The Big Bang Theory Retrospective

The Big Bang Theory was one of my first big TV series along with Friends. I have a lot of nostalgia for both of them, though while Friends holds up pretty well and is still a ton of fun to watch, my opinion on the Big Bang Theory has soured over the years. While I don't quite think it's irredeemable or painfully unfunny, looking back, it feels like a show that could rarely rise from mediocrity.

The Big Bang Theory is a sitcom about a bunch of nerds who are forced to socially interact when a (gasp!) girl moves in next door. Yeah, the premise isn't great and it's probably the biggest issue with the show. Despite being a show that's supposed to be a positive depiction of the "nerd" stereotype, it doesn't do a great job of depicting its leads as anything but socially inept and slightly sexist manchildren. It does improve a bit in later seasons with character development, but even that feels like a bit of a "touch grass" message. It's not just a nerd thing, though, the whole show is built on stereotypes like Penny being a fairly standard dumb blonde. It doesn't help that the premise of a show about nerds hasn't aged all too well to begin with, given that the term "nerd" is rarely used in general nowadays, let alone as derogatory. With media like movies and video games being some of the largest industries (and especially the incredible popularity of the MCU), there really isn't that much of a stigma against liking things like superheroes or some sort of video game. The Big Bang Theory feels like it came out at the worst possible time, right at the rise of things like superhero movies, mobile gaming, and Game Of Thrones, and aged almost immediately.

However, but even that doesn't save the show from how unfunny it can be. Something that I noticed about Big Bang Theory is that the situations that the characters get themselves into are pretty funny, particularly when the group partakes in game nights, scavenger hunts, D&D games, and paintball games. As a matter of fact, the character interactions can be pretty fun, though I'll get to that later. However, the individual jokes themselves end up devolving to depicting the characters (the main quartet of nerds, in particular) as the butt of the joke. Now in most shows, it can be hard to tell what is meant to be a joke or not, but The Big Bang Theory has a laugh track so we know exactly what's meant to be a joke. Judging from the laugh track, a lot of the jokes consist of: a character referencing a form of media, a character doing something stereotypically nerdy, or a character being socially inept. It's obvious that you're not supposed to be laughing with the characters, you're supposed to be laughing at them. It's a show not meant for nerds or people with those traits, but for casual audiences to laugh at the stereotype while also validating themselves for managing to catch a reference or two. This show isn't intelligent, which isn't a bad thing. Friends isn't all that intelligent either and I still love it. My problem is that it pretends to be smart, but can't put its money where its mouth is like something like Frasier or Community.

However, I will also say there's a reason why the show has become as popular as it was, and it's not just that it makes people feel smart. Because as much as I can criticize this show, I can't deny that the characters are at fun to watch. It helps that the actors really give their all throughout, especially Jim Parsons as Sheldon. Once again, there's a reason why Sheldon is such a popular character and Parsons is a big reason why. The cast also has a great chemistry, which is why the best episodes tend to be the ones where they stay in a room together and bounce off each other. I still wouldn't call it incredibly funny, but it's at least entertaining to watch, and even oddly comforting in a way. I also like how the show actually tries to develop (most of) its characters. Howard is the most notable instance of this, starting off as a bit of a sexist jerk and developing into a pretty solid husband. The show's main three relationships are pretty great, and I did find myself getting attached to them. However, even that had issues in the case of a few characters. Raj was pretty much forbidden to develop, ending the show nearly the same as how he started. Sheldon's disinterest in sex was actually a really cool character trait, but the final third of the series has him have sex with Amy far more often because "he has to". Finally, I'm not a fan of how the show feels like it had to pair up every single character, with the only character to not have a girlfriend by the end (Raj) being depicted as kind of a loser. Sorry, I'm trying to be positive here, but there's a ton of rough aspects to The Big Bang Theory that just don't sit well with me!

So now, I'll just quickly go through all the seasons and give my opinions on them since there's no way I'm making full reviews for every single season of this behemoth:

• Season 1 is basic and mediocre, as the writer's strike prevented it from reaching any noticeable heights (2/5).  
• Season 2 is a slight improvement with a better grasp on the characters and some great episodes like "The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis", but it ends on a bit of a bum note (3/5).
• Season 3 is even better with one of my favorite episodes being that flashback to how Sheldon and Leonard met, and while the breakup between Leonard and Penny sucked, the aftermath was genuinely compelling (4/5).
• Season 4 has some great development for Howard as he takes his relationship with Bernadette seriously, it introduces my favorite character in Amy, and the finale is a cliffhanger-palooza. It also has that iconic New Years episode, even if it's not too spectacular nowadays (4/5).
• Season 5 isn't as good as the last two seasons, but at least it finally lets Leonard and Penny start dating, and the wedding arc was cute. However, it lacks any truly noteworthy episodes (3/5).
• Season 6 starts with an alright arc about Howard in space and ends with "The Love Spell Potential", which is a legitimately great D&D episode, along with Raj finally talking around girls (thank goodness!). But the rest is kinda just meh (3/5).
• Season 7 is my favorite season as it has one of my favorite episodes in "The Scavenger Vortex" which makes a point of giving us interactions with odd teamups between the cast. It also has a great finale and a neat plotline about Sheldon finding a new field (4/5).
• Season 8 is well-known for its insane downer ending, and it has some cute episodes like "The Troll Manifestation" and "The Fortification Implementation", but it's also apparent that the show is starting to drag a bit (3/5).
• Season 9 starts with a good arc about Sheldon and Amy's relationship (outside the whole sex thing), but once that's resolved, the show shifts to insanely boring and dull. What results is one of the most incomplete finales I've ever seen (2/5).
• Season 10 is the point at which the show becomes an absolute slog. The military storyline is inconsequential, and the only noteworthy episode was the finale with that big proposal, and even that was just one scene (1/5).
• Season 11 might even be worse than the last one. Once again, the only good episode is the finale, which is a pretty cute wedding, but the rest is unfunny and dull. It's obvious that the show is being stretched out at this point, and I pretty much gave up after that poorly executed arc about Howard being a jerk to Raj (1/5).
• I didn't watch Season 12, only the finale. From what I heard, it's a much better season than the last two, but I just couldn't care anymore, the show had became so meh. However, I really liked the finale. It was a satisfying and heartwarming ending that reminded me of how much I cared about this show's cast back in the day (2/5).

Overall, The Big Bang Theory is carried by its strong cast and memorable characters alone, as it suffers from a poorly aged premise, mean-spirited and lazy humor, and a reliance on stereotypes. I'll be honest, given that I tend to review shows I end up at the very least liking, this might be the worst show I've ever reviewed, at least to this date.

The Whole Show: 2/5 Stars

My ranking of the seasons of TBBT is:

7 > 3 > 4 > 6 > 2 > 8 > 5 > 1 > 12 > 9 > 10 > 11

My ranking of the finales of TBBT is:

12 > 8 > 4 > 11 > 7 > 10 > 3 > 5 > 1 > 6 > 2 > 9

Favorite Episode: The Stockholm Syndrome