TV: The Big Bang Theory fans!

Whovian

Love it.

"I don't say anything. I merely offer you a facial expression that suggests you've gone insane."
"They were threatened by my intelligence and too stupid to know that's why they hated me."
"I'm quite aware of the way humans usually reproduce, which is messy, unsanitary, and involves loud and unnecessary appeals to a deity."

johnqwertyful

Yeah, that's true and all. But I still don't get how being nerdy is funny or entertaining, even if it IS accurate. Shrug.

If you like it, more power to ya, but I guess I just don't "get it". Maybe I don't associate myself as a "nerd"? I'm just a man who likes physics and math and engineering and stuffs.

jtbell

De gustibus non disputandum est, and all that jazz. People can be surprisingly unpredictable in their sense of humor. I like old slapstick stuff like the Three Stooges, and Laurel and Hardy, which don't do anything for my wife. But we both like The Big Bang Theory.

johnqwertyful

Definitely. There have been times I've found things hilarious, no one else seems to find funny. It's usually when it's in real life, situations and the like. This is one of those times it's the other way around. It's fascinating, really.

DaveC426913

Er.... Man likes Three Stooges. Women doesn't.

Who'do thunk that?

dorker

This. Seems to me like all the "jokes" consist of is "WE'RE REFERENCING NERD STUFF, NOW LAUGH!" References by themselves do not make comedy.

DaveC426913

No.
"We're making comments that you recognize and you have also thought. You're not alone! Feel happy that you're part of it!"

Essentially, they're "in-jokes".

When a new PF member says hello, and a veteran welcomes them and asks what kind of fish they like, do you smile? I do. It's an in-joke that I am in on.

genericusrnme

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg4s2-zRAT4

The IT Crowd is better than BBT imo, I've laughed at the IT crowed, I've never laughed at the big bang theory -.-

dorker

I distinctly remember the audience dying in laughter at Sheldon saying his Nintendo 64 arrived, and other such "jokes".

genericusrnme

/canned laughter

Janus

My wife and daughter are exceptions to that generalization; they both love the Three Stooges.

rootX

Everyone got his own taste..

I get bored after seeing repetitive humor. Now, I rarely watch Big Bang but whenever I watch, I do find it entertaining and humorous.

Ouabache

Yeah, his antics are hilarious. And from a biologist's perspective, it seems
I'm nerdy enough to know what Sheldon was trying to say
before he said it. That tapioca is extracted from the root of Cassava (Manihot esculenta). The unprocessed root contains cyanogenic glucosides that break down to hydrogen cyanide which can be lethal when ingested. You need to process the root properly to obtain the edible tapioca starch.

If you'd like to learn more about the writing for BBT. On Neil DeGrasse Tyson's Star Talk radio program, he interviews producer & writer Bill Prady and physics consultant David Salzberg (professor of physics, UCLA). The podcasts are available and a good listen.

Nano-Passion

Sheldon's ludicrous laugh gives meaning to life. It teaches us to...

Ruro

I agree that it does get boring after a while as the jokes are quite repetitive. It's still pretty funny for a sitcom. I watch it time to time when I'm bored. c: And Sheldon is awesome!

physicsboard

I find BBT very offensive. Millions across the country laugh at Sheldon's behavior, which is essentially that of someone with autism. If someone tried to do the same thing with downs syndrome it would be shunned and pulled from the air immediately.

The show is also extremely close to nerd blackface and I personally feel like this show has gone way too far in establishing what a 'nerd' is and does. People are not archetypes.

Ivan Seeking

Just out of curiosity, how many episodes have you watched? I ask because I found it to be somewhat offensive at first. But on a second pass I got hooked and now love the show.

As for Sheldon, I can understand the reference to autism but I think you are making too much of it. Part of the reason I find the show funny is that I can often relate to Sheldon. In fact my wife has taken great pleasure at pointing out all of the similarities between the Sheldon character and me. And I certainly don't have autism. But I do have a physics degree. And, I might add, some of the intellectual games people have created here at PF over the years had rules that were eerily similar in complexity to Sheldon's rules for games, which is a running joke on the show. So while the Sheldon character is obviously an amplified composite of nerdism that plays into various stereotypes, I think the show works because they so often hit the mark.

Here is the one that really set me back. I only noticed this one recently. When we have company, it bothers me if I can't sit on my regular spot on the couch!