(S03E08) I'm going to just say it right up front: This was the best episode of the season so far, and is neck and neck with the Leonard Nimoy Christmas episode for title of "best episode ever." Though there were two very distinct stories going on here, they were both hilarious. Too often, when the group is separated, the B plot flounders. However, this week, while Raj, Leonard and Wolowitz in the desert wasn't quite as jaw-dropping as Sheldon grabbing Penny's boob(!), it was pretty damn hilarious.
So, about the desert: Pot cookies. It's amazing to me that something so cliched could end up being so unbelievably funny. While all three of the guys made me laugh, Raj was the real scene-stealer. From his threat to eat all of the lettuce in the world and make his rabbit subjects watch, to the American accent he uses to mock Wolowitz and Leonard, everything that came out of his mouth was pure comic gold.
While the desert scenes were just joke after joke at an impressively rapid-fire pace, it was of course, the Sheldon/Penny scenes that really made the episode for me. I like Leonard and Penny together, and I do think that the idea of Sheldon and Penny having a relationship is a little too far-fetched to actually work, but they do have better chemistry than anyone else on the show.
Any time Sheldon and Penny have scenes together, they are invariably the funniest parts of the episode. The writers know this, so we've been getting more and more of them. What's kind of weird about it is that it's created a situation in which we've seen Penny get closer to Sheldon than we've ever seen her get to Leonard. Penny and Sheldon have this weird relationship going on that only they really know about.
What was different about this episode was the amount of sexual tension that was heaped onto the situation. While I never thought anything was going to actually happen between the two of them, we definitely veered into a weird place more than once. First Sheldon grabs Penny's boob, then he peeks at her butt, and then they even end up in bed together!
Granted, they always end up in bed together, because that's where you sing "Soft Kitty," and we couldn't have a Sheldon and Penny storyline without a rendition of the classic song. Watching a loopy Penny trying to make Sheldon sing it in the round with her was priceless.
Some of my favorite lines from this episode:
"You keep in mind that my sharply-worded comments on yelp.com recently took down a muffin store." - Sheldon
"With your American accent, everything you say sounds stupid!" - Raj
Raj: "If I could speak the language of rabbits, they would be amazed, and I would be their king."
Leonard: "I hate my name. It has 'nerd' in it. 'Len. Nerd.'"
Wolowitz: "I lost my virginity to my cousin Jeanie."
Raj: "I would be kind to my rabbit subjects... at first."
Sheldon: "Why do you have the Chinese character for 'soup' tattooed on your right buttock?"
Penny: "It's not 'soup'; it's 'courage.'"
Sheldon: "No it isn't. But I suppose it does take courage to demonstrate that kind of commitment to soup."
Penny: "How'd you see it? You said you wouldn't look."
Sheldon: "Sorry. As I told you, the hero always peeks."
[Watch clips of The Big Bang Theory and other shows over at SlashControl.]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-17-2009 @ 12:24AM
AndrewYu said...
I completely agree with you. I can't see how they can top this episode for a very long time. I love seeing penny and sheldon together and really want them to get together but that will probably be when the show jumps the shark. Just like what happened to greys when lizzy and george hooked up.
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11-17-2009 @ 12:32AM
takineko said...
I don't know if they actually will but I voted yes. OH DEAR LORD PLEASE YES.
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11-17-2009 @ 1:01AM
LAURA said...
THEY HAVE TO HOOK UP. I don't care if it's the last episode of the series, but seriously. She is the ONLY girl that he will ever approve of.
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11-17-2009 @ 1:25AM
stg said...
Raj mocking the american accents was gold
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11-17-2009 @ 1:48AM
Serena` said...
Best ep of the season, by far. The Sheldon and Penny interactions were gold, as always, but B-plot was strong as well. Finally in season three we see Penny and Leonard more than just one-dimensional reflections of their season-two selves.
I'm not sure if TPTB will be brave enough to write Sheldon and Penny as their endgame couple - it'd be tricky and easy to mess up. But if they did, and they wrote it right, they may just end up being the most epic pairing in television history. I say - take the risk!
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11-17-2009 @ 6:06AM
bruce said...
Penny and Sheldon as a romantic couple would be too weird and unrealistic. But I'd like to see them become better friends. Maybe after tonight's episode, they will be better friends.
What I find odd is that Sheldon actually did all this stuff for Penny (drove her to the hospital, helped her dress, sang the kitty song, etc). Sheldon has made it perfectly clear over three seasons, as well as parts of tonights' episode, that he has absolutely no sexual interest in Penny - if not women altogether. Moreover, Sheldon could not possibly care less what Penny thinks of him. So why was he doing things he didn't want to do, made him uncomfortable, and took time away from his 'productive' activities? Did he do it for Leonard? He didn't care what happened to Penny, but he was smart enough to realize that Leonard would be pissed off at him (which would cause inconvenience in his life - no rides to the comic book store, etc) when he found out that Penny was hurt, asked for sheldon's help getting to the hospital, and he refused because he wanted to keep watching Star Trek or whatever he was doing. I don't believe that Sheldon was caring for Penny solely due to his humanity and because he's a nice guy. That's flatly inconsistent with 3 seasons of Sheldon.
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11-17-2009 @ 7:27AM
Lisa said...
Totally agree that the funniest pairing of all is that of Penny and Sheldon -- she is the only person that can get him to do things that are just not in his comfort zone. I rewound and watched the soft kitty scene several times. Despite all protestations, he has a huge soft spot for her. I'm not sure if it is sexual or if it is because she is the only woman that treats him like a person...because from what we see she is. Nimoy DNA --- yeah, she gets him, oddly enough. She might be the only person male or female who makes him step up to human. I don't think I want them to be brought together as a romantic couple as I don't think it's plausible but the prospect of seeing more of them together is irresistable.
On the other plot, Raj has totally struck out as the funniest other character for me this season. Kunal Nayyar's comic timing is sublime and kudos to the writing they're giving him. The king of the rabbits sequence had me giggling uncontrollably.
Best ep since the Nimoy napkin (which has a permanent spot on my DVR.)
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11-17-2009 @ 8:03AM
Galley said...
Didn't everyone lose their virginity to their 2nd cousin?
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11-17-2009 @ 8:24AM
Sancty said...
I guess I'll burst the balloon
While the Sheldon/Penny stuff was gold the stuff in the desert seemed cliche to me. They got the boys stoned far too early in the episode... it was like a greatest hits of "That 70s Show" circle segments. But only Raj was funny after the first 2 clips!
The A-Plot may have been brilliant but the B-Plot was definitely floundering.
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11-17-2009 @ 2:07PM
Dave said...
Finally! I thought I was the only one who wasn't thrilled with this episode. In fact, I thought it was the worst one of the season and possibly of the entire series.
The desert pot scenes were terrible and unfunny.
11-17-2009 @ 9:33AM
Kristi said...
this was my favorite of the season so far as well. I'm not a big fan of the separate story-line format, I think they're better when they're all together for at least a part of the episode, but in this instance I thought it worked and that's mainly because of the comedic chemistry between Sheldon & Penny. I loved seeing Sheldon showing some 'guy' characteristics. . .I mean copping a feel and peeking at Penny's butt?! Awesome.
http://www.orble.com/teevee-monday-cbs-comedies/
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11-17-2009 @ 11:40AM
Chris said...
The wife and I have been wondering is "Soft Kitty" an actual song or something made up for the show. Either way I'm singing it to my newborn.
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11-17-2009 @ 1:08PM
mj said...
Although I would love to see a Sheldon/Penny match, I really think that Sheldon sees her as a mother substitute. She is kind to him, although they squabble a lot. When he heard her cry out, he rushed to help. (knock, knock, knock, Penny!) I don't think he would do that for 99% of the world. Whenever he needs her, she is there to comfort him. She took care of him when he was sick. Everyone else begged off. And I sing the song, too.
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11-17-2009 @ 2:59PM
kip said...
Yes yes a thousand times yes, Penny and Sheldon are the perfectly imperfect pair! I didn't really buy into this show until the season 1 episode where Penny and Sheldon went shopping together at the grocery store. That was what got me hooked.
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11-17-2009 @ 3:14PM
GT said...
Any episode that has to use pot cookies to make half of the episode work should not be considered great. You should have stuck with your instinct that it was cliche. Luckily we had great scenes with Sheldon and Penny to make up for it.
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11-17-2009 @ 3:21PM
El said...
Penny and Sheldon are where this show is at! This episode was incredibly hilarious and sweet and it shows EXACTLY how wonderful the chemistry this pairing has actually is. I only see positive things happening from a gradual build-up to them as a couple. They aren't ready to jump into anything right this second but I'm more than willing to wait and watch them develop over the next couple of seasons. And again, the comedy that will come along with it, will be GOLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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11-17-2009 @ 3:48PM
MikLamb said...
Penny and Sheldon can't get together. Period.
It's one thing to skirt around the "nerd-cute chick" pairing (yeah, like that ever really happens outside TV shows) and allow Penny and Leonard to be together. It's totally another thing to think about Penny with Sheldon -- besides Sheldon being the nerd to the nth degree, he very rarely cares anything about anyone else's plans and feelings (and I say that in a very caring fashion, as I absolutely love Sheldon), he would never be able to co-exist as a roommate (much less one with privileges) with anyone but a Leonard-character, and Penny is too smart (hmmm, well, maybe savvy) to advance their relationship in that fashion.
Friends -- yes. Lovers -- you've got to be kidding!
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11-17-2009 @ 9:37PM
PEL said...
Well, time will tell!
And can I ask why some people are SOOOO hung up on this show "happening in real life." I don't know about you, but I really can't say as I know too many GENIUSES nevermind 4 at the same time. But I still love the idea that the nerdiest-NERD of them all, with all the quirks and the one that is LEAST interested in finding "love" (since that's all the rest of them ever think about) is actually the one that ends up with the hot blonde neighbor. And that SHE goes for him too, despite his idiosyncrasies makes it all the more hilarious, cute, and POETIC (since all of the other 3 have at one time lusted after her - then SHELDON is the one that gets her? Come on, that's gold!)
Penny and Sheldon DO NOT have to make sense to you in a real life setting. It's a television show (i.e Fiction!) and they are an amazingly interesting pairing to watch unfold. Not to mention that their chemistry just speaks for itself, breathing all kinds of life into the show. There is an innocent love story blossoming here and I would LOVE to see it develop!!!
11-17-2009 @ 10:04PM
Emily said...
I'm a little surprised that people don't seem to be considering Leonard when they consider the Sheldon-Penny pairing. Leonard is very sensitive and Penny going off with Sheldon would wound him deeply. I think that if it did happen I'd feel too bad for Leonard to enjoy it.
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11-17-2009 @ 11:46PM
seen it said...
The Leonard/Penny coupling is a red herring; if the show remains on the air long enough (and the writing remains strong), we'll see Penny and Sheldon gravitate towards each other. In time, they'll each "rub off" on the other, so to speak. Also, they have things in common that people don't really think twice about until it's called to our attention (e.g. the fact that Sheldon knows football very well because he was raised in Texas, and Penny loves football). I think in time, he'll "make more sense" to her and she'll "make some sense" to him, and they'll get together.
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