Friday, December 6, 2013

The Big Bang Theory - The Discovery Dissipation


Picking up a thread from a previous episode, Sheldon (Jim Parsons) continues to struggle with the notoriety of his famous scientific discovery (which only came about through a mistake). In an attempt to make her boyfriend feel better, Amy (Mayim Bialik) even reaches out to Wil Wheaton who attempts to use his own past as an example to make Sheldon feel better about his circumstances. Finally coming to terms with his celebrity, Sheldon is upset when Leonard (Johnny Galecki) disproves his roommate's entire theory (and takes away his accidental, but still greatest, achievement).

In the episode's B-story Raj (Kunal Nayyar) and his dog Cinnamon temporarily move in with Howard (Simon Helberg) and Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) which leads to immediately problems when the overattentive houseguest's behavior shines a light on how the pair were blissfully "half-assing" their marriage before he showed up.

The episode has some nice moments, such as Kripke (John Ross Bowie) gleefully enjoying Sheldon retracting his findings, as it plays on larger themes of the show including Sheldon's inability to let things go (leading to a pair of uncomfortable radio interviews) and Raj's good-natured attempts to be insightful and helpful that often only make matters worse. And although Wheaton's cameo feels a little out of the blue, the sequence does have a humorous ending involving Sheldon, his train set, and the scientist's inability to share.

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