For the record, I’m an avid Big Bang Theory fan. I love all the nerd references because I am a huge nerd myself, especially in the TV/movie/pop culture range. But from the very first episode, Penny has irked me.
Writing this, I am almost bracing for fan backlash at my last sentence. I know Penny has been a fan-favorite since season one. Admittedly, the girl grew on me as the show progressed, but there are some things that really bother me about the character that have gotten worse in the last year.
First of all, she’s not smart. It’s actually part of the premise of the whole show: “Four genius guys become friends with a pretty girl. Hilarity ensues because the girl is dumb.” I get that it’s a comedy and they wanted Penny to have a flaw, but for a long time she was the only girl in the whole show and she has said some really dumb things. Maybe I’m overestimating my fellow women, but I like to think the average adult woman is smart or at least smarter than her. Even if she doesn’t have a college degree, does she have to be Jersey Shore levels of dumb?
Penny’s also a failed actress who barely passed high school and has been working as a waitress the entirety of the show. Compared to her four male counterparts (college educated with multiple degrees and actual careers), she seems pretty lame. The writers have tried to make her out to be more street smart and socially smart than the guys, but let’s think about it for a second. She has terrible taste in men, from the married guy who posted naked pictures of her online to the ex who had her pay his bail after getting a DUI. She’s also bad with money (because they needed to throw in another cheap stereotype) and relies on the guys to do a lot for her. How is this considered street smart?
Until this past season, I was OK with Penny because she was charming and a friend to the guys. But has anyone else noticed that Penny has gotten a whole lot less likable this season? I first really noticed it in the eighth episode back in November (the one with the latest Wil Wheaton cameo so far). The guys are excited to go see a movie and Penny calls them all losers for it.
What movie is it? Raiders of the Lost Ark.
What the hell! Nobody messes with Dr. Jones when this fan-girl is around! The worst part is, she had never even seen the movie before. They have her watch some of it and she looks like she’s about to go to sleep. I get that she’s supposed to be not geeky, but it’s Indiana Jones — one of the best movie characters ever in one of the most popular film franchises ever. How is she in her 20s and never seen Raiders of the Lost Ark? No offense to people who haven’t seen the film (all two of you), but Penny can’t even enjoy a classic, smart action adventure like the original Indiana Jones trilogy? That’s so boring! A lot of BBT‘s fans are women who appreciate the same stuff the “nerds” like –I know because I am a nerdy movie buff myself! This is getting to the heart of the problem: the show desperately needs a real female geek counterpart to the guys. Not even the super intelligent Amy Farrah Fowler and Bernadette are pop culture nerds and I just wish we had a female character with that kind of personality.
Again, I get that it’s a comedy. I also get that the four other main characters are partially stereotypes in themselves, but Raj, Howard, Leonard and Sheldon are all smart and relatively successful adults with quirky, but fun hobbies. Penny is uneducated, romantically naive, professionally stagnant and increasingly dull. She was written out of the first few episodes of the season due to Kaley Cuoco’s dangerous horse riding accident that broke her leg. I feel bad saying it, but I really didn’t miss Penny during that hiatus. In a recent episode, one of the guys asked her why she hangs out with them. She never answered the question. I’m still wondering myself.
Clacked by Katie Schenkel 
on Jan 16, 2011 @ 10:00 EST5EDT
*yawn*
Reminds me of Hayden Christensen getting his panties in a bunch over Clerks 2.
I don’t even feel the need to defend the writers since you so extremely fail to grasp why the show needs Penny just the way she is written.
Right, to be a completely irrelevant, foolish, shallow character and be there for crazy interactions with Sheldon.
So you HAVE seen the show?
Good for you :-)
Seriously this post is just as if you complain that the girls on “Cougar Town” are drinking too much or that Charlie on “Two and a Half Men” is too shallow and a womanizer.
I usually hate this comment when somebody tells me but “You don’t have to watch it” fits rather perfect. Penny has been like this from the start. She hasn’t changed. She’s always been like this. If you don’t like her now how the heck did you like her before?
The only problem I (!) would have with her not liking Indy Jones and his movies would be that that doesn’t fit the other stuff she does on the show but that whole Snookie reference is just braindead. Penny clearly ISN’T Jersey Shore dumb because she has HEART and she has a ton of it. She has social skills.
You have to be awesomely shallow to just see her pop-culture knowledge and not her social skills and how that makes her loveable.
But hey… she doesn’t like Indy. Bitch.
A bit of clarification … Penny’s the bitch, not Katie, right? ;-)
I’m sorry that you see a one dimensional secondary character in every episode as something needed to make this show work. Cause every time I see Penny since the end of season 3, I look back to my Computer screen.
@ Deb: “How is she in her 20s and never seen Raiders of the Lost Ark? ” is from the post. Indiana Jones is in Raiders. Indy is short for Indiana.
My sentence is sarcasm (for making fun of Penny not having seen “Raiders”.).
More bluntly: I don’t call anybody a bitch.
@ Mike: you don’t have to be sorry, I understand that you don’t understand that the guys on the show have the book smarts and that Penny is there for the “people skill smarts”.
That’s the whole premise of the show.
What People skills? Is being in and out of a different relationship week after week relationship skills? These so called social skills rarely come up in the show and have been downplayed more and more season after season. The Girl has had only had one stable real relationship in the history of the show and that was to Leonard. She is a increasingly weak character that has been poorly written for.
Have to disagree with you Mike. Penny is a normal girl. Not brilliant, but I don’t think she is stupid either. She has had difficulty finding the right guy. And, at this point I think that is in part because she still has feelings for Leonard.
She has social skills that the guys don’t have. These have nothing to do with whether she has long-term relationship or not.
I don’t see her as one-dimensional, she is just a normal, girl next door.
The real problem I have is that she has more and more just been there to serve the opposed view to the guys rather then a consistent character. She is such a one line joke that it has gotten old. Even Kenny had to stop dying after a while.
Oh so because she can’t find love she doesn’t have “people skills”?
Right.
Ok sorry I don’t have arguments here. You see her as a dumb blonde and I see more. That’s just it.
See, you have to have friends to have people skills. Outside of 3 occurrences in the series has she had friends outside of the boys. But there are more times we hear about them. Big Bang likes to tell us who their characters are rather than show. Raj and Howard are an old married couple constantly and the series constantly directly calls them that without letting the audience see it and come to that conclusion. It’s lazy. The writers hold your hand throughout the entire show to let you get the jokes. And they spend so much time holding your hand that any depth that could come out of an episode is gone by the next one and they try to re-express that joke/development the next episode. Things never change. Jim-Pam will they won’t they only lasted 3 seasons. That was a milking cash cow and they gave it away and developed more characters. Everything the Office has done since has paled in comparison, but the characters became more real for it which made the unbelievably of other situations on the show more believable. For BBT, every week is the boys interested in something, Penny is not, Penny/Leonard looks longingly at Leonard/Penny. Oh wait, we mix it up and in season 2 we see Penny interested in something, the boys are disinterested, Penny/Leonard looks longingly at Leonard/Penny.
You know Mike when you read the rest of the comments here you find the following:
– I agree with you Katie
– I didn’t miss Penny this year
– The show has gotten worse this year
– they changed to nerds from geeks
and now you
– the show is repetitive
Which is it?
Kaley wasn’t in the show for a couple of episodes because of her leg. All these different opinions don’t match at all.
Sorry but I just don’t get it. You are angry about the will they/won’t they aspect and give me “The Office” as… well as what? I don’t really understand what you are talking about.
All I get is that different people have absolutely different gripes about the show and all in all what I get is “The show has gotten worse” based on the different musings of different people, with no consensus on something specific – and a 13-15 million audience every thursday.
Sorry folks but the formula works and all I get from you guys is “it’s gotten repetitive”.
We got two new girlfriends this season, we got the nerd aspect more in-depth, Howard and Raj are getting more and more airtime… how is that repetitive? Is the “They are nerds every time” and “She’s so stupid all the tiem” your main concerns? Sorry but I still don’t get it.
I like Penny when it’s just she and Sheldon. Those scenes with just the two of them is where she seems to show the most intelligence and she’s often acting as a “mother” character to Sheldon’s social infant. But now that you mention it, I really didn’t miss her at the start of the season and, yes, she is a lot less likeable this season.
The level of ignorance her character displays was cute when the show was new, but it’s damned grating now. Your pointing out that she hadn’t seen “Raiders” was spot-on because I don’t know anyone who hasn’t seen that movie no matter who, or what, they are. If the writers would just allow her character a little growth I think she’d be a lot more interesting, or at least fun to watch.
So I can’t say I disagree with your points, but Amy Farrah Fowler and Bernadette are much more annoying…especially AFF. Basically, this show has no likeable female characters at all.
. . . . .
I’ve seen but a handful of episodes and it’s interesting you brought this point up, Katie. Because, watching it, these are some of the same questions I’ve had.
Granted, starting out the show with her premise as an introduction is all well and fine, but the stagnation of her roll and the fact it’s run its course is a huge cry for help.
Don’t know why I don’t enjoy this show more. There are amusing parts, but it hasn’t tripped my trigger in the least. Mayhap and underlyingly you’ve hit the nail on the head: It’s Penny.
Penny’s irrelevance is just part of the larger story that the show has lost its charm this season–probably even starting last year. It’s gotten coarser and grosser, and much more one-liner-ish. The guys went from being smart (thinking about science and the real world) and unfamiliar with general social behavior, to being comic book/pop culture geeks. It’s become a “laff riot” with very little to laugh at.
I don’t feel like arguing/debating…but I still love the show, including Penny. I think she just needs some more character development.
The girl just need some character development like said the poster above me, that’s all.
Penny character was the contrast to the geek guys it is yes the premise of this show but yes now she has to grown up a bit but keep also her difference, it is up to the writers.
By the way somebody who is not a student or have a “career” like you said is not weak or dumb, your statement is really condescending and smug..ugh.
So yes the girl is flawed but it is what make her endearing to the viewers, a “perfect” girl with a “perfect career” doesn’t interest me in the least..really yawn..the girl can show her smart personality in lot’s of other things..up to the writers again.
Also the fact that she fails is realistic..maybe much more than the guys who won all type of science contests..well anyway yes they need to show her somewhat sucessful in some area but she also has to still screw up some things.
Ah also being naive in the romantic department is also quite realistic, maybe kind of stupid but it create funny situations..and remember it is a comedic show (well actually even more in drama we need plots, conflicts in order to make the story interesting lol), having a desastrous romantic life is also real, and when you witness it it can be pretty funny..so the girl is flawed so what ? It is what makes a good tv character (and also in the real world an interesting character..lol) but now it is time to show some other layers to her persona. Simple as that. No need of some stereotype nerdy girl, no thanks just a Penny more complex.
Well, I must say that, being a geek myself, Penny has helped me realize that “dumb” people can be fun and loving and can get along with the smarter kinds. She sort of breaks the great divide!
And, I might add, I am married to a guy who is smarter than me. Besides him sometimes I feel like Penny.
I realise this is late, but I would like to add my thoughts.
I think that for the average woman, Penny is relatable. She’s not just a ditzy blonde, which I can understand a male “nerd” (your words) might think. The only thing that irks me is that she doesn’t seem to have many other good friends other than the guys. This is where the writers have failed imo. She started off as a girl with lots of friends, social etc. but in the last couple of seasons, she is just there “for the guys’ storylines”. They should definately use this character more.
I also do not see “good at long term relationships” =/= good social skills/people skills. I don’t understand what you mean here. She clearly has social skills. Love has nothing to do with that.
Overall, I disagree with most of your comment, but I kind of agree that the writers has gotten sloppy with her character. For a female viewer, I appriciate her in ways that I guess a lot of male watchers don’t. The show with just the guys and no penny will eventually fail imo as the writers just are not good enough with plot lines and character interaction.