# The Big Bang Theory, March 13, 2014 -- "The Mommy Observation" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 13, 2014, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607 "2014-03-13T13:40:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/41 "2014-03-15T15:55:17Z")
> [@Tully\_Mars](#): > > Not likely in East Texas, unless Southeast Texas was different than Deep East Texas. The only academic achievement that I remember being recognized for was winning the FFA history contest. I don’t know… I grew up in SW Houston and went to school in a school district that wasn’t HISD, and I got several trophies for academic competitions of various kinds… and this was middle school in the mid-80s (1984-1986). My pet theory is that Sheldon grew up somewhere not too far east of Houston- like Liberty, Winnie or maybe Anahuac. They’re close enough for him to have been born in Galveston, far enough east to be “East Texas”, and close enough for Sheldon and Howard to drive there from the JSC after Howard’s speech. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2014, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/42 "2014-03-15T18:10:56Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Anyone else notice the gun cabinet in the hallway of Ms. Cooper’s house? Think I saw 4 long guns, but didn’t get to identify any of them. I’m pretty sure one was a Browning semiauto shotgun. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2014, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/43 "2014-03-15T18:29:47Z")
I thought the Sheldon/Mother storyline was hilarious, and the Raj/Mystery storyline was completely lame. So, on average, the episode was just okay. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2014, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/44 "2014-03-15T18:47:29Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > Terrible episode. Unfortunately, I’m just watching out of inertia. > > BTW people were total jerks towards Raj This is how it’s been for me for a couple seasons now. It’s sad how much the characters have changed in to caricatures of themselves. Sheldon has gone from “too smart for the crowd” to “semi-functionable social retard” Raj went from “overwhelmed foeign shy kid who’s too scared to talk to women” to “effeminate semi-gay” Penny went from “too hot for these guys but they took me in and they’re cute and sweet in their own way” to “borderline alcoholic who mooches off of her idolizes her friends” The only ones who have grown positively are Howard (tries to hard love guy to calmed down married one) Amy (robot freud thing with Penny to mature woman), and Leonard (shy scared awkward kid to a more confident proud nerd). The plots are whatever, those come and go in TV all the time…but the characters are the ones who changed and narry for the better ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2014, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/45 "2014-03-15T18:55:43Z")
Unaired pilot: [http://video.anyfiles.pl/videos.jsp?id=78111&pos=1136](http://video.anyfiles.pl/videos.jsp?id=78111&pos=1136) I have never seen it before. I am glad they went the other way. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2014, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/46 "2014-03-15T19:45:09Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > This. > > As much of this season has been, IMO. > > Is this what the next three years of the show has in store? Remember the last 2 or 3 years of The Office? They were a disaster. I guess Hollywood TV shows just have a desire to stay on 2 or 3 years after they jump the shark to cash in as much money as possible. I’m done with this show. It has turned into a complete piece of shit. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/47 "2014-03-16T01:34:29Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Penny went from “too hot for these guys but they took me in and they’re cute and sweet in their own way” to “borderline alcoholic who mooches off of her idolizes her friends” I’m fed up of reading this on here. If you think she is even “borderline” alcoholic then you have never dealt with an actual alcoholic. She’s not even close. Penny likes to drink. Penny gets drunk. Penny jokes about being drunk. This does not make her anywhere close to being an alcoholic. It makes her 20-something. Seriously though. This thread. Fucking hell, you guys really know how to suck the fun out of something, don’t you? ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/48 "2014-03-16T01:44:06Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > Sheldon grew up near enough to Houston to be taken there to be tested to find out if he was crazy or not. NASA has their manned space facility there, it’s called the Johnson Space Center. Gemini, Apollo, and Shuttle missions were controlled from there. Astronauts lived in suburbs there. Flight directors, controllers, and rocket scientists lived there too. So I can easily imagine lots of science fair types of activities happening there. And you would be correct. The schools in metro Houston along the Gulf Freeway are generally VERY good and academically rigorous. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/49 "2014-03-16T01:47:55Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Unaired pilot: [http://video.anyfiles.pl/videos.jsp?id=78111&pos=1136](http://video.anyfiles.pl/videos.jsp?id=78111&pos=1136) > > I have never seen it before. I am glad they went the other way. After watching that, which I also have never seen before, I’m glad they went the other way too. Any idea who the two actresses were? The one who played the female nerd looked sort of familiar. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/50 "2014-03-16T01:54:07Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Ooh, a _Demon with a Glass Hand_ reference, impressive. If Sheldon had been there, he’d have surely pointed out that it was filmed at the Bradbury Building in Los Angeles, which, although not named for noted science fiction author Ray Bradbury, is nonetheless significant because it was also later used in the filming of _Blade Runner_. But he wasn’t. > > And I totally [called it](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=661142) on Amy Farrah Fowler winning a Nobel Prize _and_ Penny becoming a famous actress. Yeah, but a TRUE geek would know that the title of the other Harlan Ellison _Outer Limits_ episode is “Soldier”, not “THE Soldier”. BBT loses points for that one. The Bradbury Building was used for lots of other TV shows and movies, too. Notably the original **D.O.A.** , which has its climax there. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/51 "2014-03-16T01:54:09Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > I’m fed up of reading this on here. If you think she is even “borderline” alcoholic then you have never dealt with an actual alcoholic. She’s not even close. > > Penny likes to drink. Penny gets drunk. Penny jokes about being drunk. This does not make her anywhere close to being an alcoholic. > > It makes her 20-something. > > Seriously though. This thread. Fucking hell, you guys really know how to suck the fun out of something, don’t you? Thank you. Penny just drinks a lot. Believe it or not, you can do that and not be an alcoholic, or even close to one. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/52 "2014-03-16T01:55:33Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > Any idea who the two actresses were? The one who played the female nerd looked sort of familiar. [Iris Bahr](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2176186/combined) played Gilda. Amanda Walsh played Katie. ---
**Author:** ![TexCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/texcat/32/9041_2.png) [@TexCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TexCat)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/53 "2014-03-16T04:37:31Z")
I remember having this problem when Sheldon saw Santa Claus at Baybrook mall. That’s at least a 4 hour drive from any place that I would call East Texas. I thought it was just a problem with Californians not realizing that Houston is not East Texas, but Jim Parsons is from Spring; he should know better. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/54 "2014-03-16T05:12:05Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > [Iris Bahr](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2176186/combined) played Gilda. Amanda Walsh played Katie. Thanks, **GuanoLad**! ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/55 "2014-03-16T06:16:13Z")
> [@TexCat](#): > > I remember having this problem when Sheldon saw Santa Claus at Baybrook mall. That’s at least a 4 hour drive from any place that I would call East Texas. I thought it was just a problem with Californians not realizing that Houston is not East Texas, but Jim Parsons is from Spring; he should know better. I live about ninety minutes west of Houston. I agree with you here. He clearly is from somewhere in southeast Houston. They keep saying he is from East Texas, which is generally an area north of Houston and east of Dallas. No place in metro Houston would be called East Texas. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/56 "2014-03-16T06:50:13Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > I live about ninety minutes west of Houston. I agree with you here. He clearly is from somewhere in southeast Houston. They keep saying he is from East Texas, which is generally an area north of Houston and east of Dallas. No place in metro Houston would be called East Texas. It says here that he was born, at least, in Galveston: > **[Sheldon Cooper](https://bigbangtheory.fandom.com/wiki/Sheldon_Cooper)** > > "I apologize if I haven't been the friend you deserve. But I want you to know, in my way, I love you all." ―Sheldon Cooper to his friends, The Stockholm Syndrome Sheldon Lee\[1\] Cooper,\[2\] B.Sc., M.Sc., M.A., Ph.D., Sc.D.,\[3\] is a Caltech theoretical... ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/57 "2014-03-16T12:12:22Z")
> [@TexCat](#): > > I remember having this problem when Sheldon saw Santa Claus at Baybrook mall. That’s at least a 4 hour drive from any place that I would call East Texas. Not too long for a day trip in that part of the country. For some reason I thought the Coopers were from Beaumont. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/58 "2014-03-16T12:15:55Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > The wife is positive that Bernadette has gone down a cup size. Anybody else think so? Looked to me like she just did up a couple more buttons on her cardigan. Maybe Melissa Rauch has been getting uncomfortable with the “noise-cancelling breasts” stuff? ---
**Author:** ![Tully\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7ab992/32.png) [@Tully\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tully_Mars)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/59 "2014-03-16T15:23:43Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Not too long for a day trip in that part of the country. > > For some reason I thought the Coopers were from Beaumont. I remember Sheldon saying something about his hometown having a large population of Vietnamese fishermen, which made me think Beaumont or Port Arthur. They mention East Texas quite often, and as someone who grew up behind the [The Pine Curtain](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Texas#The_Pine_Curtain), I would not tend to consider Houston or its suburbs “East Texas”. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2014, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607/60 "2014-03-16T18:34:27Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Unaired pilot: [http://video.anyfiles.pl/videos.jsp?id=78111&pos=1136](http://video.anyfiles.pl/videos.jsp?id=78111&pos=1136) > > I have never seen it before. I am glad they went the other way. Thanks for posting that link. I quite enjoyed the unaired pilot. It would have been a different show had they gone that direction. Katie would have been a darker and edgier character than Penny. Sheldon wold have been much different. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-march-13-2014-the-mommy-observation/683607.md?page=4)