Amy Farrah Fowler is such a brilliant addition to the show.
OH MY GOD A TIARA!!!
In all my years I've never seen the like. It has to be more than a hundred sea miles and he brings us up on his tail. That's seamanship, Mr. Pullings. My God, that's seamanship!
If you think about it the dynamics for the "Big Bang Theory" are the same as "Friends" now. There are 3 main male characters and 3 main female characters.
They even have the Ross and Rachel on and off again relationship going on between Penny and Leonard.
Never understood the popularity of this show. Taket the first youtube clip as an example. The guy keeps saying he needs wood and the other two laugh because it is so funny that the first guy doesn't know that "wood" means having an erection. Apparently this is hilarious and is the premise of this portion of the show. I guess if I was in junior high I might get a kick out of it, but seriously? This is considered funny? If this passes for cutting edge comedy than I guess I'll just have to live on in ignorance and rely on re-runs of Frasier, Sienfeld, and the early years of The Office.
I don't think this is a show that a clip here or there is going to make you like it. I have watched Sienfeld and for the most part the Big Bang Theory is just another buddy sitcom. I actually hated Seinfeld in its initial network run until I gave it more than a glimpse here and there in its fourth season and then I went back and watched all the first three seasons episodes during re-runs. I won't say that watching several episodes of the "Big Bang Theory" in reruns will make you like it like I ended up liking Seinfeld but if you do I think that the characters will grow on you.
Never understood the popularity of this show. Taket the first youtube clip as an example. The guy keeps saying he needs wood and the other two laugh because it is so funny that the first guy doesn't know that "wood" means having an erection. Apparently this is hilarious and is the premise of this portion of the show. I guess if I was in junior high I might get a kick out of it, but seriously? This is considered funny? If this passes for cutting edge comedy than I guess I'll just have to live on in ignorance and rely on re-runs of Frasier, Sienfeld, and the early years of The Office.
Out of context, that particular gag would indeed elicit a "huh? That's funny?!?!" response.
But IN context of what the one character is all about, it's at least mildly funny. Don't pass judgment based on that one clip, as it doesn't really give you much idea of the show. You really ought to view a full episode or two, preferably the early ones, when the main characters still didn't know each other that well.
Personally I found Fraiser and Seinfeld to be more stale after a few years, while Big Bang is still <usually> fresh. I had been thinking The Office was starting to lose it's way last year, but lately with a slight change in tone and the regular appearance of James Spader somehow works well again.
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Never understood the popularity of this show. Taket the first youtube clip as an example. The guy keeps saying he needs wood and the other two laugh because it is so funny that the first guy doesn't know that "wood" means having an erection. Apparently this is hilarious and is the premise of this portion of the show. I guess if I was in junior high I might get a kick out of it, but seriously? This is considered funny? If this passes for cutting edge comedy than I guess I'll just have to live on in ignorance and rely on re-runs of Frasier, Sienfeld, and the early years of The Office.
Watch this one and see if your opinion changes.
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Brilliant show, my wife and I just got hooked last season and netflix'd all of the previous seasons. We can't help but watch all of the reruns on TBS 3 nights a week too. Excellent cast.
LOVE the show! I like to look in the background and locate the gaming accessories they have laying around. They have the Halo 3 Legendary Edition Master Chief helmet in some shots which I used to have on my coffee table when I was single. My girlfriend thought it was an odd thing to own, but then she saw it in the show and finally realized she was dating a nerd. LOL.
Strangely enough, last Thursdays episode had a different feel to it. It's nothing I can put my finger on, but it seemed the writers took a leap of a sort. I enjoyed the different feel.
The Spock DNA was another of my favorites. There was also the episode when Raj and Penny got drunk and woke up in bed together. Then there was the time that Sheldon gave Penny a strike for emailing him LOLCats.
To enjoy the show, you need to be at least semi internet or geek savy. I feel as though the writing is what makes the show. Most of the time, they are spot on with the geek world. Every once in a while they will do something where I say "C'mon man".
As far as comparing it to Friends, then you need to compare Friends to Cheers. Human relationships will pretty much always be the same. As far as the on again, off again, it lets the viewers root for someone.
Life is tough. Life is tougher when you are stupid. - John Wayne
The chemistry between the characters just isn't there for me like your better sitcoms. The characters don't have the interaction like Seinfeld. Relies on predictable sight gags and stereotypes, I can see most of it coming from a mile away. Remember the Seinfeld episode where George ate a sandwich out of the garbage and they debated the finer threshold of when he has crossed the line between human and scavenging animal? They just don't have the characters bouncing off each other the same way here. Most of it is Sheldon Cooper's screeching voice and effeminate mannerisms and everyone else playing second fiddle to it.
However, it's not saccharine sweet or syrupy or sentimental or Disney rated at least like a lot of other sitcoms, that's a plus.
Joined: Apr 2001 Posts: 121,474PanzerMeyer
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Originally Posted By: Navigator
I think the show can be some what predictable but its still funny.
Comedies have it a lot easier than dramas though. As long as a comedy makes you laugh, it has succeeded in drawing you in and keeping you as a viewer. With dramas you have to worry about having compelling stories, compelling characters, etc.
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
I've heard the opposite from theatre and drama types- Comedy is by far the hardest to get right. They even go so far as to have laugh tracks or live audiences in order to reinforce the jokes and so forth for sitcoms. If you aren't getting it, if you're not chuckling, it's a failure- it has nothing else to rely on like in dramas or action.
Comedy relies on timing, on the sense of the audience; what's funny to one audience might be mystifying to another. Drama falls into basic categories and themes that anyone can follow and understand. Nothing is worse than something which tries to be funny but ain't.
I've heard the opposite from theatre and drama types- Comedy is by far the hardest to get right. They even go so far as to have laugh tracks or live audiences in order to reinforce the jokes and so forth for sitcoms. If you aren't getting it, if you're not chuckling, it's a failure- it has nothing else to rely on like in dramas or action.
Yea, heard that too, many MANY times. The best in the top TV sitcoms make among the most money in the entertainment world, because they work long hours doing it, very few people can do it remotely well, and you can't just replace a major character with much chance of success. So the studios throw money at the main actors/actresses hoping they'll keep working well!
Most of the top actors seem to think comedy is so much more difficult that many of them don't even try doing it (well, outside their acting classes anyway, I'm sure they all practice it, being professionals and all), more difficult than dramas, FAR more than action movies. As such, those who can consistently deliver top quality comedy, are treated better than royalty. Which might explain why Charlie Harper, oh, I mean Charlie Sheen, kept his job for so many years despite problems with his professionalism off-camera: on camera he delivers. For years on end. Just like the crew from Friends, like it or hate it, they could do the job and for it they got paid massively.
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