Jessica Radloff | 23 Sep 2014
Aside from seeing Mindy and Danny as a full-fledged couple on The Mindy Project, it goes without saying that The Big Bang Theory‘s season-eight premiere was probably the most anticipated of all the returning shows. After all, A LOT went down between last May and last night, and yet it all fell a little flat. It was still funny, but we’ve learned to expect more from the masterminds behind TV’s highest-rated comedy. Let’s break it down, shall we?
Sheldon’s Lack of Growth: Jim Parsons’ portrayal of Sheldon makes everything funnier. It’s the delivery that’s so genius. But after 45 days of traveling to various train stations and existing without his beloved couch or Chinese food, Sheldon was still…Sheldon. For a guy that’s averse to change, it makes sense. But one of the reasons we fell in love with Joey Tribbiani on Friends was that he grew with each season. There was more depth, more layers. One of the reasons we fell out of love with Ross was because he became a watered-down version of your most annoying friend. Sheldon can’t veer too far off course—that would betray us all—but a little character development would be nice (and, no, saying that he was afraid Amy would think less of him for “failing” doesn’t count).
Unanswered Cliffhangers: Is Sheldon going to have to move out? Is Penny going to move in? Are they all going to live together? Those were big questions that prompted Sheldon to leave in the first place. To have two episodes that didn’t address either scenario? No bueno in my book. What about the fact that Penny and Leonard are engaged? That was dropped like a hot potato. Not to mention what prompted Penny to even consider a career change or what made her cut her hair? What about Raj’s new girl? Instead of talking about her, I wanted to actually see her. So many questions and barely any answers.
The Million-Dollar Question: When it comes to TV money, Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, and Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting have earned those paychecks. They’re all brilliant. But the real star of last night? Mayim Bialik. Whatever she’s getting paid, it isn’t enough. Mayim, when it comes time to submit your Emmy reel, choose episode two.