S12.E23: The Change Constant; S12.E24: The Stockholm Syndrome

[Chit Chat]

7 hours ago, LoneHaranguer said:

Bernie gave her a new job.

She's still with the same company and in sales.  I guess she ultimately decided she liked it.  The writers dropped the storyline after she told Leonard some time ago that she wasn't all that happy with her job.  I thought they were going to let her character try something else, but the story went nowhere.  Maybe I just don't remember things correctly, but that's how I recall it.  Correct me if I'm wrong! 

Edited May 21, 2019 by ChitChat

[ams1001]

51 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

I really liked Amy's makeover. I didn't really notice anything low cut (I didn't go back and rewatch, but I can't imagine Mayim would be okay with anything too drastic), but I'm right there with you on one thing - the spikey heels. If she had had a makeover that included sensible shoes, she'd be my hero for life!

Well, she has worn heels before...though she didn't walk very well in them...

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, ChitChat said:

She's still with the same company and in sales.  I guess she ultimately decided she liked it.  The writers dropped the storyline after she told Leonard some time ago that she wasn't all that happy with her job.  I thought they were going to let her character try something else, but the story went nowhere.  Maybe I just don't remember things correctly, but that's how I recall it.  Correct me if I'm wrong! 

She specifically said that she didn’t feel good about having to flirt with doctors to get sales. I don’t think she had a problem with the company since in the Bill Gates episode she wanted to be considered for a PR position. Now that she’s moving up in the company she probably is happier. 

[PentaHookUp]

On 5/20/2019 at 3:18 PM, Driad said:

I was not talking about Shamy's ages, but how recently they did their work.  For all we know, someone might find a major flaw next week.

👍

[Chit Chat]

2 hours ago, Dani said:

Now that she’s moving up in the company she probably is happier. 

I still wish they could've let her successfully pursue her true passion of acting.  I know we're just talking about a TV character, but I can relate to how it feels to have a decent job that you're good at, but it's really not your passion.  If I could do things over again, what I do wouldn't be it!   That's why I feel bad for Penny when she realized that her dream of being an actor wasn't working out.  I wanted a win for her, that's all.  😉

[green]

6 hours ago, perkie1968 said:

I had no problem with that.  What bothered me is that we didn't see Laurie Metcalf at all this season.  They brought Christine Baranski back and gave her an episode where Leonard finally gets to tell her that she hurts him and they share a hug, but no Laurie, not even in a Facetime shot with Sheldon when he's winning a Nobel prize.  

Then your problem is with Laurie Metcalf because there is no way that this show's powers that be didn't try to get her back in one form or the other for either the finale or a separate episode near the finale like the actress who played Leonard's mother.  You can't force someone to come back if they choose not to because of other commitments or any other reason they may have.

[Bort]

2 hours ago, ChitChat said:

I still wish they could've let her successfully pursue her true passion of acting.  I know we're just talking about a TV character, but I can relate to how it feels to have a decent job that you're good at, but it's really not your passion.  If I could do things over again, what I do wouldn't be it!   That's why I feel bad for Penny when she realized that her dream of being an actor wasn't working out.  I wanted a win for her, that's all.  😉

I never really felt like acting was Penny's passion. She went for it because she wanted to get out of Nebraska and be rich and famous. She got a modest amount of fame for the Serial Ape-ist movies, the pharmacy sales job got her the money and we saw from a couple episodes this year that she's enjoying the job more. So I think Penny did okay for herself there.

[Chit Chat]

6 hours ago, kariyaki said:

I never really felt like acting was Penny's passion.

Thinking back, there was the episode in which Penny was re-evaluating her life and came to the conclusion that her friends were her passion, so there's that.   She started taking a class at her local college, but that storyline kind of fizzled out.   She has come a long way though since moving to California.  She was the perfect choice to play the cool girl alongside her "nerdy" neighbors!  One of my favorite scenes from the finale was having her be in the elevator when the doors opened up.  I figured they would get it working again, but it was still somewhat of a surprise the way they unveiled it.  

[TigerLynx]

I think Penny matured, and found something else she enjoyed since acting didn't work out for her.  There are a lot of actors/actresses who have a part in a movie or TV show or maybe play a memorable guest/supporting character once or twice who never get anything else.  They eventually move on to a career in another field.

I don't know why the writers had both Bernadette and Penny say they didn't want children just to have them change their minds.  I know a lot of people who chose not to have children that are perfectly happy not having kids, and have never second guessed their decision.

Laurie Metcalf would have returned if she could have fit it in her schedule, but she was already committed to other projects.

I liked Penny and Sheldon's conversation.  "You dog."  Hee!!

I also liked Penny being the first person Raj wanted to show Amy to.  I remember Penny taking Sheldon shopping for clothes and Leonard's birthday present.  Priceless scenes.

The writers missed a great opportunity not showing Raj and Amy's shopping spree.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, TigerLynx said:

I think Penny matured, and found something else she enjoyed since acting didn't work out for her.  There are a lot of actors/actresses who have a part in a movie or TV show or maybe play a memorable guest/supporting character once or twice who never get anything else.  They eventually move on to a career in another field.

I have a daughter about Penny's age. Over the last 12 years she has explored various careers, including acting. She's been doing web design and coding for quite a while now, but hopes to do something else. I would have liked to have Penny express verbally that she was no longer pursuing acting, but it's generally better when the writers show rather than tell, which they did WRT Penny's career.
 
 

1 hour ago, TigerLynx said:

The writers missed a great opportunity not showing Raj and Amy's shopping spree.

Yes, it seems we got Stuart on Skype instead of a Raj and Amy shopping montage.
I wouldn't have minded that choice if the Stuart bit had been even a little worth watching.

Edited May 22, 2019 by shapeshifter

[LoneHaranguer]

15 hours ago, Dani said:

She specifically said that she didn’t feel good about having to flirt with doctors to get sales. I don’t think she had a problem with the company since in the Bill Gates episode she wanted to be considered for a PR position. Now that she’s moving up in the company she probably is happier. 

I think she particularly liked being able to boss others around for a change, especially coworkers that hadn't been treating her very well. This may have been a big factor in telling Leonard to stand up and not let Sheldon and Beverly boss him around.

[DarkRaichu]

15 hours ago, Dani said:

She specifically said that she didn’t feel good about having to flirt with doctors to get sales. I don’t think she had a problem with the company since in the Bill Gates episode she wanted to be considered for a PR position. Now that she’s moving up in the company she probably is happier. 

Also, her current position is more about creating PR / Marketing materials for specific drugs than going door to door to get sales.

[iMonrey]

What am I forgetting here? Weren't Amy and Sheldon supposed to be up for the Nobel price with one other scientist? Wasn't it determined only three scientists could be awarded the prize and they were worried it would go to Campbell and Pemberton if they submitted separately, so it was going to be Campbell, Pemberton and Sheldon? And then something happened with Pemberton and Campbell came to Amy and Sheldon and told them he would go in on it with them? What happened to Campbell?

Quote

Did Anu and Raj actually break up and I missed it, or did they leave the relationship hanging/unclear when she moved to London. I would be okay with Raj being single, but it didn't seem like the Raj/Anu story had closure (a break-up counts as closure to me).

I think closure for Raj was meant to be the airport scene where Howard persuades him not to fly to London to marry Anu, because it made him realize he was settling for someone who didn't even share the basic romantic ideals he'd always clung to. Howard convinced him not to give up looking for the perfect girl. (Whether that was sound advice and whether such a girl exists for Raj is another story.) We have to assume Raj told Anu it was over off-screen. 

Edited May 22, 2019 by iMonrey

[ams1001]

11 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

What am I forgetting here? Weren't Amy and Sheldon supposed to be up for the Nobel price with one other scientist? Wasn't it determined only three scientists could be awarded the prize and they were worried it would go to Campbell and Pemberton if they submitted separately, so it was going to be Campbell, Pemberton and Sheldon? And then something happened with Pemberton and Campbell came to Amy and Sheldon and told them he would go in on it with them? What happened to Campbell?

Sheldon and the other two guys talked about it but Sheldon ultimately tells President Siebert that he doesn't want to do it without Amy also getting credit for her work. (Here's a recap of that episode.)

[Sarah 103]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

We have to assume Raj told Anu it was over off-screen. 

This was the part I was missing. A single line would have been incredibly helpful. Thank you for clarifying this for me. 

[Guest]

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

What am I forgetting here? Weren't Amy and Sheldon supposed to be up for the Nobel price with one other scientist? Wasn't it determined only three scientists could be awarded the prize and they were worried it would go to Campbell and Pemberton if they submitted separately, so it was going to be Campbell, Pemberton and Sheldon? And then something happened with Pemberton and Campbell came to Amy and Sheldon and told them he would go in on it with them? What happened to Campbell?

Initially Campbell and Pemberton wanted to pair up with only Sheldon out of concern that the Nobel committee would choose one team over the other. The idea was that if Caltech and Fermilab presented a united front the committee would go along with it. Sheldon said no and each employer started campaigning for their own team. The Nobel committee could have chosen any combination (up to 3) of them to receive the award.  

Then Pemberton’s plagiarism was revealed and Campbell wanted to jump on board with Amy and Sheldon. That was a last it was mentioned but I assume that the show went with the idea that Campbell’s reputation was hurt by the drama. 

Edited May 23, 2019 by Guest

[iMonrey]

Thanks for the explanations. I couldn't remember what happened with Kal Penn's character. There was no definitive decision on that as far as I can recall.

[Homily]

16 hours ago, kariyaki said:

She went for it because she wanted to get out of Nebraska and be rich and famous

Yep.  I was actually surprised in the episode where she is teaching Sheldon acting that she even knows who Tennessee Williams was - nothing she ever said or did with regard to her acting made me think she really thought it is as anything but a ticket to fame and fortune.

[LoneHaranguer]

28 minutes ago, Homily said:

Yep.  I was actually surprised in the episode where she is teaching Sheldon acting that she even knows who Tennessee Williams was - nothing she ever said or did with regard to her acting made me think she really thought it is as anything but a ticket to fame and fortune.

Apparently, Penny's acting teacher was into Tennessee Williams; they were doing another of his works, Streetcar Named Desire, two seasons later. There was an episode where Leonard remarks on how much she was spending on lessons, but I don't recall which.

[wonderwoman]

On 5/19/2019 at 9:00 AM, CarpeFelis said:

Although I enjoyed Sheldon’s speech, it seemed so out of character (as well as inappropriate for the Nobel ceremony) - not to mention, SMG being there seemed so off the wall - that I wondered if he was about to wake up back on the couch, still waiting for the phone call.

now that would have been a perfect ending! for so very many reasons.

Edited May 23, 2019 by wonderwoman

[wendyg]

The waiting for the phone call part, not to mention knowing they were on a shortlist, was the least credible aspect of it to me. Richard Feynmann wrote in his autobiography about being awakened one morning with the call and being annoyed that there wasn't any advance notice - or any chance to say, thanks, but no thanks.

I don't think it was out of character for Penny to have come around to being excited about the pregnancy. At every step of her relationship with Leonard she's been the one who's been scared of taking the next step forward - the first time he told her he loved her she freaked and left; it took her a long time to say she loved him; etc.

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, wendyg said:

The waiting for the phone call part, not to mention knowing they were on a shortlist, was the least credible aspect of it to me.

I have a feeling that as soon as Sheldon did anything that he felt was even remotely Nobel worthy, he'd be up waiting every year.  That is in Sheldon character.

[Beden]

Just wondering...part of the prize package for a Nobel is around $1 million. Okay, fine. But does the Nobel committee pay the winners (and maybe a +1) to Stockholm and pay their expenses while they're there for the ceremony?...hotel, meals, maybe a reception at the palace with the king and that kind of thing?

I can easily believe that S & A would pay for their closest friends to join them (let's not get into the family/no family issue here) but their own trip?

Anyone know?

Edited May 24, 2019 by Beden

[ProfCrash]

2 hours ago, wendyg said:

The waiting for the phone call part, not to mention knowing they were on a shortlist, was the least credible aspect of it to me. Richard Feynmann wrote in his autobiography about being awakened one morning with the call and being annoyed that there wasn't any advance notice - or any chance to say, thanks, but no thanks.

I don't think it was out of character for Penny to have come around to being excited about the pregnancy. At every step of her relationship with Leonard she's been the one who's been scared of taking the next step forward - the first time he told her he loved her she freaked and left; it took her a long time to say she loved him; etc.

I am pretty certain that the people under consideration for the Nobel Prize in any field are known. I know that we see the list of nominees for the Peace Prize is publicly known. The people under consideration for the Literature award are known. I have no doubt that there is a certain amount of campaigning that comes into play for a Noble in any field. The individuals and their organizations will be invested in them winning because of the prestige that comes with the award and the money that comes from having a Nobel Laureate at your institution.

I am not sure if the exact day and time of announcement is known but there is a week or 2 week period were announcements are made, or that I hear them on NPR for a shirt burst of time.

Richard Feynmann won his in 1965, I would guess that the process today is a bit more streamlined and understood today. I can totally see someone who is on the short list to be sleeping lightly, or not at all, during that window of time. You do hear stories of people who don't take the call or get the call or something goes off kilter but those are probably not the rule.

[John Potts]

OK, now that is how you do a Finale. They actually concluded character arcs in a believable way. Sheldon actually acknowledged how much of a trial he was to everyone around him (OK, maybe 10 years too late, but I'll take what I can get) and despite being pissed at him, his friends were there to see his triumph (loved "Astronaut Howard Wollowitz" - see, he can compliment Howard when he wants to). And I called Penny's pregnancy as soon as Amy said they'd had to let out Penny's dress.

I assume Meemaw/Mary Cooper contacted the rest of the family (apparently including Georgie's ex wives), though I would have liked some line to explain why Mary didn't attend the ceremony ("Missy's broken her leg and somebody has to look after her family" or whatever), because I can't believe she wouldn't attend. She may disapprove of Sheldon's (lack of) beliefs, but she does love her boy.

On ‎5‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 2:04 AM, Browncoat said:

And the tiara, of course!  And the slap!  Those were great as was Amy's dress (and whole makeover).

Loved that callback! And hey, if you can't wear a tiara to meet a King, when can you?

On ‎5‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 2:31 AM, chaifan said:

I was among those who predicted the elevator would be fixed, but the comic timing of Sheldon freaking out about change and the elevator opening with Penny inside was absolutely frickin perfect!

I preferred the  moment when Sheldon dashed down the stairs... only for Penny to have got there ahead of him. "Fast elevator" indeed!

On ‎5‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 4:41 AM, CleoCaesar said:

Was she? My memory is hazy but to me it seems like her not wanting kids only came up in the second half of this season. It didn't seem like she was militant about it

That's how I recall it, too. While Leonard was definitely in favour, Penny was more (to my recollection) more, "Maybe some day, but not now." Though maybe the thought of him fathering children with somebody else changed her mind?

On ‎5‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 1:59 PM, ProfCrash said:

The tooth fairy was cool with an email confirming the missing tooth.

I had no idea the Tooth Fairy was so tech savvy these days!

On ‎5‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 2:19 PM, proserpina65 said:

The only thing which kept this from being as bad as the finale to How I Met Your Mother: they didn't kill off Howard so that Raj could marry Bernadette.

Surely if they were going to go that route, they'd kill off Bernadette so Raj could end up with Howard?

On ‎5‎/‎18‎/‎2019 at 9:18 PM, SpiritSong said:

It might even entail (gasp!) having sex more than two or three times a year.

Sorry, that just sounds excessive to me...

[wknt3]

3 hours ago, John Potts said:

It might even entail (gasp!) having sex more than two or three times a year.

3 hours ago, John Potts said:

Sorry, that just sounds excessive to me...

Wow. With your username and icon I never would have guessed you're my ex-GF...

[shapeshifter]

17 hours ago, John Potts said:

Though maybe the thought of him fathering children with somebody else changed her mind?

Good point. But I'm also glad they didn't make that point "a thing."
  
  

17 hours ago, John Potts said:

On 5/17/2019 at 8:19 AM, proserpina65 said:

The only thing which kept this from being as bad as the finale to How I Met Your Mother: they didn't kill off Howard so that Raj could marry Bernadette.

Surely if they were going to go that route, they'd kill off Bernadette so Raj could end up with Howard?

Much more in keeping with that story arc/characterization.
  
  

17 hours ago, John Potts said:

On 5/18/2019 at 3:18 PM, SpiritSong said:

It might even entail (gasp!) having sex more than two or three times a year.

Sorry, that just sounds excessive to me...

Hahahahaha.
I hope Sheldon and Amy are using the Bill Clinton definition of sex.

[TigerLynx]

I kind of wish it had been Sheldon, Amy and Leonard getting the Nobel.

I wonder if Raj is going to be that guy all his life.  When Raj is just friends with a girl, he gives some good advice, is helpful, and confidant.  When Raj gets romantically involved with a girl, he becomes an offensive idiot, or a pathetic doormat.

I think Sheldon and Amy will end up having sex more than three times a year.  Sheldon has actually grown a little bit since knowing Amy, and I'm hoping for more growth in the future.

Edited May 25, 2019 by TigerLynx

[FinnishViewer]

Quote

Penny express verbally that she was no longer pursuing acting

I think it was kind of implied. I remember a couple of seasons back Penny went to an audition, and afterwards she said how did not miss it at all.

[Chit Chat]

On 5/24/2019 at 1:59 PM, John Potts said:

Sheldon actually acknowledged how much of a trial he was to everyone around him (OK, maybe 10 years too late, but I'll take what I can get) and despite being pissed at him, his friends were there to see his triumph (loved "Astronaut Howard Wollowitz" - see, he can compliment Howard when he wants to).

My issue with it was that we've seen Sheldon acknowledge being a pain in the ass many times over the seasons.  He apologizes and then things are okay for awhile, but then he's right back to being a pain in the ass all over again.  I guess the writers wanted him to end things with an even bigger and more heartfelt apology.  It really shouldn't have been this big of a revelation to him at this stage of the game. They made him a little too insufferable in the finale so that he'd  have his big moment.  That's what I didn't care for.   As much progress as we've seen Sheldon make, I didn't think he would've acted that badly, but it was needed for the big speech.  Granted, the speech was nice, but it was just another apology.  Hopefully he truly saw the light this time. 

On 5/25/2019 at 6:31 PM, FinnishViewer said:

I remember a couple of seasons back Penny went to an audition, and afterwards she said how did not miss it at all.

I think she liked acting, but not necessarily the auditioning aspect of it.  

[shapeshifter]

5 hours ago, ChitChat said:

My issue with it was that we've seen Sheldon acknowledge being a pain in the ass many times over the seasons.  He apologizes and then things are okay for awhile, but then he's right back to being a pain in the ass all over again. 

This reminds me of real people in my life, except I don't think they ever actually apologize—they just manage to not say hurtful things for awhile, and even make some self-centered attempts at generosity, but then some life stress happens, and they feel entitled to put down others again.

We have heard Sheldon apologize, but I'm not sure his speech qualifies as an apology; maybe it's something more:

"I was under a misapprehension that my accomplishments were mine alone. Nothing could be further from the truth."

[Magnumfangirl]

On 5/25/2019 at 11:36 AM, TigerLynx said:

I kind of wish it had been Sheldon, Amy and Leonard getting the Nobel.

I wish it had been Sheldon and Leonard who won the prize, but I get that the show had to shoehorn Amy in for a bunch of reasons.

[AD35]

On 5/25/2019 at 12:36 PM, TigerLynx said:

I think Sheldon and Amy will end up having sex more than three times a year. 

Well she did mention once that she was going to put his love of repetition to good use.

[Driad]

What did Sheldon mean when he said he puts his pants on both legs at a time? Astronauts joke that they can do this (in free fall), and maybe some acrobats can hold their pants and jump into them, but Sheldon is neither.

[Katy M]

4 minutes ago, Driad said:

What did Sheldon mean when he said he puts his pants on both legs at a time? Astronauts joke that they can do this (in free fall), and maybe some acrobats can hold their pants and jump into them, but Sheldon is neither.

I used to put my pants on both legs at a time when I was in junior high and high school. It was cold in the morning, so I'd lay a pair of jeans next to my bed and in the morning, I'd take off my sweats and jam both legs in at the same time and pull them up lying down.  Not really that hard.  At least when you're young.  I honestly haven't tried it since then.  Maybe I will tomorrow and let you know how it goes.

[Driad]

But many people can put their pants on that way, or by sitting and putting the pants on the floor. It sounded to me as if Sheldon was giving yet another example of how he is exceptional. Or maybe it's just that Sheldon always sounds that way (IMO).

[AnnaRose]

25 minutes ago, Driad said:

But many people can put their pants on that way, or by sitting and putting the pants on the floor. It sounded to me as if Sheldon was giving yet another example of how he is exceptional. Or maybe it's just that Sheldon always sounds that way (IMO).

He probably thinks it's the smarter way to do it because it's more efficient. 

[biakbiak]

30 minutes ago, Driad said:

But many people can put their pants on that way, or by sitting and putting the pants on the floor. It sounded to me as if Sheldon was giving yet another example of how he is exceptional. Or maybe it's just that Sheldon always sounds that way (IMO).

Because the idiom for normal/ordinary people is that they put their pants on one leg at a time and Sheldon views himself as not ordinary.

[LoneHaranguer]

1 hour ago, AnnaRose said:

He probably thinks it's the smarter way to do it because it's more efficient. 

Or, he's never been able to pick one leg over the other to go first.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Because the idiom for normal/ordinary people is that they put their pants on one leg at a time and Sheldon views himself as not ordinary.

I think that^ is it. 
After the episode aired, I--a senior citizen--put on a pair of knit pants both legs at once. 
It was surprisingly easy, but I think I'll consider Amy's admonition that it would one day end badly and not make a new habit of it.

[John Potts]

On ‎5‎/‎29‎/‎2019 at 11:57 PM, shapeshifter said:

It was surprisingly easy, but I think I'll consider Amy's admonition that it would one day end badly and not make a new habit of it.

I can't imagine it's that difficult if you're sitting down? If it were Zack (say), I would imagine him holding the pants open and trying to jump into them, but I'm sure Sheldon wouldn't be trying anything so energetic!

[Chewy101]

On 5/26/2019 at 6:55 PM, ChitChat said:

As much progress as we've seen Sheldon make, I didn't think he would've acted that badly, but it was needed for the big speech.  Granted, the speech was nice, but it was just another apology.  Hopefully he truly saw the light this time. 

Well, because of the Asperger's, I doubt he CAN truly see the light for more than a temporary bit of time. It's how he is wired. I thought his speech was really bizarre for a Nobel Prize ceremony. 

I hated the Penny getting knocked up portion. I thought the show was doing something interesting by having ONE character make a choice many do in this world, which is to not have children. And it was an appropriate character with which to do it. It's like the show chickened out in the end, so Penny gets drunk and boing... Leonard gets his way. In reality, these are things should have been discussed before marriage, but everything they have done has been not very well thought out.

I think TPTB need to do a TV special down the road with a big time jump, so we can see what they would all be up to. Reunion shows are all the rage these days. 

[Katy M]

14 minutes ago, Chewy101 said:

Well, because of the Asperger's, I doubt he CAN truly see the light for more than a temporary bit of time. It's how he is wired. I thought his speech was really bizarre for a Nobel Prize ceremony. 

Did I miss a diagnosis?

[Chewy101]

3 minutes ago, Katy M said:

18 minutes ago, Chewy101 said:

Well, because of the Asperger's, I doubt he CAN truly see the light for more than a temporary bit of time. It's how he is wired. I thought his speech was really bizarre for a Nobel Prize ceremony. 

Did I miss a diagnosis?

Nope. Just a theory that has floated around for a decade. Sheldon might be a selfish ass, but he also seems so genuinely confused at times by basic social cues and the temperature of the room, that it's been suggested many times he might mildly be on the spectrum. Or he could just be an ass with a touch OCD to boot. But no, nothing diagnosed by the show. 

Edited June 10, 2019 by Chewy101

[Browncoat]

He doesn't have Asperger's.  His mother had him tested.

[Driad]

3 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

He doesn't have Asperger's.  His mother had him tested.

That test said he wasn't "crazy."  Maybe she should have taken him to the specialist in Houston.

[anna0852]

The production team has always maintained that Sheldon is simply Sheldon. No diagnoses have been ascribed to him in anyway. No Asperger syndrome, he's not autistic, he's not on the spectrum. 

The writers and producers have been VERY clear about this topic.

[wknt3]

13 hours ago, anna0852 said:

The production team has always maintained that Sheldon is simply Sheldon. No diagnoses have been ascribed to him in anyway. No Asperger syndrome, he's not autistic, he's not on the spectrum. 

The writers and producers have been VERY clear about this topic.

The only diagnosis that the writing or anyone associated with the show has hinted at is OCD. (I have seen Mayim talk about it in interviews and on screen there are the episodes about hoarding and Sheldon's need for order and the mentions of his love of repetition.) I think they do use classic "socially maladroit genius" tropes that we have become aware are associated with the spectrum, but they didn't want him to be on the spectrum or perceived as such for some very important reasons. It's not funny if we really can't help himself - it's simply cruel.  They also wanted the character to grow and change (even if they couldn't sustain it because of audience expectations or their own creative failures) and don't want to be suggesting that those on the spectrum can change their nature through love or just wanting it enough or whatever. I think as with a lot of sitcoms we probably could come up with DSM diagnoses for most of the cast, but that's not something intended or encouraged or useful in understanding the characters.

Edited June 11, 2019 by wknt3

[Chewy101]

4 hours ago, anna0852 said:

The production team has always maintained that Sheldon is simply Sheldon. No diagnoses have been ascribed to him in anyway. No Asperger syndrome, he's not autistic, he's not on the spectrum. 

The writers and producers have been VERY clear about this topic.

Back to him just being an ass with a dose of OCD

[ProfCrash]

13 hours ago, anna0852 said:

The production team has always maintained that Sheldon is simply Sheldon. No diagnoses have been ascribed to him in anyway. No Asperger syndrome, he's not autistic, he's not on the spectrum. 

The writers and producers have been VERY clear about this topic.

Production can say that all they want. My Brother can say it about himself and his daughter. His daughter has had two doctors diagnosis her with Aspergers that he chooses to ignore because he thinks the doctors are wrong.

It doesn't change the fact that my brother is wrong and the writers are wrong. There is no way in hell that Sheldon is not on the spectrum in some way shape or form. I know plenty of super smart people (I worked with literal rocket scientists for years) who are no where near Sheldon in terms of behavior. They love games and comics and discuss all things sci fi but they have social skills and can read the room.

I know folks who are on the spectrum and Sheldon fits in with them very nicely.

So the writers can say what they want and I can tell them that they are ignoring the obvious.

And Aspergers or Autism is not an indication that some one is crazy, it means that the people diagnosed with these issues process and react to the world very differently then the rest of us.

Full disclosure, I have ADHD and LDs. I know that I process and respond to the world differently. It is not a big deal. I use medication when I need to. My parents and I worked on behavior modification. I have a job that is cool with my being, well, me.

So the writers can say what they want and I will continue to ignore them.