Big Bang Theory: Football and friendship

THE BIG BANG THEORY: 3.06 “The Cornhusker Vortex”

I feel like I should have been more entertained by this episode than I was. There was something about it that just didn’t click with me for some reason.

Actually, the best person on the show last night was Sheldon, and he had such a tiny role that you could hardly see him at all. I adored that he was infiltrated with football know-how just because he was from Texas. And that he was actually trying to be helpful to Leonard by offering him an out of the football party. Rarely do we see him actually being helpful, and that was just a nice touch.

And the Cylon toaster? Wonderful.

But beyond that, it was standard fare for a sitcom. I mean, the Leonard storyline was just kinda blah. Sure, it was funny a couple times when he made comments about the game, but it got old. I actually think I would have much preferred seeing him pushed out of the living rooms to hang with the girlfriends in the kitchen than anything else. Plus, what if he had been a hit with the girls? That would have been actually funny. Predictable, but funny.

Is this what we get now that Leonard and Penny are together? Boring storylines that you have to do, now that there’s a couple involved? Meeting the friends? Meeting the parents? I thought Big Bang had risen above the usual sitcom standards?

Meanwhile, Howard and Raj were in the typical friend fight that’s supposed to mimic a marriage. It was fine enough, but I was hoping for better.

But I must say, Howard’s outfit? My ears are still ringing with how loud that was!

Finally, the kites. Ok, I’m not in the same social circles with the guys of this show, but do people really do kite wars? I mean, we’ve gone through the usual “geek” hobbies–video games, RPGs, robot wars–but  kites? This one was new to me, and I’m just wondering whether the writers are running out of weird things for these guys to do. I certainly hope not, but this just seemed like a stretch to me.

Anyway, it’s not like the episode was bad, but after a break, I was really hoping to get some good meat off of this episode. It was just kinda blah in the end. Perhaps I just want the focus on the guys again. Sure, a show always changes when the two leads (in this case, Penny and Leonard) get together, but why can’t we get to that comfortable medium where Leonard and Penny are together, but it’s not obviously in our face constantly and taking up storylines. Leonard hangs with his pals, and sometimes she’s around, sometimes she’s not. I don’t know, but something new and fresh should spark this show up a little more.

At least, that’s my opinion.