Okay, that Thursday night television stealing March Madness is over; or, at least it’s over as far as Thursday night programming is concerned. To be honest, I don’t care about brackets. I need a weekly fix of nerdy boys instead of sweaty boys in baggy shorts. Perhaps my priorities are out of whack. But I need my Big Bang Theory.
And I got it. This wasn’t an episode which will go down in my annals of “best episodes ever,” but it kept me entertained.
Why not best ever? Well, I’m getting a bit tired of the splitting of the guys and the girls. The girls inevitably party with alcohol and Amy Farrah Fowler gets some great deadpan-delivered lines. Using alcohol as a story vehicle is becoming a bit overused, if you ask me. I know you didn’t ask, but I’m just saying. Between Raj not being able to talk to pretty girls unless drunk, and the girls gathering while imbibing: enough. At least this time it was Kahlua on ice cream.
The main storyline was something which is so Sheldon, so internets-gaming related. Someone hacked his WoW account and stole all of his stuff. Horrors! They even stole his battle ostrich! Three thousand hours of gathering all the imaginary tools and weapons of not mass destruction, all for naught. Woe is Sheldon.
What to do? Calling the FBI didn’t work, so he notified the local authorities. I’m sure he would do that, aren’t you? I was also sure the police don’t really care about online role-playing games. They don’t.
So the boys tracked down their criminal lowlife cyber-thug creepo thief. They traveled all the way to San Diego. Sheldon even brought his prized Klingon Bat’leth … which the creep (Todd Zarnecki) promptly lifted from him. Dismal, right?
Nope, Penny saved the day for her bestest boys! Rescuing them when their car broke down, she headed them right back to the jaws of death. With a swift kick to the groin she brought down the troll and got Sheldon’s stuff back.
Okay. That was cool enough. However, when the episode was over, I didn’t ponder the story at hand. Instead, I wondered about the future of the Priya character. It seems like each episode is edging her out a bit more and getting Penny a bit more involved with Leonard. Tonight Leonard lied to Priya. Are we starting the countdown for Priya to return home to India? Will Penny get back with Leonard? What do you think?
Clacked by Jackie Schnoop 
on Mar 31, 2011 @ 21:30 EST5EDT
I’m pulling out my nerd card here and saying I disliked it for one reason…the game as described was very little like WoW. As a casual, periodical player who has been hacked, I know firsthand it’s pretty easy to get your things restored. It’s not that it was a huge deal to exaggerate the event, but that the realism of the situation kept bothering me.
Yes, yes, I know it’s a fictional show. And they took (many) liberties with descriptions of the game, and I’m mostly OK with that. But they really should have made up a game, perhaps with a similar sounding name. Maybe then it wouldn’t have distracted me so much.
Otherwise, I loved Penny’s swift kick, even if it was predictable. And I liked Amy’s “one sip of alcohol and ‘I’m so drunk'” character. I don’t mind the split – I like seeing a bit of girltime. Although it would be good to have more interaction between the two groups. You are right in saying that they’re apart more than together, although that will change once Priya is out of the picture, I’m sure.
seems more like they realize they were heavy guy group bonding (even with Penny occasionally joining in) that they are trying to even out the time having them as friends too. Now if they had 4 guys 3 girls from the start the sex’s grouping would be more varied instead of clearly separated
As a former WOW player and the girlfriend of a current player, I will admit that it’s frustrating when they don’t really represent the game. Then again, I’ve already complained about how they represent girl geeks on this show….
That being said, while it is pretty easy to get your items back in the actual game, Sheldon’s outrage is actually pretty on point.
You know, I live in Indiana and it still frustrates me that Parks and Rec doesn’t really show what Indiana is actually like…
I found it pretty freaking ironic that Penny sarcastically said, “Oh, it doesn’t matter if she ‘gets’ your gaming, as long as she’s pretty,” considering that’s my big complaint about HER character.
That’s a good point, but I think Penny’s character has grown a lot in the geek world. She dressed up with the guys, she understands their video games, and in one episode (I wish I remember exact details), I seem to recall her spouting out something she just happened to pick up.
Penny is the pretty ditzy girl who knew nothing that has grown into, if not a geek, someone who understands a bit more of geek language. Or something.
I think with Penny it’s more a matter of acceptance that these things are important to the guys than necessarily understanding. Almost like a long-suffering spouse who simply comes to terms with her husband’s quirks; she doesn’t understand them but she loves him in spite of them, and even supports said quirks because of that love. She’s a good friend to all the guys, and obviously still has feelings for Leonard, so she accepts the geeks for who and what they are.