S12.E10: The VCR Illumination

[Bort]

Quote

Sheldon and Amy are still down about their theory being disproven, but a VHS tape from Sheldon’s past inspires him not to give up. Also, Bernadette turns into a pageant mom when she tries to help Wolowitz ace his Magic Castle audition.

Airdate: Thursday, December 6, 2018

 

[Spartan Girl]

Not the longest crossover, but still wonderful. "Thanks, Dad. We're gonna give them hell." Sniff.

I have to agree that tea really is just leaf soup.

[ams1001]

16 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

Not the longest crossover, but still wonderful. "Thanks, Dad. We're gonna give them hell." Sniff.

I have to agree that tea really is just leaf soup.

But it's tasty, caffeinated leaf soup. (That would mean coffee is bean soup, right?)

That ending was sweet.

[CleoCaesar]

I've never watched Young Sheldon but still found the young Sheldon and Sheldon's dad cameos sweet and moving.

[CherryAmes]

Very touching.  Had something in my eye there for a minute.

And may I  just say YAY they are working on their theory again!!!

[mojoween]

It may have been manipulative but who cares.  I love seeing George Sr. and Sheldon “interact.”  

Also Georgie getting yelled at.

The “Leonard this isn’t about you” was wicked lazy though.  It wasn’t very funny the first time and definitely not funny the second time.  Actually having Leonard whinge in the first place was dumb, because Leonard knows by now Beverly is going to drop everything for Sheldon so he’s just wasting everyone's time.  Not saying it’s right, but it is what it is.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

Sniff.

Still sniffing. 

Totally nailed the father figure relationship at its best. 

The television gods must've known this would air the week of 41's passing.

 

In the B plot: Hmmm. So my boss is really just a pageant mom.

 

When this show wraps, Kaley Cuoco should totally put her TBBT stylist on retainer. Great looks this season.

 

The vanity card had just one Russian word (виновный) that Google Translate tells me means "guilty." Is this supposed to be Chuck Lorre admitting to manipulating our emotions? Or is it a political commentary?

Edited December 7, 2018 by shapeshifter

[AnnaRose]

1 hour ago, ams1001 said:

But it's tasty, caffeinated leaf soup. (That would mean coffee is bean soup, right?)

That ending was sweet.

Haha, that's great!

I loved seeing grown-up Sheldon watching his dad on video and appreciating his wisdom, and I'm glad they are working on their theory again.  It didn't make sense to me that they dropped it so easily because of an obscure 40 year old article/paper.

[mojoween]

57 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

The vanity card had just one Russian word (виновный) that Google Translate tells me means "guilty." Is this supposed to be Chuck Lorre admitting to manipulating our emotions? Or is it a political commentary?

It was most likely political, given other things Lorre has put on his cards.

[Yeah No]

Having not liked the way they made Sheldon and Amy just accept that some 40 year old article "disproved" their theory, I'm at least glad the show eventually allowed them to come to their senses.  Obviously, them sulking and acting defeated was just a vehicle to show them getting inspired by Sheldon's dad's pep talk on the tape.  I just didn't think it was in character for them to give up so easily without really thinking about it, but again, whatever, at least they finally got back on track with some encouragement.  And at least I can stop being as pissed off at the show now.  OK, maybe I'm still a little pissed off because I still think the whole thing was stupid.  Of COURSE an article that old would be based on outdated science and there would still be a chance that their theory is true in light of newer knowledge.  That's what I was thinking all along.  But then again if all that sulking was serving the purpose of seeing the tape of younger Sheldon and his father, then I suppose I can appreciate that a little bit.

[anna0852]

I teared up when I saw George Sr. on the screen and I swear Sheldon did too when he said thanks.

[jumper sage]

2 hours ago, CleoCaesar said:

I've never watched Young Sheldon but still found the young Sheldon and Sheldon's dad cameos sweet and moving.

WHAT?????????????????????????????  It pairs very nicely with TBBT.

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

3 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Sniff.

Still sniffing. 

Me too.  I was applauding in my living room.

[Zoe]

I didn't care for the Howard plot until the payoff at the end. Then we couldn't stop laughing lol

[AnnaRose]

I laughed at this exchange:

Amy: "Fine with flags?"

Sheldon: "Yes.  Flags.  Up there, flapping around on poles.  If you think about it, they're just the strippers of the emblem world."

Also, I loved the continuity of Sheldon face down on the sofa.  (Loveseat is probably more accurate - dang that is a tiny sofa, which made it much funnier!)  In Young Sheldon, when Sheldon became distraught after failing to receive any kind of reply from NASA regarding his solution for landing their rockets, he is similarly face down on the sofa, with his arms straight at his sides, despondent, all hope lost.  It was a funny bit in both series, and it was nice to see that same idiosyncrasy in grown up Sheldon.

[brgjoe]

This was one of my favorite ones of the season.  Very well done for the most part.  And I like they are getting back on the theory, rather than giving up because someone gave up on it in the 1970's. 

And I thought the football footage would come into play later.  Except I thought Sheldon would be watching the game and make some discovery in relation to his theory by watching it.  Like how maybe the players were lining up in specified formations.  Or how the ball spirals through the air when thrown across the field.  But I like the way it turned out.  Though I highly doubt if they would have had cameras in the locker rooms back then -- even now it seems a bit creepy.  ;)

The Howard stuff was hit or miss, but I enjoyed the last scene with that one as well. 

[2727]

I loved George's locker room pep talk: "No, we're not gonna win!"

[Chaos Theory]

Normally I don’t nitpick and get more annoyed by people that do then by little mistakes....but I think I will uh nitpick.

I really liked Sheldon’s line “I’ve been acting like the game is over but it’s only halftime.   There’s a lot more physics left to play.”  So when Amy asked about sports metaphors and he made a baseball one instead of a football one I got a little more annoyed then I should have.  Either he was joking or it was a bad joke.  Dude lived in East Texas as he is prone to saying even he would know what a touchdown is.    Plus there was that episode where he bonded with Bernadette’s father because he knew sports and Howard didn’t.  

I know nitpicking a dumb joke in an otherwise fun episode and I hate nitpickers so I will stop.  

[sigmaforce86]

Sheldon's little catch in his voice when he said We're going to give them hell Dad was perfectly done.  I love that it was George accidentally being on the tape that really helped snap Sheldon out of it.

Also thank you very much BBT writers for adding Sheldon's line that he knew what his younger self was going to say he just wanted to see himself say it.  When he first realized the tape was messed up I kept thinking but what about his eidetic memory....so at least that was acknowledged.

Leonard has good friends, a wife, a career and a pretty good life where he lives, yes he contacted Beverly because he wanted Sheldon advice but he really needs to stop chasing a "mommy" now.  

[Zoe]

29 minutes ago, Chaos Theory said:

Normally I don’t nitpick and get more annoyed by people that do then by little mistakes....but I think I will uh nitpick.

I really liked Sheldon’s line “I’ve been acting like the game is over but it’s only halftime.   There’s a lot more physics left to play.”  So when Amy asked about sports metaphors and he made a baseball one instead of a football one I got a little more annoyed then I should have.  Either he was joking or it was a bad joke.  Dude lived in East Texas as he is prone to saying even he would know what a touchdown is.    Plus there was that episode where he bonded with Bernadette’s father because he knew sports and Howard didn’t.  

I know nitpicking a dumb joke in an otherwise fun episode and I hate nitpickers so I will stop.  

He's talked about sports before--he just hadn't applied it to his work before.

[Chit Chat]

I loved Sheldon's line about jazz music, something along the lines of 'sure, play all the notes at once!'  

Even though Leonard gets very annoyed with Sheldon, he does seem to come through when he's really hurting.  I was also happy to see that Sheldon recognized how much he had in common with his Dad.  It was nice to see the Young Sheldon crossover.  

13 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Or is it a political commentary?

Probably another political statement. Ugh.   He once said that he wasn't doing to put those in his vanity cards anymore, but it's still a regular thing.  He can't help himself.  

[NutmegsDad]

I understand how disappointed people were that we wouldn't see any other YS characters other than Sheldon, George, and Georgie, but in the context of the episode, it wouldn't make sense to add any other characters the way the plot was presented in the show.

I'm satisfied the way the show addressed the Russian paper disproving the Shammy Theory, but it was maddening we had to wait three weeks to find out.

Wonderful reaction Sheldon had to his dad's speech.

I'm sorry, but I cringed all throughout the Howard magician subplot, as soon as Howard said he wasn't interested in reapplying. Bernie went into full Stage Mom Mode, and I mentally FF'd, Even the last scene at the Castle with the Rolex, I could see coming a mile away.

Yes, Leonard's mom is the mom that Sheldon never had, and Sheldon is the son she never had. We get it.

Edited December 7, 2018 by NutmegsDad
Grammar and embellishment

[Gummo]

I should be super-annoyed at how gimmicky the last 2 seasons of TBBT are, what with all the retrofitting and crossovers going on with Young Sheldon.

But they're doing it so well!

Tonight was one of the best yet. Sheldon's reaction to his father's image and speech were touching yet in-character. I do like how whenever Sheldon references his dad now, there's always an undertone of regret that they never had a chance to grow older and get closer. I also appreciated Sheldon's belated realization of his similarities with his father, when all his life he's worked as hard as he could to emphasize the differences. 

The B story was meh, barely okay. Way too pat and sitcommy to be the counterpoint to such a rich A-story. Though I will say, we've seen Bernadette's competitive side before, but I think this is the first time we saw Bernadette Rostenkowski, Pageant Girl, in all her glorious obsessiveness. That was kinda fun.

Leonard's buttons are so easy to push. I wonder if he ever followed up with that therapist? He should. 

So how's the season going to end, with Amy discovering she's pregnant? Leonard & Penny discovering same?

[rmontro]

I never bought that the Asymmetry theory was dead in the first place, I figured something would pop up that would give it life again.  Now it looks like it will be an end game of sorts, giving Sheldon his big victory at the end of the series.  And he will share it with Amy, which will show personal growth.

Couldn't bring myself to care about Howard's audition.  When have we ever been given any indication that he was good enough to join the Magic Castle?  Seeing what he did to that poor guy's Rolex, I hope they have good insurance policies for magicians.

[iMonrey]

It was a nice touch that they added a little bit of tracking error on the young Sheldon video, but they should have done a bit more. And I didn't see any flaw in the quality of young Howard's video. Those videotapes really deteriorate over time, even if they're just sitting in a box somewhere. In fact, depending on where they're stored they can be rendered useless.

Quote

I've never watched Young Sheldon but still found the young Sheldon and Sheldon's dad cameos sweet and moving.

WHAT?????????????????????????????  It pairs very nicely with TBBT.

I had a hard time reconciling Young Sheldon with the history current Sheldon had been relating on the first 10 years of the parent show. An awful lot of the characterization has been softened, especially in regards to his parents. I was fine with accepting YS as an alternate reality but at the end I found it a bit too syrupy for my tastes. But that's just me. I tend to avoid shows where the main characters are precocious children.

[Bort]

13 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

It was a nice touch that they added a little bit of tracking error on the young Sheldon video, but they should have done a bit more.

I thought they overdid it with the tracking. You get the random tracking error from wrinkles in the tape, which is different from when you adjust the tracking yourself to get the fuzz off the bottom of the screen. You're not really going to see a constant loop like that and if a tape is well-preserved, which I'm sure it is, knowing Sheldon, there shouldn't be much -- if any at all. At least they got the 4:3 aspect ratio right.

[shapeshifter]

On December 7, 2018 at 8:33 AM, Zoe said:

On December 7, 2018 at 8:03 AM, Chaos Theory said:

…Plus there was that episode where he bonded with Bernadette’s father because he knew sports and Howard didn’t. . .  

He's talked about sports before--he just hadn't applied it to his work before

Maybe so, but if they wanted to use a sports metaphor, it would have flowed better if Amy had just noted his father's influence, rather than making the audience (including me) scratch their heads about splitting hairs over whether he'd actually used a sports metaphor in that specific way in the last 12 seasons, in which Sheldon the Texan had mentioned sports quite a few times.

OTOH, I was so wrapped up in what 1980s VCR Sheldon's dad was saying about winning and losing, that I totally missed that I too

On December 7, 2018 at 12:06 AM, brgjoe said:

highly doubt if they would have had cameras in the locker rooms back then

Or ever? And yet it worked so well that I didn't even think about it. Plus, I have zero real life experience with locker rooms. So maybe cell phone videos today? Or not allowed? Regardless, the Sheldon Dad actor totally nailed it, as did the editors.

 

 

I hated the smashed Rolex even more than the rest of the B plot—if that's possible.

Edited December 11, 2018 by shapeshifter
Because a Rolodex and a Rolex are not the same thing

[Bort]

I think the issue isn't that Sheldon was using sports metaphors, it's that he was mixing them. First he used football, then he switched to baseball. It would've been more apt to use a touchdown metaphor as opposed to a homerun.

[marketdoctor]

Quote

I hated the smashed Rolodex even more than the rest of the B plot—if that's possible.

I saw it coming, which distracted a little from the humor, but it fit that Howard is an occasionally good amateur, not a Merlin Award contender.  And even though Daffy Duck did it first, I still laughed.

For some reason, I loved this episode--in part because Sheldon and Amy don't just figure out a way out of a problem, but that their theory is better for having been challenged.  That felt surprisingly real, and was a nice counterpoint.

The tape/VCR held up really well; sometimes they don't.

[MissLucas]

Eh, I'm just glad that plot is over. Yes, the pay-off was very sweet (or manipulative or both) but I got a headache from all the eye-rolling. Not just due to the mangling of scientific procedure but also due to everybody enabling Sheldon's shenanigans. Every major scientist had to deal with failures it's par for the course. (Of course Sheldon had quite a few so maybe he isn't quite as good as he thinks - not that that was ever brought up.)

As for Howard's plot: YOU DO HAVE A BROTHER! AND I'M STILL WAITING TO MEET YOUR DAD. SHOW, RESOLVE THAT DANGLING PLOT-LINE ALREADY!!! 

[CherryAmes]

5 minutes ago, MissLucas said:

As for Howard's plot: YOU DO HAVE A BROTHER! AND I'M STILL WAITING TO MEET YOUR DAD. SHOW, RESOLVE THAT DANGLING PLOT-LINE ALREADY!!! 

I don't remember what happened that Howard having or not having a brother came up.  Anyway Howard has a half brother he's met once that we know of but it's a case of technically he has a sibling but in reality, no, not really.

Edited December 8, 2018 by CherryAmes

[MissLucas]

You don't introduce a half-brother and mention the father (whose absence played such a big role in Howard's life) and then just drop it. It's truly the one plot I'm most interested to see before the show ends. The continuity fairy taking a break - if only for a joke's sake as happened in this episode - drives me right into caps lock-mania.

[ams1001]

Anyone else surprised Sheldon doesn't have a VCR of his own?

[Bort]

2 hours ago, marketdoctor said:

The tape/VCR held up really well; sometimes they don't.

I imagine that a VCR tape kept in an airtight, room temperature wall safe will stay pretty well preserved. I have home movie tapes that I kept on a dusty bookshelf (but still room temperature) for 20 years and they're totally fine. No wrinkles, no track lines... I hooked a VCR up to my laptop to digitize them. It's when you store them in a hot garage or attic space that they deteriorate and rot.

[babyhouseman]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

 

I hated the smashed Rolodex even more than the rest of the B plot—if that's possible.

The Golden Girls did it better. 

1 hour ago, MissLucas said:

 

As for Howard's plot: YOU DO HAVE A BROTHER! AND I'M STILL WAITING TO MEET YOUR DAD. SHOW, RESOLVE THAT DANGLING PLOT-LINE ALREADY!!! 

Howdini made the memory of his half-brother disappear. 

[SmithW6079]

6 minutes ago, babyhouseman said:

Howdini made the memory of his half-brother disappear. 

I thought Howard told his half-brother that he didn't want anything to do with him and that was that. 

[shapeshifter]

44 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Anyone else surprised Sheldon doesn't have a VCR of his own?

No, but now that you mention it, it wouldn't surprise me if he did either.

[CherryAmes]

1 hour ago, SmithW6079 said:

I thought Howard told his half-brother that he didn't want anything to do with him and that was that. 

That's not how I remember that episode.  They seemed to get on fairly well, the brother was impressed that Howard had been an astronaut, and IIRC they parted on good terms.  With regard to the father that episode was the opportunity to bring him onto the show and they chose not to.  I'd be very surprised if they do it now.  I don't consider that a plot hole.  There has never been any reason to believe that Howard and his father were going to reconnect.

[possibilities]

6 hours ago, kariyaki said:

I hooked a VCR up to my laptop to digitize them.

I need to learn how to do that with mine.

Sheldon having a VCR is storage didn't come up because the gang was trying to surprise him, I think.

I like the vanity cards. If they want to, they can omit them from syndication airings.

[Tosia]

10 hours ago, kariyaki said:

I imagine that a VCR tape kept in an airtight, room temperature wall safe will stay pretty well preserved. I have home movie tapes that I kept on a dusty bookshelf (but still room temperature) for 20 years and they're totally fine. No wrinkles, no track lines... I hooked a VCR up to my laptop to digitize them. It's when you store them in a hot garage or attic space that they deteriorate and rot.

I've got mixed VCR tapes from 25 years ago which are fine. I still watch them once in a while.   

[CherryAmes]

8 hours ago, LadyKenobi said:

Sheldon not having a VCR doesn’t connect with that absolutely terrible plot about him keeping everything he ever owned. Hopefully we can all pretend that didn’t happen.

Depends on the timing.  I could see Sheldon never having personally owned a VCR.  He was a child when he made that tape and within a few years he was moving around for his education.  I can buy him never having owned a VCR.

[anna0852]

Or maybe Amy didn't have access to the storage unit. Knowing the location doesn't mean she has the key/code.

[rmontro]

16 hours ago, MissLucas said:

Eh, I'm just glad that plot is over. Yes, the pay-off was very sweet (or manipulative or both) but I got a headache from all the eye-rolling. Not just due to the mangling of scientific procedure but also due to everybody enabling Sheldon's shenanigans. Every major scientist had to deal with failures it's par for the course.

If you're talking about the Asymmetry theory, I don't think that plot is over.  They agreed to start working on it again at the end of the episode.  My guess is this runs through to the end of the show, maybe even resulting in Sheldon finally getting his Nobel Prize (although I kind of hope not).  I don't want to see Penny become a successful actress either.  

[MissLucas]

I don't mind them picking up the theory again - the moping and 'woe-is-me' and everybody playing along was irritating.

Also: I never called Howard's father a plot hole - it's a dangling plot-line, not the same thing. 

[retiredviewer]

On 12/7/2018 at 8:09 PM, ams1001 said:

Anyone else surprised Sheldon doesn't have a VCR of his own?

It's probably in his storage locker.

[AnnaRose]

Sheldon may not have ever had a VCR in California.  How long has he been living there?  I was done with VCRs a little over fifteen years ago when I switched to a set-top DVD-Recorder with a hard drive instead of a VCR.  Since Sheldon has always tended to be an early adapter buying top of the line tech gear, I would expect that he would have moved past VCRs even earlier.

[Edmond83]

17 hours ago, rmontro said:

If you're talking about the Asymmetry theory, I don't think that plot is over.  They agreed to start working on it again at the end of the episode.  My guess is this runs through to the end of the show, maybe even resulting in Sheldon finally getting his Nobel Prize (although I kind of hope not).  I don't want to see Penny become a successful actress either.  

I think the poster was talking about the plot of them being miserable and stuck in a rut over it now being 'over'.  I expect they will now crack on with their work and there will be references to it during the rest of the season.

Edited December 9, 2018 by Edmond83

[HouseofBeck]

Weird choice to have Howard (half-heartedly) try to resurrect his old dream. I too wish they hadn't gone the ol smashed watch route. (I distracted myself by fondly remembering Gracie Allen doing the same in International House, which among other things was a pre-censorship movie. It was a much newer gag then!)

What got to me this ep was Amy once again sad-sacking it over to Leonard and Penny for help with how to manage Sheldon. I guess it's just part of her personality to always want to manage this grown person's emotions for him, even and especially while she's hurting too? Arrgh. 

Penny's striped PJs were divine and I covet them.

[MaryMitch]

I loved this episode. I laughed out loud several times, but in the scene where Sheldon was thanking his dad, I teared up a little.

Howard's plot line was thin, but his "jazz hands" version of Howdini was hilarious!

[Gulftastic]

On 07/12/2018 at 9:03 PM, iMonrey said:

It was a nice touch that they added a little bit of tracking error on the young Sheldon video, but they should have done a bit more. And I didn't see any flaw in the quality of young Howard's video. Those videotapes really deteriorate over time, even if they're just sitting in a box somewhere. In fact, depending on where they're stored they can be rendered useless.

 

By sheer coincidence, just this week, I dug out my VCR and oldest tape I own to answer some twitter discussion I had undertaken. The tape is from 1986 and still plays fine. Happily really, as it's Prince in concert from that year.

 

Anyway, good episode. I am once again amazed at how the spin off has improved the parent show. A TV first, to my recollection.

And Penny in pink pyjamas looked super cute.

[BlossomCulp]

On 12/7/2018 at 7:10 PM, MissLucas said:

As for Howard's plot: YOU DO HAVE A BROTHER! AND I'M STILL WAITING TO MEET YOUR DAD. SHOW, RESOLVE THAT DANGLING PLOT-LINE ALREADY!!! 

I got the impression that Howard was using the same lines he used back when he originally wanted to try out for Magic Castle.  He's in his 30s no one cares if he has brothers and sisters or what his favourite food is!!