6 Nov 2014 9:21 PM PT
Warning, this will contain spoilers for anyone who has not yet seen this episode. If you wish to remain unspoiled, we suggest you come back and read after you have seen the episode.
It is no secret that Sheldon Cooper has an innocence about him that makes him endearing to audiences and at the same time insufferable at times. But tonight, Sheldon Cooper showed us a mature side to him that was refreshing and delightful. Sheldon Cooper is transitioning and has been over the last seven years into a full fledged grown man and yet he maintains who he is in the process, including holding onto a lot of that innocence that we love about him.
The story started out with the girls talking about their prom nights and how vastly different each of them were. Penny went to seven proms and obviously had the whole “prom thing” out of her system. Bernadette had attended her prom with a date who wanted to get closer to her best friend thus leading to a miserable evening. Amy was on the “clean-up committee” and didn’t have a date to the prom or attend the dance, but was allowed one dance with a mop as she was cleaning up. As she listened to Bernadette complain, she said “We get it, you had a friend and a date, stop bragging…” which explains a lot about Amy’s younger years. She spent a lot of them alone and feeling left out. So when Bernadette suggested a do-over prom, she jumped at the idea, while Penny is not so keen.
Eventually Penny is won over by Leonard and the girls set about looking for dresses and decorations for the rooftop which is where they planned to hold their prom. Penny in the meantime had a heart-to-“alien being heart” talk with Sheldon who had earlier proposed to her that they pretend they are aliens at the event, knowing she wasn’t keen on attending either. He learned from her that there is an expectation after the dance that couples would engage in further romantic endeavors in the form of sex. He replied to Penny “Well, if it is part of the prom experience, then I am open to it” which stunned Penny (and the audience). He then added, “I may be alien, but I urges.” This scene must excite any SHAMY fan because it showed that the attraction of this couple is far from one-sided. Sheldon is just as attracted to Amy as she is to him. She just may believe she is more ready to act on her feelings than he is.
Meanwhile there was a side story going on with Raj/Emily, Howard/Bernadette and Stuart with…surprise…Howard’s cousin to whom he lost his virginity. We also learned that Emily has a fascination with some pretty “dark” things. The ride to the prom was tense at best, leading to an all out tug of war struggle in the car. Emily, of course, found it a blast! This reviewer thought it was one of the funniest scenes of the night and still cannot not stop laughing at how well executed this scene was…the performances were great.
When Sheldon sees Amy the first time all dressed up and looking lovely, he gulped in a very big way and couldn’t take his eyes off of her, but then panicked and ran back to his apartment. She followed him to his apartment and found him locked in his bedroom. Asking him what was wrong and he told her about the pressures he has felt over after-prom expectations. She tried to talk him into opening his door and talk to her, but after he continued their conversation through the door, she decided to head up to the rooftop alone. Sheldon realized that she can’t go there alone. He can’t let her down that way. So he opened the door as she was walking away and told her he thought she really did look pretty. She was surprised by this and then started to admit her feelings to him, but he blurted out before she could say anything further “I love you too”. She reacted with her own panic attack because she was not expecting him to feel that way, let alone say so.
They do make up to the rooftop to join the other couples and the show ended with all the couples taking prom photos in very humorous ways.
This episode had to be this reviewers favorite of the season thus far. It had elements of laughter, touching moments, and some very sweet moments with Leonard and Penny. The acting was superb and the writing witty. The only thing I would have changed would possibly to have cut the cold open so that more time could be given on the rooftop at the end, but it was so unimportant of a detail, that this reveiwer will give them a pass.
This episode used the entire cast well an managed to highlight each couple in the short 20-22 minutes of airtime, while move story. Kudos to the entire production team, cast, and crew!