst mistakes. To me last season felt rejuvenated, but it wasn't anything new really, more of a return to what works. I'm honestly hoping that we don't get much new except for a good Raj story, and that they save any big changes for the finale. I do hope that we get solid stories with lots of the university, science, geeky stuff, etc. and that they keep things moving now that there is no need to think about another season.

22 hours ago, ChitChat said:

IIRC, the only part of the scheduling Amy had a problem with was the lack of spontaneity for sex. 

Quote

Seems like there was a time when Amy would have jumped at the chance for sex with Sheldon, whether it was spontaneous or not.

It's almost as if the reversal of the usual dynamic was an intentional part of the humor...

[rmontro]

10 hours ago, BlossomCulp said:

Last year was a good, strong year IMO.

Agreed, I thought last year was a comeback year of sorts for them.  But I still think there's a layer of tiredness over it, even if the season is mostly enjoyable.

1 minute ago, wknt3 said:

I think that's true of all long running shows.

I was just thinking that I find South Park as fresh as ever, although I know there are those who disagree.

[msrachelj]

On 9/25/2018 at 12:46 PM, CherryAmes said:

I didn't see that in ELR or King of Queens.  The wives were strong women, absolutely, but the men were hardly cowering in a corner and never getting their way!  On BBT and Two and a Half Men on the other hand UGH.   Can I repeat that?  UGH.  Lorre loves to portray women as bullies and men as cringing babies who can't stand up to them.  IF that's the way they're going to go with Penny and Leonard I'm bowing out.  I don't need to see Judith and Alan again!

both wives were portrayed as shrews. i found it disgusting as a woman.  i do remember them "cowering" and acting in "fear" of their wives, for sure. 

[Chit Chat]

7 hours ago, taanja said:

Personally I enjoyed it and laughed out loud several times. It's a comedy. Don't overthink it! Just go wit the flow!

I liked it too!  I have found that I frequently like what others don't, and vice versa, but it's all good!  We all perceive things differently and it's fun to see what other people are thinking about with each episode.  :)

Quote

both wives were portrayed as shrews. i found it disgusting as a woman.  i do remember them "cowering" and acting in "fear" of their wives, for sure. 

Both of them could be rather harsh.  I always hate it when these writers have one spouse call their significant other an idiot or some other insulting name.  Penny did that with Leonard in this episode.  She didn't say 'idiot,'  but I can't remember what it was.  Whatever it was, I didn't care for it.  That's just a pet peeve of mine.  I've never done that to my husband.  Granted, I might've been thinking it, but I'd never say it out loud!  I've had a few doltish moments of my own, and thankfully he's never made me feel worse by calling me an idiot! 

Edited September 27, 2018 by ChitChat

[CherryAmes]

3 hours ago, msrachelj said:

both wives were portrayed as shrews. i found it disgusting as a woman.  i do remember them "cowering" and acting in "fear" of their wives, for sure. 

Much like BBT it depended on the episode.  Come to think of it Leonard isn't that unlike the husbands on those shows. They had hot wives and all they really ever wanted from them was sex!  Kind of a sad commentary on the way couples are written on sitcoms.

[rmontro]

5 hours ago, wknt3 said:

It's almost as if the reversal of the usual dynamic was an intentional part of the humor...

This is where Leonard would hold up the sarcasm sign...