^ this
Sheldon may be quirky, but his quirkiness has logic and is predictable. Much better than most “normal people”, IMO.
Chuck Lorrie is a god of sitcoms. Just for TBBT and 2.5 men he should be in the pantheon, but there was also Dharma and Greg. Unfortunately, Mike and Molly is not of the same quality.
You can always tell a Lorrie sitcom. The jokes have the rhythm and crispness that no other sitcoms can approach, and the timing is usually impeccable.
I didn’t realize he was also responsible for Mike & Molly.
I tried but could never get into that show.
It was mostly because of Molly’s mother and sister. They just seemed unrealistic to me. Plus they seemed (insert about 100 negative adjectives here).
Holy shit, I didn’t know I had changed my username!
This is me, 100%.
Disagree, then agree.
It has nothing to do with Sheldon’s nerdiness or geek interests. The other guys in the show are also nerdy with geek interests and they don’t make me want to kick my tv. The “I knew many Sheldons in college [and fucking Christ I couldn’t stand them]” is 100% about his complete social retardedness combined with complete arrogance that he is better/smarter than everyone else. Fuck the fuck OFF. The most common IRL example I can give were CompSci or Engineering nerds who would be great at math, physics &/or programming, but couldn’t understand (or find) symbolism/allusions in literature, understand that someone can have a completely different stance that was also reached after much thought and analysis (no, not everyone who disagrees with you is stupid or ignorant! :eek: ) and at 20, were still completely incapable of constructing a thesis statement or even knowing basic grammar*.
But conveniently, those were just stupid bullshit classes, unlike math/physics/programming; those are the actual classes/areas that are important and are a valid measure of intelligence. Sure is convenient that valid measures of intelligence just happen to be the exact subjects you excel at, and that all the things you reeeeaaaalllly suck at just happen to be bullshit. :rolleyes:
However, I do agree with you inasmuch as I think BBT’s humor appears to be geeky, but under the surface seems to be laughing AT geeks/nerds instead of WITH them. It feels like a lot of non-geeks who are making fun of nerds while pretending to be like them (unlike things like Galaxy Quest, which poked fun at scifi/Trek fans with genuine affection).
- I mean basic, folks. As a writing tutor, I had someone who did not understand why the following was a sentence fragment: “Dante Alighieri, who was born in 1265.”
Or jump his bones just to show what it’s all about…which is why I’m glad they brought in AmyFF and seem to be headed in that direction with her. The Raj Incident was awkward enough.
As for the OP, the answer is reflected in the rest of the cast to some degree. All of them have a power the others rely on, all of them have a unique weakness/kryptonite, all of them have been bullied, and none of them are mean. As someone who has been around mean people, I would hang with good-intentioned abrasiveness any day. Even the uber-annoying roommate agreement is designed around avoiding conflict.
Heck, I didn’t have a car until a few months ago, and I’ve been out of college for at least ten years. That’s not the point. Sheldon isn’t self-sufficient about it, (wasn’t there a scene where he tries to ride the bus but can’t manage due to germophobia,) and can’t admit to his friends that he owes them favors for rides.
I watched that episode and felt “Well, I may not know how to drive - but at least I’m not as bad as that.” 
I think there’s a lot of genuine affection for nerds in this show.
Well of course, he’s a robot.
AFF actor is a self hating nerd.
the show has had on a number of real major scientists, also it has had major scifi personalities that nerds would have very possibly liked.
these in real life nerds or parts of nerd culture are making fun of the extreme ends of a culture or life aspects which is how lots of sitcom works.
Heck, being “that weird and off-putting guy who condescendingly insists your math is in error” is the whole reason Sheldon was able to knowledgeably save Leonard’s life – albeit by putting the elevator out of commission – near the start of their relationship.
You say that like it’s a bad thing. Seriously, I would rather deal with a dozen Sheldon’s and all their quirk than one air-headed Penny anyday. She reminds me of the student that when told literature in the teen library section was alpha by author (which we also had to explain to her) complained that Twilight wasn’t in the S’s.
The only one of the group I wouldn’t want to be around is Leonard. He’s just an asshole. The way he treats women is horrific.
I disagree, she was on NPR’s Science Friday a week or two ago, and she seemed very at ease with her own personal nerdiness, but what has differentiated her from so many others is her ability to NOT make it the focal point of her world. She seems to love the characters, and the show, and also takes pride in the fact that they work hard to get geek culture and touchstones correct.
yet lots of other times the portrayal of him and chemistry isn’t spectacular.
though to be a comedy it has to have elements not realistic so its not a show killer.
Swap physics for theater, and the group could well be my social circle in college. Smart, creative, weird folks hanging out. As oddballs go, Sheldon is essentially harmless.
The thing that baffles me is how Penny can afford an apartment by herself, when she earns minimum wage, while Sheldon and Leonard presumably make more money but have to share.
Yep, after we saw Leonard’s mother, it made a lot more sense. Sheldon is like a male version of Leonard’s mother, but Sheldon has interests similar to Leonard’s.
She earns less than minimum wage, but it if she’s a good waitress, she can make good money in tips. And there has been mention of Leonard and/or Sheldon covering her rent a few times. As well as paying for her food a lot.
That episode was on rerun last night. Perfect timing with this thread.
Seriously? Examples please.
Which is a huge 180 from Sheldon, who uses interviews to pretend that he has no idea what any of this geek stuff is and how dare anyone assume he acts like Sheldon in real life.