Episode 13 - The Bat Jar Conjecture
29 March 2012
Synopsis: It’s the annual Physics Bowl and the guys boot Sheldon off their team because he is being a pain. They recruit Leslie Winkle and Sheldon takes them all on alone.
The Good: As usual the nerdy cultural references are varied and entertaining, drawing on Superman and Star Trek in particular. Leslie Winkle is a really fun character and her lines are wittily written and smoothly delivered. Sheldon is very solid too and his ego can be a lot of fun, such as his list of genius’ who he compares himself to (“would you ask Picasso to play Pictionary?”). I also like Wollowitz grammatically correct grandstanding, “We’ll just have to face Sheldon mono e mono e mono, a mono.”
The Bad: Oh dear. The show seems to be slipping fast. This is pretty much the fifth episode in a row to be built around how annoying Sheldon is. That premise is shallow and is becoming far too familiar. We can forgive the writers a little because these episodes were rushed out after the writer’s strike of 2008.
A competition like the Physics Bowl should be an easy source of jokes but there aren’t many which is a real waste. The jokes focus more on Sheldon being selfish and Wollowitz’ antics with the ladies. Both are predictable and one-dimensional sources of humour.
The use of Penny and the pop culture questions at the end is the laziest kind of writing. We know they are nerds and don’t care about mainstream culture. To make jokes about that is really pointless.
Comic Highlight: Leonard feels awkward about talking to Leslie Winkle because they slept together and then she rejected him. Or as Rajesh puts it “because you slept together and when she was done with you, she discarded you like last nights chutney?” It’s certainly a different way of saying it.
In Conclusion: A straightforward sit com plot without the straightforward sitcom jokes. The show is losing its way but hopefully it is not terminal.
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