TV: The Big Bang Theory fans!

oddcitations

Newest Big Bang Theory episode coming out January 6th! :] I am EXCITED.

I'm not a fan of Amy Farrah Fowler, to be honest, and I'm not sure why. Perhaps it's the depth of her voice, or the way her dry humour doesn't at all click with me, or just the fact she's with Sheldon and I secretly believe Sheldon isn't emotional enough to be with anyone. OR MAYBE, it's because they are so similar that they don't make for the couple people expect to see on TV.

turbo

On the advice of a friend, I tried watching an episode just now. It was pathetic. The triggering of a canned laugh-track every 2 seconds was bad enough (and irritating as hell!), but the dialogue and visuals were even worse. Does anybody watch this tripe?

Saladsamurai

Just watched a little bit myself. I wasn't as disgusted as you seem to be turbo. Maybe because I have seen 3 1/2 men before (I believe it's the same writer) so I knew what to expect. It is what it is.

Jimmy Snyder

I watched a short segment in which there was an argument about string theory vs loop quantum gravity. It was obvious that the script was looked at by real physicists. That's impressive. Unfortunately, it couldn't make up for the abysmal acting and so I won't watch any more.

Ivan Seeking

Funny you would mention that. Sara Gilbert only makes a few appearances in the show and her acting IS terrible; esp so in that scene. Unfortunately she also carried the scene. It is generally much better; over-the-top to be sure, and some scenes don't make it, but this show is a classic. The more I watched, the more I liked it.

DaveC426913

Seriously guys? You're watching a sitcom, and you're judging it on its acting?

Name three sitcoms with good acting.

NobodySpecial

Are we allowed to include the BBC or is that cheating ?

Ivan Seeking

In my view, the Sheldon characters sometimes reaches the level of comic genius. At times he completely bombs, but when he gets it right [and the writing is there], it can be priceless.

It isn't dramatic acting, but it is an art form in its own right. Of everyone on the show, Gilbert has probably been the worst. Simon Helberg [Wolowitz] would be next on my list.

Kunal Nayyar [Raj] isn't great, but he has some great moments. He has delivered some of the best lines of the show. Laurie Metcalf [Sheldon's mom] is great as always.

DaveC426913

Cheating.

N.American and recent.

Ivan Seeking

Cheers is the first example to come to mind. In kind, Frasier is another easy one. The character Niles was top-notch. A few more would be, Northern Exposure, MASH, and going waaaaay back, All in the Family.

"Recent" is an unreasonable and aritificial constraint. Great shows are not terribly common. There has always been a lot of crap on TV.

NobodySpecial

Although drama on TV has got very good - West Wing, House, Lie to Me, are better than the cinema has produced in recent years.

DaveC426913

True. True.


I don't think it's unreasonable. To include sitcoms for all time is to expect that TBBT must compare to all-time untouchable classics such as MASH (the very one I thought of). TBBT falling short of these classics does not relegate it to tripe. To relegate it to tripe it must fall below some sort of current average.

Ivan Seeking

The joke's on you. They don't use a laugh track. They have a live audience.

Ivan Seeking

Well, I can say that very few sit-coms really get to me, and I just named all [or most] of them. To me, TBBT has some of the best lines in TV history. I wouldn't put it on par with MASH, but MASH was a sit-com with a basis in tragedy, so it always had deeper elements that few sit-coms would ever touch. But for a smart and light-hearted sit-com, I would put TBBT at the top of my lifetime list. Frasier would probably be my next choice, but the physics-based humor in TBBT easily wins the day. Next would probably be Northern Exposure.

Ivan Seeking

Don't even get me started. My wife and I were absolute addicts. And it has been thrilling to see it all come true.

Jimmy Snyder

Of course, it's just a matter of taste. However, here is a short list of ones I liked.
Seinfeld - Jason Alexander. Also Bette Midler was in one episode and was great.
The Dick Van Dyke Show - Mary Tyler Moore.
The Mary Tyler Moore Show - Just about everyone. Moore, Ed Asner, Ted Knight, Betty White, Clorox Bleachman, etc.

Vanadium 50

It's hard to forget Chuckles Bites The Dust. "A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants."