‘The Big Bang Theory’ season 7, episode 13 review: Are Leonard and Penny still together?
“The Big Bang Theory” Thursday night brought us many things: There was some silly comedy, some guest stars (including Josh Peck), and also the opportunity to see Sheldon disperse facts about yoga that were both funny and disturbing. But above all, it managed to do a little of what season 7 has done best so far: Place different characters together and see what happens.
It’s interesting in a way when the best stories of the episode are not even the one that is advertised the moment. Finding out that Leonard and Penny were still together was predictable, and then having the two argue over whether or not he supports her was the show beating the same drum that it has a number of times before. We know that these two are a dysfunctional couple, and that is probably going to stay that way until the end of the show. Seeing Sheldon instead spend time actually identifying with Penny was refreshing, especially since it was a different side to their friendship.
Meanwhile, seeing Amy try to rely on Howard and Raj to get her help her with a colleague in Burt who was interested in her also had its own merits, mostly in that these two tried to be so emphatic to the guy that they fell into a trap of actually hanging out with them on their own. While it was not particularly hilarious in the same way as some of the other stories, it was something that caught our attention early and kept us focused.
Finally, we turn to Bernadette and Stuart, who worked together (at times) to try to get her back a rare comic for Howard that she damaged with her curling iron. This was mostly funny since these two characters could not be greater extremes, and Peck helped by playing the d-bag perfectly that Bernadette wanted to tell off, but also needed in order to get what she wanted. Let it also be said that Stuart is starting to become our favorite character on the show; we know that he’s better in this sort of recurring role so that you are excited to see him, and we are always happy when he’s around. He’s one of the few guys who is funny without being crass in the same sort of way; he almost doesn’t have time to think about dating thanks to his own misery.
All in all, a very solid episode with some comedy and unique storytelling. It’s not necessarily a classic, but it is above average for the season. Grade: B+.