The Big Bang Theory: The Cooper-Hofstadter Polarization
By fred | March 18, 2008
(S01E09) Usually, shows from Chuck Lorre aren’t really my cup of tea. And usually, shows portraying nerds – or theoretical physicists – are filled a lot more with boring clichés than with actual humor. But like with every rules there is an exception, and The Big Bang Theory is just that. Oh yes, it does feature a group of nerds, and yes some of them are stereotypes more than actual characters, but somehow it works.
Not to mention that at least one of them, who goes by the name of Sheldon, is nothing but hilarious. He’s not just your typical arrogant geek who thinks he’s better than you and makes references to principles pretty much no one ever heard of, but he actually is funny. It’s not that he intends to be, but he really is.
It’s been a while since I last saw this show, but I was pretty happy to see it back ! And if you weren’t so sure whether or not you missed the show, they opened with exactly the kind of scene this show is able to manage : it’s your typical group of nerds doing their stupid useless experiment and getting all excited about it because, in their minds, it’s awesome, and no it doesn’t really have a point, they don’t really do it for anything other than “because we can“, and it may not be new but it’s damn funny!
As all the best episodes of this show, it focused on both main characters, Leonard and Sheldon, but as always it was Sheldon who really made things work, and make us laugh. I truly believe that without this guy, this show would suck. It’s not that whenever he’s not involved, the show stops being funny, but most of the times it does feel that way.
Although this time we barely had anything involving any of their geek-mates, except for Howard. I liked that, because in small doses he can be funny, as he was this time, while I tend to remember Rajesh as being even more of a stereotypical character than Howard. Of course Penny was involved, and when with Sheldon, like during their talk walking up the stairs, it was funny, of course. Him faking that lagh when she explained to him she just jokes, was priceless. But the scene when she was trying to help Leonard pick an outfit, not so much.
The main event this week was a lecture both Sheldon & Leonard were offered, that Sheldon refused without even consulting his partner, who actually wants to go and do it. But of course, Sheldon forbids it. I’ll be honest, it’s been a while and I may have forgotten the past episodes, but I felt like this was probably the episode where his ego and impression of superiority was the most obvious.
Sheldon always considered himself being better than others, but this time he was rubbing it in everyone’s faces over & over again. Not that it as a bad thing, as pretty much everything he does it ended up being funny, but he was clearly on a roll this time.
“
- The apple falling on Newton’s head, was that just an anecdote ?
- You are not Isaac Newton !
- No, no, that’s true. Gravity would have been apparent to me without the apple !
- You cannot possibly be the arrogant !
- You continue to underestimate me my good man !
”
But of course things ended with everyone back to being friends, because there’s nothing two superior minds cannot resolved without talking to each other, and “fighting” like children only to have the whole world making fun of them as the video of their fight ends up on YouTube, or some very similar looking site.
And again, it’s not really the fact that they fought, or the fight itself that was funny. All that is pretty common actually, no what worked here was they way they did it. The way they kept ranting about how far superior than everyone else they are, followed by the obliged “no offense” (Sheldon’s face when he tried to have Leonard to go there was, again, hilarious), or how Sheldon kept trying to “blow up” Leonard’s brain by the will of his mind…
This was a really good and very funny episode, good to see it back, and to know the show has already been renewed for a second season.
Posted in Reviews
Shows: The Big Bang Theory
